Scottish Ballet's Highland Fling

  Photograph by Graham Wylie.  

It was Mama Pom's 60th birthday a couple of weeks ago and we went to see Scottish Ballet's latest production, Highland Fling. I enjoyed it so much I contacted their Communications manager and blogger Ann for some photos to share. 

The ballet is based on a traditional ballet La Sylphide, but has been given a contemporary adaptation by Matthew Bourne,  a choreographer who was won many awards. Now i'll be the first to admit that my dance knowledge is virtually non-existent, and sometimes I don't really 'get' it. I find with things like this its always good to get a programme and have a wee read of the synopsis, so you have an idea of the storyline before it starts!

 Photograph by Graham Wylie.  

The ballet is a love story, set in Scotland (funnily enough). This means that there were some great sets and costumes, all retro and tartan.  I particularly liked the opening scene set in the toilets of a club! Without spoiling the story too much, it is about a guy called James-

Photograph by Graham Wylie.  

who spends the whole time in a kilt, and is engaged and then married to a girl called Effie. However, a Sylph comes along and steals his heart-

Photograph by Graham Wylie.  

The show is full of mesmerising dances, great music, and was thoroughly enjoyable. It was a perfect birthday night out for my mum, which my whole family enjoyed. I have only been to the ballet a few times, the last time before this being at a blogger event kindly put on by Scottish Ballet. Unfortunately at the time I was struggling a bit with things and didn't blog about it or express my gratitude, but it was amazing. Having been to these productions I would definitely recommend a trip to the ballet to anyone, and am already planning to go and see Scottish Ballet's Hansel and Gretel which is on in December. As well as this, I want to try and go to the theatre more generally, as its nice to get out and do different things, get my culture on!

If you live in Edinburgh Highland Fling is on at the Festival Theatre from the 22nd-25th of May, and there are still tickets available.

Have you been to the ballet?

MUA Power Pout Broken Hearted

I know these MUA Power Pout's are old news in the blogging world, but I bought one the other day and thought i'd share my views. I got the shade Broken Hearted, a darkish pink. 

First up, it was really easy to apply thanks to the big chunky tip. It went on smoothly and has a nice zingy menthol fragrance. The Power Pouts are described as a lip treatment tint and balm, which gives moisturisation. I would agree with this, as I didn't end up with the dreaded dry lips that I seem to get from alot of lip colours this time of year. I don't know if its the weather, or the air con at work,but my lips have been horrible recently, I think I've tried every lip product going.

I terms of colour, it is a deep pink, with a bit of shimmer. Now when it comes to lips, I am a bit afraid of bold colours and end up going for neutral shades. This colour is a good one for me, as its quite bold but not scary. I need to start building my confidence when it comes to lip colours. 

First step, a lip photo-

First ever on my blog! Overall, I am really impressed with this Power Pout, and for £3 I will certainly be investing in some more. Maybe i'll even go brighter. They are available in most Superdrug stores and on the MUA website.

Have you tried the MUA Power Pouts?

Foot treats from Palmer's

Hey! Its been a while! Since I last blogged my life has been a bit hectic, I finally got a job back in Scotland, and have moved in with my boyfriend. Everything is finally settling down a bit and I am feeling less stressed about everything so am now ready to give this blog a bit of love.

As a nurse, I am on my feet all day, and they end up achy, dry and generally horrible. I have tried multiple products to try and make them more presentable, and when I spotted these offerings from Palmer's I had to try them out. I love all the cocoa butter range from Palmer's, so was interested to give these a go.

I probably didn't need both of these, but hey, couldn't resist. Both of them have peppermint oil, a popular addition to foot creams. They are both supposed to soften and soothe feet, and moisturise rough skin. The heel repair is obviously aimed at dry and cracked heels, and the foot magic is more of an all over moisturiser.

The foot magic is quite unlike any other foot cream I have used before. It is quite oily, and a little goes a long way! I squirted out too much the first time I used it, and ended up having to wipe some off my feet. I do really like the formula though, it feels much more moisturising than normal foot creams. This one is ideal for an all over deep moisturising of the feet, and would work well when applied before bed and covered in socks for a night long foot mask. This is a little messy to apply due to its oily nature.

The heel repair is a more solid balm which comes in a stick that pushes up. It is really easy to apply, as you just run the stick over problem areas, which for me are my heels and balls of my feet. Then a quick rub in and you are done.

I have used both products for a few days now, and already my previously scabby feet feel softer. I think out of the two products I prefer the heel repair, but they both have their merits, and the foot magic is definitely better for all over the foot use. I like these products for a quick daily foot fix, alongside other product that I use for a more intense pedicure treatment, which I will blog about another time.

Now I bought these products in two different Superdrug's, and each branch only had one of the products. Being a terrible blogger I didn't note the price down, but I think the foot magic was £3.99 and the heel repair £4.99, or thereabouts. I can't find them on the superdrug website, so maybe they are quite new stock. I did find the foot magic on feelunique.

What do you use to keep your feet in check?

p.s with the demise of google reader you can follow my blog on bloglovin-

Thai Tuesday at Chaophraya

A while ago I was invited to try out Thai Tuesday at Chaophraya, a new Thai restaurant in Glasgow. As I am working away in England just now it took a while for me to be able to go, but last night I went along with my friend Laura. The thai tuesday deal involves buying an Asian platter for two (£9.95 each) and you each get a free cocktail worth £7.50. We were both really excited to try out the restarant, as we love eating out, and have both been to Thailand.

