Operation Renovation - The Christmas Countdown (part 2)

[HelgatheHairy]

Our new home

Sorry for the late update. DD decided to feed loads in the early part of the night and sleep later so not as much of a lie in as it looks.

JemimaM I lurve that dress! It will go beautifully with the boots. I'm not going to be any help with the nail varnish I'm afraid, I would be torn between those colours too. Either would go well with that outfit (though I couldn't see the scarf as internet auctions are blocked at work)

lucysmam how on earth do you have the energy to squeeze all that activity into one day?! And your poor DDs, they seem to have a lot of sickness at the moment. Fingers crossed that it's just a one off, not anything more long lasting. The only thing that improved my workday was leaving half an hour early, but after that it was downhill all the way, with the help of a little champers

bigkids nice haul! It'll be such a good feeling when you ditch the old ones and pull a nice new one out each day.

dili I am just at your eyebrow experience - how are you not traumatised for life? I really hope it feels (and looks!) better now. Well done on getting the frame - it's odd how these long drawn out jobs often take very little effort/money to do in the end.

misssss phew, it's not just me going on a mad ebay splurge then! What shops do you have near you? Dresses seem to be very in at the moment so you should have a good selection to choose from.

vvv congrats!!! Now deep breath, make a list, plan your time. You will be fine!

helga Are you all rested now? It won't last forever. I hear it's just the first 18 years that are the worst.

karbea how are things with you? Hope everything's going ok.

Feeling rather fat and bloated after last night's excesses. The meal was utterly fabulous but today I'm just in comfy dark pinstripe trousers and a top that gives the illusion of a narrower waist while actually hiding a great deal. Nails are looking a bit chipped and tired (a bit like me really!) but I have a brooch on my cardi, and a pearl bracelet and earrings, and have put on a necklace too. Hair has been done (of a fashion), and perfume is on. Currently drinking water by the bucketload and trying not to buy a packet of crisps. Going out for lunch with workmates to a local wetherspoons, but think I'll just have soda water and a bowl of soup.

In other news, tonight is my last day of doing the level 2 shred I have never even watched level 3. Last time I did 15 days of level 1 then 15 days of level 2, never made it onto level 3 at all. Does anyone have any experience of it? Are there loads of plants?

Missss Shellac does last two weeks. I got mine done a week past Tuesday and it's still going strong
I like my nails really short and find that it's the length that starts to annoy me even when the colour is still fine.

If you go for a paler colour the regrowth isn't so obvious although I honestly don't think anyone else would notice it anyway.

So, I've been totally rubbish this week.

I did manage to take my make up off one night but that's about it

Tomorrow is the day I start shredding. I have a good run of days where I know I can fit it in so it seems a good opportunity to get into the habit. I'm looking forward to it & dreading it in equal measure.

I'm drinking 2-3 litres of water a day already, but am probably having too much caffeine. I'm also not eating enough fruit & veg.

So tonight I am going to plan next weeks meals & do a big shop in the morning. I can top up on fruit & veg in the week from the local farm shop.

Bring it on

I have come to a standstill, in the kitchen, with !

Realised a little while ago I forgot earrings & haven't done anything at all with my nails this week ....must do better next week. we're maybe off to town tomorrow for a wander round the cheapy shops and greggs sausage roll for lunch so might pop a coat of top coat or something neutral on just for the day & then do them properly on sunday evening.

Sorting the bills is driving me a bit nuts, I keep staring at my list but it's not helping me magic enough money to do some Xmas shopping out of thin air

Having we can commiserate together then - I have a feeling day 1 of level 3 will feel like day 1 of level 1 all over again Sounds like you have a great plan in place, well done on your water! I felt loads better after giving up caffeine, and went from having about 5-10 migraines a month to one migraine every three months.

Control, well done on getting to level 3 I've never got past L2!!

Yes, a good plan I think...sticking to it is another matter

I have been to Superdrug and invested in some more Rimmel 60 seconds and some top coat- did get a free mascara with it :-) I will report back to say if two coats and a top coat work as recommended kindly further up thread.
Also bought two more hair dyes (buy one get one half price). Off on my holidays for half term so want to dye my hair its more purply browny black colour, I dyed it a respectable very dark brown for dh's niece's wedding as it was in a naice golf club with naice people.
And bagged a bargainalicious bnwt pair of black linen trousers for £3 in the charity shop.
Back is still playing up majorly (three days off work earlier this week)so I do intend to take it easy this weekend.

