Your chic and cheerful Heyday Friday newsletter
Clothes take centre stage in this week's newsletter - on a red carpet catwalk, in a brilliant charity, an entertaining film, two memorable memes and three invaluable clothes-care hacks.
Hello!
What with being away and clearly not entirely on the ball when I got back, I managed to totally miss that last week was National Volunteers Week, which celebrates the amazing contributions volunteers make to communities and organisations across the UK.
So in belated recognition of that, and all the vital and wonderful work that volunteers do, I’ve written this week’s blog about why it is that volunteering is so important and beneficial - to the people and organisations on the receiving end of it, but also volunteers themselves - and a really fantastic charity that I’ve recently started volunteering at which, quite literally, transforms the women it helps through the combined power of clothing and coaching.
Find out what the charity is, why I’m so loving the work I’m doing with them, and why volunteering has proven physical and mental benefits, by CLICKING HERE
WORDS OF WISDOM
A man who knew only too well the impact that clothes can have, was the legendary fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent. But he also believed this to be even more true
THIS WEEK I’VE BEEN….WATCHING
In the hope you’ll think I don’t just randomly throw this stuff together, I want so say it’s no coincidence that clothes, and specifically disguises, also play a key part in new Netflix film Hit Man even though, err…. it might be.
The remarkable thing about this thoroughly entertaining romantic comedy, featuring Glen Powell as mild-mannered university professor, Gary Johnson, whose side hustle is volunteering with his local police force as an undercover hit man, is that it is - albeit loosely - based on a real life story.
Johnson really did specialise in undercover work and really did teach, although it was part time at his local community college. Like Powell in the film, he used disguises for his meetings with people wanting to hire someone to carry out a killing, all the while wearing a wire and being filmed by the police who would swoop in and arrest the suspect the moment they explicitly expressed their murderous intent.
It’s also true that in one undercover operation Johnson met a woman in an abusive relationship (who knows whether she was as beautiful as Adria Arjona who plays her) and persuaded her to escape rather than have him killed. That real-life case is spun off in all kinds of fictional directions by the film makers, and the consequences, which of course include the two of them falling for each other, spiral into ever more entertainingly out of control situations.
Hit Man never takes anything entirely seriously other than the business of being thoroughly enjoyable, and is all the more likeable for it.
You can watch HIT MAN on Netflix
And see the trailer HERE
Since this has, in all honesty somewhat unexpectedly, turned into a clothes themed newsletter, it seems a good moment to share this trio of clothing-related
SMART SAVE TIPS OF THE WEEK
This is one of those tips that’s so simple, and so ridiculously useful, you wonder why on earth you haven’t been doing it forever. To avoid the bewildering frustration of finding only one of a pair of socks when you take a load out of the machine (WHERE on earth do they go???) put all your socks in a laundry bag before putting them in the machine. Honestly, it’s been life-changing (which I appreciate might mean I need to get more of a life).
Rubbing a grease stain with chalk before you put it in the wash is one of the most effective ways to ensure the stain comes out. But do it straight away if you can because then the chalk will absorb more of the grease.
When an item of clothing is damaged, torn or (grrr) moth-eaten, repair it rather than consign it to the rubbish. There are a bazillion (I’ve counted them) videos on YouTube showing how to do every manner of mend to every type of fabric, so you’re almost bound to be able to find one that’s right for your item and skill level. Also, don’t forget that mending doesn’t have to be invisible. You can make a feature of it.
WHAT’S MADE ME HAPPY THIS WEEK
A red carpet is a sort of catwalk isn’t it? OK, maybe I’m pushing the clothes link a little far, but look what happened when the good citizens of Belfast were unexpectedly given the chance to walk along a rolled out red carpet and see if it doesn’t make you think that. And smile
I suspect the fab lady in the yellow jacket in that video would relate only too well to this
FRIDAY FUNNY
advice from the reliably hilarious Rosie Made a Thing
That’s it for this week. Thank you to lovely Heydayer Gill for the Hit Man recommendation. Please do pass on your suggestions for anything you’ve loved that you think I’d enjoy watching, listening to or reading.
See you next time
Love the red carpet idea - what a lovely thing to do!
I’ve always got sock casualties. Thanks for the tip of putting all socks in a mesh bag.