First impressions of Chaophraya were great, it is so elegant and opulent inside. In a former life, the building was part of the Academy of Music and Drama, and my own Mama Poms worked there before I was born, teaching German to opera singers. Remnants of this past can be seen on the staircases, as there are plaques with the names of famous composers. More recently, the building was a cheapy shop, selling lots of random household items and clothes. I always thought that was such a waste of a lovely building, so I am glad to see it is now being used in a way befitting of its grandeur.We ate in the restaurant part, but there is also a bar downstairs called Palm Sugar, and private dining rooms. In fact, the place is huge, and spans four floors apparently! Would have liked to have had a good wander around but I am sure that would have attracted some odd looks!

First up, the cocktails. Laura went for a Siam Smile, which has vanilla vodka, passionfruit and pineapple juice topped with champagne. She enjoyed it, but it was a little too tart for my sweet tooth.

I went for an Oriental Mojito, which is a Thai twist on the classic cocktail. Mojito's are my all time favourite cocktail, and this one also included my other favourite drink, Strawberry and Lime Rekorderlig cider! The cocktail has your classic Mojito ingredients of rum, sugar, lime juice and mint leaves, but with the added flavour of strawberries and the cider. It was lovely. A refreshing and fruity drink, with the usual crispness of a Mojito. I definitely want to have this again!

Food wise, we got the Asian Platter, which had chicken satay, prawn tempura, chicken spring rolls, marinated pork and duck salad. I love a platter at the best of times, and this one was a cracker. A great mix of flavours, with just the right amount of spice.

We also added some grilled pork skewers which were also scrummy!

Overall, I loved Chaophraya and can't wait to go back. I don't think the Thai Tuesday deal is still running, but their normal prices are very reasonable and it feels like such a treat when eating in such plush surroundings. I would definitely recommend that if you have a restaurant locally you try it out. There are currently branches in Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester. You can find more details on their website here.

Bargain Enrapture Hairstylers

Just a quick post to let you all know that I stumbled upon a bargain! Enrapture hairstylers are reduced at Argos just now. You can get the heated rollers for £39.99, the totem styler for £29.99 and the waver tong for £29.98.

This is quite a saving, as they all normally retail around £75. As you can see, I got the rollers and the totem styler. I am not sure how long they are reduced for, so I would get in quick. They are not available for delivery, but I got them both at my local store no bother. These would be great Christmas lists. I will review them both once I have had a play about with them.

Have you tried any of the enrapture stylers?

Cath Kidston Purses

 Look at my pretties! I have been a fan of Cath Kidston for years now, before she was 'cool', ha! I have wanted one of her purses for ages, and last month the time came to treat myself. I went for the Trailing Ditzy folded zip wallet, which was £26. When I started transferring all my cards over from my old Primark number, I discovered that I had so many cards that they wouldn't all fit without the purse being super fat. So, I got Kensington Rose pocket pure for £4.50, to hold the cards I don't use so much.

The purse does have quite a few card slots, so most people will manage ok! I have kept my bank cards, and ID and things in the main purse, for easy access.

There is a double coin section, and a section for notes, so plenty room for all your cash.

The coin pure is just a simple little purse, which fits cards perfectly. It would also be perfect for a night out when you only need money, cash card and ID!

Do you like Cath Kidston?

Nailing it! - Fimo slices

A while back I went a bit mad on ebay buying nail art supplies. You can get some really cheap nail art goodies on there, usually from Hong Kong or China. At first I was a bit unsure of buying things from so far away, but so far I have had no bother at all. So, I thought I would start a bit of a series showing you the nail art supplies I have bought, and where I got them from. I have noticed lately there are more nail art goodies available on the high street, but they are usually pretty expensive, so ebay is a much better option. First up, Fimo slices! These can instantly make a manicure look amazing, and are so simple to use.

Instead of buying pre-sliced fimo, it is much cheaper to buy a big bundle of fimo canes and chop them yourself. I got mine from this seller, for a very reasonable £3.55 for 100 including postage. As they are coming from Hong Kong they take a couple of weeks to come, but thats no real biggie considering the bargain. As I am a geek, I bought a storage jar with different layers and divided the canes up according to type.

First up, animals. There are little Hello Kitty lookalikes (which I love), bunnies, chicks (ideal for easter) and are they pandas?

 Next, probably the most popular fimo designs, fruit. For some reason I divided the fruits into citrus and soft fruits, super geek! These slices make really fun manicures, ideal for summer holidays.

 Lastly, butterflies and flowers, always pretty!

You also get this slightly scary looking blade with the bundle to chop up the canes. It can be a bit tricky getting the slices thin enough, but practice makes perfect. Obviously you need to be really careful with this, as you ain't going to have nice nail art with no fingers left!

Ordering bundles of canes can be a bit of a gamble, as the pics on ebay are only an example, and you get a random selection. So if you want something in particular you are probably better ordering the actual ones you want, which does work out a bit pricier, but still not much.

Have you tried fimo slices?
Would you like to see some fimo NOTD?