According to the press, so it MUST be true, we all overspend at Christmas. 

Credit cards are 'maxed' and bank accounts emptied in the pursuit of ... something or other. Not quite sure what, but presumably it varies according to person.

Irrelevant anyway, because, once it's empty, it takes some filling up. This usually means that many people spend more frugally in January, because they are stony broke. 

'Irrelevances' and 'non-essentials' come into this category, so hairdressers and beauticians both tend to be quieter at this time of year, after the Christmas and New year débâcle and bedlam.

Personally, I don't think a hair-do or facial is irrelevant and would prefer to live on homemade lentil soup for a couple of weeks rather than forgo my skin or hair being looked after, but you may not feel the same, so...

Recipe courtesy of Diabetes UK

Here are the instructions on how to do a DIY Facial yourself

Why am I telling you my trade secrets, you might ask, in a moment of inquisitiveness?

Well, I'm not telling you exactly what I do, because it's impossible to do that on oneself anyway, but in the interest of Good Skin and female solidarity Sister, I'm handing out advice like - not lollipops, because I'm not too keen on those, sugar is so inflammatory darling - but vitamin shots! 

Compressing the face aids healthy lymph movement

Here's what you need

• Hot water in a bowl or sink
• A Muslin 
• Three rounds of Cotton wool
• Moor Lavender Bath oil
• Cleansing Milk
• Cleansing Cream
• Toner or RNC
• Clay
• Cream mask
• about 30 minutes

Here's what you do -

• Fill the receptacle with hot water
• Add some bath oil and swirl to mix
• Use the cotton wool to remove any eye makeup and lipstick
• Wring out your muslin and compress your face 
• Compress again
• (You could do a couple of Facial exercises at this point, if you've learned some)
• Cleanse your face gently with Cleansing Milk
• Remove with the muslin

Now for the second cleanse -

• Add more hot water and bath oil
• Compress again, really taking the time to inhale the fragrance and calm your breathing
• Now cleanse with the Cleansing Cream- press and roll!
• Remove very gently, then use a cool compress to close those pores.

And the 50 shades of Clay. . .

Clay cleanses deeply and gently for clear pores and toned skin

• Mix up the clay mask
• Apply another warm compress - Spruce is gorgeous because it helps you to breathe more deeply
• Now brush on the Clay. A brush is better than fingers as it is more precise and you tend to get less clay under your fingernails
• Leave this on for 5-8 minutes
• It's worth re-dampening the clay with a sponge, if your skin feels too tight
• Remove with a sponge and then a compress

Now for the Treatment Mask

Which mask is best for your skin? Ask your local Esthetician for advice

• Apply some toner or RNC
• Smooth your chosen mask over your damp* skin
• Leave on for 15-320 minutes
• (You can use your roller at this point for optimum absorption)
• Remove with a cool compress
• Apply day care or night care depending on time of day
• Send me a text telling me how wonderful your skin feels!

* Skin needs a drink too, you know! And remember to keep a glass of water to hand - and mouth - while you are doing this.

If you were lucky enough to receive a Gift Voucher for Christmas, you can, of course, book the real thing, and I'll do all that - and more - for you!

   
     Have a radiant day!

      Love, Jane x
     PS If you want or need anything mentioned above, text the pamper line: 07961224560 or reply to this email

Season of mists and mellow fruitlessness

I do hope your preparations are proceeding according to precedent, as it's so well put in the Elephant's Child. Mine probably are, as I started out well, then fell behind, and am now thoroughly confused. Plus I've lost my lists(s) So, all going swimmingly then.

The one thing that keeps me sane in a sea of wrapping paper, lists, roasting chestnuts and banned curling ribbon (because it's plastic innit? and I have lots left from last year and the previous decade, so what to do?) is my skin care routine.

Because it's so ingrained - like cleaning one's teeth - I find it is a little oasis of calm and reason amongst the utter bedlam of dire Christmas pop songs, John Rutter Earworms and lost lists.

The scent of Spruce, or Lemon & Lemongrass in the morning, makes me glad to be awake,

Scents of the pine forest calm & soothe

and able to look for my list; the Lavender compress in the evening means that I forget about the damn thing and sleep the sleep

of the (fairly) innocent.

Though why the innocent sleep any more soundly than the guilty, I've no idea.

So, I do hope you are finding a little solace during this season of bonkersness, and that your list is rather more ticked than mine, but if you have any Hauschka on it, please ensure that you do not dilly-dally on the way, but order PDQ, because, unlike me, Dr Hauschka UK shut up shop on the 14th December.

