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11 sneaky tricks to drop a decade

Looking to beat the signs of ageing? Give these 11 sneaky beauty tips a try!

Pop lips: A fresh bright lippy lightens up the face. The trick is to go one or two shades brighter than your favourite lipstick – not a blast of neon. Diffuse bright edges with a cotton bud to stop hard lines

Foundation freshen-up: Mix your foundation with a small amount of hydrating face oil

or a BB cream to lighten up coverage and add a radiant glow.

Find your overnight fix: Slather on an overnight face and neck cream that uses skin brightening ingredients such as vitamin C, algae extract and anti-oxidants.

Project Yourself: You already know you should be wearing a good quality sunscreen every day, so why not look for onr that is as flattering as it is protective? We love sunscreen that has a soft, dewy finish.

Mini massages: Give yourself a daily morning massage using small circular motions to stimulate circulation, cells and collagen. Massage forehead, cheeks, chin, and gently pat under eyes to help with firmness and reduce bloating.

Regular maintenance: A routine of mini-facials at home will help keep your skin condition consistent and clear. Scrubs with salicylic acid deep-clean skin and leave your face not only more refreshed but more receptive to your moisturiser.

Sleep straight: If you wake up in the mornings with hard-to-shift pillow marks on your

face, you might want to rethink your sleeping position. Making the effort to sleep on your back is an important beauty investment – but be sure to put a pillow under your knees to help support your spine.

Shine On: Shiny, healthy hair makes everyone look better. Try A mashed-up avocado mixed with olive oil as a hair mask – it’s cheap, natural and really effective.

Quick tidy: Hide grey roots fast. New at-home hair pigments cover greys and regrowth instantly with a brush-on palette that matches your hair colour. Genius!

Open up: Meet the eyelash curler, a must for opening up tired, droopy eyelids before applying mascara. Works every time.

Tweezy does it: A precisely sculpted brow lifts and opens your whole eye area. With a light touch, use good tweezers to shape a full brow with a gentle arch – and never do the over plucked skinny brow!

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Celebrities with famous parents

Not all stars arrive in Hollywood with $20 and a pocketful of dreams, some were born into showbiz.
Gwyneth Paltrow and her parents

When it comes to these celebrities, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

While many stars struggled to get their big break in Hollywood, some celebs managed to get a leg-up with their famous family heritage of actors, singers and showbiz performers.

Though they might have been given a head start to stardom Drew Barrymore, George Clooney and Gwyneth Paltrow have all proved they’ve got the acting chops to make it all on their own and they aren’t the only ones.

Here are some surprising family ties floating around Hollywood.

Gwyneth Paltrow was certainly destined for fame with both her parents on the Hollywood A-list. Her mother is actress Blythe Danner and her late father was film director and producer, Bruce Paltrow.

When your godparents are Steven Spielberg and Sophia Loren your parents must have some powerful Hollywood pull. While it’s no secret that that Drew Barrymore is the daughter of John and Jaid Barrymore, she actually comes from a long lineage of actors going back to her great-grandparents.

Ben Stiller may just have funny genes. The Zoolander actor is the son of comedians Anne Meara and Seinfeld’s Jerry Stiller. Ben’s wife, Christine Taylor is also an actress and comedian and has featured in several movies with the actor.

Child actress Carrie Fisher is the daughter of screen legend Debbie Reynolds and American entertainer Eddie Fisher.

George Clooney is the son of Nick Clooney, a former news anchorman and TV host. Clooney’s aunt was American singer and actress, Rosemary Clooney and her husband was legendary actor and Academy Award winner Jose Ferrer.

Actress Jamie Lee Curtis is the daughter of actor Tony Curtis – who played opposite Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot – and Psycho actress Janet Leigh.

Kate Hudson has inherited her mother Goldie Hawn’s comic timing to carve out a successful Hollywood career of her own. Hudson’s stepfather, who raised the actress from when she was young, is action star Kurt Russell.

It’s not so surprising that Laura Dern grew up to become an actress. She spent her childhood hanging out on movie set while her mother, actress Diane Ladd, had roles in classics such as Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore and Chinatown.

It’s a little known fact that Lenny Kravitz’s mother, Roxie Roker, was the actress who played Helen Willis on CBS American sitcom, “The Jeffersons”.

Legendary entertainer Liza Minnelli inherited her showbiz talents from her mother, screen legend Judy Garland and father, director Vincente Minnelli.

Law and Order SVU actress Mariska Hargitay is the daughter of iconic American actress, Jane Mansfield.

