Shine and Dine 2015 for Make-A-Wish is Set to Create More Wishes

The event of the year, Shine and Dine, is due to take place on June 5th, 2015 at the stunning Dolton House Jones Bay Wharf, Pyrmont. Shine and Dine is a spectacular black tie charity dinner that raises awareness, funds and valuable wishes for terminally ill children through Make-a-Wish Australia. In its third year, Shine and Dine has cemented themselves as the unmissable event to attend attracting many supporters and celebrities wanting to support this amazing cause. 

Sharon Melhem

Sharon Melhem is the beautiful and powerful brain-child behind the Shine and Dine annual event. Working hard to source supporters, promoters, suppliers and everything that goes into creating this event, Sharon is busily on the go to achieve enormous dreams and wishes for these children. Sharon kindly found some time from her hectic schedule to let me find out a little more about her.

WHERE DID THE IDEA OF SHINE AND DINE COME FROM?
I have always worked in marketing and event strategy and as a result of increased consulting requests I started Kouture Productions. One of my client's needed help with a charity event for their Miss World Australia pageant and realising I could utilise my skills, experiences and networks to help others was extremely rewarding. This experience influenced me onto the Shine and Dine concept!

HAVE YOU ALWAYS BEEN A SUPPORTER OF MAKE-A-WISH AUSTRALIA? 
I've always had a soft spot for children; they are just beautiful souls. To learn about Make-A-Wish wish granting cause and how they provide hope and joy to children who are facing a life threatening illness just melted my heart. 

I had to help and make sure more of these wishes were granted more frequently. Make-A-Wish receives over 2,000 wishes from kids every year – these wishes exceeds the funding available.

WHO HAS BEEN YOUR BIGGEST SUPPORT FOR SHINE AND DINE?
My family. They go on the entire journey with me; from all the lows and to all the highs. I would not know where I would be without them. I am truly blessed.

WHERE DO YOU HOPE TO SEE SHINE AND DINE IN 3 YEARS TIME?
I hope for Shine and Dine to grow bigger and better year on year and that even more funds are raised for these kids. It would be a dream come true for Shine and Dine to be known as the charity gala dinner and cause that people cannot ignore and want to support.

WHAT IS YOUR ONE WISH?
To be able to work full time in developing more charitable event concepts under the Kouture Productions umbrella so my impact is greater for people in need.

Shine and Dine 2013

Shine and Dine 2014

This is one event you won't want to miss for 2015 so jump online to their website here and get yourself a ticket to this fabulous night where you'll be creating memorable wishes. With amazing supporters from the likes of House of K'dor, James Shawshank, and Merc Real Estate you'll want to be apart of this!

To Sharon - thank you for making time to catch up with me and share your thoughts and dreams. You're an amazing soul putting yourself out there to help others. I wish you all the success and an awesome Shine and Dine 2015. 

See you all at Shine and Dine!

Jo x

The Oscars in Sydney 2015

I know I've been a bit quiet of late and haven't written any post for a little while or even been very active on my Instagram account. My 9 to 5 daily job has seriously been keeping me busy and I've been interstate or working late nights and have been so tired in between; then there's time spent catching up with family and friends, attending birthdays, hens night and volunteering in between. Life can be so full on at times!

Last Monday night, Sydney time, I attended "The Oscar Challenge Academy" (OCA) 4th Annual Oscar Challenge that was superbly organised by my boot camp friend, Annette, the OCA President. Annette absolutely loves the Oscars and is excited about it premiering each year, so the OCA began 4 years ago in her lovely lounge room with her bestie, Adam, OCA Vice President, and a few of her friends.

From her small little humbling Oscar Challenge in her lounge room in Sydney's northern beaches, it has since grown and in its fourth year, it had over 35 people (friends of friends) attend and the location moved to a theatre in Fox Studios Australia at Moore Park. For my first time attending, it was an awesome location and my first time driving through Fox Studios - so cool!

Our very own Oscar Awards

The entire event was thoroughly thought through and organised perfectly. Everyone attending had to come (fancy) dressed up as any character from any of the Oscar nominations and the effort that everyone made was outstanding and serious business. I'll have to get on top of that for next years event for sure! There were awards for Best Dressed, Most Films Watched, Newcomer, and even a Quizmaster, which I failed miserably but it was fun!

The night consisted of us walking down a red carpet, being interviewed along the way, taking photos, being treated to champagne, dinner, popcorn and plenty of lollies to out-do a kids party. 

