Your tips on how to look more Groomed, Glamorous or Polished #11

[Shimmering]

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone on this thread.

I had an important work appearance today and to be honest I've really let myself go over the last decade of parenting and working full time etc and I am the typical work from home dress like Adam Sandler mum, wears minimal make up and bungs hair into a ponytail. (I do get regular cuts and highlights though, I am vain)

Now it did cost me a fortune but I was really mindful of my appearance because I've been posting on this thread and just taking more of an interest in how I look. I had a professional blow dry, spent ages picking an outfit that I was a) comfortable in and b) professional looking in.

I had ordered haus labs make up which didn't arrive in time so last night I bought stila foundation and lip plumper.

Honestly when I was ready to go I felt like a million dollars. It was a huge boost to my confidence and made me feel so happy.

Thank you all xxx

 

[LennonRoad]

Spirulina
Vit B12
Vit c
Ashwaganda
Turmeric and black pepper
Iron
Vit D
CBD
Royal Jelly
Magnesium
Zinc

Me out here drinking maybe one glass of water a week

 

[MissTeddy]

Can you imagine if men suffered even a fraction of what we go through: periods, contraceptives, smears, child birth, miscarriages, hysterectomies, menopause… ffs we‘re a
fucking warriors !

… and we’re hair removing and covering greys, and applying make up at the same time

 

[Olive16]

As you know I’ve been struggling with my self esteem and self care! I’ve booked a hair consultation for a few weeks time, just to go through some options. I’m enquiring about laser hair removal for my chin and neck. As silly as this sounds (I love to tick off a list!) I’m going to have a daily, weekly, monthly to do list for my self care routines etc! I was in an abusive relationship for most of my younger years 17-28 and I’m wondering if I need to look at having some therapy to deal with how I feel about myself due to this relationship! I just feel awful as I now have a wonderful husband who tries so hard to make me feel a million dollars and this must be so draining for him!

 

[House of Tea]

What a random thing for them to say in earshot of you!!! Perhaps they weren’t the full shilling.

Yes, maybe they thought deafness comes with age too.

He was a neanderthal, she was tubby. Let me be the judge of them.

 

[NoddyFromToytown]

Ah hells bells. I might have looked kick ass but they definitely won’t be offering me a job! Totally blindsided by some of the questions (feel they were being sneaky interviewing for two very different roles at the same time) and started having a hot flush right in the middle of it!

 

[Mollywobbles]

I’m an ex golfer.
I’ve seen too many women who didn’t wear spf have leathery skin and wrinkles and bits cut out of their faces because of skin cancer so I am really keen on spf. We need to use it summer and winter.
I used to use Clinique city block, but most tinted moisturisers have spf these days. However you need to top it up during the day! I’m not a fan of wet wipes to remove makeup at night, but a quick cleanse during the day to remove oil and sweat and reapplying spf is a good thing to do.
Don’t forget your neck, so many women golfers with leathery necks and the v mark where there polo shirt buttons were undone. Not a good look.

Also..hands! We put spf on our farms and hands. Then wash our hands are don’t reapply spf so we end up with wrinkly sun spotted hands. Buy a small sun lotion or a hand cream with spf and get into the habit of using it,

Lecture over!

 

[Summer2011]

Everyone else scheduled in a make up brush clean this weekend

 

[Ametrine]

I am sick of UK shops. If you want something with an elasticated waist or a sweatshirt, you can take your pick here. Or a sea of man made shiny sweaty material or cropped tops (I never see anyone in cropped tops) or voluminous sleeves - plenty of them. But classic clothes with a stylish twist are in short supply. I spent Saturday at Bluewater, and the pickings are poor.

Zara used to be the go to for a bit of continental chic, now it is like fancy dress. Mango is better for style these days but whilst the styling is good, the material isn’t. Massimo Dutti have taken to displaying all its clothes on big hangers as outfits. So a shirt, jumper and bottom all on the same hanger. This makes it hard to see the price plus you have to take all of the items into the changing rooms and try to wrangle off the item you really want to try on. I can sort of understand doing this to the first item on the rail but what the hell is the point of doing it to everything. Hoping for people to buy everything rather than one item? As per, the customer experience is woeful.

Shoes - a stylish pair of tan elegant loafers are what I want. Not clumpy, heavy, gimmicky ones in a baby poo colour. You want shoes you can have a 1000 styles of trainer, or the other extreme- gold, silver, diamanté sandals. I follow a few Spanish shoe shops on Instagram- so much nicer than our offerings. They wear trainers but still wear shoes too. Damn Brexit, I would be buying them from European sites but the cost is too prohibitive with custom fees.

I agree that the UK high street is currently quite dire. I think one of the problems is that they've tried to keep costs low so as to not put shoppers off. If you have a look at 90s magazine throwback accounts on Instagram, you'll see that clothes cost the same, if not more, in the 90s! Clothing prices have not kept up with inflation for many retailers, which means that the quality has come down.