Melanie Griffith’s mother, former model Tippi Hedren, was one of Alfred Hitchcock’s muses and starred in his 1963 classic, The Birds. As a child Griffiths admitted to being very creeped out by Hitchcock who presented her with a doll resembling her mother in a coffin one Christmas. “He was a very weird guy,” says Melanie.

Comedian and actress Rashida Jones is the daughter of actress Peggy Lipton and music mogul Quincy Jones.

Swedish hunk Alexander Skarsgard gets acting chops from his father, Stellan Skarsgard, who’s been starring in blockbuster hits like Good Will Hunting, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Thor.

The Judd women are a force in showbiz. Matriach Naomi led the way for daughter Wynonna in the country-singing sphere while Ashley Judd went on to become an actress.

Christian Bale has an interesting parent that few people know about. His stepmother is women’s liberation feminist and political activist Gloria Steinem.

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Meet Australia’s youngest app developer

Sebastian Gronow

Sebastian Gronow with his app Happy Dactyls.

For 30 hours every week, in time squeezed in between a busy school day and his bedtime, 12-year-old Sebastian Gronow works hard. He reads pages and pages of computer code, and then writes a test for himself – making sure he has learnt what he has just read.

He then puts his new found skills to use, creating gaming apps for smartphones.

“I saw a TV show about a boy in England who made an app,” Sebastian says, from an office at his parent’s workplace.

“I thought, ‘I want to do that’, so I asked my Dad to buy me a book on coding so I could get the skills to build my own app.”

Sebastian clearly isn’t your average 12-year-old. For his debut app on iTunes, Happy Dactyls, he wrote over 40,000 lines of computer code.

“I look at the code, and it all looks like algebra to me,” admits Sebastian’s dad, Russell. “Neither his mum or I have any idea of how it works, we both work in hospitality, it’s just his own hobby that has grown.”

After writing the code for his first app, Sebastian had to be approved by Apple as a developer, no mean feat for an 11-year-old, as he was then. Apple checks each app for its usability and function levels, making sure it adheres to certain standards.

“They rejected me four times,” Sebastian says. “So I kept going back and tweaking the app where they wanted me to, and finally it was approved,” he says with a broad grin.

Sebastian’s game is a traditional battle of good vs. evil, where the Happy Dactyls aim to outwit the evil Dactyls during each of the 20 levels.

“It’s a lot of levels, but it’s a lot of fun,” Sebastian explains enthusiastically, adding that kids as young as four could play his game.

Sebastian’s dad couldn’t be prouder, even though his son’s success has forced him to admit he knows next to nothing about technology.

“I work in a hotel, and Sebastian asked all the guys around here for advice – some of them have built websites – and he took everything they said on board,” says Russell.

“When he puts his mind to something … he clearly doesn’t give up!”

In between app building, Sebastian plays basketball, and unlike many of his peers, likes mathematics the most, explaining that code has a lot of math skills involved in its application.

“I like art too – I want to learn how to draw my designs (for characters) on the computer myself … at the moment my cousin helps me,” Sebastian says.

So what’s next for Australia’s youngest techpreneur?

“I spend every day on computers, because I love them so much,” Sebastian says, “I just want to keep building apps. Another game, or a puzzle app, I’m not sure.”

One thing that is for sure is that nothing is going to stand in the way of this tech-savvy year six student. Watch this space.

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Life’s good for brave Turia Pitt on charity cycle

For nine days straight inspirational burns victim Turia Pitt has been cycling for charity and she says life has never been better.
Turia Pitt and her partner Michael Hoskins. Photography by Tim Bauer. Styling by Jamela Duncan.

Turia Pitt and her partner Michael Hoskins. Photography by Tim Bauer. Styling by Jamela Duncan.

She’s been cycling for nine days straight but Turia Pitt says life has never been better.

Turia and her partner Michael Hoskins are currently participating in the Variety Cycle ride from Canberra to Uluru, Turia’s first major sporting challenge since she received catastrophic burns while competing in an ultramarathon in 2011.

Yesterday was the ninth day of the 4000km journey and while fatigue was starting to set in, Turia, 26, remained upbeat, tweeting “life’s good” alongside a picture of her on the road.

Day 9 of the #varietycycle – doing the #greatoceanroad… Life’s good x http://t.co/K0o04p5ssh

The Variety Cycle – which is aiming to raise $1 million for the Variety children’s charity – is due to reach Alice Springs on April 16.

It’s not the only challenge Turia is taking on this year – she is also taking part in the 20km Lake Argyle swim and will walk a section of the Great Wall of China.

To support Turia and Michael’s cycle, visit their Variety Cycle fundraising page.

