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EternBoyX.
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What a terrible metamorphosis. At the Duchess of Cambridge’s most recent public appearance — a reception for fashion folk at the Palace — she caused a stir among the assembled throng not for her choice of dress, but because of her very dark, very thick, very harsh-edged eyebrows.
Were they pencilled, inked, tattooed? Or (now here’s a thought) could they be a brand new trend the glossies haven’t even come up with yet: a brow extension, a sort of furry wig for those brunette beauties who can’t grow their own?
Whatever the reason, it’s a style most commonly seen on the foreheads of women called Chelsea, Abbey and Jodie. It even has a name — ‘the Scouse Brow’ — after the monster arches sported by the cast of the latest reality TV show, Desperate Scousewives.
In the public eye: The Duchess of Cambridge with lighter eyebrows (left) and today (right)
Seeing a Scouse Brow lurking above the huge dark eyes of our future Queen is like seeing a copy of OK! in the royal loo. So what is going on? Kate’s brows have grown exponentially since her student days in Edinburgh, as you can clearly see if you compare pictures of her then and now. It is as if Monty Don has been tending them with some sort of magical mulch and a lawn-edger.
It’s not a question of just not plucking them: if Kate followed that route, she would have a pale fuzz, a la Princess Anne. No, something more sinister is afoot. Or, I suppose, ahead. Unless you are a Denis Healey-type man on the wrong side of 50, eyebrows do not suddenly put on a spurt and start to become darker and thicker. It doesn’t happen. The new Kate brow does not exist in nature.
If David Attenborough wanted to film this phenomenon, he would have to take you to the Brow Studio at Harrods, book you in for a £350 full-brow semi-permanent make-up session, and watch while you are tattooed painfully with a black, viscous dye.
Trust me, I should know. I plucked my own eyebrows in the mid-Seventies to achieve the then fashionable pencil-thin arc, as seen on Sara Moon for the Biba posters. When Brooke Shields emerged on the scene in 1980, aged 14 and on the cover of Vogue, with her thick, very straight brows (I’m surprised the magazine didn’t utilise a gatefold, so the brows could continue overleaf), I decided I would grow back my brows. They refused to co-operate.
IS THIS WHERE SHE GOT HER INSPIRATION?
Coleen Rooney raises the stakes in eyebrow arcs
Alex Curran keeps her brows fair but thick
Jodie Lundstram sports the original Scouse Brow
Unlike hair anywhere else on the body, such as the chin or what in ancient times used to be known as ‘the bikini line’, brow hair, once plucked, gives up the ghost. Yet that hasn’t stopped more and more women plucking, sculpting and forcing their eyebrows into line. It’s part of a wider obsession with extreme grooming, of which the Scouse Brow is the latest unnatural manifestation.
This addiction to over-decoration started with mani and pedi bars, and fake-tanning salons, moving swiftly on to eyelash extensions, stick-on bling nail decoration and the new gel manicure, which you can’t even remove at home, as you have to go back to the nail bar to have it ‘soaked’ and ‘scalpelled’ (honestly, they scrape off the gel with a blade!). Then there’s hair extensions, wigs, teeth whitening, veneers and on and on and on.
The ‘pampering’ fixation took root in Britain in the early Nineties when women were promised that if only we were as groomed as our New York counterparts, we could all live in lofts and have great careers. This was a ruse, as the grooming became so all-consuming there was no time left for an actual job.
Today, this hyper-grooming is a largely working-class activity (we all know truly posh gals have been raised with such confidence they are perfectly happy with broken veins on their cheeks), a way for young women, feeling disadvantaged and unemployable, to fill their time and, they hope, snare a husband. At Epsom Ladies’ Day this year, I was shocked not only by all the orange tans and Dallas-worthy hair, but by the number of women in their 20s who told me they were housewives. Seriously? Ye Gods, what do they do to fill the time?
‘We have spa days — there is a lot to pack in,’ they told me. Think it’s accidental that all these dreadful ‘reality’ TV shows — from The Only Way Is Essex to Geordie Shore and Desperate Scousewives — portray women sat around on DFS sofas or in their Wickes kitchens planning pamper parties? It’s an attempt to fill the void at the centre of their meaningless lives.
In Desperate Scousewives, the ‘star’ is even a make-up artist/hair stylist called Jodie Lundstram, who has Groucho Marx apostrophes above each beady, over- pencilled eye. Kate is, of course, the most high-profile desperate housewife of them all and I worry that unless she finds more worthy causes to champion, then she will be sucked into the same trap of treating ‘pampering’ as a means of filling her time.