67 days to go

Sorry - connection problems

Hello ladies!

blueandwhite sorry to hear about your back. Have a good week taking it easy, and I hope it improves soon for you. Your haul sounds very impressive! I'll be taking my birthday money into town next week so hopefully will see some bargains in Superdrug to make it go further. Looking forward to your report on the nail varnish technique. My attempt was a disaster - I managed to snag every single nail while it was still soft. Having a cat jumping all over me didn't help matters though!

I am officially into the final leg of the 30 day shred! I completed level 3 day 1 today. I'm surprised how much easier the Anita moves are, need to keep pushing myself to try the Natalie/Jillian ones but they are sooo much more difficult! Need to start planning what to do when it ends, because I think I'd get bored just doing level 3 for the next 2.5 months. Has anyone tried 6 week 6 pack?

Nails are chipped, hair is lank and greasy, and I'm fasting today. I think some pampering is in order, so will jump in the shower shortly, sort my hair and nails out and plan what feast I am going to have tomorrow. A lovely friend gave me a pack of six nail varnishes for my birthday so I'm going to try those. Oh, and DP collected the red and blue ebay dresses from the post office this morning for me - both fit perfectly! Have had to order some invisible line knicks to go under them though so I splashed out on a two-pack that doubles as a tummy tamer.

Good afternoon all

Hope everyone's having a relaxed weekend? We're not long in from a wander round the cheapy shops (poundland/world etc) for the makings of a halloween costume for dd1 who is going to be a witch. Didn't do too bad either! Only spent about eight quid between both girls!

Got myself some Timotei in Poundworld too instead of the awful Garnier stuff I've been finishing off. and some nail charms in poundland, not quite sure whether they'll actually stick to a nail so will have to think of another use for them if not .

Plan for tonight is to file finger and toe nails and push back cuticles, ready for painting tomorrow evening probably in front of the x factor results. Must straighten my hair too....it's not half as well behaved today

bigkids & Control would it be worth trying a quick dry nail spray like I've been using? you still have to be a bit careful but they do seem to dry quicker

oh, and I forgot....I have been roped into helping out at the school Halloween party Need cheap and easy ideas for fancy dress for me if anyone has any?

lucysmam I'm going to try and get to poundland this week - they've opened one nearer where I work (finally!) so should be able to have a browse and get through the queue in a lunch hour. I'll look for the quick drying nail spray there. How do the nail charms work? Do they stick on, or dangle from your nails?

For fancy dress, how about going as a crow? When I did this a few years ago it just required a couple of bin bags, an opened-out cereal box and a bit of elastic (plus the standard sellotape, paint, glitter etc to finish off). Let me know if you want the details. Otherwise, is there a Wilko near you? I got a really cheap adult witches outfit there last year that I'm planning on using for as many years a I fit into it

Today's ta-das:
Shredded
Fasting
Hot lemon water
Shower
All body moisturiser
Defuzzed
Full Anew range used on face and eyes
Nail varnish removed
Hair oiled, dried and straightened

Still on the cards:
Make some headway into sorting my makeup out
Put on new nail varnish

They're stick on ones, I've put a pic on fb. They seem a tad chunky to stick without nail or superglue though not sure top coat will be strong enough to hold them

Today I discovered I can do my make up one handed!

Went to do the grocery shopping with DH. He usually does it alone after work on Friday but he wasn't feeling well so had to be done today. Was an excuse for a sneaky Chinese last night. But we were good and split a chicken fried rice between us. Along with assorted starters and chips

Came home from shopping, quick feed and change of DD and went and bought a 39 inch tv! We'd been talking about getting a new tv for a while but the decision to actually get one only really happened today. DH is putting it together and we'll give the old one (which is still good) to my mum as she only has a 17 inch and the old one is 26 inch.

Control crow instructions would be fab, if you don't mind! Beware of spending a fortune in Poundland....I go in for one or two things, next thing you know I've spent a tenner

Helga that's quite some achievement putting make up on one handed! I can straighten my hair with no mirror but never had to do make up one handed.

My hair's had an evening off from everything barring serum and argan oil tonight. Dp's offered me a lie in and is then going to take the girls to his mams for an hour tomorrow so i will have absolute peace . will pin it up neatly though when I surface. (just hope dd2 doesn't get in with us tonight - she did twice last night & it took me a while to realise both times....was very uncomfy when I woke....have no idea how co sleepers do it ).

Plan a full on pamper session tomorrow evening....unless the smallest has man flu....she isn't sounding healthy up there

(forgot to say earlier Control, both my girls seem to get everything going through winter plus the oldest has some medical issues as well. October to March are generally quite sickly months here with one thing and another)

66 days to go

lucysmam that's always the problem - there's either nothing in there that I want, or I want everything on the shelves! I'm hoping Poundland will help me start off DP's advent box. Got some lovely aftershave for him in there last year.

