Tiler blog

Kate Middleton's Family Business: Party Pieces

Ever since Carole and Michael Middleton's eldest daughter, Kate, became engaged to Prince William, the family business has seen an enormous increase. Maybe it's because of curiosity or they are fulfilling a popular need for those in the U.K. Kate Middleton's family owns a mail order catalog and online business called, appropriately enough, Party Pieces.

You can order party supplies, favors, tableware, etc. for just about any occasion such as anniversaries, birthdays, St. George's Day (April 23, Britain's national holiday), British Street Parties (usually held for royal weddings or their milestone events), hen parties or bachelorette parties, and weddings. The powers to be for the royal family are worried about a conflict of interest this may cause for them. But the royal family knew of Kate's family business beforehand.

Party Pieces was founded in 1987 by Carole Middleton, Kate's mother, when her three children were very young. She wanted other young mothers to be able to create birthday parties for their children that would be fun, magical and memorable. It has grown to become the United Kingdom's leading catalog and online source for party needs.

Party Pieces would be somewhat similar to Party City in the U.S., but without the bricks and mortar. However, the company . For instance, its call center is in a 200-year-old barn, the warehouse that stores all of its tableware, party favors and other supplies is in a converted hay barn, and its shipping and packaging is done in a former cow shed.

Kate Middleton's role in the family business was that of a project manager. She left that position permanently after her royal engagement. Some of her duties as project manager included being the . Kate Middleton was responsible for putting together their annual Christmas catalog, attending trade fairs and arranging photo shoots for the catalog year-round. She also utilized these same skills when she worked at Jigsaw. Now Kate is busy planning her own wedding, thanks to the valuable skills she learned from her family business.

Much has been written about in the British press how the Middleton's are trying to grab attention and get a piece of the royal wedding publicity to help their party supply business. This business was created and established long before they met any of the royals. The Middletons, with the exception of , has not given any interviews to any members of the press since the engagement. The royal family is at a huge advantage with its fleet of press officers to deny stories.

The Middletons haveregarding any falsehoods reported in the press. All they can do is grin and bear it. There was one costly mistake Kate Middleton's family did make. It wanted Kate to help advertise products for Party Pieces, but the family learned its lesson quickly. While some might see the family business as a conflict of interest for Kate and the royal family, it doesn't have to be that way. The royal family has its wedding party supplies through someone else and the Middletons have it with the rest of the U.K.

Review: `Two Worlds II' is a diamond in the rough

It's a big year for fans of heroic fantasy. Peter Jackson is finally starting production on "The Hobbit." George R.R. Martin's beloved "A Game of Thrones" is coming to HBO. And two of video-gaming's most popular epics are returning with fresh chapters: BioWare's "Dragon Age II" and Bethesda Softworks' "Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim."

Such fantasy worlds can be addictively immersive to those of us who grew up on J.R.R. Tolkien and "Dungeons & Dragons." And since I'll be going into seclusion when "Dragon Age II" comes out next month, I've been avoiding anything that smells of medieval swords and sorcery.

But then the folks on my Twitter feed started chattering about "Two Worlds II" (SouthPeak, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, $59.99). And despite my reservations — mainly caused by awful memories of the original "Two Worlds," from 2007 — I sought it out. And I'm hooked.

Polish studio Reality Pump has learned a few lessons since its initial fiasco. Combat is crisper, the threads of the story are easier to follow and the massive game world is more fun to explore. (If you're the kind of reader who pored over the maps in "The Lord of the Rings," you'll love this.) Graphical glitches pop up only occasionally, and while human characters are still as ugly as sin, "Two Worlds II" does present convincing monsters and some genuinely beautiful landscapes.

The primary story line is nothing special. An evil wizard has conquered the land of Antaloor; your mission is to overthrow him and, in the process, release your sister from his control. Exploring dungeons, fighting monsters, discovering increasingly powerful weapons and magic — if you've ever beaten a role-playing game, you know the drill.

Less predictable are the dozens of optional missions you'll discover around Antaloor. Some, like a mystery surrounding an elusive criminal mastermind, are serious. Some, like an investigation into reports of man-eating umbrellas, are goofy. One minute you're battling giant scorpions, the next you're mixing horse laxative.

Mercifully, the dialogue avoids the cornball olde English that typically bogs down such adventures; indeed, you're expected to taunt one character who spouts Renaissance fair babble. Some may find anachronisms like "You gotta be kidding" jarring, but they're a sign that "Two Worlds II" doesn't take itself too seriously.

