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Law and order in Mossy’s kitchen

Law and order in Mossy's kitchen

With just two weeks to go, things are really heating up in the MKR kitchen, but it’s nothing compared to what this home chef has seen in his dangerous day job. Lucy Chesterton reports.

Facing judges Pete and Manu should be a piece of cake for My Kitchen Rules contestant Matthew Moss, who admits he has seen “the dark side” in his other life as a hard-nosed detective.

He has been involved in some of Australia’s most memorable cases, including the murder of Caroline Byrne and the death of INXS star Michael Hutchence, .

But Mossy – who, along with his property lawyer wife Gabe, has earned a place in the MKR final showdown – still finds his knees knocking when dishing up dinner for judges Pete Evans and Manu Fieldel.

“It’s a different world to the one I come from,” the detective sergeant laughs. Mossy’s glamorous new life as a reality TV star couldn’t be further removed from his gritty day job, which saw him spend 10 long years investigating the murder of Sydney model Caroline Byrne, who died when she was thrown from a clifftop at The Gap in Sydney by her lover, Gordon Wood. As the complicated case unfolded, Mossy found himself becoming close to Caroline’s tireless father, Tony.

“He is a gentle man who at the end of the day just wanted to know what happened to his daughter,” Mossy says, adding that when Wood was finally found guilty of murder in 2008, he celebrated the occasion by having lunch with Tony.

For the full story see this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale March 15, 2010.

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Shelly Craft: We’re having a beach baby!

Shelly Craft: We're having a beach baby!

Shelly Craft: We're having a beach baby!

The TV host has more reason than ever to smile – she’s going to be a mum. And, as she tells Clare Rigden, her dog knew before she did!

She’s known as one of the sunniest, most boundlessly energetic stars on Australian TV. But Shelley Craft has nothing on the two family members who rush out to greet Woman’s Day as we arrive at her beautiful Byron Bay home.

“Excuse my dogs – they’re a little on the enthusiastic side,” she laughs, as Beau, 6, and Jackson, 5, give us a warm, waggy welcome.

Dressed in a free-flowing pink summer dress, and looking relaxed in a way that only a weekend in Byron can achieve, Shelley greets us with her trademark mile-wide smile.

And that famous grin has been wider than ever since she found out she was pregnant with her first child, due late August.

“We’re so excited. We can’t wait!” she says, turning to her husband of four months, Christian Sergiacomi. “It’s all happened quite quickly, but we couldn’t be happier.”

The last time Woman’s Day caught up with Shelley, she’d just celebrated her marriage to Christian, a freelance cameraman she met while presenting on The Great Outdoors.

The couple, who worked for five years on the travel show before they began dating in 2007, tied the knot in a low-key beach ceremony at Byron, with just a small gathering of family and friends.

The laid-back pair couldn’t hide their joy at becoming husband and wife, and radiated happiness – just as they do now, sharing their happy news.

“It really has been a magical year,” Shelley says, looking over and smiling at Christian. “So much has happened, both with work, and in our lives. We feel really blessed. I’m not sure everything’s sunk in yet!”

For the full story and more celebrity baby news see this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale March 15, 2010.

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Biggest Losers make-over!

Biggest Losers make-over!

Biggest Losers make-over!

With only weeks to go before a winner is crowned, LUCY CHESTERTON goes behind the scenes with the final five contestants of The Biggest Loser to find out how they feel about their transformations.

Instead of celebrating milestones with a meal, these days, the last five contestants on The Biggest Loser have found a haircut is a far healthier way to spoil themselves.

But heading into a Sydney salon for their surprise makeovers, the final five were terrified of their transformations.

“One of my biggest fears was not knowing what we were going to have to wear,” says 24-year-old Shannon Bourke, who has lost an amazing 69 kilos. Phoebe Noble, 19, says the makeover was the scariest challenge so far.

“Today has been a world of crazy things that would have been unmentionables in my previous life,” she laughs.

Now, with the kilos dropping every day, Phoebe and the finalists are embracing their new figures – and confidence.

For the full story see this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale March 15, 2010.

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Sara-Marie’s amazing new look!

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Back at work seven hours after giving birth!

Back at work seven hours after giving birth!