It was the first time I had ever watched the Oscars from start to finish and I would have to say it was so good and probably because it was challenge. I love a challenge! We had to complete a ballot of who we believed would win in each category and then on Monday we were all in media lock down (which included Facebook) so no-one was allowed to know who or what won so that the evening can be a surprise and fun for everyone, which it was. If you love the Oscars and love to get involved in some serious fun games, I would suggest coming to this even next year!

If you love the Oscars and think that you can take home the gold man then why don't you join in on the fun with us next year and the bonus thing is that you get to meet some amazing people and make some incredible new friends. 

The Amazing Presidents

Got to love Lego!

To the OCA team, well done on an amazing event and thank you for inviting me. I loved every minute of it and am so pumped for next year to at least walk away with one Oscar!

Jo x

Mexican Feast at Playa Takeria

Finally caught up with a lovely friend of mine last friday night and I know how much she loves Mexican so I decided to surprise her with dinner at Playa Takeria in Darlinghurst. It was a first time for me as well so it was a great excuse for us to go to catch up, she loves Mexican and I've been wanting to try Playa Takeria for a little while now. 

It's a very cute little restaurant taking residence in the old Fish Face on Darlinghurst Road. The art works and colours encapsulating the restaurant really stands out so there is seriously no way for you to miss it; even if you were walking in the pouring rain like we had. The furniture and the plates used are so colourful and pretty that it made me want to clear out all of my plates at home and re-stock with these stunning pieces. It also reminded me on being in Mexico and for a moment there I thought I was there and started to plan my next visit back!

We had a later dinner booking, 9pm, and it was still packed with people so we still had to wait a little bit while they got our table ready. It was fun to see that they gave flower headbands to the customers (females) to wear so it made it a really fun atmosphere. I'm sure they wouldn't mind the blokes wearing them too….if they dare! While we wait for our table we ordered a "Striptease" cocktail ($19) each which was a coconut margarita style and is apparently the number one drink in Playa. Seriously off the chart! I could drink this all night long so I'll definitely be back for this drink.

We were taken to our seats (outside) and ordered everything to share which included: Guacamole Playa V (Avocado, Tomato, Onion, Coriander, Lime, Salt, Mexican Love, & Corn chips - $14), Elotes de Barrio V (Grilled Mexican Style Corn - $5 each), Taco Don Paster (The F….Famous Tacos of Mexico - Adobo Marinated Pork roster on A Trompo with Pineapple - $5 each) and a Gringa Santanera (Paster marinated Pork, Mozzarella Cheese, Chipotle & Flour Tortilla - $10). 

The food here is amazing and really tasty. The salt and chilli spice on the corn chips for the Guacamole was WOW. The salt, I believe, was a lime salt as the flavour of the lime really popped in your mouth and made the whole dish. My favourite would have to be the Grina Santanera, which essentially was a quesadilla - who doesn't love these?!? I think I could have eat three plates of these just to myself; it had just the right amount of flavours that kept me wanting more and more. 

Of course no meal is complete without dessert and of course we couldn't go pass the Churros Condesa (Spiced Mexican doughnuts, cajeta caramel, strawberry mayan melted chocolate - $15) to share. It completed our Mexican meal for sure. The carmel sauce was delicious and one that I could have just drank on its own. It wasn't too sweet but yet just right and creamy; it was a nice change to having salted caramel. 

Was so excited to eat these that I forgot to get a photo before….

The atmosphere of this little cute restaurant is fun and the service is good. Also the prices were reasonable. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone wanting a Mexican feast and it's somewhere that I would come back to for sure. If you haven't tried this place, please do check it out. They also have a great list of Tequilas and Mexican beers and wines available.

Jo xo

Playa Takeria
132 Darlinghurst Rd,
Darlinghurst NSW 2010.

Emads...Lebanese Restaurant, Surry Hills

With our hectic schedules the girls and I finally found a night to catch up over some amazing Lebanese food. We met at Emads Lebanese Restaurant in Surry Hills. It was on Monday night and like most places, it was quieter than usual but that was a bonus for us, it meant that we had a lovely section of the restaurant where we could chat, laugh and be loud. 

This was the first time for me to Emads. They have been around for many years and have always had a great reputation but in the last year they have changed management. 

Seating are adorned with beautiful cushions.

Although the management has changed, the food and staff hasn't. Great news for us! The food and service was impeccable. A couple friends, who are Lebanese, commented that the food reminded them of the food that their mothers made; a honour any restaurant would want. Beautiful home cooked food just down the road for me - lucky!