Already, she is in danger of having a whiff of the reality show star about her: the too-long, curled locks with honeyed highlights, the super-white, super-straight teeth courtesy of Harley Street and now the Scouse Brow, which is dark, thick and somehow Neanderthal. I hope it’s not too late, and that Kate has just pencilled them in (there is a new product on the market called Brow Ink that promises to be ‘tattoo worthy’, meaning it won’t rub off).
At least that way the damage is only temporary. Tattooed brows (hopefully the only thing I have in common with Coleen Rooney) are impossible to shift. After they heal, they crust, then scabs fall off, revealing the bold stripe beneath, as though a marker pen has attacked your face.
A year or so in, depending on your skin type, they go a rather unattractive purple colour, which you then have to cover with more ink. It is a horrible cycle, a trap, saddled as you are with brows that won’t age with you, that provincialise (can you imagine Carla Bruni-Sarkozy with thick, hairy ones?) and brutalise your face forever more.
So, Kate, please stop fiddling with what nature has given you on your brow. We want you to make young women the length and breadth of the kingdom feel free to celebrate their fresh-facedness and spend less time and money honing and polishing themselves into bland mannequins.
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Queen Elizabeth, with the Duchess of Cambridge, launched a nationwide tour, kicking off in Leicester today, to celebrate her Diamond Jublee
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The Queen and Kate departed from St Pancras station in London this morning and took the 10.15 train to Nottingham
The Royals, joined by Prince Philip, travelled together to Leicester by train before going on to visit various parts of the city.
Crowds stood three-deep on pavements surrounding the train station, behind crash barriers, as they waited to try to catch a glimpse of the royal party arriving in the city.
Many had cameras in their hands at the ready to try to grab quick pictures of the Queen, Duke and Duchess, while others waved flags and sported hats emblazoned with the Union Jack.
Kate, who channelled 1940's old-school glamour in a teal suit by L.K. Bennett nipped-in at the waist and shoes by Episode
Kate is greeted by Station Manager David Oldershaw as she arrives in Leicester after the short train journey
A police helicopter hovered overhead and many officers and patrol cars bordered the roads around the station.
Inside the train station a heavy police presence monitored the area and access to the station was limited for commuters.
The royal party strolled through the recently refurbished St Pancras International station as other passengers turned to watch them board the 10.15 train to Nottingham.
Kate and the Queen applaud at a plaque unveiling ceremony at Leiciester's Clock Tower
Kate's posture is perfect as she has mastered the etiquette of posing as a Royal
Kate admitted she was missing William terribly while he is in the Falklands but that she is being 'well looked-after'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-...l#ixzz1oT71UyDB
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No, Lupo! I said walkies, not Walkers! Duchess's dog snapped in hot pursuit of a crisp packet
By Rebecca English
Distracted: A crisp packet caught Lupo's attention as the Duchess of Cambridge walked him in Kensington Park Gardens
Good boy: The spaniel has started 'whistle training' to improve his behaviour but still has some way to go
Gundog handlers will often have their own dog whistle preference, depending on the breeds they handle or how energetic their dogs are.
They can be used for almost any command, although the primary benefit is to communicate the commands a handler is likely to need when their dog is at a distance.
One long whistle blast with the hand raised and open means sit. To call the dog to them a handler will make multiple whistle pips with their arms stretched to the side.
And to redirect their dog in another direction, the owner gives two pips on their whistle and makes a signal their hand.
William and Kate acquired Lupo - their first pet together - shortly before Christmas from a litter born to the Middleton family dog, Ella. She had been mated with a friend’s pedigree dog.
Bizarrely their spokesman initially refused reveal the puppy’s name, saying it was a ‘private matter’. But Kate eventually confessed it to a group of schoolchildren in Oxford.
Aides said the couple ‘just liked’ the name, which means wolf in Italian and is a derivative of the Latin word for the animal, Lupus.
And by all accounts Lupo very much has his paws under the table. ‘Both William and Kate absolutely adore him,’ said a friend.
Read more:
Edited by -Mariella- - 9/6/2018, 11:12. -
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EternBoyX.
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Be careful sitting down in that dress Kate! Duchess wows in a floor-length cream gown... with a daring thigh-high split
By Rebecca English
The Duchess of Cambridge arrived at a 'secret' engagement in London last night in a show-stopping cream dress.
Although her private dinner was meant to be under the radar Kate was anything but, in a stunning floor-skimming gown slit to the thigh.
The dress, believed to be a design by Roland Mouret, had a demure high neckline, was teamed with crystal-studded Jimmy Choo Vamp sandals that revealed crimson-painted toenails.
