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The best dresses of 2011

From Pippa Middleton’s Alexander McQueen bridesmaid dress to Angelina Jolie’s sparkly green Golden Globes gown, 2011 has been the year of the fabulous frock.

We scoured the red carpets at the Oscars, Emmys, MTV Awards, Costume Institute Gala and every major film premiere from New York to London to find our favourite frocks.

From flowing Grecian goddess gowns to slinky sequined slips, these dresses are our top picks of the past 12 months.

Beyonce Knowles, Pippa Middleton and Angelina Jolie

Kate Middleton in her Alexander McQueen wedding gown in April.

Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace at the Golden Globes in January.

A pregnant Natalie Portman in Rodarte at the Oscars in February.

Pippa Middleton’s Alexander McQueen bridesmaid dress made her (and her bum) famous.

Kate Winslet in Stella McCartney at the premiere of *Mildred Pierce* in October.

Kate Winslet in Stella McCartney at the premiere of Mildred Pierce in October.

Sandra Bullock in Vera Wang at the Oscars.

Beyonce Knowles chose this Lanvin gown to announce her pregnancy in August.

Cate Blanchett in Givenchy at the Oscars.

Kate Middleton in Jenny Packham at a charity gala in June.

Charlene Wittstock’s couture Giorgio Armani wedding gown in July.

Beyonce Knowles in Alexander McQueen at the Costume Institute Gala in May.

Rachel McAdams in Marchesa at the premiere of *Midnight in Paris* in Cannes.

Rachel McAdams in Marchesa at the premiere of Midnight in Paris in Cannes.

Michelle Obama in Alexander McQueen at a state dinner in January.

Christina Hendricks in Johanna Johnson at the Emmys in September.

Kate Moss in her John Galliano wedding gown in July.

Zara Phillips in her Stewart Parvin wedding gown in July.

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Cash or Christmas party?

Workers would prefer cash to Christmas party

Employers spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on staff Christmas parties every year, but most employees would prefer cash.

A survey of employees in the US found that 72 percent of workers would prefer a cash bonus to any other sort of Christmas perk.

A pay rise was the next most popular Christmas gift (62 percent), followed by an extra day of paid holiday (32 percent) and supermarket gift cards (23 percent).

A Christmas party — even one with an open bar — was an unpopular option (four percent), with more people preferring the ability to work from home (14 percent), company stock or shares (11 percent), private health insurance (10 percent) and gym membership (eight percent).

A train or bus subsidy (three percent) and a gold watch or other jewellery (two percent) were the least popular options.

The survey was conducted by Glassdoor, an online job site. Glassdoor spokesperson Rusty Rueff said the findings showed the credit crunch was still making life hard for most people.

“Until we see the impacts of the great recession further recede, when it comes to what employees want it starts with cash and other financial perks to make sure that ends can be met over the holidays”, Rueff said.

“It may not be sexy but even a nominal amount, a gas or gift card, or an extra day off that an employee can use at their discretion to compensate for the extra hours they have been putting in will likely go much farther in boosting morale than a holiday party. Now is the time to listen closely to what employees need and respond accordingly.”

Your say: Would you prefer a cash bonus to a work Christmas party? [email protected]

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Demi and Ashton meet in LA

Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher had an awkward encounter at the West Hollywood private members’ club last week, according to US Weekly.

An unnamed source told the magazine that she was at dinner with a male companion, but that the meeting did not look romantic.

Things got awkward when Demi, 49, spotted Ashton, 33, on the opposite side of the patio with four friends. “She approached his table,” the unnamed source said.

“He gave her a hug, and they spoke for a few minutes.”

The unnamed source said although the pair had a “polite” chat they said the scene was “very awkward.”

Flick through to see pictures of Demi and Ashton sharing happier moments together in 2011.

The pair at the 13th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards in February 2011.

Demi and Ashton at Super Bowl celebrations in February 2011.

The pair at the Sao Paulo Fashion Week Fall in January 2011.

Demi and Ashton at the 13th Annual “From Slavery To Freedom” Gala in May 2011.

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Juices that can make you slimmer

Juices that can make you slimmer and healthier

Fresh juices are an excellent way of getting a concentrated shot of plant-based nutrients, including free radical-scavenging carotenes, digestive enzymes, and alkalising chlorophyll, in a readily absorbable form.