Lebanese cuisine is a favorite of mine so to have one that tastes like eating at a friend's place is a bonus for me. Obviously, we ordered the banquet to share; it's the only way to eat as it means that you get to try everything. The starters came out consisted of falafel, vine leaves, stuffed cabbage rolls, various meat and vegetable pastries, babaganoush, hummus, tabouli and Lebanese bread. Oh, the hummus! One of the most amazing hummus I've had in a long time; it was smooth and delicious and I seriously couldn't get enough of it {I cheekily order another plate}. 

We are girls who can seriously eat and won't apologise for it. I would have to admit that we pretty much inhaled the starters like we hadn't eaten for a week. Then came the meat feast; grilled chicken, grilled lamb, beef kofta's, and more hummus {yes, I believe I can live off this dip for the rest of my life}. 

The food was beautifully cooked, so tender and juicy with every mouthful. We were getting full but at the same time, just couldn't stop. Everything is made from scratch and it shows through the taste; so yummy and amazing. 

Then as we undid our jeans button and belts, chatted and laugh, our coffees and dessert of baklava and Turkish delight came out to truly finish off the tasty meal. 

I totally recommend Emads if you haven't been. On Friday and Saturday nights they have the traditional belly dancers and the awesome thing is that Emads is BYO - bonus! I'll be back for sure. Thank you for the amazing food!

Jo xo 

Emads Lebanese Restaurant
298 Cleveland Street,
Surry Hills NSW 2010

Ice Cream, Ice Cream, I Scream for Ice Cream

Friends and family who know me well know that I have a sweet tooth and from this sweet tooth I have a weakness for ice cream. Being summer in Sydney at the moment, it's the perfect excuse to eat ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner {seriously, I would do this!}

I do love all varieties of sweets especially tarts, biscuits, Asian and Middle Eastern sweets. But my love for ice cream is on another level; I guess it's the combination of sweetness, creaminess and happy guilt all rolled into one. It's a pleasure I'd be happy to take to heaven with me.  

I'm so glad I don't have any issues with dairy and although there are some great alternatives in the market now (such as almond milk and coconut milk ice cream), you cannot beat a traditional cows milk ice cream. Takes me back to being a true kid again where I have a fond memory of having a bowl of vanilla ice cream with my brother who introduced me to adding milo on top of it; I believe I pretty much added the entire contents of the tin.

So, I thought I would share with you some of my favourites and amazing ice creams that makes me smile and be a kid again. 

Pat and Sticks
I have always been a fan of ice cream (obviously) and biscuits and as a kid I really loved Monaco bars. Do you remember them? I had even joined a Facebook page to bring them back a couple of years ago. So when I came across Pat and Sticks I thought I had died and gone to heaven. They were everything I wanted but more exotic. 

Pat and Sticks are famous for their ice cream sandwiches, but they aren't like the typical monaco bars. Their biscuits {or cookies as some like to call it} are so tasty and just the right consistency for bitting into; not too soft and not too hard. My favourite is the lace cookies….yummmmm. 

Ben & Jerry's

Funky! When I think of Ben and Jerry's I really think of being a kid again. I'm not sure why but I think of their flavours being fun and cheeky. The combinations and the names they give each of their flavours are just so much fun and child-like to me which is probably why I think of them as being funky and fun.

Gelato Messina

Who hasn't had an ice cream from Gelato Messina? If you haven't, then I would say that you have been living under a rock! No excuses! Messina has soooo many different flavours that it is so hard to choose which one you want each time you go and on top of that they produce many different limited editions each week which means you HAVE to go each week.

However, my all time go-to favourite flavour at Messina would have to be the salted caramel. It's one that I can't seem to say no to even when I always have the intention to have something else; but it never really happens. 

Their ice cream cakes are the bomb! Not only are they ice cream cakes but the delicate designs and creations of these cakes are in a league of their own. My favourite cake there is still the mushroom cake, I just love the crackle of the grass as it has popping candy in it. I'm so lucky to have one down the road from me so clearly, I spend a bit of time there {at this rate, it's my summer holiday house}.

Looks too good to eat. (Photo credit)

Oh the options! (Photo credit)

N2

Science and ice cream coming together to harmonise as one. What geek wouldn't love this combination? I wouldn't call myself a geek (at all) but I love this combination; the fact that the ice cream is made in front of you is unique and something you don't see anywhere else so the idea is pretty awesome. 

