We’ve been aware for a while now that the best relationships generally seem to blossom from actual friendships. Now we have actual scientific proof to back up the theory.
A new study from the University of Texas is telling us that if you and your partner were friends before taking the relationship leap, you’re more likely to overlook any slacking in the physical attractiveness department.
Good news for those permanently stuck in the friend zone?
Lead researcher Lucy Hunt says that having more time to “get acquainted” might just “make that person appealing in ways that outshine more easily observable characteristics such as physical attractiveness.”
The study was all about the physical attraction of love at first sight, a hotly contested topic in the research world, FYI.
Lucy and her colleagues gathered data from 167 couples, 100 married couple and 67 who were dating. The couples had been together for as few as three months to as long as 53 years, with an average relationship length of eight years and eight months.
What Lucy was interested in was how much time affects how attractive the partners were to each other.
The answer was simple; showing that “having the time to interact with others in diverse settings affords more opportunities to form unique impressions that go beyond one’s initial snap judgments.”
Basically, that super-hot guy in the club may be less than appealing two days later when you’re trying to hold a conversation over dinner.
But your friend Greg, who knows your Netflix guilty-pleasures and was there when your pet fish met his untimely end might be starting to look pretty cute after three years of friendship.
We kind of knew this already, no? Personality generally plays just as big a role as physical attractiveness in romantic relationships, yes?
It is good to know that science is actually backing us up on this though. Who knows, maybe you’ll start looking at some of your guy friends in a different light.
Just days after rumours of Scott bringing a 21-year-old woman back to his hotel room surfaced, he has already been snapped cosying up to his ex-girlfirend, Chloe Bartoli.
Naturally the question we are all asking is WHO is this mystery woman?
Luckily, we have some answers…
Chloe is a celebrity stylist
The 25-year-old stylist is partnered in business with her twin sister, Marielou Bartoli. Together they are extremely sought after stylists who have dressed celebs such as Selena Gomez and Nicole Richie.
She has famous friends
According to HollywoodLife.com Scott’s new woman is BFF’s with Jared Leto. She has reportedly styled the Dallas Buyers Club star for years and they have stayed good friends. Chloe’s friendship with the Oscar-winner has even driven his fans into a frenzy. Apparently they go nuts that she goes to all of the 30 Seconds To Mars concerts and that she hangs out with him so much.
She owns her own clothing line
Along with her business partner/sister Marielou, Chloe has started her own clothing line called Re/Done. Their brand focuses on turning vintage jeans into stylish modern pieces.
The Bartoli sisters are bilingual
Chloe and her sister are the children of two Parisians, although their parents moved to Los Angeles before they were born. According to reports, the sisters speak French exclusively to each other.
A photo posted by CHLOÉ BARTOLI (@chloebartoli) on
She has another connection to the Kardashians
Chloe was reportedly friends with Bobby Heyward, the friend of Lamar Odom’s who tragically passed away on June 30 from a prescription drug overdose. She has shared Instagram posts of her with Mr Heyward since his death.
At 16 years of age and with a father who's been the President of the United States for the last seven years, Malia Obama's upbringing has been far from normal.
Wherever she goes, be it to Chicago's Lollapalooza music festival, a Beyoncé concert or just out for a stroll with friends, the teenager has to have at least two Secret Service agents in her vicinity at all times. Very inconvenient if you're 16 years old and trying to impress boys.
One thing Malia's parents have allowed her to do to live a somewhat normal teenage life is to get a part-time summer job. Except, of course, this is no normal summer job… she's not working in her local Centra, we assure you.
The teenager is spending the next few weeks away from her home in Washington DC to work in New York as an intern on the set of HBO's Girls, according to TMZ. There are definitely a few perks to being the President's daughter…
Malia has been on set in Brooklyn all week, where Lena Dunham and co. are currently filming the show's fourth series.
The eldest Obama daughter obviously has an interest in TV production (or just in TV), as this is her second interning gig on the set of a show. Last summer she worked on Halle Berry's Extant in Los Angeles, where crew members told TMZ that she mainly went on coffee runs and stopped passers-by from accidentally walking on to the set.
It might not be the most glamourous of jobs, but we love that Malia's parents have encouraged her to work to get what she wants, rather than waiting for things to come her way.
Last week, it was announced that Bobbi Kristina Brown would be moved from hospital into hospice care as her health has sadly continued to worsen.
It has been reported that the 22-year-old is now off life support and is no longer being administered medication to help keep her alive.
However, it has now emerged that someone has taken a recent picture of the young woman, who is believed to be dying, and is currently trying to sell it to major US-based websites.
TMZ has now revealed that it wasapproached with the image, but that they declined to purchase it.
