Guilty Pleasures

So wrong that it's so right. This week.... Jersey Shore



So ever since MTV first aired the adverts for Jersey Shore I was totally reeled in. I love trashy TV, not quite Jeremy Kyle standards but The Hills, Made, Laguna Beach and Girls of the Playboy Mansion have me hooked. I have deep guilt about enjoying these programmes, like eating a whole Easter egg and then hiding the packaging as your stomach churns and you chastise yourself for liking such crap.

This is total trash TV, thanks MTV!!!

How can I describe Jersey Shore?

Well.... there are 4 girls an 4 guys, all Italian-American or Guido or Guidettes as they call themselves. They are the brownest, most self deluded and egotistical people I think I have ever seen on TV. I'm pretty sure of the boys (Ronnie) is a roid head, one of them (Pauly D) uses more hair gel than Jedward and all the girls have zero fashion sense- think Pilot or Jane Norman!

The gang have a house in Jersey Shore to themselves for the summer and all they want to do is get down and dirty (even the ones with boyfriends), have fun, get browner and totally show off for a couple of months.

Favourite Guidos/Guidettes

So far its Mike 'The Situation' yes, that's right he's nicknamed himself that.. "If you don't love the situation, I'll make you love the situation".

Snooki... who on the first night got totally wasted and tried to get on all the guys in the hot tub in her bra and thong.. ewww and is about 4ft 10 (I identify with shorties).

To my absolute delight they 'hook up' in an upcoming episode.... in the hot tub of all places... how sanitary of them.



To fully understand the Guidette way of life, I pimped myself using a MTV.com game, yes I am that sad... Holllahhhh!



Love, SGS xoxo

Hitchhiking.. thumbs up? thumbs down?

Would you pick this guy up?


Maybe I have watched too many films but the thought of picking up a hitchhiker literally sends a shiver down my spine.

Infact there are numerous horror films entitled 'The Hitchhiker' and even films that aren't specifically attached to the horror genre feature grizzly hitchhiker moments for both parties. 'Crash' for example, Ryan Phillipe's good cop turned paranoid/confused cop, picks up an actually non insane hitchhiker and shoots him after being paranoid the kid was pulling out a gun... great. In 'Something About Mary' Ted (Ben Stiller) stops for a hitchhiker who eventually leads to him a truckstop with a hive of homosexual activity...ick!

I rarely do see hitchhikers, and when I do I always wonder the persons back story... how come they are hitchhiking? where are they from? are those clothes recycled? do they have innate homicidal tendencies? Interestingly I notice there seem to be far more males than females waggling their thumps up at passing traffic. Would I stop for a girl? a pregnant lady? an old lady? I'd certainly think twice before passing.

So there we have it, films have given me a negative conotation of hitchhikers... so what did I do after seeing a man hitchhiking on the slip road this morning? Sped on by and looked the other way of course... I sort of like my head attached to my body!

Sorry hitchhikers... thumbs firmly down!

Love, SGS xoxo

Shutter Island: Paranoia is the new black

Shutter Island: The Review


What's the story?

Its 1954 and Leonardo DiCaprio plays a US Federal Marshall, Teddy Daniels, who specifically requests a missing person case in Boston's Shutter Island Ashecliffe Hospital for the mentally insane. Daniels is a tortured soul, haunted by dreams of his deceased wife Dolores played by Michelle Williams and the awful images of a Nazi Germany concentration camp during his time as an American soldier in the Second World War. Daniels and his partner Chuck, played by Mark Ruffalo, are investigating a missing prisoner and soon realises all is not well on Shutter Island. A terrible hurricane hits and Daniels is exposed to the dark, sinister world of the prison, it's inmates and the possibility that inhumane experiments are taking place. Daniels search for the truth leads him into a spiral of paranoia, self doubt, hallucinations and he begins to doubt his partner, the officers, and his own sanity.

What's good about it?

The actors performances are great, DiCaprio, Ruffalo and Kingsley as a Psychologist in particular are excellent. Scorcese's keen attention to the use camera shots and spine tingling score give the film an sense of doom and foreboding throughout. One shot in particular of DiCaprio and Ruffalo entering the prison in a car with long shots of the barbed wire fences and accompanying chilling music left me with a sense of complete dread and anxiety.

What's bad about it?

The films twists and turns can leave you a little confused, don't go and watch it if you aren't in the mood for concentrating or feeling a little lost.

SGS Rating

**** 4/5 Stars - I loved it!

Tunes for a Tuesday

This week I am doing the electric slide to...