They create many different weird and wonderful flavours; combinations you wouldn't dream of, but N2 does. They create flavours around holiday themes such as gingerbread for Christmas and they also create some very weird random flavours such as Chinese cough syrup. Yep, they made one with the same Chinese cough syrup I remember having when I was young - I couldn't bring myself to try this flavour. I remember they even made one with spam….spam….. Who would have thought of using tin meat for ice cream and to be honest, I like spam. 

The flavours change pretty much weekly or fortnightly with special limited edition flavours and some unique ones making a reappearance because of customer demands which is great to see. 

Ice cream science (Photo credit)

Cow and Moon

Enough said! They won the world gelato championship in Italy last year, 2014, and they are right here in Sydney! Get yourself over to Enmore and taste the award winning ice cream in the world. 

Other ice creams I love from when I was a kid are: Gay Time and Maxibons. Oh, and do you remember Bubble-O-Bill? They were fun to eat and saving the chewing gum for last - oh, the memories. What were you favourite as a kid?

What is your favourite ice cream? What is your favourite flavour? Is there an ice cream brand/variety or place you think I should go try? Have you tried any of these places/brand? If so, what do you think of them?

Jo xo

Movie Review: X+Y (Mathematical Love)

I was invited to a media screening of a new film, X+Y, which is due to be released on 9 April 2015. According to the synopsis "teenage maths prodigy, Nathan (Asa Butterfield), struggles when it comes to building relationships, especially with his own mother, Julie (Sally Hawkins). 

In his complex world, he finds comforts in numbers and is taken under the wings of an unconventional teacher, Mr. Humphreys (Rafe Spall), and the pair form an unusual friendship. Nathan's talent wins him a place into the International Mathermatics Olympiad (IMO) where he and his team travels to Taipei under the squad lead Richard (Eddie Marsan). 

Nathan is confronted with unfamiliar surroundings and challenges and be begins to experience feelings for his Chinese counterpart, the beautiful Zhang Mei (Jo Yang), feelings that develop when he returns home to England."

The movie is a feel good heart-warming film that follows the complex relationships of Nathan, falling in love for the first time and trying to understand it through mathematical formulas. 

Nathan was diagnosed as autistic as a young child and finds comfort in maths. He also suffers the lose of his father young in life from a car accident and therefore looses the trust and loving relationship of someone close to him; a bond that his mother isn't able to replicate or gain for many years. As he advances in maths, he forms an unusual friendship with Mr. Humphrey's who tutors him into a place in the IMO in Taipei where he meets the lovely Zhang Mei and through their time spent together, they develop feelings for each other. 

A few key themes really stood out for me in this film; understanding and living through Bullying, Loneliness and Hope, oh and obviously, Love. 

Bullying
I found this topic interesting and something that got me thinking after the film and the reality of life. These students are competing for place in the IMO and there are only 6 places for each country which they have to whittle down from 15 students. These students are the top performers in their school and are told how unique and smart they are, and when put together, you would think that you have the best of the best competing against each other.

However, in this environment not everyone can be at the top which means someone will be at the bottom (of the best) and so in this environment, bullying occurs rather than support, and issues of isolation, depression and segregation forms with a group of people who you would assume would be supporting each other. 

It was interesting to see that bullying happens in any environment and any group of people. I was naive to think that if you were bullied, that you wouldn't bully others, however, to survive and to be accepted, even by those who are the same as you, bullying does happen. We all need to learn to accept people as they are, accept that there are people who will be better than us at something and learn to take the positive qualities from everyone.

Loneliness and Hope
Nathan is the main character in this film, however, his mother, Julie, plays an amazing role where you follow a mother's desperation to connect with her son since loosing her husband from a car accident. She spends years pleasing and supporting Nathan's talents, needs and his autistic emotions, or lack there of, with no love or respect in return. You can feel her disappointment (and frustration) as Nathan continues to reject her and you want so much for her to set him straight but her patiences is strong and she pushes through each day alone. 

Her strength and hope for her son really iterates a mothers love for her child and never giving up on him no matter how much he pushes her away or says nasty things to her; she continues to show him love, she continues to respect his wishes and she continues to believe in him. This is true love.

Love

The relationship between Nathan and Zhang Mei is cute. Two teenage kids who come together because of their commonality of Maths; however Zhang Mei shows Nathan another culture (Chinese) and another way to experience life. She also is able to show Nathan that there is more to life than just maths and that life is about living and doing the things you enjoy and loving those who are close to you and love you. 

