People who look so polished ... How???

[birthdaymayhem]

Posting for traffic and maybe in the hopes of finding a wizard who can tell me how to achieve this.

So in my immediate circle of friends I know 2 couples who always look so polished and put together they could've jumped out of a Next catalogue!
For me it's like dark magic. They always have clean, ironed and up to date clothes.
Especially the ladies, hair always blow dried or very neat, ridiculously smooth skin even up close, and clothes which must've come out of the brand new next collection (they all dress in a very similar way).
None of them are "would look good in a bin bag and a pair of crocs" type of beautiful but they are just so well put together they always look amazing!

But how can you look so good, fresh and put together all the time with 2 or 3 small DCs in tow, a house and job and all the stuff that comes along with that?

My put together is clothes that passed the sniff test and makeup hastily slapped on whilst DCs are having breakfast before we are out of the door.

Honestly, I think people just put time and effort and money into it.

If you wake up, run a quick brush through your hair, and just throw on whatever clothes you have to hand then you are not going to look as polished as someone who has spent time doing their hair, putting on makeup, choosing an outfit that flatters, etc.

You need to start with a mirror in a well-lit spot and really look at yourself critically.

A big ironing session at the weekend and clothes hung up in the wardrobe ready ironed and in matching outfits. A large clothing budget and enough to buy many outfits including shoes, make up colours which match their clothes.
Frequent visits to/from a hair dresser and a regular beauty routine.

The secret is spending hours on finding the right clothes, keeping yourself groomed to perfection and spending quite a long time getting ready every morning. Also spending a fortune on buying the new season clothes as soon as they come out. Mystery solved. You have to be dedicated to putting the effort in. I am about 10 % of the time.

I used to wonder this too. For me it takes ages to initially look polished but not much time to maintain it. Kind of like having a messy house, it takes ages to declutter and clean it the first time, but only a 30-40 mins daily to maintain it using the organised mum method.

So at the moment I'm not looking polished because I've recently had a baby and am out of sync with my grooming routines. But once I'm ready, I'll do a big grooming "haul" and get back in my routines again.

Grooming haul : consists of facial, eyelash extensions, mani & pedi, eyebrow threading, big shave , washing make-up brushes, choosing low maintenance hair cut/ style & getting necessary products for daily maintenance, restocking up on make-up, checking which clothes fit & restocking capsule wardrobe in correct sizes etc. Sounds expensive... It kind of is but some of the stuff you can do yourself (I.e. mani/ pedi, eyebrows, facial) and some you can do cheap (buy new clothes second hand).

Daily routine : after that is easy for me... morning & evening face routine with cleansers/ moisturizers & primers (5 mins); makeup routine with tinted moisturiser but impeccable eyebrows & lips & my eyelash extensions done so no need for mascara (15 mins); choosing outfit easy because with my capsule wardrobe all my clothes match and I tend to buy clothes that don't need ironing (5 mins); Hair gets styled in the evening before bed as I have curly hair (15 mins) & in the morning I take it out, spray with water & apply leave in conditioner & hair spray if needed (5-10 mins)

Weekly routine : shave legs once a week in shower, more in summer; armpits twice a week; wash & deep condition hair once a week; Pluck eyebrows myself once a week to maintain the shape of the threading.

Fortnightly routine : manicure- use an app for mobile beauty technicians so they come in eve when babies are in bed

Monthly routine : pedicure and eyelash extensions; wash make-up brushes

Ad hoc as and when needed : Facial, hair cut and/or styling; eyebrow threading

My capsule wardrobe : consists of skinny jeans in various colours, coulette style trousers, wrap & shift style dresses, thin jumpers & tops in white, grey, black, khaki and navy. Long oversized cardigans. Long coats, blazers and jackets, then I layer layer layer. I've learnt that looking polished with clothes is all about wearing clothes that fit properly... so not too tight, and really spending time thinking about what styles and colours suit your body. So I know through experience that due to my broad shoulders the peplum top style looks great on me, but the bardot top style looks awful.

I hope this helps. Just thought I'd post my thoughts on looking polished. It takes work but not as much daily work as you might think. It can be expensive but you can offset the costs by doing some of it yourself.

I'm one of those you need to be organized.
I wash my hair 2/3 times a week but always on a Friday so I'm ready for the weekend as that's when I'm usually out and with friends etc.

I also plan my outfits for the weekend. Takes 5 mins. You will see what needs to be ironed or what's available.
Have good quality staples- a few good jackets, well fitting pants/Jean's etc.

I also have a makeup routine thats 5 minutes (timed). Its just the same thing everyday but makes me feel so good.

I also do a face mask once a week, its 15 min and while that's sitting, I sort out my nails.

It might seem alot of time and effort but it's really 1-2hours a week. It just comes down to being organized which is second nature for me.