Kelis - Acapella



Kelis has returned from showing the boys her milkshake in the yard after 4 long years with a new look and even newer sound. Add some catchy dance pop beats with breathy vocals and David Guetta production and there you have 'Acapella'. I'm glad to see her back, she always has eye catching hair and her vocals are definitely not run of the mill :)

Diana Vickers - Once



Isn't that the girl with mad blonde hair, nasal voice, hobbit feet and the 'claw' from X Factor. Yes, that's right, Diana Vickers is back with her first single 'Once' and it's pretty darn good. I wasn't a massive fan of hers on X Factor, her nasal voice distracted me but her cover of Coldplay's 'Yellow' was good. Would like to see Nelly Furtado v Diana Vickers in a 'Nasal voice-off'...

Love, SGS xoxo.

Compliments v Insults.. theres a fine line

When does a compliment blur with an insult?



Saturday night I was out with my friends in Swansea and had this remark said to me,

"You look like Victoria Wood"

Would you take that as a compliment as an insult? When do the two blur?

So who told me this? Well it was a man, probably around 60 with a baseball cap on, scruffy shirt and pint in hand... one of the 'special' people who make an appearance on a Saturday night.

I mean surely that statement is not a compliment right?! Was I tinkering at a piano at the time whilst reciting amusing lyrics? or dressed up as a dinner lady talking in a Northen accent? I certainly wasn't, considering the age gap and the fact the only shared physical feature is blonde hair, I can't imagine where that comment came from.I don't know in what context the man meant it, insult or compliment it's the only comparison to Victoria Wood I've ever had... and hopefully the last.

It really did make me laugh a lot but it has got me thinking about when we use a compliment to really insult someone. Girls in particular are good at this... "Thats a nice dress" whilst contorting their face into a fake smile (dead behind the eyes) and in the tone of if they'd just swallowed battery acid. I hate it! Don't say anything if you can't be nice!

I am guilty of doing it though I must admit, normally to people who I haven't got a clue what to say to or to people who I think are slightly idiotic. Like "Oh, so you met your girlfriend on World of Warcraft?! Thats, um, great" whilst shifting nervously from foot to foot and praying that person doesn't catch on to my obvious disgust.

So my advice would be to take the time to pay someone a compliment when you really mean it and try to avoide telling people they look like Victoria Wood.

Love, SGS xoxo

Fashion Fix Friday

From everyday drab to red carpet fab.. how K-Stew has been charming the red carpets

Naughty me, I haven't written a FFF post in quite some time... so after the slap on the wrists I'm going to endeavour to be better and keep the FFF blog posts bang on trend, and time.

I am a BIG fan of the Oscars, partly because of the films but I must admit it's the fashion that really interests me. It's an occasion for the stars to spend an entire day getting pampered, preened and then scrutinised on the red carpet. It's also a chance for designers to put the stars in couture and some fabulous dresses emerge from the wood work

For me, Diane Kruger, Miley Cyrus, Sandra Bullock, Cameron Diaz, Meryl Streep, SJP, Maggie Gyllenhall and in particular Anna Kendrick and Kristen Stewart should be applauded for their dress choices. Ranging from Chanel Couture and Oscar de la Renta the dresses were all very different but so, so right.

So I've decided to concentrate on one particular star, Kristen Stewart. I was pleasently surprised at the Oscars to see Kristen in a absolutely gorgeous Monique Lhullier navy dress that suited her petite frame perfectly.



Now I kind of like K-Stews day time appearance, knotted t-shirts, skinny jeans and Converse is clearly what she is comfortable in and the look suits her. It's a far cry from the red carpet, but it does get a tad boring seeing her in pictures wearing the same combination.



Here are my Top 5 Kristen fashion 'Hell Yes! and 'Hell No!' moments...

In L.A for the New Moon premiere



I'm a big fan of Oscar de la Renta but I don't think this dress does much for Kristen at all. The colour makes her look ill, the cut makes her look totally flat chested and the length practically swallows her whole... eeek!

MTV Movie Awards 2009



Kristen rocks this Yigal AzrouÃl black and red patterned dress superbly, the belt accentuates her tiny waist and the red looks great with smoky eyes and dark hair. Shame about the converese, but her ankle was hurting...

'Adventureland' Premiere 2009



Wowzas!! Tight, orange and pink with a seductive open back... Kristen looks a total vixen in this Herve Leger dress and the red lips and up do are a great combination. I like this look, K-Stew does sex-pot very well!

New Moon NYC Premiere



Ick, I am not liking this colour on K-Stew at all. Unfortunately I think the olive crepe fabric of the Valentino dress just washes her out and the hair is just awful. Sadly she had to cut it into a shaggy mullet for her Joan Jett role and it was clearly causing problems. Saving grace are the Sergio Rossi black heels, Ick.

Runaways Premiere in NYC



I'll end on a good note, Kristen with a beaded Pucci mini dress and trusty Rossi peep toes... just gorgeous. I think 2010 will be a VERY good year of fashion for Kristen, bet she won't give up the converse though :)

Lots of love, SGS xoxo

Tunes for a Tuesday

This week I'm mainly bumping and grinding to....