Another issue is I think some retailers think we all want to dress for Instagram, and don't want to pay much for an outfit we'll only wear once in a photo. That might be true for people in their 20s, but I don't think it applies too much to people in their 30s and upwards.

I do rate the following shops:

• Boden
• Clarks
• Hobbs
• LK Bennett
• M&S
• Massimo Dutti
• Mint Velvet
• Next
• Reiss
• Russell & Bromley
• Sweaty Betty
• Uniqlo

 

[House of Tea]

Got a back handed compliment on Saturday. Warm day, headed to the coast. Sat on a bench with OH. A couple walked past in their mid 20s I would say. Male looked at me and said when I saw her she looked proper beautiful but she’s old. The female said I did too! Well basic man and woman, I am beautiful despite my age, so fuck off to you.

 

[mindlessness]

Any tips on creating a useful summer wardrobe that you'll rewear...every year when I get mine out only 10% of it is stuff I actually like and want to wear, the rest is weird/boho/colourful tat that isn't even in my style. Its like I have a style personality transplant each year. My usual style is quite classic so not sure what happens to me.

I have this problem! I buy for a fictional version of myself who goes on a lot of lovely beach holidays. Not for the real me who lives in Scotland and needs something more than just kaftans to get through summer

 

[Kittylover2019]

Again off topic but…..

I went to my gp to be sterilised after my husband bottled getting the snip

The gp gave me a real hard time about why I wanted to be sterilised and what would I do if my kids were all killed outright in an accident. I believe it’s because they can’t make any money off me by keeping on the pill, having the coil etc.

 

[Geranium]

I’ve just come on here to cry really! We are on holiday but our luggage is lost and we are in a place with very limited options for buying anything ! I miss my clothes and toiletries so
Much

 

[ShockAdGift]

@MissTeddy You are right. Although I console myself that most of them will never experience the utter joy of taking their bra off when they get home from work

 

[Ruby’s mum]

So my GP surgery didn’t do removals (I’ve moved since my last one was put in!) but they can refer to their neighbouring surgery who do removals and insertions. So I told them, they referred me across to the other surgery who then called me with an appt.

previously I had a removal and replacement in my old GP surgery. That was a mild clusterfuck. They made me an appointment but insisted they had to write me a prescription for the coil which I had to pick up from the pharmacist and take to the appointment (I was NOT prepared for how long the box was!). I turned up with the coil to find the GP who did the fitting had a coil ready for me. Weird. I’ll be completely honest, the removal and replacement was really traumatic. My coil had been in for at least 3 years more than it should have been, which didn’t help. I was offered no anaesthesia, my only option was to hold a nurse’s hand and yell ‘FUUUUUCK’ as loud as I could. I then limped back to work cringing at the pain of it all. I vowed that coil would be my last as I couldn’t have another inserted (my first was inserted during gynae surgery so I was out cold, bliss). The removal that was just a removal was fine. I still carried a bit of trauma but it was bearable.

Why do they make women undergo these procedures with pain relief? Don’t answer that, we know why.

 

[houseofhoop]

I could be tempted to be interested! Do you think you could pick out bits to do to keep out to keep them lighter? I fancy a bit of gloss/shine though.

Ooo I don’t know, I’ve always done the whole head of hair … I just stick to what my FIL told me, I have no clue doing anything else
---

Oh gosh of course! Thank you, that’s very kind.

Photo 1

photo 2

Photo 3

photo 4

Photo number 1 shows the equipment you need. Photo number 2 shows the emulsion, photo 3, the colour (I use 66/07 which is a rich brown) photo 4 shows the hair clips I use, I normally use about 10-15. I would also invest in a box of latex gloves to stop the dye staining your hands and nails.



Start by prepping the room you are doing it in. I do it in the bathroom and remove all the white towels etc! And I pop on old scruffy clothes, and wear a vest top (or nothing at all if you live alone!!).

Gather all your equipment and a plastic bag and pegs.

Brush your hair and put Vaseline around your hair line and tops of your ears. This stops a tide mark forming.



Prep the dye.

Put on gloves. Add 2 parts emulsion to 1 part dye. Using the plastic measuring jug in photo 1. I do 60ml emulsion and 30ml dye, I have chin length hair. Mix them together in the bowl in photo 1. I mix them together using the brush in photo 1. It probably looks orange by now. Apply to your hair using the brush, really get into the roots . I do this by parting at the top and working my way down each side by 1cm sections and then when the whole of the section is covered I secure it with a clip shown in photo 4. Do the same it at the back of your hair too. When your whole head is covered, pop the plastic bag over your hair, making sure no bit is exposed, then secure with the pegs. Put a timer on for 30 mins. I use the 30 mins to wash off the equipment.