The more antioxidant-packed fruit and veg you can pack into your juicer, the lower your odds of getting many chronic diseases and the more likely you are to enjoy increased immunity, better bone health, and a slimmer waistline.

But don’t stop at tried-and-true combos like carrot and apple — you can toss just about anything into your machine, and transform your health.

In pictures: How to lose kilos without noticing

Follow the 3:1 rule: Natural health experts suggest a combination of two to three veggie sources to one fruit, to avoid possible blood sugar spikes.

See green: Strictly speaking, the avocado is a fruit, but unusually for either a vegetable or fruit, it is rich in healthy essential fatty acids and heart-healthy vitamin E. Some research suggests avocadoes suppress the secretion of insulin via a sugar called manoheptulose, which means they are very good for satisfying hunger. Combine the flesh of 1 avocado with a handful of parsley, 3-4 asparagus spears, two large oranges and a dash of lemon juice for a great cleanser and skin tonic.

Drink your salad: Despite their reputation as being full of water, cucumbers contain important minerals like calcium and zinc, while salad leaves — especially cress, endive, spinach, and lettuce — supply folate, which is believed to help reduce heart disease risk, along with antioxidants and fibre, which decrease the risk of certain cancers, notably colon cancer. Try juicing 1/2 cucumber with 100g mixed baby spinach and salad leaves and 2 large, ripe pears — add a radish, for extra snap and interest.

Pick the favourite: The Brassica vegetable family — broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, and Brussels sprouts — is the darling of nutritionists and dieticians around the world, with many lab tests and population studies showing they have cancer-fighting, antibacterial, and immune-boosting properties. Cabbage makes a surprisingly delicious juice, provided it’s paired with the right partners. Try juicing 1/2 small red cabbage with 1/2 fennel bulb, 2 apples, a celery stick, and a dash of orange juice.

Channel your inner matador Be inspired by the classic Spanish gazpacho soup and juice 100g tomatoes, 1/2 cucumber, 1/2 red capsicum, 1 celery stick, 1 shallot, and a handful of fresh coriander. Add a dash of fresh red seeded chilli and lime juice.

Simply red: Beetroot has the highest sugar content of any vegetable and makes a delicious, sweet, shocking-pink juice with a rich yet refreshing taste, especially when it’s combined with sparkly citrus and warming ginger, plus it’s an excellent source of folate, iron, and soluble fibre. Juice 2 small beetroots, 1/2 inch piece of fresh root ginger, 1 small sweet potato, 1 carrot and 1 large orange.

Do it daily: The best time to drink fresh juice is at breakfast, because it cleanses your system. No time in the mornings? Wash and prep fruit and veg the night before, and store in an airtight container in the fridge; if they’re organic, keep the skins on as they contain valuable nutrients, but if they’re not organic, peel them first.

Shopping: Find your new juicer online

Add extras: Try tossing in a spoonful of a protein source — like hemp or chia seeds, or flaked almonds or cashews — plus a dash of a powdered supergreen food, like wheatgrass, spirulina or barley grass, which all help to stimulate and detox your liver and kidneys.

Your say: What is your favourite juice combination?

Video: The world’s healthiest juice

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Gender-bending actresses

Cate Blanchett, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hilary Swank and Angelina Jolie have all manned up for a movie. And they’ve all become better actresses for it.

Here are our favourite women dressed as men.

Glenn Close plays a man in her new film *Albert Nobbs*.

Glenn Close plays a man in her new film Albert Nobbs.

Angelina Jolie donned male clothes in *Salt*.

Less than 30 minutes

Cate Blanchett became Bob Dylan in *I’m Not There*.

Cate Blanchett became Bob Dylan in I’m Not There.

Keira Knightley disguised herself as a man in *Pirates of the Caribbean*.

Keira Knightley disguised herself as a man in Pirates of the Caribbean.

Julie Andrews played a man and a woman in *Victor Victoria*.

Julie Andrews played a man and a woman in Victor Victoria.

Barbara Streisand won an Oscar for playing a man in *Yentl*.

Barbara Streisand won an Oscar for playing a man in Yentl.

Gwyneth Paltrow also won an Oscar for dressing as a man in *Shakespeare in Love*.

Gwyneth Paltrow also won an Oscar for dressing as a man in Shakespeare in Love.

Hilary Swank played a transgender man in *Boys Don’t Cry*.

Hilary Swank played a transgender man in Boys Don’t Cry.

Tilda Swinton played a young nobleman in *Orlando*.

