All posts tagged: festive

Olivia Rodrigo: Drop Dead review – a maximalist rush of infatuation that’s just a bauble short of festive | Olivia Rodrigo

Olivia Rodrigo: Drop Dead review – a maximalist rush of infatuation that’s just a bauble short of festive | Olivia Rodrigo

Published by Sam Flores

Is there anything better than an ink-fresh pop lyric so nailed-on that you can’t believe 60 years of songwriters didn’t get there first? Or like, at least 20, ever since Googling crushes became an entirely normal component of modern romance: “One night I was bored in bed / And stalked you on the internet,” Olivia Rodrigo sings on her comeback single, a casual admission with its own innate melody destined in turn to stalk listeners’ brains all summer. Her perfect couplet heralds an ecstatic chorus about the giddy terror of getting exactly what you wanted, exactly how you wanted it, and barely being able to breathe or stifle puking: “The most alive I’ve ever been / But kiss me and I might drop dead!” The artwork for Drop Dead Acute, obsessive, unsparing songs about romance, always with a self-aware handle on their intensity – or a wink at how lovestruck girls get labelled “crazy” – have become Rodrigo’s trademark. (She calls her benign form of online stalking “feminine intuition”.) Now 23, she broke out as …

Donny Osmond’s head-turning festive card featuring his huge lookalike family

Donny Osmond’s head-turning festive card featuring his huge lookalike family

Published by Daniella Wilson

Donny Osmond got merry and bright in his new festive Christmas picture with his huge lookalike family. The actor shared a celebratory shot from his seasonal get-together which featured a plethora of family members with a range in ages, from babies to the elderly. © InstagramDonny shared a jaw-dropping Christmas picture Donny was seen sitting in front of his relatives in his Instagram post while holding a baby as his wife Debbie Osmond sat next to him holding a toddler. Donny sported a simple black quarter-zip sweater, tailored gray pants and black dress shoes. Debbie donned a long hot pink dress in the backyard picture. The singer shared a sentimental message to his followers: “Debbie and I, along with our entire family, want to wish you a very Merry Christmas! It’s amazing how this season has a way of reminding us what matters most: family, friends, faith, and the moments we share with the people we love. We hope that your Christmas is filled with warmth and joy wherever you may be. Hold your loved ones …

Lily James gives festive dressing a boho-chic spin in backless dress

Lily James gives festive dressing a boho-chic spin in backless dress

Published by Daniella Wilson

‘Twixmas – the time for the tracksuit bottoms to shine. Nobody is really sure what day it is, let alone know what to wear. We’ve bid farewell to the Christmas jumpers, yet can spy a sequin dress on the horizon, ready to take New Year’s by storm. Luckily, we have Lily James to help keep us afloat during these vexing few days. The actress has been revelling in festivities at home, glimpses of which she shared via social media on Sunday. Taking to her Instagram Stories, the English actress showed off her chosen attire for her time spent with friends and family – delighting her fashionable fans with her elegant look. The 36-year-old slipped into a backless midi dress while dancing around a Christmas tree beside a toddler (due to recent bikini snaps and lack of visible baby bump, we assume not hers). Complete with a suede construction, a pale beige colourway and an A-line skirt that flared as the star twirled with festive glee, the outfit made for a bohemian take on Christmas dressing.  …

Festive maths puzzles – answers and explanations

Festive maths puzzles – answers and explanations

Published by skeptic

Here are the answers to the festive maths quiz I set on December 23. I hope you enjoyed it. Read more: The magic of maths: festive puzzles to give your brain and imagination a workout nestdesigns/Shutterstock Puzzle 1: You are given nine gold coins that look identical. You are told that one of them is fake, and that this coin weighs less than the real ones. Using a set of old-fashioned balance scales, what is the smallest number of weighings you need to determine which is the fake coin? Solution: You can do this in just two weighings: (1) Divide the nine coins into three sets of three, and choose two of these sets to weigh against one another. If one set is lighter than the other, then the fake is one of these three coins. If the two sets weigh the same, then the fake is in the three unweighed coins. (2) Now take the set with the fake coin, and weigh two of its coins against each other. If one is lighter, that is …

Feeling the festive stress? Try this yoga teacher’s three relaxing poses to help manage holiday overwhelm

Feeling the festive stress? Try this yoga teacher’s three relaxing poses to help manage holiday overwhelm