Plan B - She Said



Ben Drew or Plan B is a North London rapper/singer/songwriter and looks a little bit like he'd mug your Nan on the street. Thug lovin' looks aside the very talented Drew is also a budding actor and has starred alongside Michael Claine in 'Harry Brown' a reflection of life on a London tower block where the dirty youths run the corners, guess who Ben plays?! 'She Said' features his vocals perfectly and the rap makes it edgy against a infectious melody. Does like dapper in three piece suits though..

Alex Gardner - I'm not mad



Alex Gardner looks like Alec from the Volturi, for those who think I'm mental I'm actually refering to the Twilight Saga (yes, again) Alec is an old vampire who can make people go blind or feel nothing at all. Alex, on the other hand is an 18 year old musician from Edinburgh who has joined forces with Xenomainia (Producers behind Girls Aloud)to produce some very melodic pop music. Gardner's husky voice decieves his age and I can think this lad will be BIG in 2010.

Happy Listening!

Love, SGS xoxo

The re-birth of the pop video

The release of a pop video as an event has not been seen since the time of the late, great Michael Jackson when zombie laden 'Thriller' was unleashed on MTV in 1983 to a global audience of millions. Many regard that video as the greatest of all time (sorry to go a bit Kanye), and it's not hard to see why. The prosthetics, costumes, dance moves and Vincent Price's hanuting voice over smashed the pop video concept out of the water.



Pop culture as we knew it changed that night as people all over the globe embraced the highly visual concept to their hearts, the red leather jacket and trouser combination was quickly adopted as a costume. The dance moves were copied and will forever be synomnous with Jackson, and it changed the boundaries of pop music videos forever.

So, will we ever see this hysteria again surrounding a pop video?

I'm going to stick my dainty neck out and say a resounding YES... the closest I have ever felt to eagerly awaiting a pop video is of the GaGa. When she released 'Bad Romance' exclusively on her website, it crashed!! Was it worth the wait?! Too bloody right it was! High fashion? monsters? burning corpses? nudity? dance routines? Alexander McQueen outfits? Check, check and check.

So for next single 'Telephone' featuring bootylicous Beyonce there was a buzz of excitement, GaGa let on it was planning to be epic and we'd be wrong to disagree. Excitment was heightened when the release date was pushed back, stills from the video appeared of GaGa wearing a blue telephone headpiece- standard, a bewejeled Beyonce looking kick ass and then further stils of GaGa in what appeared to be leather and beer can curlers, cigarette sunglasses and chains.



So the video was released on March 11th, highly publicised on all social network sites and by email ads... is it any good?

It's had 15,350,280 views in 4 days.. not bad eh?!

GaGa teamed up with director of 'Paparazzi' Jonas Ackerlund, to produce a 9min 32sec pop video that is pretty outstanding. The premise of the video is that follows on from 'Paparazzi' where GaGa was convicted of killing her boyfriend by poisoning him and sent to prison.

Product placement? nudity? thongs? diet coke can curlers? studs? leather? fishnets? cigarette sunglasses? awesome dance routines? avant garde fashion? Pussywagon? Tyrese Gibson? Beyonce in yellow? GaGa making sandwiches? poison? GaGa and Honey B dancing their asses off? Cameo from 'Semi Precious Weapons'? Thelma and Louise moment?

If you like all those things you are SURE to love the video where once again GaGa pushes the boundaries and proves the pop video doesn't have to be a bland affair. So yes the 'acting' scenes are stiff and dodgy but on the whole this video is the best I have seen so far this year and should rightly leave other artists quaking in their boots.

Watch this space.... 'Alejandro' is next :-)
Love, SGS xoxo

Tunes for a Tuesday

This week I'm mainly grooving to....

Hadouken! - Mic Check




Sampling a garage classic like 'Never Gonna Let You Go' by Tina Moore is IMO always a good thing. Hadouken! are a British band haiing from oop north, Leeds infact is where they were formed when lead singer James Smith and Daniel 'Pilau' Rice met at University. The sound is dirty, grimey and you can tell that Smith originally had roots in the UK Garage scene in 2004 despite his shouty kind of voice.... I LOVE it!

Cheryl Cole - Parachute



From grimey to mimey (aren't I clever) is the nations favourite geordie, minus Jeff from Byker Grove, Cheryl Cole. 'Parachute' is Chezza's third single from rather good album '3 Words' and sees a sexy goth like Cheryl dance seductively with a man who looks like a Ken doll. Chezza sings about not falling out of love, and me and you up against the world.. bet the PR are smacking themselves on the head with this.. Poor Chezza :(

Paramore - The only exception



Paramore have only crept onto my radar in the last year or so, but I'm so pleased I found them! The Tennesse band had their track 'Decode' on the Twilight soundtrack and Twihards (erm, like me) lapped it up, just the right sort of emo and moodyness needed for a great film track. 'The only exception' is taken from their third album 'Brand New Eyes' and showcases lead singer Hayley Williams vocals perfectly, I can only describe the song as lovely and an instantly pleasant to the ear.