Tilda Swinton played a young nobleman in Orlando.

Katharine Hepburn wore men’s clothing in *Sylvia Scarlett*.

Katharine Hepburn wore men’s clothing in Sylvia Scarlett.

Lady Gaga has a male alter-ego called Jo Calderone (left).

Young actress Amanda Bynes played a boy in *She’s the Man*.

Less than 15 minutes

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Angelina Jolie bonds with Brad’s parents

Brad Pitt’s parents were reportedly devastated when he left Jennifer Aniston for Angelina Jolie but it seems Bill and Jane Pitt are now firmly on Team Jolie.

Angelina looked thrilled to be spending time with her in-laws in New York yesterday, walking arm-in-arm with Jane as they wandered around the city.

Later, Bill and Jane joined Brad and Angelina on the red carpet at the premiere of the actress’ directorial debut In the Land of Blood and Honey.

Brad and Angelina raise six children together, Maddox, 10, Pax, seven, Zahara, six, Shiloh, five, and three-year-old twins Knox and Vivienne.

Angelina Jolie walking arm-in-arm with Jane Pitt.

Angelina and Jane were extremely tactile and couldn’t stop smiling.

Angelina and Jane laugh as they emerge from a restaurant.

Angelina seemed to adore her mother-in-law.

Angelina on the red carpet with her in-laws Bill and Jane Pitt.

Angelina and Jane share a laugh on the red carpet.

Angelina poses with Bill and Jane Pitt.

Brad and Angelina pose with Brad’s parents.

Angelina bonding with Brad’s mother in 2008.

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The surprising truth about sexting

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It’s hard work to get teens away from their mobile phones, but should parents be concerned about the sexual nature of what they are sharing?

A new study suggests that parents don’t have as much to worry about as first thought LiveScience reported.

Study researcher Janis Wolak, of the University of New Hampshire, has performed a study on the nature of sexting, which involves sending sexually explicit messages or photographs.

The study aimed to help parents understand how the sexually explicit content may impact children, and explore the possible legal impacts of children producing what could be defined as child pornography.

“We really wanted to focus on the area of most concern, how often are kids creating images that could be child pornography, and what are kids doing when they received them,” Wolak said.

“Most kids are extremely responsible in their use of the Internet and cellphones … we aren’t surprised to see that it’s a very small group — 1 percent of kids — that are doing this.”

The number of teens sexting in this study were much lower than other studies, mainly due to the age of children involved. Wolak and her colleagues, who work at the Crimes Against Children Research Center, focused on sexual image sending in children ages 10 to 18 in the US.

Throughout their study they interviewed children themselves and interviewed police officers who had been involved in cases involving youth “sexting” photos.

The 1560 child participants who took part in the study were asked about their experiences taking, sending or receiving “nude or nearly nude” images. If they answered yes, they were asked more specific questions about the image.

From the responses the researchers found that about 1 percent of children in their study appeared in or created sexually explicit images.

In most cases, the teens said that they had received texts from others with almost 6 percent having had received a sexually explicit image, and 7.1 percent having had received a nude or nearly nude image.

In total, 9.6 percent of the youth surveyed had appeared in, created or received nude or nearly nude images in the last year. The study found that the rates rise sharply as the youth enter later ages.

“Most kids had neither taken pictures of themselves or received those sorts of pictures,” Wolak said.

She also noted that the images which were sent out by teens usually to a person were not shared to others.

The researchers then focused on criminal sexting, finding that there had a total of 1447 cases, between 2008 and 2009.

Of the cases around a third involved adults receiving youth-created images, another third were strictly between youths but contained malicious actions, and the rest of the cases were youth-only “experimental” images.

“In a lot of cases where kids were arrested, the cases were handled in juvenile court and the sentences involved things like community service,” Wolak said.

“Police seemed quite reluctant in most cases to treat kids like serious sex offenders.”

Both studies were published in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics, and were performed by Wolak and her colleagues at the University of New Hampshire.

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Khloe Kardashian is being sued for assault

Khloe Kardashian is being sued for assault

It seems there is never a dull moment when you are a Kardashian.

While Kim Kardashian is still overcoming the effects of her marriage break-down and older sister Kourtney has announced she is expecting her second child with partner Scott Disick, Khloe Kardashian is being sued by a transgender woman.

Chantal Spears is suing Khloe for assault, claiming the reality star “violently” attacked her outside a Hollywood nightclub on December 5, 2009, TMZ report.