Back in the spotlight: The royal couple looked relaxed and happy as they stepped on to the red carpet
Supportive: Kate was accompanying husband Prince William, who was a guest speaker at last night's event
The man with the keys to entry is Bartle Bogle Hegarty's Nigel Bogle but it also attracts big media players including Michael Grade, Lord Puttnam and Stephen Carter. Rupert Murdoch is believed to have attended one dinner, although clearly in light of recent events was not present yesterday.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-...l#ixzz1uMWBGmUv
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Sheer beauty: The Duchess of Cambridge looks stunning in daring teal dress gown and elaborate updo at London Olympic gala concert
By Rebecca English
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La duchessa di Cambridge arriva presso la National Portrait Gallery per una presentazione del ritratto Queens
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Kate looked effortlessly chic in a bright blue knee-length dress which she matched with her favourite navy blazer and a blue velvet clutch. The electric blue Stella McCartney number was Kate's outfit choice just a few weeks ago at the opening of a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery
Kate and William avidly watched on with tense expressions as Murray suffered a slight wobble in the fourth game when he double-faulted twice, but held and then broke his opponent again in the following game with a brilliant forehand.
The Scot held superbly before breaking the Spaniard again in the seventh game to seal a victory that was greeted by a standing ovation from the crowd, including the Royal couple.
Despite the crowd's enthusiasm for the British number one's Olympics bid, there were still rows of empty seats in the stands, particularly in the lower tiers.
Hundreds of fans visiting the All England Club without tickets to the match gathered outside the court on Murray Mound to watch the action on the big screen as the sun shone down.
Murray was delighted with the quickfire victory in front of William and Kate.
He said: 'I didn't speak to them after the match but it's always nice when you're playing in front of royalty.
'When you get people like that coming along it helps raise the profile of the sport.
'It was a good performance today. I served well and that helped. It was good to get it finished early. I didn't want a long match because I am playing in the doubles this afternoon. Now I hope I can get a medal.'
Murray was disappointed to see rows of empty seats on Court One, however, and urged organisers to make sure the stands are full for his semi-final, and Sunday's medal matches.
'I would like to see all the seats full in all of the stadium but for whatever reason they haven't been,' the Scot said.
'The support inside and outside the stadiums has been great so hopefully over the weekend we will get all the courts packed.
'Centre Court was really busy the last two rounds I have played on there and hopefully they will all be full. Everyone wants to see that.
'Lots of people want to see the Games, there are lots of people trying to get tickets and it's not easy so I don't want to see any empty seats.'
The young Royals both looked effortlessly smart in the Royal box today as they cheered Andy Murray on to victory. William was once again spotted sporting his Team GB pin
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-...l#ixzz22MRXZk1C
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FATE MIDDLETON INCINTAAA
LONDRA - Il giorno è forse arrivato: William e Kate, i principi che hanno fatto sognare il mondo con le loro nozze, avranno un erede. Kate Middleton, infatti, secondo l'indiscrezione lanciata dal magazine Star, sarebbe in dolce attesa, «convinta» di aspettare un bambino.
Hollywood Life, altro magazine molto informato sulla vita di corte, riporta le parole di una fonte "vicina" ai reali britannici: «Gli amici dicono che Kate è convinta di essere incinta, e gli sposi sono pazzi di gioia - si legge nel virgolettato - galeotta è stata una notte di passione trascorsa in campagna dopo le Olimpiadi».
Sempre secondo il magazine, la notizia sarà ufficializzata appena dopo che il ginecologo di Kate sarà convinto al 100% della gravidanza della duchessa di York. E se sarà una bimba, quale miglior nome di Diana, come la defunta mamma di William, alla quale il principe era legatissimo?
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Thousands gather outside Buckingham Palace as Queen arrives home to await news of royal birth after Kate goes into labour
Duchess of Cambridge was admitted to hospital at around 5.30am and arrived in car with Prince William
Royal sources tell MailOnline: 'Kate went into labour naturally and things are progressing well'
The 31-year-old is planning to give birth to the royal baby naturally and she was not induced into labour
Future king or queen will be born at hospital in Paddington where Princess Diana had Princes William and Harry
Prince William is by his wife's side at the Lindo Wing at St Mary's Hospital in London
He will take two weeks' paternity leave when the baby is born and accept the full entitlement of £136.78 per week
The Queen arrives back at Buckingham Palace and has asked to be kept informed of Kate's condition
Prince Charles is on two-day trip to Yorkshire and told crowds there was 'no news yet' from hospital ward
The royal couple do not know the sex of the baby who will replace Harry as third in line to the throne
Kate's mother Carole and her younger sister Pippa will likely be with 31-year-old during labour, but are yet to arrive
Miguel Head, William's private secretary and Duchess's private secretary Rebecca Deacon supporting them
Royal couple helped to St Mary's by protection officer who went with Prince Harry on infamous Vegas trip last year
Police officer shows off his security briefing note in full view of hundreds of cameras this afternoon
Birth will be announced on document placed on an easel to be displayed by the gates of Buckingham Palace
By Rebecca English, Royal Correspondent and Martin Robinson
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