Michael 84

Nike Air Max 90 – All Black, Super Stylish, Minimal

Monday, 25th August, 2014

Nike Air Max 90 Trainers

I needed some dark coloured trainers, so the obvious colour is black, and wanted something super smart, but also really comfortable for walking round in for when I am in Reykjavik, if I actually get there! 🙁 . I love my Air Max 1 which I got earlier this year, I love the colour, but they can get dirty easily, and I want something more neutral and dark.

I am back into Nike Air Max, like I was as a kid, and I love these Air Max 90 trainers. They are so minimal, sleek and unnoticeable! I could probably even wear them on a night out and they’d go pretty unnoticed. I still like my Converse, but if you’ve ever walked a lot in Converse you’ll know they aren’t the greatest trainers for walking long distances for long periods of time. Air Max are so comfortable, and these are really smart and stylish. They seem more durable than the Air Max 95 because of the construction, but are still breathable and are slightly narrower than the 95’s.

If I ever need some smart looking trainers for something low key, I have these beauties 🙂

Air Max 90 - Stylish, Minimal Design Trainers

Impromptu Night Out

Sunday, 24th August, 2014

Me Off Out In Newcastle

Hey!

So last night we went out in Newcastle, nothing planned and I did not expect to go out, but did, and it was a really good night 😉 We went out late, but went to places like Jalou, Mimo, Union Rooms and a new-ish place called Metropolis, which is above Mimo…I actually heard of it a few months ago, but never really noticed it. It’s a pretty cool place, nice space but since it’s so new and a bit out the way it was not too full, but it’s big enough to be great, I think they need a better selection of drinks though, I was on Amstel beer, it could be the first time I ever had an Amstel! 😛

Yesterday it was freezing! August? Where did that go!?!? :mrgreen: I wore an Armani black T-shirt with my All Saints Denim Jacket and some PRPS jeans.

Cookie Monster Cocktail At Jalou

Going to Jalou means one thing…I get to have my favourite cocktail… A Cookie Monster 😀 If you read my blog regularly you’ll know what they look like already, but here you go 😀

I Am Off To Reykjavik! (I Hope!!!)

Sunday, 24th August, 2014

Reykjavik Holiday

We have planned a trip to Reykjavik, it’s been booked for several months, and we’re finally going in a couple of weeks…If you have been following the news you may of heard that they have been having strong earthquakes, and thing that one of the volcanos, the Bardarbunga volcano could erupt any day. Earlier this week they increased the warning to orange, which is the second highest, and yesterday it was increased to RED! 🙁 They are now saying that it’s almost certainly going to erupt, they just don’t know when, and already small eruptions have happened under the glacier! 🙁

If you remember back in 2010 the Eyjafjallajokul volcano erupted, and not only knocked out flights around Iceland, but the whole of Europe!

I hope we get there, it’s been planned for months and we were going to see a lot of cool things, it was a holiday of a lifetime kind of thing, seeing the Northern Lights etc. I have never been to Iceland and it’s not your every-day holiday destination where you think of going. I can only hope that it doesn’t effect our holiday and we actually get there.

UPDATE – They’ve downgraded the warning to Orange again…Hopefully good news.

D&G Le Bateleur Number 1 By Dolce And Gabbana Review

Thursday, 21st August, 2014

Dolce And Gabbana Le Bateleur No.1 Fragrance Review

Dolce and Gabbana released an anthology of unisex fragrances back in 2009, each one numbered 1, 3, 6, 10 and 18. The idea of the range was that each scent was in fact a unisex scent, but later this was marketed slightly different, and they changed up the way they were marketed, with clear distinctions between the male and female scents. This is D&G Le Bateleur 1,a masculine scent.

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Tokina 11-16mm 2.8f Lens For My Canon 600D

Wednesday, 20th August, 2014

Tokina 11-16mm Lens Review

Yes, I got yet another lens!

After getting my nifty fifty only the other week, I have added another lens to my now-growing collection. I wanted and needed a wide angle lens, and after reading reviews and info for a couple of weeks, I finally decided on the Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 AT-X 116 PRO DX lens, and took the plunge and bought it. I do have a specific reason for this lens which will come clear later in a few weeks on my blog 😉 but I have always wanted and needed a good wide angle lens for my camera.

If you have a Canon 600D or any of the crop sensor cameras you’ll know that it’s 1.6x factor; That means even with the lens kit which is 18-55mm the actual range you get starts at 28.8mm, so it not too wide. This lens has been made for the APS-C sensors in mind, so the 11mm is really wide, and you get a great range. This is also the first “good” lens I have bought….The others have been the standard, plastic-cheap (although not cheap!) lenses, and they have been really good so far. When I got this I was impressed with the build quality, I read everywhere that it was “built like a tank” and it is! 😀 The first thing you notice is the weight; As I say I have only ever used the Canon lenses at the entry level range, and in comparison this is so heavy and feels very well built.