That is this Friday. Just saying...  

Place your order by texting the Pamper-line ASAP 07961224560

How to get feet like Cinderella, not an Ugly Sister

The mindless march of time means that we are almost in Advent. Which means Christmas is less than four weeks away and there is stuff to do and not enough time in which to do it.  

This means you end up shuffling about in endless queues, and your poor little feet suffer. 

What started out resembling Cinderella's little toes, turn into an Ugly Sister-esque swollen appendages, which need TLC. (Don't we all ducky?) 

So, that's today's 

PAMPER MISSION

Soak those toes!

Always best not to use the washing up bowl, I feel, but easy for me to say, as I have a selection of rather snazzy foot bowls. (Including a copper one which I can barely carry once it is full of H2O, Still it's gorgeous, and il faut souffrir etc.) 

So, find yourself a bowl, or treat yourself to one specifically for feet. Fill it with warm water, spritz in some Sage Bath or Spruce, and soak your feet.

You could read a book, knit, sip wine or watch television, as you will be immobilised somewhat. Let's hope the doorbell doesn't ring! 

Once your feet feel a little more suited to a glass slipper, rather than needing their toes or heels chopped off*, (which is way beyond the scope of the average chiropodist, so best avoided) remove them, dry them and rub in some cream. I like Hydrating Foot Cream best. 

Finish off with some socks and slippers, then put them up. Make a list of some sort, if you feel guilty lounging around, but why not be decadent and do nowt for a while? It's the weekend, after all!

Want to treat your feet like this regularly?

Get yourself a tube of Hydrating Foot Cream and bottle of Sage Bath. They come in Christmas Sets at the moment.  

Text the Pamper-Line 07961224560 to reserve yourself one, or mention it to someone who wants to buy you a present.That way, you'll get the loyalty points, as well as the present! 

And what do (loyalty) points mean? Prizes!

Have a Radiant day!

Green Thursday or Black Friday?

We've all heard about Black Friday - the American imported opportunity for retailers to clear out their old stock at risible prices. 

Stories of fist-fights over bargains and camping out the night before don't really add to the glamour of the occasion. 

Green Thursday -  a UK invention - is an attempt to encourage nice customers to buy their presents from local businesses with a green angle and environmentally-friendly products. 

Each year, Green Thursday falls on the Thursday before Black Friday, which the Americans celebrate as Thanksgiving. 

That's not really a festival here, although we have pinched the turkey idea and now eat ours at Christmas. In the past, Wild Boar, or Goose was often more common (and probably tastier.)

It should be a lot more civilised, with less need to arm-wrestle your fellow shoppers, and your conscience will be smugly aware that you are doing your bit for the environment as well as your purse, because there are still bargains to be had, but they won't cost the earth - financially or literally

At my Green Thursday event this year,  I'm running lip-balm making sessions, so you can take home your own little pot of pleasure. Either keep it for yourself or give it to someone as a charming homemade present.

Text the Pamper-Line to book your session 07961224560

Migrating Makeup - how to stop your makeup from sliding down your face

Picture from uproxx.com

There are many, many things very much worse than finding mascara on your cheeks, but it is still annoying when it happens. Even the undoubtedly lovely Heath Ledger RIP couldn't make it look that appealing.

There are ways to stop this happening, but they take a little attention to detail and a small amount of time.

Firstly - are you applying makeup straight after your day care? 

You really need to give your eye cream some time to absorb before slapping makeup over it. Asking for trouble - and sliding - otherwise. 

The solution is to apply your day cream and eye cream, then go and do something else while it sinks in. Ten minutes is ample. 

Yes, I know nobody has ten minutes spare in the morning, but I'm not suggesting putting your feet up. You can chivvy, skivvy, eat breakfast and get ready, while that's soaking in

Teint powder is a great base for eyeshadow

The next thing is a base coat of some sort. 

Even if you don't wear foundation, it's a good idea to apply that, or powder to the eye area. If you are like me, and wear sunglasses a lot, you'll look like a panda anyway, so applying a little powder, which is slightly darker than the rest of your face, will even up the white eye patches and give your eye-shadow something to cling onto. I often use this - Dr Hauschka's Teint powder - as it gives a slight tint of colour, and you can stop there, and just add mascara if time is a-fleeting. As it tends to...

Once you've got dry eye cream and a base of some sort - get creative!

Or not. Up to you. Some women are perfectly happy with a swipe of colour while others enjoy spending 40 minutes blending, with twelve types of brushes. I don't have that sort of time or inclination, so tend to draw a little eye liner along the lashes, then add a couple of colours. 

