Where Weird is Wonderful

It’s Milan Fashion Week and it seems like if it’s not weird, it’s just not wonderful.  But can that sometimes go a bit far and end up as stupid and tacky?  Apparently the world of fashion and its shows don’t think so.  With that theory, the 2012 collections will certainly be “wonderful” in the stir some of them have been causing amongst the guests and media. 

Maybe it’s a good thing though since some of the guests seem to want to burn holes in their proverbial pockets, with the amount of money they will be spending, especially those well-to-do Asian fashion-lovers itching to come away with something totally different.  Well they won’t be disappointed.  The big names include:  Gucci, Giorgio Armani, Prada, John Richmond, Alberta Ferretti amongst others. 

Bringing Home Big Bucks?

So does it look like these big names will be making big bucks as well as being wacky? It’s not so clear.  According to the National Chamber of Italian Fashion, it seems that sales will be down 5.2 percent this year from a 5.5 percent growth they enjoyed in 2011.  This may be surprising there were similar growth levels enjoyed in 2010.  The main hope for this year though is realistic: not to have a huge growth, but just not to end up with losses encountered in 2008/9 when sales plummeted 15 percent.

Mega Madness not in Milan

If you’re goal is to find weird freaky stuff though, it’s not necessarily Milan you want to be an observer at, but the Alta Roma Fashion Week. There you will be privy to Gianna Molara’s boob.  Well, the designer isn’t baring her boob per se, but she is sending out a model on to the catwalk dressed top to toe as yes, a boob.  The model remained anonymous (who would want to go out on a catwalk proudly sprouting a boob outfit and then be chatting amongst the audience later on) and wore a nude triangular get-up with one breast plastered across her chest.

And for those who didn’t quite get the breast picture in full, the audience was privy to a different model wearing a bunch of umbrellas that were sewn together to create a large skirt which revealed her real life breast as opposed to an entire body “modeling” as a boob.

Other Fashion Week Faux Pas

Getting weird in a different way, it would be understandable if one were to ask Sadie Frost what on earth she let her 11-year old daughter wear at the Vivienne Westwood Show at London Fashion Week.  On first glance, Iris’s outfit just looked like a sweet little girl’s dress, with lots of love hearts printed on it. But, on closer inspection, given that the “love hearts” didn’t quite have such sweet messages but instead phrases that included: ‘Blow Me,’ ‘Eat Sh*t,’ ‘Please Drown’ and others, it does make one question whether Ms. Frost knew of her daughter’s outfit before she showed it at one of the top fashion events of the year.

Ultimately, European Fashion Weeks are always going to have something a little daring on show, otherwise there’d be nothing for the media to moan about. But please, at least make it classy – the boob and the blatantly boorish love hearts dress don’t quite fit that bill.

Kiera Knightley and Matthew McFadyen in 'Pride and Prejudice'

Recent studies have revealed that there is a physical connection between warmth and love, making romance movies the most popular genre during the winter months. When the body is cold, it seeks psychological warmth.

Here is a list of ten romantic films to keep you warm when the temperature drops:

• Moulin Rouge

The story of a young English poet who travels to Paris in the 19^th century. There he meets and falls for a nightclub’s most popular courtesan. Romance, music, dance routines and tragedy ensue. With Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman.

• Shakespeare In Love

A fictional story of Shakespeare’s personal romance that inspired his most famous play ‘Romeo and Juliette.’ With Jospeh Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow.

• Breakfast at Tiffany’s

The classic film telling of a young writer who moves into a New York apartment and falls for her quirky neighbor. With George Peppard and Audrey Hepburn.

• Dirty Dancing

The simple but much-loved story of a naïve girl on a holiday resort who falls for the irresistible dance instructor. With Patrick Swayze.

• Pretty Woman

A modern-day fairy tale about a rich man and a prostitute. With Richard Gere and Julia Roberts

• Pride and Prejudice

This story has been filmed several times, the most recent of which starring Kiera Knightley and Matthew McFadyen.

As if prosperous Paris didn’t have enough money already.  She was already an heiress, successful model, actress, socialite and widely-known as the IT girl by the time she was 19.  So she wouldn’t be the first on our list of people who could really benefit from a huge win in Vegas over the weekend… Yes, granddaughter of Conrad Hilton, Paris Hilton was probably the last person to need a huge cash injection.  But that’s exactly what she got over the weekend as the 30 year-old celebrated turning 31 in a Las Vegas casino.  Her gambling party turned out to be more than just fun; winning $30,000 at the blackjack table made it a quite lucrative evening as well.

Life Isn’t Fair

Come on…shouldn’t gambling be one of those activities that helps the less well-to-do in society rise above their situation? In an ideal world perhaps…but the happy-go-lucky Hiltons of this world just prove again how not ideal life can be.  Because really, it’s not like the woman needed the money. The crazy thing with Hilton though, is that it probably didn’t even make a dent in her finances which are no doubt in top notch condition and not in need of an additional injection.

