by | November 16, 2012

5th Generation Parker reveals all

my new ‘fountain’ pen – without the hassle of an ink pot!

I certainly didn’t pop along to check out Parker’s revolutionary 5th Technology  (an entirely new way of writing with fountain pens – totally unlike those that would leak in class) to find out more about my personality!  Elaine Quigley, the UK’s leading graphologist (handwriting analysis expert – to you and me), was on hand to scrutinise our script.   Having never had this done, I was pretty excited.  I sat down to write with my rather beautiful pearl lacquer Parker pen.

A little about the pens.  If you’re around my age, Parker pens were de rigueur at school.  Cartridges leaked or simply got stuck in the barrel and … who remembers filling pens from ink pots?  The mess, the blotting paper….even then, the ink sometimes just didn’t flow.

redundant ink pots

The pen people have excelled themselves to compete in a world where no-one writes enough anymore.  The PARKER 5th Technology ink refill doesn’t smudge and is unaffected by temperature or pressure changes so won’t leak, even on a flight. It has a flexible tip which adapts almost instantly to your natural writing style. Presents for godchildren just got a whole load easier.

Elaine Quigley, Graphologist

Back to me.  Without boring you with the details, it is eerie how spot on Elaine’s analysis is.  My positives she lists as independent, inquisitive and ambitious but also couples these attributes with a little too idealistic, non-committal when not interested and unpredictable, ‘even puzzling at times’!  Chatting to her on the phone, she told me that she works with all sorts.  Brides to be, potential employees and has even analysised Kate Middleton’s writing ( July 2011).  ‘It’s basically body language on paper’ she explained.  ‘I have been doing this for more than 30 years but I am still having to explain that it is a true science.’  And it is technology and science that now bring us a beautiful pen which looks like a fountain pen but curiously isn’t.

 

IM Premium Parker 5th Generation pen

5th Generation Parkers pens cost from £57.              Elaine Quigley charges £75 for an analysis: 01753 886412

COMPETITION:  And the wonderful Parker pen people have given me an IM Premium PARKER 5th Collection Deep Gun Metal Twin Chiselled pen (worth £57) for one of you lucky readers to win.  All you have to do is sign up to my blog (top right of homepage),  follow me on Twitter and RT the picture of my new pen and notebook on Friday 30th November. The lucky winner will be selected randomly on Saturday 1st Dec 2012.

 

 

 

 

5 Comments

Filed under fabulous finds, shopping

by | November 14, 2012

in awe of Rust and Bone

Rust and Bone

A whale trainer meets a nightclub bouncer and they fall in love.  The end.  That’s how to make Jacques Audiard’s beautifully directed film, Rust and Bone (De rouille et d’os) sound dull.  In reality, it is anything but.

Stephanie (Oscar-winning actress Marion Cotillard) suffers a horrific accident and, understandably, feels her life can’t continue.  And without indulging her in useless sympathy, Ali (Matthias Schoenaerts) offers her a friendship worth living for.  But Ali can’t offer everything.  The ex-boxer and his five year old son move in with his sister, who becomes more of a parent than he is.  His life is full of one-night-stands with very little luck on the job front either.

The film twists and turns, full of drama until the final scene.  Cotillard’s performance is mind-blowing as she puts her life back together piece by piece. And there is no doubt the beautiful cinematography and emotional music enhances the themes of nature and destiny leaving the viewer in absolute awe.

A must see.

Rust and Bone won the best film prize at the London film festival and is now on sale on Amazon.

 

Leave a Comment

Filed under fabulous finds, film

by | November 14, 2012

the 30 minute sweat at =Results

=Results, 53 Muswell Hill Rd N10

So this is how my head works.  I see a friend in a great pair of jeans and I can’t help myself asking which brand they are.  And then I catch sight of a fabulous cross-body bag worn by a passerby on the other side of the road.  Crossing the road, I’m almost (but not quite as that would be creepy) jogging behind her to try and work out which bag it is…

the gloves are off at =Results, N10

So, it won’t come as a surprise that last week I eye up my friend, working out that she has not only lost weight but toned up considerably since our last cocktail.  What’s her secret?  I’m dying to know.

She’s a sharer so reveals all.  It turns out she’s been doing a lot of sweating at a local (to her) gym called =Results.  It works exactly as it sounds, her efforts have =ed some pretty impressive results.

I was curious enough to head up to Muswell Hill to meet (and sweat with) the founder of =Results, a pretty energetic man called Browne.  A few years ago, while working as a personal trainer in an LA Fitness gym he realised that there was a gap in the market for a time-efficient ultra-effective work-out.  Not only do his clients love his manner and the privacy of a empty gym, but it sounds like they make some serious fitness progress without feeling tied into enormous monthly gym membership payments.

skinnier-toned-friend with Browne giving it some welly

He tells me the sessions only last 30 minutes, cost £25 and that every single one of his clients has a bespoke programme which challenges them to their max. My eyebrows raised, I was skeptical, how many calories can you really burn in a mere 30 minutes?