I am not a pro photographer so this lens is absolutely brilliant for me, at £425 it is hugely expensive for my usage, but since I do take lots of pics for the blog as well as taking it with me if I travel, it’s worth me having. If you are into cameras then you’ll probably know that this is not that expensive for a lens, such as a £2,000 Canon L series for instance 😛 For the regular folk who just like taking good pictures, this is expensive, but it is an investment 🙂

It does have a zoom feature, it’s only a few mm but I decided it was better than a prime with no zoom. The other lens I could have got was a Samyang 14mm, it was quite a bit cheaper, but this had far better reviews, it’s wider and has that little bit of zoom. The autofocus and manual focus are easy to operate, just slide the larger ring either up or down depending on what you want. It comes with a hood, which is detachable, it’s larger at 77mm so my filters I have for my other lens will not fit, but I am not worried about that.

This will be a great lens for landscapes, travel photography etc. so I really look forward to using it, I’ll probably be using it for general blog photography too, we’ll see how it stacks up for that 🙂

Giorgio Armani Acqua Di Gio Pour Homme Review

Thursday, 14th August, 2014

Acqua Di Gio By Giorgio Armani

A classic timeless scent which has been around for a long time, I am talking about Acqua Di Gio by Giorgio Armani. It may have been around for a long time, and is loved by many, however it’s one of my newest fragrances.

After all the hype surrounding it, I decided that I had to get myself a bottle, it almost felt like a crime not having this in my huge fragrance collection. It first appeared in 1996, and is still going strong, it’s a firm favourite with many, and makes a lot of people’s lists for a must have scent.

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Canon EF 50mm F1.8 II

Tuesday, 12th August, 2014

canon 50mm 1.8 lens

I finally got myself a new lens, the infamous cheap “Nifty Ffity“. I read good reviews on this, and it’s a “must have” if you believe what you read. It has some good features such as 1.8f aperture which lets in a whole load of light which is great, coming from a 3.5f aperture on my lens kit.

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Samsung NX Mini Review

Friday, 8th August, 2014

Samsung NX Mini UK Review

I have been in need of a new pocket camera for a while. Over Four years ago I got the Sony HX10 which was an amazing camera, really good quality, it fit in my pocket and went with me on many journeys including London and Stockholm, as well as countless nights out.

I’ve been using a DSLR for 2 or 3 years now, and I love it, I don’t think I could do without one, and even thought of getting myself up the DSLR ladder with a new camera. But first thing is first, and I wanted to get a new compact camera.

My iPhone is pretty decent when taking snaps when I have no other option, and it’s always with me, but the quality is lacking. Is there still a market for a camera which sits in-between a camera-phone and a DSLR? I think so.

I have been looking around for a long time for the perfect camera with the qualities I need. First of all I want great quality images. Second it has to fit in my pocket; I’m not talking jacket pocket, I’m talking about it fitting in my jeans comfortably. Those two features are what I am looking for, and everything else is a bonus. I decided on the Samsung NX Mini, and I have to say it’s really good! 🙂

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Tiger Hornsby Coming To The Quayside This Month

Wednesday, 6th August, 2014

Tiger Hornsby Coming Soon To The Quayside

I remember being a 17 year old on a student night out, and trying to go to Julies 2 nightclub; When the bouncer asked for ID which I clearly did not have, he told me it was a 21+ and we went on to another place, probably Sea across the road. We went down the quayside a lot, back in 2002 it was the cool place to drink. Not that I’d have first hand experience of, but Julies nightclub was quite the place to be, as was most of the quayside, frequented by footballers like Keith Gillespie. Years later it became know as Blue, and since I was a lot older (around 21-22) I used to go. I loved the place, the layout was good, cool people, lots of drinks, friendly, great music and an all round good time. There were many great nights spent here, but then the place closed. It became Stein Beer Keller, which was a completely different kind of bar, I went once, it was not terrible but I only went the once so not great either.

Now it’s coming back, with a new name which in inspired by an old regular of the infamous Julies. Tiger Hornsby will be opening this month, with the promise of bringing back the good times with cocktails, new décor and first class service.

The quayside is having somewhat of a rejuvenation, with a brand new hotel replacing Chase, The Hop and Cleaver opening, the new Popolo is coming soon and now Tiger Hornsby.

Indigo Bar In The Gate Is Forced To Close Down

Wednesday, 16th July, 2014

indigo bar newcastle forced to close down

Indigo…Indi-gone. Indigo Bar in The Gate is the latest in the long line of bars to close in Newcastle, as they’re told to make way for a more “Family Friendly” place. Owners of The Gate complex (Crown Estates) have called time on the bar, citing it is to “Rebalance the occupier mix to cater for a wider cross section of consumers, including families“. The popular and much missed Mood Bar and nightclub closed down quite a while back, and turned into a restaurant. The Gate still houses bars such as Keel Row, Opera, Beyond, and Players, with the latter not being very family friendly. It leaves you wondering if Indigo will be the first of many of the bars to go.

We used to go to The Gate a fair bit, especially in the early days. It was pretty fun, but we always referred to it as the shopping centre, because it does have that sort of feel. In fact, whenever we were planning on going, the line was always, “Are we going shopping?!” :mrgreen:

The owners want a more “Family friendly” place, However I am not so sure what kind of families are out at 11pm and later; Not to mention that other bars such as Tiger Tiger, Sinners and Sam Jacks are within spitting distance.

Indigo was always the loudest bar in The Gate when it opened, you did not have to go in or in fact near the door to hear the music blasting out the doors, but was a decent place in the gate if you happened to be in that area.

What’s the best bar in Newcastle? Check out the Best Bars In Newcastle