Deep Infinity Eye Palette Limited Edition 2018 

Now, to stop that eye liner bleeding

To do that, you can seal it with some powder. Matching is nice, or a slightly different one can look gorgeous. A blue eye liner crayon, with a purple shadow over it can look gorgeous. Or, my current favourite is the Deep Infinity Palette, which I reviewed here 

It's best to use a slanted brush for a neat application. The darker colour has a little glitter to it, so makes a really nice thin line over eye liner. That should keep your eye make up on the straight and narrow, unless you are planning to run a marathon.

Final touch

Once you've applied mascara et al, just gently brush under the eye area with a touch of powder, to maintain a barrier.

Lip-tastic
Lipstick is the other makeup product that tends to travel. As we age, our lips get thinner (unless we really practice Facial Exercises assiduously). Starting off with a Lip Liner helps stop this nasty habit. 

Lip Definer keeps your lipstick in place

For a super clean lip line, use a clear liner just outside the lip-line, then outline them with a colour that matches your lipstick. 

Unless you are going for that dark liner/light lipstick look, which generally only looks good on Drag Artistes - most of us don't have the Chutzpah to pull that one off. 

I use this one - Lip Definer 00. It's clear, so doesn't show but it keeps your make up where is should be on your lips.

Time well spent

Although this sounds fiddly, it really does help keep your makeup in place rather than running about like candle in a heat wave. So it'll save you time during the day, when you don't need to keep checking your immaculate maquillage!

Book a personalised Makeup session with me.
I'll show you how to keep your skin and your makeup looking radiant

Text the Pamper-line on 07961224560

National Frankenstein Day

That was National Frankenstein Day, not National Frankfurter Day, so put those sausages down. I know, I can't believe it either, but there is even a National Popcorn Day. Now we've heard it all. Anyway in my little sweetly-scented corner of the universe, rather than hiding behind the sofa sucking my thumb in disbelief at the craziness of the outside world, I'll be doing my...   PAMPER MISSION How about you? No need to look like a monster, if you look after yourself!  Treat your feet to a foot-bath. Soak those babies in some scented water Sage for pesky female hormones Moor Lavender, if you are planning an early night Rose, just because Lemon & Lemongrass if you are off out dancing (- you dirty stop out - you!) (Sage is also good for monstrous male feet, that are not as sweetly scented as ours.) Give your feet a little rub with a paste of sugar and olive oil, and then dry them gently. You can, if you are inclined, put a mask upon your tootsies. Hydrating Mask is what is extravagantly lavished upon them in the Foot Treatment chez moi.  After applying that, you'll have to put them up for a while to let it soak in. Quelle dommage! After lounging in a lady-like manner for a while, gently remove any residue and re-clothe your feet to keep them warm. Cashmere socks would be the ultimate finishing touch to this foot-tastic session Have a radiant weekend! PS Want a pamper mission every week?  Sign up for tips, tricks and more amusing waffle by clicking HERE

How (NOT) to look older and haggard

With the possible exception of underage teenagers trying to get into a trendy nightclub, nobody really wants to look older than they are, do they? 

We live in a visual culture that values youth above experience, particularly when it comes to women. We don't have that Chinese thing of respecting our Elders, we tend to diss them and their opinions, and then suddenly WE are the older generation! 

Oooh! The shock when the Prime Minister is younger than you are! (Not Theresa May, but it happened to me with David Cameron.)

This bias against ageing is unhelpful because we are lucky to age - it's a privilege not everyone gets to experience, but that doesn't mean that we need to look haggard and colourless. No beige needed - except in highlights!

There are lots of things you can do to retain your youthful looks - drinking enough (water! Not Gin!), eating wisely, but not too well, looking after your skin really well and getting regular facials. Something that is not commonly done, though, is to learn and practice Facial Exercises  

Targeted facial movements tone and smooth your face

In my youth, Eva Fraser was the doyenne of Facial exercise. I had a lesson with her a few years ago, to see how what she does, differs from what I teach. She really is an inspiring example of what you can achieve, if you are diligent. Diligence is the word though.

I'm not as well-behaved as she is and don't do them as often, but I do know that when I don't do them, I do look more haggard, so that inspires me to keep going. 

Interested? Want to read more, click HERE to read my piece in Cotswold Life about Facial exercises. If you'd like a trial lesson, please get in touch. Lessons can be done in person – which is best or by Skype. 

Text the Pamper-line on 07961224560