I do the same with DC- planned outfits , cut nails etc, wash hair.

It means we can get up and walk out the door looking 'put together' without much hassle and just feeling relaxed.

Play to your strengths, you don’t have to do everything.

I, for instance, have infinite patience regarding clothes maintenance and actually enjoy laundry, ironing, polishing shoes. Also I buy very few clothes and try to mix old and new so as not to look dated. I have zero interest in nails - thought I would die of boredom during each of the five or six manicures I’ve had in a lifetime. So my nails are clean and filed and nothing more. I’m happy to spend money on face products and cosmetics that work for me. I wouldn’t be seen dead in ‘statement’ jewellery. And I don’t leave the house without perfume - which makes me feel well groomed.

But as pp have said, none of this matters unless you carry yourself well. (As far as physically possible.) And peace of mind really helps ...

Following with interest!

Money and a bit of time.

Clothes always ironed
Hair always blow dried
Nails always manicured
Make up always applied

I spend a lot on clothes - as I've got older I can no longer pull off polished in very casual clothes. I still wear jeans and trainers but with more structured tops/blazers if I want to look put together.

Oh yes and I always plan outfits.

Also - thread eyebrows/top lip. Teeth whitening and Botox assist

Oh and I forgot to add, I don't spend lots of money on my clothes but I do think it's worth investing in quality handbags, shoes/boots and coats/ jackets. Those are the things that make an outfit look more polished or can make an otherwise decent outfit look scruffy.

Oh yes and as much as people think ironing doesnt matter it does. You can always see a scruffy person by creased clothing. It's most tops that need to be ironed so it's not alot of time.

@Rach182 do you have space for a new bff?
I want to be like you!

Honestly? I think it takes time and money and there isn't a cheap, quick fix.

I'm one of the does it matter? no! brigade. WYSIWYG. So long as it's clean and tidy, the nearest thing to hand is worn. Make up is bad for your skin, so not worn (well that's my theory).

Confidence in your own skin makes a huge difference. For some this is an organised routine of clothes, (often selected the night before), hair and make-up.

Repeated behaviour becomes habitual behaviour which then becomes effortless and that then translates in how you carry yourself.

My routine is habitual in that respect and I feel so much better and 'put together' when I am organised and 'ready' to go, be that at home, with my children or heading to work.

some of these posts make me laugh a lot. i'd rather be dead than be caught wearing a white blouse/jeans/blazer look. and why does something costing over £50 somehow mean it makes you look better?

the people i know who look effortlessy put together spend a lot of time and money for that 'effortless' look. time i don't have and effort i can't be bothered to make. so i look like me, whatever that is. i can scrub up ok, but day to day as long as my hair and clothes are clean and my make up is well applied. that'll do!

Time, money and luck. I’m not blessed with a great deal of any of these.

I realised I wasn’t one of the ‘put together’ people when DP and I went on our first cruise last year.

We were seated at dinner with 3 couples and the women were complaining about there only being one socket in the cabin and how they found it difficult to use their hair gadgets...... I was delighted at how fast my hair dried when I stuck my head over the balcony!!

I’m always clean but I’m not very tidy

Following with interest.

I have lots of spare time, dd boards and ds is at primary school.
I don't work (apart from a few hours pw on a hobby business) but I always look a bit neglected. I should be looking better!
Perimenopause has wrecked my skin, hair and figure to the point where I just feel invisible.
I'm going to try some of the ideas in this thread.

Please keep them coming!

ironing clothes and regular maintenance of clothes, shoes, nails, haircuts and skin.
Having a uniform set, planing outfits in advance, night before or week ahead.
classic and safe, limited colours in wardrobe.

If it's important that you look good/ polished, whatever then you need to put the time and effort in. For me straightening/ curling hair every morning, putting on makeup, including a nice lipstick and wearing clothes that suit my figure is important to me. People often comment about me looking done up etc, but really it takes me less than 30mins to do all this. my makeup routine is so habitual now that I can pretty much do it in the dark (have done this so as not to disturb dh during very early morning starts!). I shower, wash and dry hair night before so it only needs styled in morning. I always wear dresses, tights and a comfy heel (usually boots). Even when dc was a tiny baby I always took time to fix myself before leaving the house. I also do my nails once/ twice a week, a face mask weekly and get my eyebrows done regularly.

Following with interest, I love make up and clothes and probably have everything I need to get myself polished in the morning but have a strange habit of saving things (especially clothes/ shoes) 'for special occasions'

I'd say it's organisation. If you do the wardrobe cleanse and have only things that are good quality, that suit you, that fit you, etc., then scruff is harder to achieve.

I’ve just ordered a Babyliss Big Hair...

Easy cheat: big sunglasses and lipstick. Looks fairly polished and takes 30 seconds.