It's a funny and heart warming film that I did enjoy. It's not a film I would watch at the cinemas but definitely one I would watch at home on a rainy day or a lazy Sunday. 

X + Y will be released in cinemas on 9 April 2015 and if you're one for a funny emotional movie then this is one for you. 

Thank you Pinnacle Films and Nixco for the invite.

Jo xo

Dating Experience…..Mr. R

I wanted to share a dating story I've experienced. It would have to be an experience I was not expecting and a "you cannot make this stuff up" dating story. 

Firstly, let me take a step back and set the scene for you. I went out with girlfriends for a Sunday afternoon of music and drinks at a pub in Sydney and we met various people at the event which was a lot of fun as I love meeting new people. I got talking to this one guy, let's call him Mr R, and our conversation was going well where we were getting to know each other of "what do you do?" "where in Sydney do you live?" "what do you enjoy doing?" 

Mr R began to compliment me saying that he'd like to get to know me more and would like to take me out for ice cream. Yep, he had me at ice cream; I can never say no to an ice cream date! He was charming; saying all the nice things to make me giggle like a little girl and making me feel special....you know, one of a kind. Before I knew it, it was late in the evening and I was ready to head home, but before I did, Mr R said that he wanted to tell me something, "I've been in prison"….. "I served six months with two of my friends, we appealed and won so I don't have a criminal record"…

Not sure why, but I didn't question it too much. I just asked why and accepted the answer that it was for assault charges. I guess I initially assumed that boys are boys; they get into fights with each other. So, before I left, we agreed to meet the next day.  To add another element to the situation, the following day I found out through a friend that Mr R has a girlfriend and enough evidence was provided to me to confront Mr R about it. So, I questioned Mr R about his "so-call" girlfriend to which he denied and was upset that I was listening to my friends instead of confronting him about it face-to-face.  {I know, I know, a couple of red flags are flying right now}

So, I agreed. I agreed that we could meet face-to-face so that I can ask him directly to his face about his so-call girlfriend and what the story is there. We met afterwork for ice cream and at this point is when I asked him directly to his face "do you have a girlfriend?" to which is replied "No".  The only problem with his response was that his facial expression wasn't aligned and he couldn't look me in the eyes to confirm. I told him straight up that I still didn't believe him, his body language and face said otherwise and my gut was warning me.  For now, I let it go....for now.

We then went to a nearby pub for a drink. We sat in a lovely booth and shared a bottle of wine and talked more to get to know each other. He was telling me about his work and his plans to change direction with his career to stay in Sydney to be closer to his family; then suddenly, I had the urge to further question the reason why he had served prison time. 

It just didn't make sense to me. To me, for someone to serve prison time they would have to have gotten into a serious fight where they may have one-punched someone, put someone into a coma, paralysed them or accidentally killed someone (touch wood). If it was just a group of guys getting into a fight, I would assume that they would have received a warning, or a fine, or ban from the venue, or had to serve community service. My gut feel said that there was more than what he had told me, so I pushed and pushed for the full story and about about 10 minutes of pushing, Mr R finally told the full story.

Mr R and his two friends were charged with "assault" which was a "polite" word for rape!

Yes, you read correctly. I stared at him for a few minutes as the word echoed in my head and my insides just dropped like I was falling from a cliff. At first I thought I had misheard him but unfortunately, he was telling me the truth. What do you do? How do you react? What do you say? As I sat there in silence, I listened to his side of the story as he proceeded to tell me that he had no involvement but was charged for being an accessory because he was there.

The date didn't go on for much longer after that; we headed out of the pub to make our separate ways home. Mr R was keen for another date and even believed he should have gotten a kiss at the end of the night; but I kindly declined the kiss stating that I don't kiss on the first date.

What would you have done in this situation? What would you have said? Would you have considered another date with Mr R? For all I know, Mr R could possibly be telling the truth but I did have to question why was he in that situation? And given that he was in that situation, why didn't he stop what was happening. 

I'll admit, it's not a date I thought or ever imagined I would be in and I don't hope to be again. However, I'll give him credit for being honest with me and telling me the truth. This is a situation that he'll have to live with for the rest of his life and I hope he'll be honest with every girl he meets. You'll be pleased to know that I haven't and wasn't turned off dating again, but it was a situation or a dating story I never could have imagined telling....or even write on my blog.

Would you have given Mr R a second date? Have you been on an usual date? Share your story with me and others. 

Jo xo

Note - location and names have been kept confidential.