The website said: "The photo was shopped to us… we passed. The pic is being shopped to a multitude of magazines and websites, and we're told there's interest."
The photo in question was taken earlier this week at the hospice facility near Atlanta where the daughter of Whitney Houston is staying. In the picture there is a woman, believed to be a family member, leaning over BobbiKristina.
TMZ reported that the person who took this photo is an "extended family member".
Bobbi Kristina has not regained consciousness since she was discovered face-down and unresponsive in a bathtub at her home in Atlanta, Georgia, at the end of January.
As the first solo song from her forthcoming eight studio album, the accompany video was always going to demand LOTS of attention.
But was anyone expecting quite so much blood and boobs??
Less than 48hours ago, Rihanna – well-able to cause controversy at the best of times – unveiled the B***h Better Have My Money video… and it's already notched up close-to 10million views.
Ri-Ri, 27, went behind the cameras too for the shoot – directing the action herself.
And apparently (are we surprised?) the songstress also came up with the concept: a bad-ass gang kidnapping a wealthy woman from her apartment, then taking her to a warehouse and motel where they torture and torment her because they want ransom cash.
The video concludes with a shot of the Grammy Award-winner, naked and covered in blood and lying on a trunk filled with cash.
The song itself, which boasts Kanye West as a producer, has garnered considerable air-time since being released in March, and no doubt the video is about to get a seriously epic amount of attention too.
Here, we look at the strictly NSFW moments from the video…
In the opening scenes, the soon-to-be kidnapped wealthy lady strolls around her apartment in a see-through bra (as you do):
But even a see-through bra is too much for Ri-Ri – the kidnapped woman is stripped naked and bungled into a car:
The songstress even engages in a spot of torture – with the wealthy woman sporting a metallic grill (no, we don't know either):
Rihanna gets really nasty then, sharpening up knives when the kidnapped woman's husband refuses to pay up:
Still, there's always time for a bit of pool-party action:
And in the end, Ri-Ri ends up in a trunk, naked – and covered with blood and money:
Calvin Harris and Taylor Swift are undoubtedly one of the most powerful couples in the world at the moment, despite the fact that neither of them has even spoken about their blossoming romance to the media. If it wasn't for the joys of social media (and the photographers at this year's Billboard Awards) we'd have no way of even knowing the couple were official.
But while Taylor has been enjoying sharing an insight into her new relationship via Instagram over the last few weeks, her new man hasn't been feeling quite so open.
Instead of the cute couple shots that have been popping up on Taylor's feed, all Calvin has given us so far is a look at the singer's famous feline friends, Olivia and Meredith… until now.
A photo posted by Calvin Harris (@calvinharris) on
Obviously feeling all loved-up after a whirlwind trip around the UK and Ireland over the last week as part of Taylor's 1989 World Tour, Calvin finally gave us his own glimpse into the couple's lives.
Posting a picture of Taylor grilling some veggies and steaks on a barbecue, Scottish DJ Calvin wrote, "She cooks too" followed by a series of flame emojis.
Cute!
Although this is the first time Calvin's posted a picture of his new lady love, he did (sort of) address the relationship on Twitter last week when he congratulated Taylor on her win over Apple's new music streaming service.
"I just played a gig inside a giant owl and my girl just changed the entire music industry what a day," he wrote in a "subtle" reference to his new girlfriend.
I just played a gig inside a giant owl and my girl just changed the entire music industry what a day
Are you guilty of having a messy bedroom/kitchen/desk/entire house? Well turns out that's not necessarily a bad thing.
Hurrah!
According to scientist Adam Frank, no matter how hard some people may try to keep their s*** together, it just isn't going to happen and through no fault of our own. Yup, it's just science!
Adam states: "Think about your desk. You tidy it up. It slides into a mess. Tidy it up again, and still, two weeks later, the mess is back.
"That's because the deepest of deep cosmic principles is playing itself out right there in the midst of your pens, paper clips and paperwork."
So what you're saying is, there's no point in us tidying up at all in the first place? Ok Adam, you have our attention.
This physicist wants us all to feel better about not being able to keep on top of all of our cleaning sometimes "You see, it's not just us. It's a law of physics.
"The hard truth is that the universe itself is dead-set against our long-term efforts to bring order to the chaos in our lives. That's because the universe loves chaos."
So if your desk has a pile that's beginning to get higher and higher, then just remember what Adam says: "Disorderly environments seem to inspire breaking free of tradition, which can produce fresh insights."
So we guess you could say you're basically doing it for the benefit of our lives and careers.
Don’t we all Veronika? This 27-year old from Vancouver, Canada might be halfway there already. The internet sensation has been told she’s a dead ringer for actress Angelina Jolie since 2011.