Papers filed by Chantal, who was formerly Ronald Spears, state that following the incident she needed medical care and suffered from “severe mental anguish”. She is seeking unspecified damages.

Chantal said the incident occurred after she commented on Khloe’s husband Lamar Odom.

“All I was telling Lamar Odom is maybe he is too young to get married and all of a sudden I get this big push from this girl,” she told TMZ.

But a source close to Khloe has told Us Weekly that the reality TV star did nothing wrong.

“This was two years ago and Khloe did nothing,” the source said. “This person shoved Khloe and she pushed them off. This person just wants to jump on the bandwagon.”

Reps for Kardashian could not immediately be reached for comment by TMZ.

Watch the video of the Chantal Spears explaining the event that took place in the video player above.

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Bec and Lleyton Hewitt happy at home

Bec and Lleyton Hewitt happy at home

After a difficult year for them both, the Hewitts are happy to be back among friends and family in Australia.

The beaming smile told the world just how happy Bec Hewitt was to bring her three gorgeous children back home to Australia, particularly after tennis champ Lleyton hinted he may be preparing to retire. The couple couldn’t hide their excitement at their homecoming when they hosted a fun charity event last week after returning from the Bahamas for an Aussie Christmas with their kids – Mia, 6, Cruz, 3 next week, and 13-month-old Ava, who celebrated her first birthday at Disneyland.

“We just love our little people so much,” Bec told radio’s Kyle And Jackie O Show, adding that while she won’t rule out another child, there’s no way she and Lleyton could travel with more than three. Friends say Bec has been pining for home after a difficult year, during which an injury-plagued Lleyton plummeted in the world tennis rankings, while she struggled with the demands of raising three young children out of a suitcase.

“Bec finds it really lonely on the tennis circuit and would love nothing more than to settle down in Australia, so she can see more of her own family and friends,” confides one friend, who says the Hewitts will be here for the next 10 weeks.

Bec certainly seemed to revel in catching up with her bridesmaid, actress Kate Ritchie, at the inaugural Apia International Sydney Lleyton Hewitt Charity Day at the Olympic Park Tennis Centre, a fundraising event for the Children’s Hospital at Westmead. “It hits home when you have kids,” says doting dad Lleyton.

Read more and see the exclusive picutures of Bec and Lleyton with their children in this week’s Woman’s Day on sale December 5, 2011.

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Ricki-Lee Coulter: My new body and my new man

Ricki-Lee Coulter: My new body and my new man

The singer reveals to Wendy Squires how she got her fabulous new body, and transformed her career and love life in the process.

It’s a perfect day off Hamilton Island on the Great Barrier Reef – and Ricki-Lee Coulter is in a teeny bikini, posing on a pristine white-sand beach, some 30kg slimmer than she was two years ago. To say she looks sensational is an understatement, but there is more to Ricki-Lee’s happy demeanour and glowing confidence than a smoking-hot body.Ask the 26-year-old singer her secret and she doesn’t hold back.

“I’m the happiest I’ve ever been – the fittest, healthiest and the most in love,” she gushes, looking adoringly at her partner, personal trainer Richard Harrison, 30. “And I’ve just signed an international record deal with EMI. It’s like every risk, every hard decision, every heartbreak I’ve experienced in my life has paid off. I’m living my dreams!” When Ricki-Lee met Richard in September 2009, she was far from being the svelte, energetic and confident woman playing up to the camera today. She admits she was in a very bad place, personally and professionally.

In the wake of her marriage breakdown, her weight had ballooned to 96kg. Her passion for making music had died, as had her lifelong dream of a career as a singer-songwriter. “I have always been a confident person, and I still was even when I was bigger, but when I look back at that time now, I see I was a complete mess,” Ricki-Lee says.

“I was getting over the break-up of my marriage, I became cynical about love, and started comforting myself with food. I was overweight, unhealthy and moody,” she continues. “My skin was terrible, my hair and nails were brittle. “I couldn’t do my job of singing and dancing on stage, because I would simply run out of breath. I felt I was being treated like a puppet, a robot being controlled, a child, even – by the people who were supposed to be my team.” A 1am meeting, which had followed constant pestering by matchmaking friends, saw Richard walk into Ricki-Lee’s life and turn it around.

See more, including our exclusive beach shoot with Ricki-Lee plus find out her meal plan, in this week’s Woman’s Day on sale December 5, 2011.

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