MANY A TRUE WORD
There is little recognition given to St. John Ambulance volunteers for the work they have been doing over the time of the pandemic. Take this New Year’s Eve for instance. 16 fully equipped ambulances manned by at least two, more often three, trained members working with and alongside the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service. Thank you for the difference you are making.
It’s ethically, and probably legally, unacceptable that young people here are pressurised by big firms who want to steal their ideas and deprive them of the business they are building up. Zara McLaughlin for instance. She was trading as Zara Ceramics working from home in Ballymoney and building a clientele. Then the 23 year old was approached by fashion and furnishings company Zara insisting she stop using her name as it was an infringement of their trademark! Could this little business positively threaten a global company? Our young entrepreneur has made changes and is now trading as Zara McLaughlin Studios which hopefully will protect her from being bullied by the big boys.
Here in Northern Ireland a lot of talented young people are making a name for themselves on the international scene.
Take Hope Macaulay for instance. Hope is hitting the big time with her bespoke fashion garments, her customers include Grace Chatto from the music group Clean Bandid, Spanish singer songwriter Rosalina and Anne-Marie pop star, young people wanting to dress to impress. Hope’s fashion has been highlighted in Japanese magazines, Vogue and the Irish Times to name but a few, her ‘classic colossal knits’ are hitting the headlines. The problem is at least one other manufacturer is copying her style and advertising them as their own.
Hope’s studio is in Coleraine and she has a team of 15 knitters all over Northern Ireland and five seamstresses. Her granny taught her to knit and her mother’s colourful take on fashion and her love of dressing up instilled a sense of drama in the child. When she was very little she made clothes for her teddy bear and gradually her love of creating grew and took her to Rochester University where she studied fashion, textile and print and her graduation show was included in the prestigious London’s Fashion Week. “Holidays give me inspiration especially Italy for the vibrant colours, beautiful art and architecture and I especially love Isola Bella one of the Galápagos Islands.” It’s where she paints and draws, work which is eventually printed onto fabric for dresses, shirts and trousers and, like her knitwear, there is always a story behind the designs. She uses chunky Marino wool from Uruguay, works closely with dyers and has an exclusive range of her own, obviously this 25 year old is making such a name for herself she’s given inspiration to other manufacturers.
Her mother, Leslie is far from happy. “Hope works so hard to create gorgeous and unique knitwear and to see these being sold at a questionably very low price is not only disheartening but possibly unethical. This makes me so angry.”
Taking Action
Such is the feeling of frustration, Hope posted a public statement on social media last week.
‘My designs constantly get ripped off in mass production and now @nastygal has hopped on the bandwagon. Not only is it frustrating and hurtful that fast fashion giants think they can blatantly copy from young designers and small businesses, they use unethical and unsustainable practices to retreat them.” She continued: “I rarely speak up when it happens to me because if I did I would be speaking up about it every day. Instead I want to use all my precious time to focus on running my business as best I can and creating my designs as best I can.”
But, sildenafil india wholesale djpaulkom.tv those who have increased PDE5 enzyme issue (affects erection) can buy Zenegra online to treat ED. However, you can try some useful medicines such as buy viagra sale and kamagra for a quick solution. It is an important ATP viagra super active producing respiratory cell organ. Certain researchers have also warned that the failure within men who fail to seek advice on erectile dysfunction meant that they might be missing a vital warning of djpaulkom.tv cheap cialis impending cardiovascular disease.However, she is not staying silent this time. “It’s a disgrace. How do we stop them?”
That’s the question. Well, her brave words has borne fruit as she told me. “Nasty Gal contacted me and I have agreed to talk to them on 18th January and we’ll see what happens!” And she won’t mince her words. Watch this space.
If I Ruled The World
What would I change given the chance? This was a question I was asked over New Year. I had to think! I’d ask presenters on television not to stand with the legs apart. Coming up to Christmas and the final weeks of Strictly Come Dancing, Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman were most unladylike in their posture. On Master Chef the three judges, including one woman, all stood with their legs apart, there is no excuse for women to adopt this attitude of dominance.
Worst of all are the young men at the Formula One racetrack with their white trousers so tight they actually have to stand with their legs akimbo! Just watch on 20th March and see them strut their stuff at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
I would insist on all toilet fixtures to be raised three inches so you know you will land safely. A hook on the door for handbags and no over head lights in the ladies, at posh dinner parties you’ll never find candles in tall candle holders casting shadows downwards, they will be low on the table so the light shines upwards and women’s wrinkles will not show. Mirrors are important best not to dust them! I remember having lunch in a Roux Brothers restaurant in Barnes, The Waterside Inn. It was important that I impressed but I was nervous. Just before we settled to eat I excused myself and went to the ‘ladies rest room’. There the lighting was perfect, there was fragrance in the air but above all there was a huge mirror above the basins and it was so old the glass was blown so the reflection it offered was soft and warm. I looked soft and warm and went back to the table feeling charming – a mirror image can make or break a woman’s confidence.
UP UP AND AWAY
It can be hard to know where to scatter your loved one’s ashes Anyone who’s ever lost a loved one who has been cremated will know the dilemma on what to do with their ashes. But rather than bury them or keep them on the mantelpiece, a growing number of families are choosing to send them off into the sky as firework rockets. Heavenly Stars, in Essex, say they are getting a growing number of enquiries from bereaved families. “Most popular are DIY Self-Fired Tributes costing between £250 to £300, although some customers will pay up to £10,000 for a professional demonstration using the fireworks,” says managing director Nigel Claydon.
● Typically after cremation an adult’s ashes will weigh 2kg – whereas four Tribute Rockets use just 200g in total, which are mixed in with the gunpowder. The rules for these are the same for any firework – as long as you have the permission of the person whose land you are using and it’s not late at night, it’s legal. Nigel says, “A lot of people still want ashes spread at a favourite place, like a beauty spot, but if they can make it more spectacular through a firework, so much the better.
To find out more go to Heavenlystarsfireworks.com
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