Love, SGS xoxo

Cardiff goes GaGa for one night only

Lady GaGa, she came, had 10 costume changes, sung her lungs out and felt up her dancers... amazing



Cardiff transformed into a sea of glitter, lace and platinum blonde wigs as Lady GaGa rolled into the city on March 3rd to take to the stage at CIA for her sold out The Monster Ball Tour.

So what did I expect?

I certainly expected a mountain of costume changes, fake blood, a monstrous sea creature and GaGa on top singing and dancing form and the lady didn't dissapoint.

GaGa kicked off the show in a purple leotard and belted out 'Dance in the dark' from The Fame Monster album and from there began a relentless almost 2 hours of narrative, singing, dancing, sea monsters and slightly odd annecdotes.

Highlights for me included just GaGa and a piano as she sang a beautiful rendition of 'Speechless' and 'Brown Eyes', it's then you truly appreaciate the fact she can really sing. Her vocals are impeccible and what Madonna and Britney have to make up for with huge stage production, GaGa can obliterate with her voice.

For true GaGa fans the concert is a blend of pure pop/art pleasure and hits like 'Just Dance', 'Paparazzi' and 'Pokerface' were the ultimate crowd pleasers. Before you could say 'I'm a free bitch baby' GaGa had finally found the Monster Ball, set her friends free and ended with a spectacular version of 'Bad Romance'.

What charmed me the most about Lady GaGa was her sincerity, she seemed genuinely awed that the venue was packed out and happy to be able to perform for her fans.

So I may have packed the falsh eyelashes and lace gloves away, but I will always be her Little Monster.

Love, SGS xoxo

Tunes for a Tuesday

This week I'm totally digging....

Tinie Tempah - Pass Out



Greenwich based MC and Rapper Tinie Tempah or Patrick (his gangsta name) has produced a great record with 'Pass Out', smashing into the charts with a jungle and drum and bass beat. What makes Patrick or TT different is his use of clever lyrics, for example "I got so many clothes i keep’s em in ma aunts house" and "I bin Southampton but ive never bin to Scunthorpe". Scunthorpe are delighted with his big up and he's been invited there by the Mayor... lucky thing!

Chiddy Bang - Opposite of Kids



Straight out of Phillidelphia are Chiddy Bang, a hip-hop/rock band now reknowned for their sampling with Passion Pit, Radiohead and MGMT on this track. They've taken 'Kids' apart and for the melody and put a rap over it to great effect, and in even thrown an 'Asher Roth - College' reference in for good measure.. bet he's pleased.

Band of Skulls - Friends



This track is taken from the uber popular Vamp-fest movie that is New Moon: The Twilight Saga, and isn't it good? I have been listening to this track since November and not really knowing who sang it.. turns out it's a great British band hailing from Southampton.

Love, SGS xoxo

Heart + Head = Confused

Is home really where the heart is?



So over the weekend myself and TB moved out of our cosy flat in Worcester and back to our homes. Saturday saw arrival of the parents who beared cleaning products, hoovers and tool kits ready to fight the battle of dust and flat pack furniture... they won.

Highlights included finding a chocolate coin under the sofa (white chocolate- boo), 8p in change and removing the furniture in our bedroom to find a hairy aftermath - think the death of Chewbaca crime scene!

What struck me when the furniture was out, the carpets hoovered and the loo bleached to an inch of it's life that this chapter of our lives were closed. For nine months we had lived there, had good and bad times and adapted and learned and most importantly liked living with each other.

The decision to move out was a hard one, neither of us particularly wanted to. Yet the head won over the heart on the matter, this is an opportunity to save money without signing another flat contract while the dreaded job search continues.

With heavy heart and many, many, many bags I drove back over the border and arrived back at the house I did most of my growing up in. Not that I don't like home, because I do... it's got central heating and food in the fridge :) yet when you move out of your home you develop independence.

Just being able to come in and out as you please, cook what you want for your tea, have long lies in on the weekend without the inevitable shout up the stairs and just enjoy being independent.. or like me until when the massive electricity bill came in and I grovelled, begged and did puppy eyes.

I miss TB already, his kiss before he goes to work, his hugs when I get home and being allowed in the nook for a cwtch are all things I have got used to. So although the head won over the heart in the moving home debate, I think a little part of my heart will always be in that flat with the sky light, mezzanine floor and ridiculous heating system.

Til' the next move....

Love, SGS xoxo