Character customization isn't as comprehensive as it is in a BioWare or Bethesda RPG. For example, you have to play as a man — who, weirdly enough, seems to be channeling Christian Bale's Batman voice. But you do have nearly endless ways to create and modify armor, weapons, potions and spells. It's easy to spend hours just trying to find the perfect mix.

"Two Worlds II" is pretty rough around the edges, and has one of the steepest learning curves I've met in a while. But after a bumpy start it becomes as absorbing as its big-budget competitors on the RPG shelf, delivering dozens of hours of sword-swinging, spell-casting fun. Two-and-a-half stars out of four.

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Virgin Mobile Starts Preloading SCVNGR on Android Handsets

SCVNGR's location-based mobile game will be automatically preloaded on LG Optimus V handsets beginning later this month, thanks to a new partnership with Sprint announced Tuesday.

Theapp will sit alongside the YouTube application on the homescreen (as pictured), and will be incorporated into LG Optimus V device packaging. "This is the first handset in what will be additional models with the Virgin Mobile USA carrier prepaid brand," says a SCVNGR representative.

The pre-loaded application promises additional exposure for the service that just securedin Series C funding.

Virgin Mobile USA, a Sprint Nextel brand, offers consumers prepaid and no-contract pricing alternatives. The-- a Virgin Mobile device similar to the Optimus S-- is a slim Android phone with a 3.2-inch touchscreen priced at $149.99 without a contract.

The new year here at SCVNGR is all about building on the partnerships and user growth of our break-out year, and coming pre-loaded alongside apps like YouTube and Gmail is a huge testament to consumer response and engagement," says Chris Mahl, SCVNGR senior vice president. "We are excited to continue this growth and to help brands large and small engage their consumers through our social and mobile game platform.

Last we heard, SCVNGR was approaching 1 million members. The startup has yet to officially hit this milestone, but founder and CEO Seth Priebatsch says that it's "wicked close" to doing so.

U.S. "X Factor" winner to get $5 million record deal

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) – Acerbic British music judge and entrepreneur Simon Cowell said on Monday that the winner of the first U.S. version of the television singing competition, "The X Factor," will receive a $5 million record deal.

The new talent show on Fox television will start auditions for solo artists and vocal groups aged 12 and above in Los Angeles on March 27 before hosting more auditions in Chicago, Dallas, Miami, New York, New Jersey and Seattle.

Cowell said the winner would receive a record deal with Syco, a joint venture between Sony Music and Cowell, and the same label tied to Scottish singer Susan Boyle.

"We are going to put our money where our mouths are with the $5 million recording contract. I'm doing this show in America because I genuinely believe we can find a superstar," Cowell said in a statement.

Britain's "The X Factor", which launched in 2004, won the talent show category at Britain's National Television Awards two weeks ago beating "Britain's Got Talent."

(Reporting by Christine Kearney, editing by Patricia Reaney)

Inter, Roma clash to stay in Serie A title hunt

ROME (AFP) – Champions Inter Milan and Roma face a crucial clash at the San Siro this weekend as both sides try to stay in the scudetto hunt.

Inter pipped Roma to the title by two points last year as they finished as the top two for the fourth time in five years -- with Inter winning the championship every time.

But this time around both have been left lagging in leaders AC Milan's wake and defeat in Sunday's game could prove terminal for either side's trophy hopes.

With just 15 games left, this would be a bad time to start losing touch with the teams above but Roma club captain Francesco Totti insists there is still a long way to go.

Asked about his own lack of goals this season -- he has scored just three times in 19 league games -- Totti claimed he would soon click into gear.

"There's still a long way to go in the championship and my goals will come," he said.

"It's a vital match, if we get a result on Sunday we'll be able to remain hot on AC Milan's heels, even though right now we're nine points back with a game in hand."

Milan have stumbled several times since the turn of the year but both Roma and third-placed Inter have failed to take full advantage, themselves slipping up when there was the opporunity to close the gap.

However, things are going a lot better for both of them than for Italy's most successful side, Juventus.

Following the disaster of last season when Juve finished seventh and went through two coaches, they spent big in the summer and hired Luigi Delneri to revive the club's fortunes.

Things started out well enough this season but they have completely lost their way since the turn of the year.

Milan travel to Genoa looking to maintain the five-point lead at the top they extended in midweek despite a 0-0 draw at home to Lazio.

Napoli failed to capitalise as they produced a listless display in losing 2-0 at Chievo.

However, they return home to host struggling Cesena on Sunday while Lazio entertain Chievo.

Fixtures (1400 GMT unless stated):

Sunday

Bologna v Catania (1130), Brescia v Bari, Genoa v AC Milan, Lazio v Chievo, Lecce v Palermo, Napoli v Cesena, Parma v Fiorentina, Inter Milan v Roma (1945)