Don’t plonk your handbag down on the kitchen counters. The bottoms of most handbags harbor tens of thousands of bacteria, potentially including staph, pseudomonas, salmonella, E.coli and MRSA. If it’s possible to do without damaging the bag, swipe the bottom of your bag regularly with anti-bacterial wipes.
If you’re stuck in a cycle of daily hair-washing, try to break it. Every 2-3 days is plenty, according to many hairdressers we speak to. Over-washing strips hair of its natural oils and is especially damaging if you have coloured hair, as it shortens the life of the colour.
For soothing and restful sleep, feng shui experts suggest positioning your bed diagonally facing the door, and never under a sloping ceiling as it creates stagnant energy to build up. They also recommend ditching mirrors in the bedroom, as they can cause insomnia. (Worth a shot, if you’re still finding it hard to slumber despite our regular recommendations for sleep-beckoning products!)
We totally agree with this comment from Trish McEvoy: 'If you're looking for one product that makes a huge difference to older women, it's foundation. Skintone naturally becomes more uneven, as we age. Perfectly applied, foundation smooths the complexion – so making it look younger and fresher again.' (We love the new serum-style foundations – if you haven't tried one, set some time aside to check these out.)
When you sit down to eat, take a minute before you start on your meal. Eating when stressed is a common cause of bloating. It can really help if you calm your system before eating; taking a few deep breaths replaces the arousal-based nervous system associated with stress with the calming parasympathetic nervous system. When this is activated, digestion can work again.
Planning to travel long-haul? We always kick off our shoes and circle feet as often as we remember, to keep ankles suffer and avoid puffiness building up around them. But we also heard that if you don't put your shoes back on until the doors have opened and the cabin pressure returns to normal. It seemed to help, on a recent transatlantic flight.
Bought a lipstick you don't like? Instead of throwing it out, mix it with another that you own.
If you find that legs feel dry after shaving, try shaving straight after a bath (which encourages hairs to swell), using body lotion to help with razor glide and leave them silky-soft and comforted.
Eat at the same time every day, recommends David B. Agus, author of A Short Guide to a Long Life. The body likes a strict routine. Eat erratically or go to bed and get up at inconsistent times day in, day out, and you'll negatively affect hormone levels.
We suggest carrying a little pouch of Q-Tips in the handbag to re-blend eyeshadow during the day. We all have natural oils on our lids, and it's natural for make-up to start creasing, no matter how great a base we use.
If you have an iPhone, discover the Screen Time app and set a daily limit on social media use. It warns you when you're nearing your allocation (and boy, is it scary to find out how much time we're spending on our devices looking at pictures of flower arrangements and nice gardens!)
Take time to figure out the three products that make the maximum impact, make-up wise, so that on a busy day you can cut your make-up regime right down. If you've dark hair, you can usually get away with using just concealer, blush and lipstick. If you're blonde, you may need to play up eyes by using mascara and brow powder, then add a slick of lipstick. Play around till you find your 'Top Three'.
As we age, the pockets of fluid that protect our eyes start to slip and create bags. To decongest and tackle puffiness, Decléor's Education Director Fiona Brackenbury recommends building this simple, one-minute massage into your morning regime: 'Use your ring fingers to gently press and roll under the inner corners of your eyes, moving along the bony ridge of the socket and out to your temples and hairline. Do this for 50 seconds, then massage down the sides of your face ad neck for 10, to move fluid down to the lymph nodes where it's easily dispersed.'
Feel a cold sore coming on? Sometimes it’s possible to block it as soon as you feel the familiar tingle by applying ice cubes or frozen pea packs, since raised body heat activates the herpes virus.
For hungover skin, make-up artist Jenny Jordan likes to saturate skin with pads soaked in glycerine and rosewater. ‘Rubbing it over the face and neck brings the circulation back and gleams the skin. It looks softer, fresher,’ she says.
Hanging onto the last flaky, patchy dregs of a summer fake tan? This is where a loofah really comes into its own. (And for elbows, turn to grandma’s favourite skin-lightener, lemon.)
As we enter the sniffle season, remember the best way to prevent ‘nose dandruff’ (dry skin flaking off your nose) is to liberally moisturise it with balm inside and out. (Not pretty, but effective – though do ditch the balm after your infection’s cleared.) If you need to de-flake, soak skin and gently buff with a soft washcloth, then moisturise, moisturise, moisturise. (The new Erborian CC Red Correct really comes into its own for concealing a red nose, too.)
Looking for a seasonal makeover? Don’t buy into the illusion that it’ll save time if you head to the counter bare-faced. Better to wear your everyday make-up so that the artist knows your style. And tell them exactly what you want – a bolder lip, a stronger brow, a foundation match. And what if you’re still unhappy with the results? ‘It’s often a matter of fine-tuning,’ our friend Bobbi Brown once told us.
We like to carry tinted lip balm for a fast-fix double whammy: as well as adding a slick of sheer colour to lips, it works brilliantly as an instant, easy-to-blend blusher – just a smear, when you feel you’re looking a tad pale. Make-up artists often tell us lipstick can be used for this – but we can find that a bit hard to blend in. The texture of a tinted lip balm (NOT GLOSS!) is perfect.
Love this quote from Wallis Simpson (who lived by it!): ‘I’m nothing to look at, so the only thing I can do is dress better than anyone else.’