Published by Jenni Sidey

If the festive season gets a little much and you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, one of the best things you can do is gentle yoga. Gwenn Jones, yoga teacher and owner of Auburn Yoga Studio, recommends a restorative practice when dealing with stressful situations. “Regular yoga practice brings joy, release, healing and applied wisdom,” she says. You may like Jones chose the three poses below with holiday overwhelm in mind. Whether you have a big meal to prepare, family and friends to coordinate, or a long journey ahead, this quick practice will support your nervous system so you can face any situation with calm and composure. As well as the restorative nature of the poses themselves, taking a moment for yourself, to refill your cup and focus on your wellbeing, might help you feel more resilient, however things turn out. Try these poses the next time you feel stressed or need to unwind after a busy day. Let me know in the comments below how you get on. Start your week with achievable workout ideas, …

Why we all need a little festive pedantry when it comes to snowflakes

Why we all need a little festive pedantry when it comes to snowflakes

Published by skeptic

This decoration just about passes muster for Katie Andrii Oleksiienko/Shutterstock At this time of year, everything seems to be decorated with some kind of seasonal design – trees, holly, jolly Santas and so on. One shape you often see is a snowflake. Yes, they are beautiful and intricate, but I can find their proliferation deeply annoying. The shape of snowflakes is an artefact of the chemical structure of ice, and even though (as they say) every snowflake is unique, there is actually a surprisingly regular mathematical pattern in there too. We often use the language of symmetry to describe shapes. If something has reflection symmetry, we can draw a line across it, and the shapes on each side will be mirror images of each other. A shape can also have rotational symmetry – we can partially rotate it and get the same shape. The number of different positions on the way round that result in the same shape is called the order of the symmetry: a shape like a square has order 4 rotational symmetry, …

Why it is important to make space for solitude over the festive season

Why it is important to make space for solitude over the festive season

Published by skeptic

We tend to imagine the holiday season as universally joyful and social, full of family gatherings, sparkling lights and shared traditions. But people’s experiences at this time of year are far from uniform, and stepping outside the usual norms can come with its own perks. In a recent survey of more than 300 adults in the UK by our Solitude Lab, most respondents said they would still spend Christmas with family this year – either in larger gatherings or smaller households with partners and children. But social time, even positive time with loved ones, can be demanding. Gift buying, travel, disruptions to normal routines, hosting or simply the general sensory rush of the holiday season can all build up and drain us. When asked which feelings they associate with the season, people most often chose words related to love and togetherness, but a large proportion of people in our survey also chose calm and relaxation. This suggests people expect both connection and rest. Brief moments of solitude can help balance it all out. Research from …

9 festive ISS holiday celebrations through the years

9 festive ISS holiday celebrations through the years

Published by Jenni Sidey

Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. For the past 25 years, an intrepid group of astronauts have spent the holidays 250 miles above the Earth. The crew living and working aboard the International Space Station (ISS) get to eat their turkey (but can’t drink seltzer or use salt) and open presents while traveling 17,500 miles per hour and circling their home planet every 90 minutes.  Despite that unique vantage, the celebrations often look quite similar to how they would here on Earth. NASA astronauts share special meals packed by the Space Food Systems Laboratory at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, where the crews will select their menus with help from nutritionists and food scientists before launch. The cargo launches arriving before special occasions often include Holiday Bulk Overwrapped Bags filled with foods including clams, oysters, green beans, and smoked salmon, and shelf-stable treats such as icing, candies, almond butter, and hummus.  ISS crew members will also use the opportunity to connect with loved ones through …

Still under ! These versatile sound-filtering earbuds are helping me focus during the busy festive season

Still under $50! These versatile sound-filtering earbuds are helping me focus during the busy festive season

Published by Jenni Sidey

Have you ever wondered if there was a way to make things quieter, without blocking sound out entirely? I tested the Loop Switch 2 recently, and these handy earplugs do just that. With three levels of sound filtration, they really help when I’m finding the world loud and overstimulating, or if I need to focus on something without getting distracted. What’s more, the Switch 2 hasn’t gone back up in price yet and still enjoys the 20% Black Friday discount it had at the end of November. The Loop Switch 2 stepped in and solved a problem I’ve had for years: when I need to focus but don’t want to blast music to drown everything out, what do I do? I put in my Loops. They’re great when I need to focus on work and can make usually overstimulating environments like the pub on a busy day, or even the supermarket, more manageable. You can switch between modes with the flick of a fingertip, helping you filter out most sound to focus on a conversation …