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Fire survivors say don’t rely on luck

Following Victoria’s lucky escape from a house fire, her mother says people must make sure their smoke detectors work.

When Victoria Rowlatt woke up to the piercing sound of a smoke alarm last October, she instantly knew something was horribly wrong. Running into the kitchen and living room, she saw smoke blanketing the ceiling. She quickly woke up her boyfriend, Brent, and the pair started searching for the source of the fire, not realising how little time they had to get out.

The fire had already rapidly travelled through the house and was inside the roof. Victoria said that Brent poked his head up through a manhole and “started screaming out for the water”.

“I was in a panic searching through the kitchen looking for big bowls to fill up with water,” she said.

“Suddenly Brent stopped yelling for water and said ‘we just have to get out of the house’.”

Victoria raced out the back door and Brent ran back into the bedroom to grab some belongings but by then the bed was alight and flames were falling from the roof. He rushed out, feeling burns on the back of his neck, and the young couple watched as the roof of the house fell in.

Victoria says she can’t believe that it happened so ‘very, very quickly’.

“We had a maximum of five minutes from the time we woke up to the time we abandoned the house and ten minutes from the time we woke up to the smoke alarms to the roof collapsing,” she said.

When asked what she thinks might have saved her life, Victoria responds “100% the smoke alarms.”

“I would have never of woken up in time otherwise and would have woken up to the roof falling on my bed. Brent didn’t even wake up to the start of the alarm.”

Victoria’s story is being used to remind people to change the batteries in their smoke detectors and ensure they are in working order.

A campaign from Australia’s fire and emergency services together with Duracell are encouraging all Australian households to change the batteries in their smoke alarms in line with the end of daylight savings on Sunday April 6, and for states without daylight savings, on April Fool’s Day.

Victoria’s mother, Kim, says that their smoke alarms were hard wired but that she, like many others, were unaware that the back-up battery supply needs to be changed every year.

“We were unaware of the maintenance that is required for hard wired alarms so feel very fortunate that our smoke alarms were working when the fire occurred,” Kim said.

She also says that they did not realise that hardwired smoke detectors still require regular monthly testing.

“I would definitely urge Australians to act now before it is too late. Me and my family were very fortunate that no one was injured, but it is clear that we were not proactive enough with fire safety at home before the fire so it could have been a lot worse. Given we were not doing enough to protect ourselves should a fire occur, I am so thankful that nothing happened to my daughter.”

The fire and emergency services together with Duracell, are urging all Australian households to change the batteries in their smoke alarm this April.

Related Video: Boy saves grandma from fire

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Prince George caught up in Australian “meet and greet” scam

An Australian company is taking advantage of royal fans, launching a false competition to win the chance for a "meet and greet" with William, Kate and baby George.
Prince George

An Australian company is taking advantage of royal fans, launching a false competition to win the chance for a “meet and greet” with William, Kate and baby George.

Groupon Australia sent out a press release this morning inviting people to visit its website to enter a ballot to win a “unique and strictly limited” opportunity to meet and have a photo with the Duke and Duchess and their eight-month-old son during their upcoming Australian and New Zealand tour.

“I don’t like to use clichés, but this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for fans to spend some rare, quality time with the royal family, often reserved for state officials and celebrities,” Groupon Australia CEO Alistair Venn is quoted as saying.

“To anyone planning to peer from behind the barricades, hoping for a mere glimpse of the Royal Family, I encourage you to enter our exclusive ballot.”

It sounds too good to be true, and that’s because it is. The Weekly put in calls to Groupon Australia and One Green Bean, the Australian PR company it had hired to manage this “offer”. Eventually, they admitted the deal was in fact their idea of an “April Fools’ Day” joke and not a genuine opportunity.

It’s a stunt that is likely to leave royal fans worldwide feeling ripped off when they realise the advertised “once in a lifetime” opportunity is just another shameless attempt to cash in on the royal family.

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Frock horror! Kate Middleton wears same outfit as wedding guest

What's worse than arriving at a wedding and realising you're wearing the same dress as another guest? When that other guest is the Duchess of Cambridge.
Kate and the unknown wedding guest wore the same Missoni coat.

Kate and the unknown wedding guest wore the same Missoni coat.

This was the fate that awaited one unlucky guest at the wedding of English aristocrats Lucy Meade and Charlie Budgett at the weekend.

The unknown lady and Kate donned the same blue M Missoni coat to attend the nuptials in Marshfield, Gloucestershire.

William, Kate and Harry attending the wedding of their close friends.