I'll post the crow instructions in just a mo, and will put the pics on fb as I don't think they are too clear with the mn resizing.

Just finished day 2 of level 3 shred. I am seriously hurting! Going shopping shortly for shoes for DP, so will see if I can find a nice pair of boots that I can wear to work with my dresses. Nothing too high heeled, my poor feet just can't take it any more.

Crow instructions
For the wings and head take two bin bags, some sellotape, two bits of elastic tied in loops large enough to comfortably fit around your wrists (hair elastics will do at a pinch) and a pair of scissors.

Flatten out one bin bag and cut it up one seam from the open end almost to the corner but leaving about 2 inches. Put some sellotape across the top of the slit so it doesn't go any higher.

Open the bin bag out fully - the new flaps are the basis of the wings. Sellotape an elastic loop to each of the two wing 'tips', to secure them to your wrists.

Put the centre of the bin bag on your head and judge where you need the neck to narrow. Use sellotape on the inside of the bin bag to form the neck shape. If necessary, you may also need to shape the head more in the same way if you've got a bin bag with two corners rather than one that gathers in the centre.

Open up the second bin bag completely and stick it along the full width of the inside of the 'wings' of the first bin bag, about six inches above the very bottom. This will give you a second, longer layer of feathers.

Turn the two bin bags over so you are looking at the 'outside', and cut jagged feathers into the two layers (don't cut off your wrist elastics!).

For the beak open up a cereal box and draw something similar to the picture I have put on my profile. Cut out along the solid lines, and fold along the dotted lines to get something similar to the other pic I have put on my profile. I'll put the pics on fb too as they're not too clear with the resizing.

Make sure you fold the beak dotted lines down, and the feathers dotted lines up. Use tape to stick the beak to the bin bag head. Paint it dark grey. Cut out, colour in and stick on the eyes. If it's not too stable on your head, use more elastic through the corners of the beak and under your chin.

i have started the shred some time ago due to this thread and had stayed on level 1. I saw in another post someone was going onto level 3 and thought I had better make a move too. holy smoke, im not joking I can hardly catch my breath !
thanks for this thread ladies, I really enjoy catching up with how well everyone is doing and it has given me a keep up the ass to have some me time

Evening all

Control did you find boots? thanks for the crow instructions, I'll have a go at that over the next couple of evenings.

Pamper evening in full swing here....mud mask is on, nails are filed. Off to jump in the shower to pumice feet, aussie hair, defuzz etc. Hair will be getting the full works tonight too....it needs it! Clothes and accessories are out for the morning too.

getoffthephone? feel free to join in with us on the thread

Have had a lovely day at the in-laws.

In other news I'm looking for a new hair dryer. My current one dies when I lift my arm up. Not a paralux, my hairs not too bad but I bought my currant one as it's zebra print so looking for something that's actually good.

I have no idea where the random ? came from It was meant to be a ,

Helga, I have an argos £7.99 hairdryer. 2000w & it's still working after two years (I tend to kill off hairdryers very quickly....drop them usually )

Face mask done, feet pumiced, exfoliated, moisturised, hair aussied - smells lush as always, just drying and straightening to do before I sit down with the nail polish, Atlantis and last of my weekend

Need to get some more shaving oil and coat hangers this week. And jeans if there's enough cash left!! really need something else to put on my legs.

helga Loving that you bought your hairdrier for its zebra stripiness! I think I have only owned two hairdriers in my entire life so can be of no assistance to you at all.

getoff well done on your shredding! The first couple of days on a new level is always the hardest, after that you can stop craning your neck to see what's going on and get on with the mucky business of 'form'.

lucysmam that is one serious pamper session you've got yourself there, very impressive. I did indeed get a pair of boots, but they weren't really what I wanted. I wanted something relatively low heeled (not flat) but still looking elegant. I've had to settle for semi-chunky, very utilitarian looking feet but nice legs if that makes any sense whatsoever. Will maybe try shoe zone next week if I can fit in a trip to town.

Spent my morning watching youtube videos on how to use heated rollers, and dyed my hair a light auburn colour and gave my new rollers their first outing this evening. My goodness it's not as easy as it looks on the videos! I also need to factor in longer for them to heat up. I think I allowed about 20 minutes, but they needed at least 30. Happy with the results, pic on fb though the colour in that looks less vivid than irl.