Birmingham Post

Design for Life ; Designer Diffusion Ranges Have Become Commonplace, Allowing Us All to Flirt with the Great Icons of Fashion. Lifestyle Editor Lisa Piddington Looks at How Haute Couture Went High Street.

John Rocha, Matthew Williamson, Karl Lagerfeld - by rights, your average Jo or Joanne shouldn't be able to afford clothes by the Gods of fashion. These are big hitters of haute couture designing the kind of catwalk styles we should only be able to dream about. They should make us drool as we flick through the pages of glossy mags, but never think for even a minute they could possibly take pride of place in our wardrobes. But a revolution on the high street has changed all that. Now the high a...

Dress to Impress ; New Year's Eve Is the Perfect Night to Bring Out the Screen Goddess in You. With Vintage Stylish and Attention to Detail Key, Lifestyle Editor Lisa Piddington Finds the Best Party Looks

Sumptuous fabrics and exquisite detailing will guarantee you glitter your way through New Year's Eve. A hint of nostalgia brings out the retro screen goddess in us all, while vintage design captures the biggest fashion trend of the season. Alluring eveningwear has played a strong role over the past months, bringing that allimportant flurry of glamour to the cold, winter months. And now is the perfect chance to really dress like a lady, with a host of elegant styles to choose from.

Colin & Justin: Happy Cluttermas ; Don't Get in a Mess at Christmas, Colin and Justin Offer Their Advice As to Why We All Get Post-Christmas Blues and How We Can Avoid Them in the Future

The days post Christmas, traditionally, are a time of wonderment and often a time spent in - or reminiscing about - childhood. They're about appraising the generosity of Father Christmas and settling down with the family to watch the festive movie while scoffing the remains of that Jurassic turkey. Post December 25th is a time when joy and peace are extended to all men and women and, amongst other things, a time when it's ok NOT to be on a diet. But boys - you're carved from stone, we hear yo...

Let's Get the Party Started ; We're Just a Few Days Away From the Biggest Party Night of the Year - the Perfect Chance to Splash Out On a New Frock. Lifestyle Editor Lisa Piddington Teams Up with Merry Hill Shopping Centre to Find the Best in Winter Glamour

It may be cold outside, but New Year's Eve is the time to turn on the heat. It's THE party night of the year, as we welcome in 2005 with a bang. It's your chance to grab a pair of killer heels, don the sparkliest of dresses and accessorise like your life depended on it with a great selection of boas, shrugs and vintage jewels.

Dining Style: Wine Review of the Year 2004

Well, another 12 months have flown by, and as the New Year approaches, I would like to reflect on what, for me, has been a remarkable period, made more memorable by the personalities I have met. Many winemakers from the Southern Hemisphere have made fleeting visits to Birmingham, like the Australian Grant Burge, who gave a splendid tutored tasting at the Hotel du Vin. It was not just a wine dinner, but a life story of a man whose family has been making wine in the Barossa since the mid-19th c...

Dining Style: Beef and Bones with Chips

INGREDIENTS 4 fillet steaks, 9oz on the bone 4 very large Maris Piper potatoesSeasoning Butter

Table Talk: Bell's Winter Warmer ; Alison Davison Enjoys a Homely and Hearty Selection in Welford

It took some doing to get a table on a Friday night at the Bell at Welford. Boy, people love this place. A reader had so heartily recommended it that I wasn't too surprised when we could only get to eat there by going along very early, banging on the door and sobbing. Well, that was roughly the case. I had managed to book and we arrived just as the doors were opening on a bitingly cold, dark night; too dark, in fact, to appreciate the location but it must be pretty - this part of the world, n...

Dining Style: Birmingham Restaurants Get Street Smart

During the months of November and December all restaurants participating in the Streetsmart scheme add pounds 1 voluntary donation to each customer's bill. A unique feature of the scheme is that 100 per cent of money raised in each city is given directly back to local homeless charities, so that diners can be confident that their contributions will benefit homeless people in their own community. Participating restaurants this year include:Beneficiaries this year will be Depaul Trust and St Ba...

Post Offers: Win a State of the Art Sendo Phone ; the Birmingham Post and Sendo Have Joined Forces to Offer Two Lucky Readers the Phone That has It All

Sendo's recently launched award-winning multimedia smartphone, the Sendo X, could be yours! Created by Birmingham-based Sendo, the UK's only mobile phone manufacturer, the Sendo X allows you to record video for up to 45 minutes with sound, watch premiere film clips and listen to your favourite music with its built in MP3 player. You can surf the web and synchronise with your PC to keep email, calendar and contacts up to date while on the move. Small and light, the X is a triband GPRS phone wi...

Sme2sme Awards

Ubs Laing & Cruikshank First Anniversary

Post People: Big Brum Breakfast Appeal

Chris Munday, executive director of Focus Futures visited the New BRMB studios to review gifts donated to the Big Brum Breakfast Appeal. Big Brum Breakfast presenters Elliott Webb and Claire Birch were on hand to show Chris some of the toys that listeners have handed in at Tesco stores across the region.

Post People: Royal Bank of Scotland Wine and Food Tasting

The Royal Bank of Scotland hosted an evening tasting of wines and foods of the World for customers and professional colleagues from across the West Midlands at its office in St Philips Place, Birmingham. Hosted by Stephen Jones, regional sales manager for corporate banking services, the evening was held in conjunction with Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Midlands World Trade Forum. The evening and choice of theme was to reflect the global reach of the bank and its operations globally, all ...

Post People: Rsa Event

Internationally-renowned fashion designer Betty Jackson RDI discussed her life and work at Thinktank in association with the RSA and UCE. Kickstarting her career with an RSA travel bursary in 1971, she scooped the British Designer of the Year award in 1985 and an MBE in 1987.

Post People: Starting Own Business Event

Hundreds of people flocked to two venues in Herefordshire and Worcestershire to get help and information on starting their own business as part of a major initiative. The 'New Year? New Start? New Business?' events at the Town Hall in Hereford and the Guildhall in Worcester were organised during the UK's first national Enterprise Week as part of the Make Your Mark campaign which is designed to encourage entrepreneurship.

Post People: Gardiner Theobald Llp Fifth Birthday

Gardiner & Theobald LLP's Birmingham office celebrated their fifth birthday with a cocktail party at Chi Bar, Lounge & Restaurant. They entertained more than 100 property developers, clients and construction consultants. Since opening in Birmingham in 1999 G&T have been instrumental in changing the retail face of the region having acted on both Touchwood in Solihull and Bullring in Birmingham.

Post People: Douglas Wood Thompson's 20th Anniversary

Post People: Championing Birmingham Breakfast

Championing Birmingham supporters tucked into a hearty full English breakfast at Bank Restaurant, Brindleyplace and also got the opportunity to hear Ian Squires, chairman of Marketing Birmingham and Neil Rami, chief executive give their thoughts and vision for the future promotion of the city. Champions also got the opportunity to have their say and share their thoughts. Championing Birmingham supporters donate time and money to help promote the city. For more information call Saida Ladha at ...

Post People: Birmingham Post Business Award

Post People: Islamic Bank

Islamic Bank of Britain, the first British bank to operate entirely in accordance with Islamic Sharia's principles, already has its head office based in Birmingham and will open a branch in the city in early January. To find out more about the bank's key principles and objectives, professional and financial services lobby group Birmingham Forward invited Waheed Qaiser, assistant general manager of retail banking at Islamic Bank of Britain, to present the concept of Islamic banking and the cha...