At the time Veronika was working as a shop assistant and thought it was “bizarre”. But, she says “Angeline is absolutely gorgeous so I was obviously flattered too.”
In 2011 Veronika started to get lip fillers, and since then she’s been blowing up the internet with everyone from Us Weekly to E! online remarking on the similarities between the two.
Veronika says that she’s often complimented for her looks, but she’s still looking for her prince charming, "I've been single for over a year now after a five-year relationship ended, and I'd love to meet someone special.”
She says that it’s proving difficult for her with men often getting nervous when she talks to them. She says that men are “intimidated by the way I look”.
She does remind us of Angie. The similarities stop there though, as Veronika models a far larger bust than her celebrity doppelganger.
The model, now based in Dubai, has undergone two breast augmentations. When she was in school she was bullied; being called “flat-chested” and “chubby”.
Now she treats her almost 650,000 Instagram followers to snaps of her in the gym, and using her waist trainer.
We’re getting lots of Tomb Raider vibes with the braids and that pout.
Her appearance can have a downside. According to Veronika, “no normal, respectable guys are ever keen, but I'm too shy to approach men myself."
According to her social media accounts, Veronika might be too busy in the future to let the “creeps” bother her anyway. She’s been doing plenty of photo shoots, we wonder if an acting roles are in her future?
She could play Angelina’s sister, that’s for sure.
Kim Kardashian’s Rolling Stone cover had the internet pretty irate this week. As it turns out, it wasn’t just social media users that took issue with Kim K’s magazine feature.
There is a time and a place for Kim Kardashian. That place is not on the cover of Rolling Stone. #no
Her brother Rob Kardashian, 28, is said to be ‘furious’ with his sister after her less than flattering comments about him in her interview.
So much so he’s rumoured to have blocked her on his phone.
Speaking about Rob, Kim told the press that while her family are concerned, she’s pretty sure he’s not in serious trouble. Kim explained: “It’s not more like hookers and meth at the Ritz. No no.”
However, Mrs West did blame her brother's much-documented weight-gain on his lifestyle, saying: “I think he smokes weed, drinks beer, hangs out and plays video games with his friends all day long.”
She then joked that Rob would be “skinny” if he used meth.
Their relationship has reportedly been strained since Rob posted an unflattering image on social media comparing Kim to Rosamund Pike’s less than stable character from Gone Girl.
Now an insider is reporting to Us Weekly that “he doesn’t want to hear what she has to say. He says there’s no excuse she could possibly have for saying that. He will not forgive her.”
The same source added that while “Kim and Rob had been cool again,” now they’re back on the outs.
They added: “He’s furious at her again for her comments to Rolling Stone.”
I wonder what the letter says. Rob can't remember lol We're dying to read it together!
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) June 28, 2015
It had seemed the pair were getting along as only days ago Kim had reached out to Rob when he missed his high school reunion.
She shared a photo of a letter he had written to himself when he was in school. Kim tweeted: “We’re dying to read it together.”
Rob’s reps have yet to make any comments on the story.
Battling its own financial crisis since 2008, Greece, a country of 11million people, has lately been hit yet more instability – namely because it's fast running out of money.
And, of course, if a government runs out of cash, it means that schools and hospitals can't stay open, and the likes of pensioners won't get their weekly allowance. In short, the country will shut down and likely spiral in chaos.
Greece owes billions to international creditors. But Athens was also been deeply unhappy with the terms of its 2010 bailout from the Troika (made up of the European Commission, the IMF, and the European Central Bank). It claims that its loan-terms are grossly unfair and, with unemployment hovering around the 25 percent mark, that growth and recovery is being severely prohibited.
On Tuesday, Greece missed a loan repayment deadline: it was supposed to cough up €1.5bn to the International Monetary Fund, but never did. It has thus become the very first developed country to miss an IMF payment. This weekend, it holds a referendum on whether it should adhere to bailout conditions or not.
A 'no' vote (oxi in Greek) is being backed by the Greek government and will likely see the return of its old currency, the drachma.
Here, SHEmazing! gives a breakdown of the latest developments from Athens:
Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras
How much does Greece owe and why is it in so much financial trouble?
Greece owes some €323bn to its creditors (Ireland owes €200bn – still considered high internationally). Understandably, its residents are beginning to panic – last weekend ATMs were emptied as citizens rushed to remove their savings from banks. The crisis has been brewing for years, however: the Athenian government spent beyond its means for a long time; it had to borrow heavily (a quarter of a trillion euro, in fact) in 2010 just to keep the country running. And because it is tied into the euro rather than its own currency, it couldn't just print more money to solve the issue.
Does it really matter if a country defaults on an IMF loan?
