Review 2015 No. 2 | Coco Chanel: The Legend and the Life by Justine Picardie

http://www.dressful.com/6922/coco-chanel-the-legend-and-the-life

Picardie's biography of the infamous fashion designer Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel starts well. The opening chapter takes us to the heart of Chanel - on a literary tour of Chanel's private Paris apartment. As the story of Chanel's life and lies (for instance she frequently claimed to be younger than she was), and her ambition to rid herself of her poverty-stricken upbringing, is told. The style is somewhat sycophantic, and the tale and times of Chanel's life tapers off towards the end of the book, mirroring the designer's demise. The result was that, despite interesting anecdotes on her relationships with Misia Sert, Churchill, and other celebs of the time, which went off on extended tangents for many pages, this book became a chore to finish. I'm sorry I can't be more positive. Maybe my mood reflects Chanel's own disappointment with her life, one in which she cut herself free from the Aubazine convent to dedicate her life to fashion, only to simultaneously shatter any permanent familial or romantic connections. 

Ambition and Aspiration | 2015 Reading Challenge and TBR

On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin - I have a slight obsession with butterflies on book covers, and butterflies in general, at the moment.

Coco Chanel: The Legend and the Life, Justine Picault - This is an entrancing read that I found in the library. I'm nearly finished.

Shakespeare, Ivor Brown - This year I am challenging myself to do a Shakespeare course in order to fill some gaps in my literary knowledge. Back to school!

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou - A well renowned autobiography and author. I've never read anything by Angelou and so decided to start in the middle of her series of autobiographies of her life.

From Russia With Love, Ian Fleming - Since getting the entire James Bond box set a year ago I still have 12 of 14 to read. Oops!

The Book Thief, Markus Zusak - I'm bringing some much needed YA into my reading list with this one. It's a classic and widely appreciated so hopefully it won't disappoint!

A Woman in Your Own Right, Anne Dickson - Also with the aim of continual development and learning for life, this is an almost-feminist take on assertiveness training in the 21st Century.

The above represents some of what I hope to achieve in reading this year. I have dropped my reading challenge from 80 as, conversely, the more free time I have the less I seem to read. Now that that minor haul is out of the way, here are my loose reading goals for 2015:

1) At least 52 books/1 per week, to include:

2) At least one back-to-university book (feminist, anthropology, etc.)

3) At least one autobiography (e.g. Coco Chanel).

4) At least one historical non-fiction book (e.g. A History of the World in 100 Objects by Neil MacGregor).

5) At least one back-to-school book/play (e.g. Shakespeare's Hamlet).

6) And, finally...at least one science non-fiction book (e.g. Sherlock Holmes).

What are your reading goals for the year?

Daydreams and Dinner Dates | Photo Vlog

Where are the days in January going? It seems only yesterday that New Year and Hogmanay wound their way round again, so here's a flashback to some of my Yuletide feasting and frivolities...

Check out my fashion, food, film and book posts on my Pinterest page:

https://www.pinterest.com/claremcm/

Review 2015 No. 1 | Girl Online by Zoe Sugg

Image: http://www.zoella.co.uk

Welcome, welcome to 2015 (on the blog that is)! I hope you had a great Christmas and are having a good New Year and all that. Having been sidetracked with a hectic schedule in the final months of 2014 I didn't manage to read much at all, which has lead me to decide to read and review at least 52 books in 2015 (that's at least one blog post a week! :)). Without further ado, seeing as it is the end of the first week, here are my thoughts on Girl Online.

If you are au fait with all things blog/YouTube/book in the world then you'll probably know that on 25th November 2014 Zoe Sugg, or Zoella to her 6 million+ YouTube subscribers, released her first novel, Girl Online. Everything was going well, the book had rave reviews and had the highest ever first-week sales for a debut author (78,109) since records began in 1998. That was until it came out that Zoe hadn't written the book 'on her own'. Zoella and her publishers Penguin Random House eventually confirmed that Girl Online had been ghostwritten.

So now that the elephant, or penguin, in the room has been dealt with I can say that I don't think it matters. Surely the quality and reception the novel receives is more important? The novel is a form of semi-autobiography, telling the story of a female UK blogger who, like Zoella, lives in Brighton. A love story ensues that leads us through the side roads of Brighton and New York and into the mind of a teenage girl dealing with anxiety disorder. I won't spoil any more of the adventure, but I will say that, whether or not she wrote it herself, Zoella came up with the idea and has used her experiences to empower rather than put down young people. For that, I think she deserves credit for creating one of the few Young Adult books worth reading this year.

Reviews and comments below! Cx

Terry's Chocolate Orange Christmas Leftover Muffins

The full title of this inventive recipe is 'Terry's-chocolate-orange-New-Year-sweet-Christmas-leftover-muffins'. By the time Boxing Day rolls in, as do Christmas' survivors, leftover turkey is usually seen as the order of the day. But surely too much credence is given to our seasonal savoury companions - turkeys, geese, duck, pork, usually the preserve of stodgy sandwiches - what of leftover sweets? In the spirit of New Year celebratory baking, and clutching some of the remaining Christmas Terry's chocolate orange, I decided to turn my sweet leftovers into a muffin recipe. As the saying goes, adversity is the mother of invention. And so leftover chocolate was the mother of this invention.

Ingredients (Makes 12)

3/4 Terry's Dark Chocolate Orange

2 large eggs

4oz self-raising flour (or baking powder and plain flour)

4oz caster sugar

4oz soft butter

For decoration (see below)

Method

Preheat oven to Gas Mark 5 (or equivalent)

Cream together the butter and sugar until soft

Add the beaten eggs to the mixture gradually, a bit at a time

Fold in the flour until combined

Chop the chocolate orange segments into chunks

Stir chocolate chunks into the mixture

Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes

Decoration

For decoration I went (again) with leftovers - in the form of glace cherries, mini meringues, chocolate chunks, chocolate stars - so go wild and dangerously and experiment with whatever you happen to have to hand!

Good luck and comment below or tweet your progress!

Christmas Clippings 2014

How did you celebrate? Cx

Blogmas 20: A Very Merry Vintage Time Lookbook

Hanukkah, Christmas, winter, holidays...whatever your particular turn of phrase you use for this time of year,  it's a time of year for festivities and feasting and family and friends. Whether you like it or not it tends to lend itself to reflection, Christmas is the pre-drinks to the sobriety of New Year as Advent is the calm before the Christmas storm. 

I suggest it is a time for wearing something special and spending some of the bonus time you have to dress up, do your makeup, spend longer on that bathroom routine, or all of the above. This might also give you time for that reflection that seems to be in at the moment. Considering a change in the new year? Will the new year bells ring in a new look?

If it's a major life change or a simply swapping your go-to lipstick, have a ponder while trying out some new looks with some old inspiration. In the form of looks of vintage Christmas pasts, I give you Cashmere and Cushions merry vintage time lookbook!

A classic little black dress moment with Miss Audrey Hepburn

Go Loretta Young for full-on 1950's glam

Big floppy hat, big oversized coat, overdone red lips and you are ready for anything the season throws your way.

Vintage pinafore

A cute little girl dress or short dungarees in the right material and you're done!

Femme fatale - Belinda Lee

The original bunny girl outfit revisited for Christmas...for those Bridget Jones moments. Just be wise when choosing the day for wearing this one!

For the child (or Shirley Temple) within you, that wishes to conjure up the lore of Christmas Eve

Proving that simple, chic pyjamas can look great at any age.

Season's Greetings for every one of my lovely reader's, whether or not you have stuck with us for nearly 4 years or not!

Carpe Diem xx