Features Archive

Wabi-sabi arose from Zen Buddhism but it enables you to live a simpler and less-cluttered life whatever your situation or beliefs. Earlier I wrote about the tokonoma, a special alcove or area that you can have in a room as a focal point, but here I'll deal with surfaces.

Wabi-sabi, of course, arose in Japan, so to apply it in your home, it helps to know a little about what a traditional Japanese house looks like, though very few Japanese still live in them.

It doesn't help your morale to look rubbish when you're feeling rubbish, so here are some makeup and clothing tips for when you're down with the lurgy.

If you don't like yourself, you won't believe that others do either. In other words, everyone requires self-esteem to be in a successful relationship.

I believe that our lives are what we make of them - but that finding the right path can sometimes be difficult. Try these ten tips to help you focus on how to be happy.

Many of us long to have a home that is more streamlined and less cluttered, where you can cross the living room without stepping over the kid's toys, and can prepare a meal without having to clean off a kitchen surface first. But we make the mistake of thinking that if we just lived somewhere bigger, or had more money, then we'd magically achieve that clutterless environment.

I am a big fan of classic clothes, especially for those of us who are over 40. But a wardrobe, or even an outfit, made up entirely of classic clothes would be as boring as poo. When I say classics should be the backbone of your wardrobe, that's exactly what I mean - the backbone, not the whole thing.

Footwear is a very personal affair, with one woman's frumpy being another woman's practical, and one woman's sexy being another woman's slutsville. However, footwear is also one way in which to express yourself personally or introduce a bit of colour or texture into an outfit.

The majority of clothing is made in plain colours, but a proportion of patterned clothing is very useful in any wardrobe. It ties together two disparately-coloured parts of an outfit and is a great way to introduce a bright colour that you may not want to wear in a large, unpatterned block.

Not every woman needs a dress but a dress can be a great no-fuss option in a wardrobe. It enables you to immediately have a co-ordinated outfit, it's always appropriate for evening, and it lends instant femininity.

Tops are generally among the cheaper items in your wardrobe so they're actually a good way to ring the changes in fashion, but nevertheless there are designs for tops that recur again and again

Ageing skin has different issues from younger skin - it tends to be dryer, more sensitive, less prone to acne but more prone to rosacea, and of course, it wrinkles, which is why so many women now use anti-ageing products.

The best products are those with a little sheen rather than being ultra-matt or ultra-shiny, both of which look ageing. Personally, I've also largely switched from away powders towards creams, mousses and pencils, which glide on easily and don't gather in your wrinkles. As you get older, the less you drag your skin around the better because the collagen that once made it bounce back is on its way out.