Yes it does – so much so that countries go to incredible lengths to avoid defaulting. But Greece's ruling Syriza party, which has been in power since January, has long wanted to prioritise domestic obligations – health, education, roads etc – over honouring bail-out installments. By missing its loan payment this week, it joined a less-than illustrious group of defaulters: DR Congo, Iraq, Sudan and Zambia have all been in the same boat. Its debt is beginning to mount too: Greece has to pay the European Central Bank €6.6bn by the end of the summer, and yesterday the IMF said Greece will need another €60bn in loans over the next three years just to stay afloat.
So, who is Alexis Tsipras?
He has been the Greek prime minister since January, when his Syriza party gained power via a landslide victory. A member of parliament since 2009 and a civil engineer by trade, he's still only 40. He's had to dilute some of his more extreme left-leaning persuasions in recent years, but still believes in withdrawing his country's Nato membership, imposing a 75 percent tax on Greece's wealthy citizens, and totally nationalising public services – including the banking sector. Understandably, the European ruling ascendancy (especially Germany) doesn't like him and wants him out; they'd just rather negotiate with a brand new parliament, in fact.
What's happening on Sunday?
Greece holds a referendum this weekend: its citizens are being asked whether to accept the terms of the 2010 bailout or not. Mr Tsipras argues that these austerity measures are "unbearable," and Greek finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, has said that the programme imposed on Greece "is going to go down in economic history as the greatest cock-up ever." But German chancellor Angela Merkel disagrees, stating that the deal is "extraordinarily generous". Essentially, Greece reckons a no vote will allow it to negotiate better deals with its creditors, something the Troika has totally dismissed. Still, latest polls suggest a no vote will be passed.
What is it like in Greece right now?
The country's banks have been closed all week to all but pensioners (many of them don't have ATM cards). Otherwise, all citizens are allowed to withdraw €60 a day from cash machines: the money is released at midnight, prompting long queues to form once evening time comes around. People have been taking to the streets to protest too, though these demonstrations have largely died down now. Tourists (totaling 22.5million annually) continue to visit the country – especially the historical sites of Athens, and its picturesque islands and coastline.
'Grexit': what happens if Greece leaves the eurozone?
Well, no one knows for sure (a country has never left the EU before) – but it's likely to be pretty chaotic. For the Greeks themselves, hundreds of thousands of ordinary people would probably see their life-savings vanish. Further afield, a Grexit would have a ripple effect around Europe, but especially in fellow Troika territories: Portugal, Italy and Spain, and to a lesser extend Ireland and Cyprus. And other countries might consider leaving the euro themselves if their economies take a battering in future years. Finance Minister Michael Noonan reassured Irish people this week that the risk to our economy was small, as direct trade and financial links between the two countries is limited.
The release of Magic Mike XXL is quickly taking over the entire internet. From red carpet premiere snaps to videos of Channing Tatum 'Vogueing', it is impossible to spend more than five minutes online without seeing a hairless dancing torso this week.
But this morning, it's popping up everywhere for a different reason. We're not sure if you think this is good news or not, but all of your favourite Disney princes have been given the Magic Mike XXL treatment (i.e. they have been turned into strippers).
Artist Isaia Stephens, the artist of these pictures, posted them to his Facebook page saying "here are some Disney fellas gettin' their Magic Mike on for their ladies!"
Isaia made sure to add that he tried to make the pictues "as lighthearted and fun as possible" to avoid offending anyone.
Magic Mike XXL is hitting cinemas around Ireland today… these should get you in the mood for it:
Kylie Jenner might only be 17, but she's already living an adult life. Not only has she just moved into her own luxury home in Calabasas, California, but the reality star is also paving the path to becoming the best future stepmum in the world.
It seems that the finishing touches to her €2.3m mini-mansion included a special something for her boyfriend Tyga’s toddler son, King Cairo.
Reportedly, Kylie has made sure King has his own space in her house, with a specially designed bedroom in keeping with the "royalty" theme set by his name. Even as a toddler, little King will actually be sitting like a king, with a source telling Hollywood life that Kylie has installed a throne in the little boy's bedroom.
A THRONE. Can we move in too?
The house is huge, and Kylie apparently wants Tyga and King to feel right at home. A lavish "King's Court" playroom is certainly one way to do that.
It's not all for King's benefit though, as an insider tells Hollywood Life that all Kylie wants is to "feel safe and secure" in her relationship with Tyga. And while we’ve gotten plenty of glimpses into the 17-year old’s ultra-lavish looking mansion, complete with a glam room and walk-in shoe closet, we have yet to see the throne… so she must be holding off to unveil King's room as a big surprise.
Kylie is obviously smitten with Tyga’s young song, even recently changing her name on social media to King Kylie. Well, it's a better title than "stepmum" anyways.
