Give yourself a short, sharp booster shot to your self-esteem by giving yourself a top to toe makeover!
Fungal infections, warts and skin tags, bumps, rashes, eczema, psoriasis, dandruff are all relatively minor complaints, but gee, can’t they drag you down? So can spider veins, rosacea, varicose veins and all their relatives so talk to your doctor. Things like swollen ankles, heavy legs and piles are incredibly common, but can also be a sign of something more serious so do yourself a favour and blitz them. That way, you not only start off the year feeling much better, but also get rid of any potential compromise in your immune system.
Discoloured teeth and gum problems can add years to your age as well as being unsightly and painful. If you want to be kissed, ensure your mouth is the kind someone is going to want to stick their tongue in by seeing your dentist regularly.
Once the physical stuff is taken care of, the next step is to check your hair-do. Is it current, fashionable or does it date you? Visit a stylist or barber who has been personally recommended by someone whose hair you admire and let them work their magic. (By the way guys – there’s no excuse for excessive nose or ear hair, get rid of it! And even if you are balding, your barber or stylist can give you some options in terms of looking your best).
New High Tech Options
Take advantage of the latest, light and impressively designed underwear to enhance your body shape and support the bits that gravity has under attack. It’s affordable and available in a huge array of colours and styles – and makes a surprisingly big difference to not only how you look and feel, but how you move – and how often you pull your tummy in!
Ladies, take a cold, hard look at the support your bras are providing and if your breasts are not where they should be, don’t put up with it! Proper support not only alters your appearance for the better, it affects how you carry yourself, your overall posture and alters the way you move. It can even affect how you breathe.
Like so many women, I have far too many clothes. Most of them I’ve had for years. They fill a couple of closets plus a huge fat suitcase that is stuffed full of winter clothes waiting to be exchanged with summer ones when the temperatures drop.
There are some gorgeous clothes in those closets. Sumptuous fabrics – velvets, silks, retro coats, great colours, sharp cuts and styles that even now I love to imagine myself swanning about conquering the world in, but the cold, hard truth is I haven’t worn most of them in at least a decade.
Some are too small, others out of style, but despite going through them at least a couple of times over the last year, I can’t bear to part with them. Apart from the obvious financial investment made at the time, some of those outfits are made from fabrics I’ll never find again. More than that, without getting too cosmic about it, some of them I associate with who I want to be, what I want to look like and without pushing it too much, how I want to live. They exude a confidence, a feeling, a time or an attitude that inspires me. So they have lived on, these clothes, within four wooden closet walls while day to day I sport far less inspiring, but more practical casualwear on occasion far beyond its use-by date (especially if I can wear them to garden in).
If I died tomorrow, the kids would have a field day in those closets. Not any more, I’ve decided to blitz them. If I don’t wear it, can’t alter it, can’t imagine someone else wanting it, wearing it, altering it, it’s gone. And the really surprising thing about this new policy is I’m just about in shape to get into the dresses I really want to wear, but previously couldn’t – guess I’ve never had such a good incentive!
Last thing on the list is to clean out the make-up drawer – nothing dates you faster than old make-up. Anything over two years max needs a seriously good reason to stay.