Newsflash: Ess Double You shortlisted as final 20 of MTV's Student of The Year!

Hello Readers!

Well what a crazy few days it has been!

I found out that I have been shortlisted in the final 20 of MTV's Student of the Year competition!!! I found out this fabulous news whilst walking up Egham Hill to Royal Holloway University (where I study) and fell to my knees in disbelief whilst myself and my friend screamed and danced around on the pavement. Apologies to any drivers who were distracted by this explosion of excitement!

This means, ladies & gents, that I am in with a chance of being MTV's Student of the Year and being given the KA-amazing opportunity to work for 3 months at MTV's HQ in Camden!! I will also be given the chance to win tickets for MTV's Europe Music Awards, and to the Isle of Man music festival, along with a holiday voucher worth £500!

I cannot express in words how much this means to me and this is where YOU lovely people come into play. I need you to vote for me via this link: studentoftheyear.mtv.co.uk/student/samantha-wynn, watch my video application and VOTE!

You can also share this on Facebook and Twitter and encourage your friends to do so too. And there's even something in it for you lot too! If you vote then you are instantly entered into a prize draw to win either a pair of camping or VIP tickets to the Isle of Man festival where you could be boogieing along with me to the likes of Paloma Faith, Primal Scream and Wretch 32!

Here is my video application for you to see why I am a worthy candidate for MTV Student of the Year:

So VOTE FOR A WYNNER! and vote Sam Wynn. 

That's all for now readers, stay tuned.

Big Love xxx

Eurovision Cuisine

Happy Monday to you all!

Today is my day of rest after a fun weekend, drinking lots and eating lots more which is the best way to spend a weekend, right?!

I hope you all watched the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday night! It is always one of my favourite nights of the year and since a very young age I have always made whoever I am spending the evening with watch it with me. I happened to be spending it with one of my besties who doesn't usually watch it (SHOCK HORROR) but decided to embrace the eurotrash and even got into the spirit by suggesting we make Swedish influenced food- Sweden, of course, being the home of Eurovision this year!

I, for one, was definitely up for making meatballs and smorgasboard! In the end we decided to take a twist on meatballs using turkey mince, serving it up with yummy sweet potato mash and braised red cabbage with pear.

Just mix it all together and roll into small meatballs with a little flour! mmm!

The red cabbage was braised with chopped pear, nutmeg, ground spice, lemon rind, vinegar, brown sugar and vegetable stock for approx. 45 mins!

Clockwise: (1) Meatballs ready to fry, (2) Meatballs warming in oven, (3) Côtes du Rhone- my fav red wine! (4) The masterpiece!

All this washed down with a nice glass of red wine and the dulcet tones of the Romanian entry (watch here) and I was happy as Larry.

How did you spend your Eurovision 2013?

Oh, and congratulations to Denmark, commiserations to Bonnie...I believed.

Lots of luv,

Ess Double You x

Oh, Jeff...I Love You, Too...But... Lichtenstein: A Retrospective

Good evening readers!

I trust you had a lovely weekend despite the downturn in the weather with thunderstorms and hail, or as one of my besties endearingly said the other day 'it's just God moving furniture around'.

I spent Sunday afternoon at the Roy Lichtenstein exhibition at the Tate Modern. It is an exhibition I've been wanting to visit for a long time and it was well worth the wait!

It has to be said that it is probably one of the most popular and most spoken about exhibitions that the Tate has put on, but if anything I think it is great to see art become more accessible to a wider range of people. I'm not sure what it is about Pop Art that so many people love; whether it's the comic book style sketches or perhaps the vintage-retro feel that seems to still be on trend in 2013! Whatever the attraction is, it wasn't until I got up close and personal with Lichtenstein's paintings that I recognised the detail and pain-staking precision that has gone into these iconic creations.
What was even better about the exhibition was the new discoveries of this artist usually known for 'The Torpedo', 'Wham!' and 'Drowning Girl'. I even preferred some of his other work, particularly the sculptures that hinted at the art-deco, Great Gatsby mania that is also POPular at the moment.

For obvious reasons, I wasn't able to take any photos but here is a reminder of some his iconic works...

Oh, Jeff...I love you, too...But... : Lichtenstein: photo taken from articles.chicagotribune.com

Whaam! Lichtenstein: photo taken from tate.org.uk

Drowning Girl: Lichtenstein: photo taken from wikipedia.org

The exhibiton is open for viewing until 27th May 2013!

And so, I felt truly inspired by the Lichtenstein style that I decided to Lichtensteinify my face!

That's all from me folks!

Have a lovely Tuesday evening,

Lotsa luv,

Ess Double You x

Beyond the Sea.

Hello!

So I've been a little out of touch recently due to final graduate exams and essays but I am now FREEEE as a bird and have finally finished 18 years of education with no plans to do a Masters!

I hope you all had a lovely bank holiday weekend. I certainly did as I made the last minute decision to skip down to Cowes to spend the weekend with Mama and Papa Double You, sailing around the Solent. On the first night we took a serene trip down the river to a pub called The Folly Inn, only to spend the night rowdily dancing on tables into the early hours! And who said nights out with your parents were boring?!

The Folly Inn

Another highlight was a trip to Osbourne House, where Queen Victoria used to live. We took a tour around the stunningly beautiful house and walked down to the beach where Queenie herself used to be wheeled into the sea so she could take a dip. It was a beautiful day and I definitely want to go back there, even if just to lounge in the deck chairs and eat ice cream all day!

Osbourne House

What a lovely weekend! How did you spend yours?

I am now going to return to my death bed as I endure post exam illness!

Love & stuff,

Ess Double You.