The blue woollen number is a favourite of Kate’s. She has worn it a number of times since she purchased it from fashion outlet store in 2011, including to a joint engagement with the Queen and Camilla at department store Fortnum and Mason in 2012 and in June 2012.

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Asher Keddie up for another Gold Logie

Asher Keddie has been nominated for her fourth Gold Logie.

The Offspring actress will face stiff competition from Andy Lee, Carrie Bickmore, Essie Davis, Scott Cam and Stephen Peacocke, who have also been nominated for the coveted award.

Asher – who took home the Gold Logie last year – is also nominated for a Silver Logie for most outstanding actress.

The nominations were announced today in TV WEEK magazine and at an event in Melbourne.

New Australian dramas dominated the Most Outstanding Drama Series category. The Time Of Our Lives, A Place To Call Home and Wentworth were nominated alongside Redfern Now and audience favourite, Offspring.

Mandy McElhinney and Rachel Griffiths star in the ABC’s, Paper Giants.

Mandy McElhinney and Rachel Griffiths star in the ABC’s, Paper Giants.

Mandy McElhinney and Rachel Griffiths star in the ABC’s, Paper Giants.

The ABC’s Paper Giants, earned multiple nominations in the Most Outstanding Miniseries or Telemovie category and both Mandy McElhinney and Caren Pistorius are nominated for acting categories.

Funny man Chris Lilley can call his return to TV a success with a nod in the Most Outstanding Actor category for his role in mockumentary series Ja’mie: Private School Girl.

The 2014 TV Week Logie Awards take place on Sunday, April 27.

TV WEEK GOLD LOGIE – Most Popular Personality on TV

Andy Lee (Hamish & Andy’s Gap Year Asia, Nine Network)

Asher Keddie (Nina Proudman, Offspring, Network Ten)

Carrie Bickmore (The Project, Network Ten)

Essie Davis (Phryne Fisher, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, ABC1)

Scott Cam (The Block, Nine Network)

Stephen Peacocke (Darryl ‘Brax’ Braxton, Home and Away, Channel Seven)

TV WEEK SILVER LOGIE – Most Outstanding Drama Series

A Place To Call Home (Channel Seven)

Offspring (Network Ten)

Redfern Now (ABC1)

The Time Of Our Lives (ABC1)

Wentworth (Foxtel/SoHo)

TV WEEK SILVER LOGIE – Most Outstanding Miniseries or Telemovie

An Accidental Soldier (ABC1)

Better Man (SBS ONE)

Paper Giants: Magazine Wars (ABC1)

Power Games: The Packer-Murdoch Story (Nine Network)

Top Of The Lake (Foxtel/UKTV)

TV WEEK SILVER LOGIE – Most Outstanding Actor

Chris Lilley (Ja’mie: Private School Girl, ABC1)

Craig McLachlan (The Doctor Blake Mysteries, ABC1)

David Wenham (Better Man, SBS ONE)

Kirk Page (Redfern Now, ABC1)

Lachy Hulme (Power Games: The Packer-Murdoch Story, Nine Network)

TV WEEK SILVER LOGIE – Most Outstanding Actress

Asher Keddie (Offspring, Network Ten)

Claudia Karvan (The Time Of Our Lives, ABC1)

Danielle Cormack (Wentworth, Foxtel/ SoHo)

Kat Stewart (Offspring, Network Ten)

Mandy McElhinney (Paper Giants: Magazine Wars, ABC1)

GRAHAM KENNEDY AWARD FOR MOST OUTSTANDING NEWCOMER

Anna Bamford (Wonderland, Network Ten)

Caren Pistorius (Paper Giants: Magazine Wars, ABC1)

Meyne Wyatt (Redfern Now, ABC1)

Remy Hii (Better Man, SBS ONE)

Shareena Clanton (Wentworth, Foxtel/SoHo)

MOST OUTSTANDING LIGHT ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM

Housos (SBS ONE)

It’s A Date (ABC1)

Please Like Me (ABC2)

The Voice Australia (Nine Network)

Upper Middle Bogan (ABC1)

MOST OUTSTANDING NEWS COVERAGE

“Missing the boat” Jaymes Diaz Interview (Ten Eyewitness News, Network Ten)

Crisis in Cairo – Brett Mason (World News Australia, SBS ONE)

Leadership Spill (Foxtel/ SKY NEWS)

NSW Bushfires (Nine News, Nine Network)

The Dark Side of the Force (Seven News, Channel Seven)

MOST OUTSTANDING PUBLIC AFFAIRS REPORT

A Gracious Gift (Four Corners, ABC1)

Drugs in Sport – Stephen Dank (7.30, ABC1)