Teacher Helen Wright says she’s setting a good example going back to her teaching job straight after having a baby. Jon Kaila reports.

Helen Wright went into labour in the morning … and was back at work by lunchtime.

She keeps baby Jessica with her throughout the day so she can breastfeed her – and even conducts meetings and school assemblies with the tot in a sling!

“Most parents want their daughters to have the exhilarating excitement of a career they love and the joy of a family,” says 39-year-old Helen, mother of three and the principal of an all-girls school in Wiltshire.

“I have that, and I want to show the girls that it’s not an impossible dream. “The students have loved having Jessica around and their faces light up when they are near her. She is such a good baby too.

“I just couldn’t hand them over to someone else to look after and bring them up,” Helen continues. “I don’t believe in doing that. Plus I have a job that is full of responsibilities and these pupils need stability, so it made sense to have Jessica with me from the beginning.’’

Helen explains that she breastfeeds Jessica, now 12 weeks, between meetings and lets the tot sleep in a moses basket beside her desk.

“The day I had Jessica I went to hospital at 5.45am and I had her less than an hour later,” Helen says. “I was then discharged three hours later and felt absolutely brilliant, so I thought why not share that?

“I was back in my office at school just after lunch and was immediately introducing my beautiful daughter to everyone.

“I look after people’s daughters for them so they expect me to be pretty special and an excellent role model,” Helen adds.

Read the full story in this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale March 15, 2010.

Your say: Do you think Helen Wright has done the right thing? Share your thoughts below.

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Sara-Marie: How I turned my life around!

Sara-Marie: How I turned my life around!

We knew her as the scene stealing “bum dancer” from Big Brother. Nine years on, Sara-Marie tells Glen Williams about her new outlook on life.

The beautiful dark-haired girl running carefree and playful through shallow water has an air of familiarity about her.

You feel you know her, but can’t quite place her. Then you hear the madcap laugh and booming voice that turned the Big Brother favourite into a household name.

How could we ever forget Sara-Marie Fedele? One minute, she was in our faces, wearing bunny ears and shaking her behind at the cameras in what became a dance sensation. The next she had transformed into a best-selling author and released a successful range of pyjamas, and even a CD.

Then she allowed herself to slip from the public eye. “That was nine years ago, and the hardest thing for me has been people expecting me to still be that girl,” says Sara-Marie. “I knew the celebrity thing wasn’t real. I went off and had a ball learning childcare.

“I re-emerged to do Dancing With The Stars. That was a lot of fun, but then I’d come straight back home to be with the kids at kindy. The kids were a joy, how they made me laugh. I deliberately took myself away, took time out and found contentment.”

That contentment shows on her face; she radiates good health. “Yes, I’ve changed,” she says confidently. “But as you get older, you gain a different outlook, and handle yourself differently. I used to have a weight issue, but you have to remember, when I was on Big Brother, I had a different lifestyle – eating pizza and drinking a lot.

“I haven’t had a drink in a long while and that’s just by choice. I just surround myself with people who have a healthier lifestyle.

“It’s not because I drank too much and one day woke up and said, ‘That’s it’. It was just for myself. I’ve now surrounded myself with people who have a different outlook on life. They don’t drink, so I don’t drink.”

For the full story see this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale March 15, 2010.

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From runway to celebrity closet

Paris Fashion Week has certainly made two things clear: hoods and lace are in this season.

Featured by designers such as Vivienne Westwood and Jean Paul Gaultier, hooded dresses, jackets and coats have been all over the run way.

Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones is all over the new trend and stepped out recently in this hooded number.

Just as popular is black lace. Although it has been worn by many celebrities all over red-carpet events recently, the trend isn’t going anywhere! Designers like Givenchy and Valentino included the trend in their shows.

This will certainly delight celebrities like Jennifer Garner and Kate Winslet, who both stepped out to red-carpet functions in beautiful lace detailed dresses.

A model walks in the Chapurin Ready to Wear show for Paris Womenswear Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011

Catherine Zeta Jones steps out in her hooded coat

A model walks in the Valentino Ready to Wear show for Paris Womenswear Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011

Kate Winslet wears Stella McCartney

Jenifer Garner at the Valentine’s Day premier

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Madonna to launch fashion line with Lourdes

Madonna and Lourdes

At 51 you would think Madonna would be heading out of the celebrity fast lane and taking some time to relax. But the singer has a lot more up her sleeve.