Paris Goes Public

And of course, just to make sure she was rubbing salt in all her fans’ wounds, she had to tweet her success. "Just won 30k playing blackjack at Wynn Las Vegas. Yes! #BirthdayGirlsLuck. I love gambling,” the ridiculously rich lady wrote.  Yes, that’s it; it must have been luck. Because she needed some good luck in the money department…not.

Cover Up Hilton

All we can say is that maybe she’ll be able to use that cash to buy some clothes given that half of her body is always uncovered.  Perhaps now she’ll be able to afford it now or at least use the money for lawyers’ fees in the next scandal she causes that leads her to jail.  Because it’s bound to happen after what was revealed in 2010 of the homemade sex video of her with Rick Salomon (her boyfriend at the time).  Or the time she was charged with a DUI offence in California. Or when the following year she had to go to jail for violating her probation.  Yes, clearly Hilton does need her blackjack winnings.

It’s never easy losing a parent. But for 18-year-old Bobbi Kristina – only child of famed singer Whitney Houston RIP – there’s a lot more to deal with than just grieving for the loss of her mother.  First of all, although reports have yet to confirm it, in all likelihood, Houston died of a drug overdose. Second, her and Bobby Brown (Bobbi’s father) were estranged (and she didn’t have much to do with him so this loss was in a sense, like losing a second parent).  Third, any move she makes will be immediately in the spotlight because of how popular her mother was in the Hollywood music world.

Bobbi in Crisis?

Bobbi has been followed since the private funeral of her late mother.  Since then, she has been with her family.  However, there was some fear in the early hours after the funeral as the daughter of the 48-year-old pop star could not be found. Indeed, one report even suggested she was found getting high in a hotel room just a few hours after her mother was laid to rest, but others sharply deny this.  Still it has been noted that her family has been pushing her to go to rehab.  Although if you listen to BeBe Winans – a friend of the family – Bobbi Kristina is “doing great.”

Family Time

Just before the funeral, Houston’s mother – along with Bobbi – attended an emotional private viewing.  Later on, Clive Davis came to the funeral – the man who was responsible for discovering the singer’s talents back in the 1980s.

Bobbi’s Battles

At such a difficult time for the 18-year old, it is surely utterly unfair that her father got into a nasty fight with Houston’s family because he claimed he wanted to see his daughter.  He was denied access after he flew to LA to be there for her but at least, thankfully, decided not to involve his lawyers. Truthfully though, there may be some sympathies for the man since he was moved around a bunch of times at the funeral and then forbidden from seeing his daughter.  Although new reports now suggest that he was specifically asked not to approach his daughter, to leave her alone, unless she specifically indicated she wanted to talk with him.

It’s a tough situation.  But ultimately, even if there are sympathies for Brown, the one who needs to be protected the most at this point is Bobbi – she’s still just a child – and as an adult, Brown should be able to put his emotions aside and do whatever it takes to help his daughter through this ordeal, even if that means staying out of the picture.  Yet clearly he was thinking of himself, not anyone else.  Perhaps it was that which led to his daughter becoming high after the funeral. Maybe this was just all too much for her.  And maybe, had Brown considered her plight carefully ahead of time, he would have stuck to the rules.

It’s going to be a long road ahead for the daughter of the singer who made it big in the 1980s and was still performing at packed out concerts until her death.  Everyone close to her – family and friends – should understand this and only be there for her when she asks for it.

A team of Russian scientists claims to have successfully generated living plants from the fruit of a small arctic flower that died 32,000 years ago. The fruit of the narrow-leafed campion was frozen, stored in a ground squirrel’s burrow on the Tundra of northern Siberia.

The fruit, excavated a number of years ago, is the oldest tissue on record to produce a living plant, if the claim is true. Scientists are familiar with the concept of seeds and cells surviving long periods when exposed to the right conditions. However, previous experiments involving extreme longevity were often failures, when the original seeds were tested by the radiocarbon method and found to be modern. These attempts include tales of wheat grown from seeds stored in the pyramids, as well as Lupines grown from seeds in a Yukon lemming burrow that was over 10,000 years old. Both specimens proved to be modern contaminators.

The current legitimate record is held by a date palm germinated from a seed that was found amongst the ruins of the ancient fortress of Masada, in Israel. That seed was a bit more than 2,000 years old.

The Russian experiment, mind-blowing in proportion to previous findings, is indeed supported by a firm radiocarbon date. It has also been tested in the field of DNA, though some discredit the method’s accuracy.

The experiment team included Svetlana Yashina and David Gilichinsky of the Russian Academy of Sciences research center. The outcome of their efforts was released in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in the U.S.

Dr. Zazula of the Yukon Paleontology program said “This is an amazing breakthrough. I have no doubt in my mind that this is a legitimate claim.” Zazula’s confirmation of the report is especially significant, as he was the scientist to discredit the Lupine seeds found a number of years ago.

The Russian team was unable to germinate the actual seeds, and so removed cells from the ancient fruit’s placenta. These they grew in culture dishes, and produced 36 ancient plants. The specimens seemed identical to modern day narrow-leafed campions, though their flowers proved to have narrower, more “splayed-out” petals.

For additional details about the experiment, see the full article here.