Manus Island (Dateline, SBS ONE)

Prime Suspect (Sunday Night, Channel Seven)

Prisoner X – The Australian Connection (Foreign Correspondent, ABC1)

MOST OUTSTANDING FACTUAL PROGRAM

Desert War (ABC1)

Dirty Business (SBS ONE)

Jabbed (SBS ONE)

Kings Cross ER: St Vincent’s Hospital  (Foxtel/Crime & Investigation Network)

Redesign My Brain (ABC1)

MOST OUTSTANDING SPORTS COVERAGE

2013 Emirates Melbourne Cup Carnival (Channel Seven)

2013 NRL Grand Final (Nine Network)

2013 Toyota AFL Grand Final (Channel Seven)

The Ashes Cricket – Australia v England (Nine Network)

Tour de France (SBS ONE)

MOST OUTSTANDING CHILDREN’S PROGRAM

Dance Academy (ABC3)

Move It Mob Style (NITV)

Nowhere Boys (ABC3)

Play Along With Sam (Foxtel/Nick Jr)

Play School (ABC4Kids)

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Margot Robbie dazzles in red on red carpet

Margot Robbie hit the red carpet on Sunday night in London for the 2014 Jameson Empire Awards at the Grosvenor House Hotel
Australian Actress Margot Robbie

The 23-year-old Wolf of Wall Street actress walked out a winner after nabbing an award in the Best Female newcomer category. Robbie was nominated alongside fellow Aussie Elizabeth Debicki, who played Jordan Baker in The Great Gatsby and Hollywood’s darling Lupita Nyong’o, of 12 Years a Slave fame.

Margot Robbie at the 2014 Jameson Empire Awards at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on Sunday night.

Margot has certainly reached high profile fashionista status as she looked radiant in a cherry red floor length gown, which was flatteringly cinched in at the waist. The actress was also sporting a glossy raven mane but has previously mentioned she’s only ditched her signature blonde locks for a movie role filming in New Zealand.

Other winners on the night included Tom Cruise, Hugh Jackman and Emma Thompson.

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Lisa Marie Presley’s amazing weightloss

Lisa Marie Presley is the latest star to stun with her dramatic weight loss, boasting to People, “I weigh the same as when I was a teenager!”

The daughter of Elvis Presley has admitted that she worried about dying young like her father, prompting her to lose weight. Elvis Presley famously passed away at the age of 42, grossly overweight and dependent on prescription drugs.

“Knowing my family history – my father’s side is totally not healthy and they have shorter life spans, while my mom’s side is super fit with long life spans – I didn’t know where I would land. So I said, ‘Okay. I’m going to play it safe and try to be as healthy as I can be.’

“I’m at the weight I was at when I was a teenager. I love the way clothes fit right now.”

Other stars to shed the kilos recently include Jessica Simpson, Anna Gunn, Sarah Ferguson and our own Mel Doyle.

Lisa Marie Presley puts her weight loss down to clean eating.

Lisa Marie Presley shows off her slim new figure.

Sarah Ferguson has had a long weight loss battle.

Sarah now says she is happy and healthy. She has cut sugar out of her diet and runs every day.

Melissa Doyle went from ‘mumsy’…

…To super stylish!

Jennifer Hudson’s weight loss goals were achieved through Weight Watchers.

She parted ways with the weight loss company in March after losing more than 30 kilos.

Breaking Bad star Anna Gunn lost weight suddenly fueling rumours of an eating disorder.

She has now recovered and says she stays fit by running after her two young children and doing Pilates.

Mariah Carey thanks a portion-controlled diet and water workouts for her weight loss.

Mariah Carey’s trainer has said “Working out, dedication and specific nutrition is what makes Mariah sculpted and lean.”

Christina Aguilera slimmed down by limiting alcohol and avoiding unhealthy favourites like chocolate chip pancakes.

Christina Aguilera’s diet now features healthy fats like avocado and slimming snacks like shrimp cocktails.

Janet Jackson says that she never weighs herself and still eats caramel apples.

But Janet Jackson is an advocate for healthy weight-loss and the program Nutrisystem.

Kirstie Alley now says that she is off the weight loss roller coaster for good.

Kirstie Alley says she takes a holistic approach to health, prioritising nutrition, activity and stress-free living without sweating every small gain.

Moneyball and Wolf of Wall Street star Jonah Hill has lost a huge amount of weight.

Jonah Hill thanks his nutritionist and Japanese food.

Jessica Simpson has struggled with her weight during and after pregnancies.

Jessica Simpson thanks Weight Watchers and an arduous training regime.

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