Browne had me switching machines and weights without so much as a breather.  Skinnier-toned-friend seemed to find the work-out a piece of cake while I was begging to stop.  The pace meant that there was time for each and every one of my muscles to burn  and, of course, there was less opportunity for tongue-wagging than my regular work-out.  Crawling back to the car, I acknowledged that a regular session with Browne probably would equal some pretty dramatic results. Oh and the 30 minutes feels a lot longer than it sounds.

Browne owns and runs 2  =Results gyms: 

53 Muswell Hill Road N10 & 181 Priory Road Muswell Hill N8

call 07793 600213 or email: info@equalsresults.co.uk

 

Leave a Comment

Filed under friends, health and fitness

by | November 13, 2012

Fay Maschler’s curated dinner at The Cadogan

The Cadogan threshold

I’m a sucker for a little history, particularly scandalous naughtiness from the 1800s.  So, I was delighted to learn that The Cadogan hotel is infamous for the arrest of Oscar Wilde when he was charged with ‘committing acts of gross indecency’ (we need know no more) in their room no. 118.  Found guilty, he then had to serve two years of hard labour and The Cadogan, the epitome of genteel English luxury, still dines out on this story. Quite brilliant.

Mr Oscar Wilde was rather wild.

Located on Sloane Street, I couldn’t quite believe that I had never even heard of this hotel, let alone visited it.  But now I had the perfect reason; Fay Machler, the Evening Standard’s food critic of whom I am a HUGE fan, together with her sister, Beth Coventry, ex-head chef of many gastropubs and now owner of The Wells Tavern in Hampstead, have curated a menu as part of Great Taste at The Cadogan.

Is it just me, or is everyone curating something at the moment?  I’d even go as far as saying that the verb, to curate, has become the new marketing buzzword.  Make-up, DJ playlists, jewellery collections… you name it, have been curated by someone with a more impressive Twitter following than the brand in question.  Maybe that’s the only criteria ones needs to curate?

Earl Cadogan’s quintessentially English dining room

Back to Fay’s menu and our dinner.  I had asked my other blonde to join me on this occasion.  We relished the idea of leaving the dishes in the sink and slipping into a LBD before hot footing it to Knightbridge.  And the hotel, on arrival, felt beautifully grand with its oak floor and elaborate cornicing.

However, the atmosphere in the restaurant was not quite so thrilling.  In fact, I think it would be more accurate to say that it lacked any atmosphere. The Great Taste Awards are a fabulous way of showcasing award-winning British producers from across the UK but… really, is it necessary to stack them on an Ikea-like bookshelf in this beautiful period room?  And what on earth was that naff background music in this quintessentially English dining room owned by Earl Cadogan?

award-winning corned beef hash at The Cadogan

We found ourselves almost apologizing to our rather earnest waiter as we made our choices.  With only four tables taken in the cordoned off dining room (so that we weren’t aware of how empty the restaurant was?), I was surprised that our starters took a good forty minutes to arrive.  But, when the food did arrive, it was simply outstanding.  Jerusalem artichoke soup with griddled Irish soda bread for me and my other blonde was blown away by her choice of corned beef hash.  The menu details which of the Great Taste winners have been included as ingredients, and the corned beef from McCartney’s of Moira was multiple starred as temptation.

fish pie with award-winning smoked haddock from The Cornish Fishmonger

For my main, I devoured the fish pie which was cooked in the most delicious bouillabaisse broth (think fish soup in South of France) with a leek and potato topping.  And my desert of gooseberry and elderflower ice cream with shortbread went the same direction.  The quality of this cuisine was something else.

And because the meal was such a knock out, we were eager to meet Oliver Lesnik, the hotel’s head chef.  Unfortunately he was too busy in the kitchen to pop up and say hello, despite the four tables now sitting empty, but the slightly irritating background music was still going strong.  One of Oliver’s sous-chefs did approach us as we were leaving so I asked him if the restaurant is always this empty and he confirmed, that it is.

With all that superfluous marketing over-inflating non-worthy products out there, here is one which needs more hype.  The food can’t possibly disappoint even the most discerning foodie (after all it’s got Fay’s stamp of approval), it is extremely reasonably priced and, with a busy dining room, The Cadogan might just get the buzz it needs.

2 courses:  £23   3 courses:  £28  

Great Taste at The Cadogan in Knightsbridge SW1     Reservations:  0800 023 5445

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leave a Comment

Filed under food