The real world of tabloid journalism - one inexperienced writer's opinion

You may have remembered a shout-out on social media looking for a young aspiring writer to head up a new column for The Sun. The lazily named Column Idol (why. Why does everything have to be like this) competition saw young people all over the UK vie for the chance to see their words and byline in print. We spoke to ArrayO'Style founder Kheira, 16, about her experience as a finalist, and why tabloid journalism has left a bitter taste in her mouth. As part of the Media Trust's Column Idol competition,­ I featured in The Sun newspaper and received...

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Can your Twitter account turn a hobby into a career?

Whether it be blogging, vlogging, making music or creating your own business, we’ve all heard about the newly invented phenomena of certain individuals earning the title ‘internet famous’. But the real question is how did they acquire this level of success and how can you gain it too? How did these ordinary people manage to create a following of around 1 million people to anywhere up to 15 million? Obviously personal traits (such as being hard-working, being dedicated and being able to persevere) need to be accredited to success, but social...

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Review: Getting a volumising perm at London's Karine Jackson

I have a confession. I last had a perm when I was 14. It was the year 2000, which is one of the worst years for hair. My mum is a brilliant hairdresser, and with such skill at my disposal I was always asking her to trim a bit here, add a fringe there, or bleach that entire section a bit no actually dye it back I don't suit blonde. I loved my very first perm, and although mum went weak with the solution, anticipating my ever-changing style, it make my hair look full of volume and life. I was the envy of all my friends. Skip forward to now. Sandra...

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Covent Garden, Spitalfields and wedding rings

The other week I finally spent some time meandering around the capital and getting to know my lovely city again (I live in Essex but London is near enough so shhh). Work, as I'm sure you're pretty tired of reading about because I'm pretty tired of writing about it, has been manic. Yes, it's doing so well, and we're getting more press than ever since I started heading up their PR and marketing *puffy up feathers like a proud pigeon* and new opportunities are opening up etc etc but it's come at a cost where I feel drained at the end of the day....

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Here's how to: pick the perfect dram of whisky

It's well known I love a good sip of whisky. In fact, there's no better drink to have in your hand when it's cold and frosty outside. Whenever I mention my favourite drink to either men and women, I always get a look of surprise shot in my direction - as if I should have said something more ladylike. We asked Alex, a 29-year-old lawyer and dipsologist at House of Bourbon to help explain why whisky isn't just for men, and how to pick the perfect dram.  George Bernard Shaw described whisky as “liquid sunshine” which is handy seeing as its...

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We ask a boy: Can you meet the love of your life in a bar?

"There was the date I had in my favourite local pub where she bought me a chocolate orange beer," he says while he chops onions for the home made fish pie he's treating me to. "It made me almost vomit. Every sip I had I pulled a weird face. I'd taken so long to drink it but I couldn't exactly say she'd picked up a terrible choice." Why didn't he just order another, I ask? He has no good answer for that, other than being polite. I'm grilling my fiancé over bar dates - as in whether you can meet a girlfriend at a bar. This was the first experience...

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