The star has teamed up with 13-year-old daughter, Lourdes, to launch an affordable juniors fashion line, People magazine reported.

With the help of Iconix Brand Group the mother of four is set to launch her own style line.

“Joining forces with Iconix to bring my fashion ideas to consumers is very exciting for me,” she said in a media release.

And how can the Madonna resist using her own song, ‘Material Girl’, as part of her label? The collection will appropriately be called MG Icon after her 1985 hit and the line will include everything from apparel to footwear and jewellery.

And there are also plans to launch a follow-up beauty and fragrance line in 2011.

The line will be launched in August exclusively at Macey’s in the US, but there is no word yet when the pop princess’ line will be available in Oz.

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Men have longer sex life expectancy

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Women may live longer, but men are sexually active until later in life, according to a new survey.

Men of all ages were reported to be more interested in sex (no surprises there) but on average men are still sexually active at 70 with women’s desire starting to wane slightly earlier at 65, researchers from the University of Chicago studying middle-aged and older Americans have found.

“Overall, men were more likely than women to be sexually active, to report a good quality sex life, and to be interested and thinking about sex on a regular basis,” the researchers wrote in the British Medical Journal.

“This disparity, and its implication for health, requires further exploration.”

The survey also found that 55-year-old men who were in good health were twice as interested in sex and could enjoy several more years of sexual activity than their male peers in bad health. The same was true of women in good health but they still lagged behind their male counterparts.

The researchers, Dr Stacy Tessler Lindau and Dr Natalia Gavrilova, examined data from more than 3000 American men and women. They divided the participants into two groups, one including people aged 25 to 74 and the other including people aged 57 to 85. Participants were asked to rate their sex lives and desires on a scale of poor to excellent.

The study found that the disparity between the sexual activity of men and women actually increases with age.

While 30-year-old men can expect 35 years more of sexual activity and 45 years more of life, women of the same age can expect just 31 more years of sexual activity, but 50 more years of life. At 75 years of age and older, 40 percent of men were sexually active compared to just 17 percent of women. However, the researchers conceded that this difference could be down to women living longer than their partners as men and women in relationships reported the same sexual activity.

But there is more bad news for women, among over-75s who were still sexually active, only half the women rated the sex as “good” compared with two thirds of the men.

One theory regarding this is that treatments for male sexual problems have boomed in the last decade whereas for women there have been no such developments.

“Over time, we’ve seen the introduction of really effective treatments for male erectile dysfunction, which is one of the most common problems for men as they get older,” Dr Lindau told LiveScience. “For women we haven’t seen the same.”

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Hydration nation

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Getty Images

There are some fine lines on your skin that have nothing to do with your anti-ageing regimen. They are caused because your skin is crying out for a good drink. This is where hydrators come into your skin routine.

Hydrators are for your skin what a good downpour is for your garden; they give your skin a big drink of water. If your skin is properly nourished, it can absorb your other lotions and potions.

It’s not just dry skin that needs help in the moisture department – oily skin can get dehydrated, too. Caffeine, carbonated drinks, alcohol and the environment all wreak havoc on your skin’s moisture levels and this can show itself in the form of fine lines and reduced elasticity in all skin types.

To help the hydration process, it is important to exfoliate (how frequently will depend on your skin type, but once or twice a week is advisable) to remove dead skin cells and make way for the new, hydrated cells. All the moisturiser in the world isn’t going to be of any help if it can’t get past those dead cells.

Jane Iredale Pommist, $39, 1300 850 008. Gatineau Paris Creamy Moisture Mask. $55, 1800 037 076. shu uemura depsea hydrability moisturising concentrate, $100, (02) 9931 8888. Estée Lauder Hydrationist Crème, $75, 1800 061 326. M.A.C Moisturelush Cream, $60, 1800 613 828.

If a hydrator is out of the question this month, the next best thing is to make sure you are drinking eight glasses of water every day – it’s not just a marketing pitch by bottled water companies.

Your say: Do you use a hydrator? How do you keep your skin hydrated? Share with us below.

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