After 30 mins carefully remove bag and then bin it, remove clips from hair jump in the shower and wash off dye. I normally clean with shampoo and conditioner at the same time, wash Till water runs clean. Ta dah!

 

[sosticky]

Re the coil - my friends got lost...it was due out just as we went into lockdown. 3 years later she finally goes to have it out and they can't find it. Lots of tests later and it's somewhere completely different!
She had to have an operation to remove it.
I didn't have one in the end but after my daughter was born I felt the gp and contraceptive nurse were really pushy about me having the coil. I stood my ground though and said I'd rather go back on the pill
As it agrees with me.

I brought the revolution miracle cream which is meant to be a CT dupe but I didn't like it, its too fragrant and my skin just didn't get on with it.

Is there a UK equivalent for panoxyl face wash? I'm on medication that makes me sweat alot and I always smell like BO even though I shower every day, wear Deodorant and clean clothes. I've read panoxyl can help but it's only avaliable in the US or via iherb and I don't really wanna spent £5 delivery!

Didn't want to scare anyone with my coil horror story but now I'm gonna! Got extreme pain after it was inserted, never had one before so thought it was normal (I was dizzy and nearly puked. I have a high pain threshold) couple of months after, thought I'd check for the strings as you're supposed to, couldn't feel anything. Turns out it wasn't in my womb anymore, I'm pretty sure the doctor pushed it through on insertion. Had to have key hole surgery to have it removed from my stomach cavity. When I was xrayed for them to try and find it, the guy doing it said it happens very often 🫠

 

[ChilliBean]

Did I really just pay over the odds for the Rhode lip tint and the phone case? Yes am I an idiot???? Yes. Does it also double up as an accessory for selfies? Also yes

Is there something absolutely insane about the idea I will now always have a lip gloss with me? YES. I woke my boyfriend up at 12am to say one had come up on Depop at not stupid price and he said “Just buy it. I will sort you the money. It’s clearly so important you had to wake me up” don’t have to ask me twice

Im really sorry but someone on twitter said it looks like a vagina and I can never unsee that 🫣

 

[House of Tea]

I am sick of UK shops. If you want something with an elasticated waist or a sweatshirt, you can take your pick here. Or a sea of man made shiny sweaty material or cropped tops (I never see anyone in cropped tops) or voluminous sleeves - plenty of them. But classic clothes with a stylish twist are in short supply. I spent Saturday at Bluewater, and the pickings are poor.

Zara used to be the go to for a bit of continental chic, now it is like fancy dress. Mango is better for style these days but whilst the styling is good, the material isn’t. Massimo Dutti have taken to displaying all its clothes on big hangers as outfits. So a shirt, jumper and bottom all on the same hanger. This makes it hard to see the price plus you have to take all of the items into the changing rooms and try to wrangle off the item you really want to try on. I can sort of understand doing this to the first item on the rail but what the hell is the point of doing it to everything. Hoping for people to buy everything rather than one item? As per, the customer experience is woeful.

Shoes - a stylish pair of tan elegant loafers are what I want. Not clumpy, heavy, gimmicky ones in a baby poo colour. You want shoes you can have a 1000 styles of trainer, or the other extreme- gold, silver, diamanté sandals. I follow a few Spanish shoe shops on Instagram- so much nicer than our offerings. They wear trainers but still wear shoes too. Damn Brexit, I would be buying them from European sites but the cost is too prohibitive with custom fees.

 

[houseofhoop]

Sorry if this has been asked previously, just jumping in, but can anyone recommend a good night cream?

I don't want anything super thick or heavy, I've been using Olay retinol, and I actually find it a really nice consistency, but I really want to start using a more natural brand (as much as that's possible... if a at all).

I'm mid 40's, my skin is not overly dry, but I have started to get little touches of mild roscea on my cheeks.

I’m in a similar situation, and in The last three months or so, I’ve been moving over to a new regime with the Ordinary brand. I’ll list below what I do if that helps? The products are not that expensive and I’ve had many comments (well 3-4, but it’s a lot when you’re 45!) about how glowing I look. I wrote this out for myself so I don’t forget

Skincare Routine

Morning
1.Cleanse with squalane cleanser
2. Treat: Multi-Peptide + HA Serum, then Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 (some times I use boots glow serum before these two)
3. Seal: moisturiser
4. sunscreen. This is so friggin important and I do it every day of the year. Picture below of what I use!

Evening before bed

Day 1
1.Cleanse with squalane cleanser
2.Treat: Retinol 1% with squalane
3.Seal: moisturiser

Day 2
1. Cleanse with squalane cleanser
2. Treat: Vitamin C suspension 23%
3. Seal: moisturiser

Day 3
1.Cleanse with squalane cleanser
2. Rose hip seed oil
3. Seal: moisturiser

(repeat evening cycle)

I used to get really bad Roscea but this keeps it away.