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Health and beauty in Sydney
The best nail artists in Sydney
Nail art has flourished from a DIY underground affair right into mainstream salons. Miss Lauren LaRouge is one of Sydney’s most in-demand nail artists, dazzling the digits of Sydneysiders who are looking to turn their nail beds into miniature canvases. “People think it’s this crazy over-the-top thing, but once people try it – even starting with a feature nail – they usually get hooked,” says Miss LaRouge, while painting pastel pink polka dots and leopard spots on Time Out's claws.A trip to Japan originally piqued Miss LaRouge’s interest in nail artistry, and on her return home she started using herself has a mani mannequin. “I did a course in Sydney, which was great for hygiene, acrylics, but nail art is just one small component, so I taught myself a lot and practiced on myself.” Lauren’s background in burlesque dancing – she’s an MC and ukulele-player over at Oxford Street’s Slide – dovetailed neatly with her newfound passion. “I used to add things to my costumes, bling them up and embellish them. I then took this to my nails.” This soon enough spread to the hands of friends and family, before she made the big jump and quit her office job to pursue her passion full time.Rather than the production-line set-up that many salons employ, Lauren ensures her little corner at Indulge Studios is one filled with sass, colour and solid client banter. “A beautician once told me that I shouldn’t bother getting into nail art and that the industry was dead, but I want to put the love back
The best barbershops in Sydney
Finding the right barber can be a lifelong search — ask any man who’s had too much or not enough of his locks cavalierly lopped off and stepped out onto the street disaffected. Thankfully, there are experts in this area who excel in getting the discerning man’s ‘do’ just right. Here, some of Sydney’s best barbers are recommended.
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These 8 Sydney bars are experimenting with caffeinated cocktails in May
Sydney’s thirst for coffee cocktails seems unquenchable. Luckily, Mr Black – a Central Coast-based distillery and coffee roasting house – is keeping caffeinated cocktail lovers satisfied this month, with their cold brew coffee liqueur inspiring Caffeine Festival on May 25-27, dedicated to the buzzy elixir (tickets are on sale here). And if you need to build up your caffeine tolerance in preparation for this weekend of boozy masterclasses, fine food and spiked lattés, there’s more delicious cocktails on the horizon. Mr Black is joining forces with hospitality group Merivale to wake up Sydney’s bar scene. Spirits specialists across eight much-loved Sydney venues have concocted drink recipes to honour the caffeine gods, brought to life with Mr Black’s delicious cold brew coffee liqueur or coffee Amaro. Why not take a tasting tour of imaginative coffee-drenched cocktails? Get all fired up for the opportunity to nab one of 20 double passes to Caffeine Festival. To go into the draw, take a snap of your favourite Mr Black cocktail at participating Merivale venues, jump on the ’gram with the hashtag #mrblackXmerivale and tag @mrblackspirits and @merivale. Bottoms up and happy snapping!
Little Creatures Live at GABS
The GABS Beer, Cider and Food Fest, presented by Dan Murphy's, was dreamt up by Steve Jeffares and Guy Greenstone over a drink in 2011. Now, the beer and cider extravaganza is back for another year, of street food snacks, one-off brews, and sideshow entertainment. In addition to the beer stalls from local and international brewers, the SpecTAPular beer festival will also have 170 different beers and ciders on tap – brewed exclusively for the festival – which is the most it has ever showcased. That means you'll get to try kooky one-off brews, from bone marrow-infused ales to salted caramel porters. All the brewers will also be on site, ready to talk you through their specially crafted beers. Little Creatures Live will be taking things up a notch with thrilling entertainment including bendy contortionists, hula hooping queens and beer bottling maestros, all led by ringermaster Liz Skitch. Want to get to know even more about beer? Make sure you head to one of the Craft College sessions. Over at the Dan Murphy's Marketplace you can meet the who's who of brewing. Holy Moley will be onsite bringing mini golf antics while Ariston will be hosting gastronomic food, beer and cider pairing talks. You can also check out Jameson Caskmates Boilermaker Bar and the Milwa Cheese and Prosecco Bar. GABS will also be stacked up with snacks, with food trucks and street stalls. Enjoy pizzas by Happy As Larry, fried chicken from Dirty Bird, tempura shirmp from Prawn Stars, brisket sandwiches fro
20 great Sydney dishes for under $20
You can easily drop your week’s wages on dining out in Sydney but there’s no need. The city’s hot dining destinations have plenty of satisfying and scintillating stuff on their menus for less than a lobster. And when it comes to settling up you can use your American Express® Card with confidence. How about a complementary side dish with your meal? Check out the offers at Side with Amex.
23 highlights of Sydney Film Festival 2018 to book right now
It's Sydney Film Festival time again, and as per usual there are way more great films on show than any one person lacking the power of time travel can get to see during the 12-day film binge – let alone a person who has other things going on in their life. Chill. We have done a comprehensive sweep and come up with a shortlist of movies we are most excited about, as well as some secondary suggestions should these ones be sold out. We've chosen 23 films in 23 different thematic strands. Be sure to book your tickets early, and once that's done, if you're hankering for a movie tonight or this weekend, may we suggest these ones. If you need somewhere to eat try our best restaurants in Sydney, and for a drink after the movie, select from Sydney's best bars.
