Michael 84

Newcastle Night Out – Last Weekend Before Christmas

Lifestyle
Sunday, 21st December, 2014

Cookie Monster At Jalou

It’s the last weekend before Christmas! We went out in Newcastle on Friday, so called “Black Eye Friday”, it’s traditionally the day/night that there’s lots of office parties and work nights out. Apparently the town was really busy early on, but when I was out at around 9PM it was no busier than you’d usually expect. It was a fun night, and we went to places like Union Rooms, Jalou, Mushroom, Science Bar and The Head Of Steam. The Head Of Steam sells Rekorderlig on tap, how cool!? 😀 However I noticed they were doing bottles of the premium Winter cider, so I had to get a bottle to try. The label says apple cider with cinnamon-vanilla flavours. It does not sound too good since I am not a lover of cinnamon, but I have to say it is really nice, another hit from Rekorderlig 🙂

A trip to Jalou means a Cookie Monster cocktail, and I noticed they’ve put the prices up of all their cocktails, these are now £7.50 with some other cocktails coming in at £8.50.

Christmas Gift Guide 2014 – Technology

Tech Blog
Wednesday, 17th December, 2014

Christmas is only a week away, so time is ticking away for getting presents! The last date for UK Christmas post is Friday 19th December for 1st Class, some online shops are still offering next day delivery until Monday 22nd December, and of course there’s always good old traditional shops if you wanna go in store and grab a last minute pressie! 😉

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Tom Carter Watch Collection Review

Fashion
Saturday, 13th December, 2014

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Recently Tom Carter showcased their latest collection of luxury but affordable timepieces, with an emphasis in big watches in steel.

Tom Carter is a lifestyle brand with over ten years experience in the international watch industry, and they have a commitment to quality, accuracy and superior craftsmanship.

The collection consists of 17 watches in different styles, including the Tio Ellinas Edition watches, named after one of the brand ambassadors, Formula 3000 racing driver Tio Ellinas.

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Boss Orange Watch – The Look & WIN Your Own Watch

Fashion
Monday, 8th December, 2014

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I have been working with Boss Orange Watches in the past few months, and as you will have seen I’ve previewed the collection of watches from the range, as well as showing you the New York watch which I have. One question remains, what do you wear with a watch like this?

In keeping with the urban style of the design of the watch I have created a casual and laid back look to team with the watch. This includes a charcoal quilted padded bomber jacket, which keeps you warm enough in this mild Winter we’re currently having and keeps an urban chic style. I have combined this with my Nena & Pasadena baseball tee, which adds a bit of sporty fair to the look. As you’ll know indigo coloured jeans are something I love, and I’ve included a pair of my Nudie Jeans here for the look.

Win Your Own Boss Orange Watch With Me!

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I am giving away a Boss Orange Watch to one of you, so you can create your very own look. It’s a similar watch to the one I’ve showcase. A classic black Boss Orange watch with a silicone strap and trademark orange detailing on the pointers and markers.

Want this? It could not be easier to win. All you need to do is to retweet the below tweet and you’re all set! 🙂

https://twitter.com/Michael84Blog/status/542274704313450496

You can shop for this and the rest of the Boss Orange watch collection by visiting their site.

This post is written in collaboration with Boss Oranges Watches, with the competition in conjunction with Boss Orange Watches.

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Men’s Fragrance Buying Guide For Christmas

Men's Grooming
Monday, 8th December, 2014

Introduction

I have seen a few fragrance buying guides, and they all have something in common; They separate the scents by the type. Most people I know who are casual scent wearers or looking for a gift for someone would not look for fragrances this way, they may not know if an oud would be good for their dad or if something citrus would be suitable for their grandad.

So to make it easier for you, I am going to recommend what scent is best for the type of person you’re buying for 🙂

If you want an in depth look at some of my fragrances, you can check my men’s fragrance reviews. There’s a lot of fragrance tips out there, but something I hate about them is people advise on buying scents which they don’t own or haven’t even tried! ALL of the scents in this guide I either own or have sampled, so these are truly my personal recommendations 🙂

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Fragrances For Dads – Cool, Laid Back Style

He doesn’t like something really heavy and musky, but likes to smell nice. Something not too sophisticated or expensive, not in your face or offensive. For this kind of dad then you want something which touches on some of the notes and is not particularly heavy especially in woody, musky or dark types of notes. What’s good for this?

YSL Libre – It’s a fresh and soft spicy style, and has quite a green smell to it, light enough to wear through the day. £42.50 @ Debenhams

D&G Anthology No.1 Le Bateleur – It has very slight woody notes, but is mostly aquatic and light. £34.52 Direct from Amazon (not a 3rd party seller!)

