Get Me A Celeb Body…Now

As a celebrity journalist, my days are spent poring over images of beautiful famous faces and figures.

Ever heard the mantra ‘if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em’?



Well, I’m on a quest for an A-list body - come and join me on my mission.

I’ve found a team that can help me on my mission.

Jonathan Goodair is a personal trainer to the stars, boasting Stella McCartney, Gwyneth Paltrow and Madonna among his client list. 



He has set up residence in Marylebone’s Home House, a private member’s club, running his state-of-the-art gym with the help of his team of trainers.

 

So it is there that I’m headed, every weekday for the next five weeks, to work out with Jonathan himself. I’m told each session will involve a mixture of dance-inspired cardio and high-repetition toning exercises that focus on lengthening the body to its ultimate leanness.



In fact, Jonathan has taken inspiration from the Tracy Anderson method, after working with Tracy years ago. She’s the pint-sized fitness demon responsible for whipping Nicole Richie, Gisele Bundchen, Courteney Cox and of course Gwynny into shape, and she’s shared her wisdom with Jonathan so that he’s best placed to train her clients based in London.



Safe in the knowledge that exercise is only half the battle, I’ll also be following a diet plan compiled by nutrition guru Sarah Schenker. She’s forewarned me that soup and salads will be the order of most days, so my veg box is fully stocked and I’m raring to go.



Can a regular girl get an A-list body when armed with a celeb trainer and nutritionist? I’m about to find out. Stay tuned to learn all about my journey and I promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Longer Lashes In A Lunchbreak

Stand by for a lash extravaganza.

Making friends with the beauty journalists has many perks - not least being treated to a fair few pamper treatments under the guise of trialling them for work. 

But of all the goodies for which I’ve had the pleasure of playing guinea pig, the LVL lash treatment is by far the most impressive.

I headed to Harley Street to Karen Betts’ clinic for my lash transformation, following in the footsteps of a whole host of celebs - and if it can work for a blonde-coloured, stubby-lashed gal like me, the results are pretty much guaranteed to be top-notch for all you flutterers out there.

LVL stands for length, volume and lift, all of which this promises to deliver to your eyelashes. It differs from perming in that the lashes aren’t curled, so much as actually straightened upwards following their natural growth shape, so you’re left with gorgeous Bambi eyes that Zooey Deschanel would be envious of, with no false extensions to be seen.

So enough of this gushing. Let me talk you through what the treatment involves…

My lovely therapist Jane had me remove the eye make-up from my top lashes (the bottom lashes are left untouched) and settled me into the comfortable leather chair. Once I’d closed my eyes, I felt very little thanks to Jane’s gentle touch, though she talked me through every stage of the treatment so I could at least imagine what was going on.

While I lay back and relaxed, Jane got to work:

Any residue oil or make-up was wiped from my upper lashes with cotton wool.

A protective shield was placed underneath each eye to make sure none of the treatment lotions made their way onto my bottom lashes.
Jane combed my lashes to separate them and applied a silicone shield onto each of my eyelids. There’s three different sizes of shield - small, medium and large - and I chose small, which Jane explained delivers the most dramatic lift.

Each lash was then pulled over the shield and secured into place with a thin cotton swab.

Next, the lifting balm was applied to the roots of my lashes, and left on for 10 minutes.

Then the balm was removed and a neutralising lotion applied in its place.

After five minutes, the neutraliser was removed and Jane put a tint on my lashes for a few minutes to change them from their natural blonde to a black hue.

Finally, a moisturising serum was placed on the lashes, not only to inject them with a moisture boost but also to help release the lashes from the shield.

And that’s it. The entire process takes less than 50 minutes, making it a true lunchtime treatment. 

The result? Well, I never. The moment I opened my eyes after the treatment and looked into Jane’s mirror I was blown away - my lashes looked double the length they’d been just an hour earlier, without any tussle with the wand of a lengthening mascara or eyelash curler. The lift turned my small nondescript lashes into dramatic eye-framing wonders and I now wake up every morning positively doe-eyed before even touching my make-up bag. What I love most is the fact that they’re 100% my own lashes and the results will last until the next cycle of lashes grow in, which will hopefully be in 8 to 10 weeks. In short, I’m sorted for summer!

An LVL treatment takes up to 45 minutes to apply and prices start from £40. Visit lvl-lashes.co.uk for more information and to find your nearest salon.

It’s High Time To Shine

With naturally fine hair but a lot, and I mean a lot, of it, winter is not kind to my tresses. Summer’s tousled beachhead look comes sickeningly easily to me loose waves but once the cold weather set in and I’m forced to tame the beast on a daily basis, frizz and split ends wreak havoc.

So how do I bag myself the mane of Eva Longoria Parker or Lauren Conrad? Hair that looks healthy, feels healthy and you can do anything with?

                             

That’s exactly the reason I headed to the Charles Worthington salon on Percy Street. Could their mineral hair masque salon treatment help in my quest for sleek and smooth hair? Or would it just be another false promise?

Combining the heat of ceramic irons and a hot towel treatment, the spa-inspired treatment aims to give the hair an intense injection of much-needed moisture, particularly at this time of year.  The inevitable change in temperature that comes with winter - blustery chills outdoors and stuffy central heating outdoors - leaves the hair stripped of its natural oils, head stylist tells me. Enter the CW mineral hair masque, whose primary ingredient argan oil is revered as a tonic for dry, damaged tresses.

Blink and you could easily miss the Charles Worthington salon in London’s West End, but once I stepped in, I was treated like a queen. We’re talking celebrity status.

First, I was offered a variety of celeb mags (they know their audience), a drink of my choice and skewers laden with fresh fruit. My hair hadn’t even been touched and already I was won over. Then I was introduced to Mathew, who started to talk me through the treatment. My hair was washed and towel-dried, after which the mineral masque was combed through my hair, a section at a time. A top tip from Mathew? Only apply conditioning products to the midsection and tips of your hair, as the roots generally hold on to the scalp’s natural oils and adding extra product can leave you with lank, greasy locks. My hair was then sectioned again and ceramic irons were pulled over the strands, as if he was straightening them. The thought of heat on my wet, product-laden hair scared me but Mathew explained the irons were only set to 80degrees, which is just enough to seal the moisture in without damaging the hair. Then I was led to the washing area again, where the masque was rinsed out, a serum applied, and my hair bundled up into a warm towel. After about 10 minutes, the serum was washed out and I sat down for my usual blow dry.

                                                 

I couldn’t see an immediate difference to my hair though the hairbrush did seem to glide through it more easily when Mathew was styling it afterwards. The real test was when I washed my hair the following day, and as I rinsed my normal conditioner I was struck by the smoothness of my hair. There was a slight gloss to the strands which lasted a day or two, plus I could swish my mane back and forth proud in the knowledge that I’d definitely done my hair a favour in the long term.