Lacoste L.12.12 Blanc – Floral but masculine, light and inviting. It’s clean, fresh and unobtrusive. Buy a little gift set from Debenhams for only £25

Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue – Aquatic and slightly spicy but fresh. John Lewis has it for £38.20

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The Zip-Fit Shirt From Teddy Stratford

Fashion, Men's Wardrobe Essentials
Thursday, 4th December, 2014

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A really good fitting shirt can be quite hard to come by. If you’re buying a standard shirt these days there are a few different styles of cut to buy from to get different types of fit; The usual standard types of fit could leave your shirt feeling a bit too baggy, which is not a great look for a smart shirt.

Another other option is a fitted shirt, even these occasionally don’t fit as you’d like, and some feel like you’re ready to burst out of your shirt. The other option is getting tailor fitted shirts custom made for you, but this can be really expensive to buy and find a tailor to suit your needs.

Teddy Stratford have created a solution to this problem, and they’re calling it “The best fitting shirt on the Planet“.

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Men’s Fragrance Buying Online – Fake Or Genuine?

Men's Grooming
Thursday, 27th November, 2014

Fragrances can be quite expensive, and depending on your taste and favourite designer, they can be get very expensive indeed.

The few big name retailers on the high street are usually quite expensive, but fortunately we have this little known invention called the Internet which we can use to buy fragrances, aftershaves and the like for ourselves and others.

The biggest problem is the fakes, counterfeits and non-genuine products which are now being sold; Unfortunately we cannot tell from a picture whether or not you’ll end up receiving the real deal or a cheap knock off. So, where is the best place to get cheap fragrances? My top pick is Amazon, but it comes with a big warning!

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Fenwick Window 2014 – Alice In Wonderland

Lifestyle
Wednesday, 26th November, 2014

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Fashionably late, but Michael 84 would not be a Newcastle blog without the mention of Fenwick Window. I have covered it in previous years, and of course have done this year too. If you’re not from Newcastle then you may not know the little story; Fenwick, a department store on Northumberland in the heart of Newcastle dresses up their window each Christmas, and is a hit with kids and grown-ups alike. They may now have stores on Bond Street in London and other locations, but the first store was Newcastle. Each year has a different theme, and this year it is Alice In Wonderland.

Check out the pics below, with the usual reflections of Greggs (and other shops!) 😉

Fenwick Christmas Window Through The Years

2016 | 2015 | 2014 |  2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010

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The Diamond Strip – Newcastle

Lifestyle, Newcastle Nightlife
Tuesday, 25th November, 2014

The Diamond Strip In Newcastle - Everything You Need To Know

One of the most well known and prominent drinking places in Newcastle in recent times is something known as the Diamond Strip. But what exactly is it? Well it’s basically the name which has been given to the bars in and around Collingwood Street in Newcastle. These bars are typically portray a better quality, more expensive style of bar, and are now targeted more on the student and under 30 crowd, but were previously more focussed on the 25-35 year olds. Most of these are late bars, open until at least 2AM on a weekend, with some opening until 3AM.

The Diamond Strip: Brief History

The Diamond Strip has been the place to drink for around 8 years, since around 2006. It all started a couple of years before that, where a bar which was then named The Apartment opened it’s doors as one of the first VIP style bars. It promised sophistication for the older crowd, a smart dress code and even waitresses which brought round your expensive drinks. It offered VIP membership too, along with a velvet rope and red carpet. This exclusive style of place was popular at first, but the VIP non-accessible ethos drove many people away.

The owners then changed the bar, and in fact the whole space, and you could find 3 different establishments which occupied the old Apartment bar and next door buildings; These are Madame Koo, Floritas and Baby Lynch. Baby Lynch then was re-branded and extended which is now called House Of Smith. Around the same time Perdu which is located further along Collingwood Street started getting popular after opening in late 2005. These bars can probably take the credit for starting the Diamond Strip era.

In late 2007 Tup Tup Palace opened which is off Collingwood Street, and marketed itself as “The only nightclub on the Diamond Strip”, it took the space which was previously occupied by Bar M. Bijoux joined the fray in April 2008 which was formerly The Navy Bar and @Home to name a few. This has spawned similar types of bar in and around the Diamond Strip and beyond, such as Jalou, Livello and Label.

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Givenchy Very Irresistible Fresh Attitude For Men: Fragrance Review

Men's Grooming
Thursday, 20th November, 2014

givenchy-very-irresistible-for-men-review

This week’s men’s fragrance review is another trip down memory lane, it’s Givenchy Very Irresistible Fresh Attitude For Men. Very Irresistible by Givenchy actually has a few different flavours and variations, the one I have is the Fresh Attitude version.

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