If you always look perfectly groomed and put together, come here a minute...

[Vix1980]

How do you do it? seriously i mean i'll do my hair then forget about the rest of me so look like a tramp, or ill make an effort with clothes then just throw my hair back, no makeup as i dont always have time with a toddler. Its an actual effort to find something in my wardrobe that actually goes together and then i have to iron it so getting ready takes forever.

I see these people with kids who look perfect, clothes pressed to within an inch of their lives, skin is glowing, hair immaculate (and coloured with no roots ), and they can look super stylish in a pair of leggings! I just dont know how they do it.....

I was gawping at one mum standing yakking outside the school with her hair all done up in a most impressive bee-hive type doo, thigh length boots, Byron-type billowy shirt dress and accessories. I haven't quite described it well (she did look very striking and 'continental', not like lily savage) but hey, who gets that long in the bathroom every morning?!

Nicename well done you, unfortunately i havent achieved the level of stylish i was after, that you have achieved.

Last night i picked out my clothes for today, had them all laid out with heeled boots too (never wear heels anymore), then ds decided to wake at 4.30 am after sitting with him for an age i gave up and stuck baby tv on while he had his bottle.

After half an hour he fell back asleep so i took the opportunity to jump in the shower and style my hair properly, curled with my new tongs so i had big wavy curls going on when i left the house this morning taking ds to nursery. Actually felt i looked ovely leaving the house this morning, nails, hair, make up done etc.

Then i got to nursery and there was nowere to park so had to park about 10 streets away by the time i got to nursery i was sweating through rusihing being late, once in i realised id forgotten his bag at home so had to rush back home to get it. half an hour later my make up was sweated off and my hair was wind blown. and as soon as i was home i was back in my pj's back in bed as i was shattered!

Hes 15 months, i think im going to give up till hes 18

On the upside though, im getting more organised at home which i think helps, I've so far created a whole extra rail in my wardrobe through getting rid of things that dont fit or look stupid or are summer clothes, bought some vaccuum bags today to store summer clothes so they stay well maintained! Bought boot shapers so my knee boots dont sag and ordered suede stuff to clean them and maintain them properly instead of sticking them back in there boxes.

I am loving all your tips!!

Biggest thing is know what colours suit you and what shape you are.

Never wear lots of make up or fashionable coloured make up and always have short, in chipped nails.

Never have toes out unless they are professionally painted and do not show feet with cracked heels.

Do not have hair that is not a natural colour (blue, green, purple bits or a red that cannot be grown naturally).

No tattoos on show.

Not too much jewellery. One pair of earrings. One necklace. Rings on one finger of each hand.

Eyebrows. Super super important. If over plucked get tattooed on and never have eyebrows more than one shade darker than your hair.

Only use a leather handbag and never wear trainers or sportswear unless on way to exercise class and you will not have time to change.

If you have eye make up on wear neutral lip stick. Never eyes and lips same for legs and cleavage!

Oh I could go on and on.

OP-It sounds as if you have made big improvements already!

I was just thinking that, if you are dropping your 15 month old at nursery, most of the mothers are probably on their way to work and so it is probably not fair to compare yourself to them. (I've assumed that you are a SAHM or work from home from what you wrote about being able to come home and change into PJs), When I work out of home, I make much more effort with my appearance because I need to look professional and present a certain image. When I am at home with the children, I put on minimal make up (tinted moisturiser, blusher, mascara), spend v little time on my hair (messy bun or similar) before doing the school run. I might be a bit smarter in the afternoon when I have had a bit more time!

Nicename- I refuse to belief that you don't have some lovely features and besides which an average looking person with a beautiful smile and engaging manners is much more attractive than a v pretty unpleasant one.

dojonoodle spot on, i do work from home part time whilst hes in nursery, so i dont really care what i lok like whilst here, its just the 15 minutes to nursery and back id like to at least give the impression i havent slept in the hedge in the garden overnight

To be honest now ive sorted my wardrobe out the things that are there do fit me, so i no longer spend time in the morning pulling things out and trying them on then changing again as it doesnt fit, that has saved me so much time and energy just spending an hour or 2 doing that all in one go.

The next thing i need to work on that been mentioned numerous times is eyebrows, i dont really have any, never had so its not a case of them being over plucked, theyve just never grown, i have an inch at the most on either eye which are really sparse so i just fill those in but there really getting to me now especially as i keep seeing lots of things about eyebrows in the magazines. I dont fancy tatooing, what else would you suggest though? Ive seen the Hd brows but are they too scary?

Great thread . I'm so pleased to find others are in the same boat.

HD brows are on my wishlist. Don't confuse them with 'Scouse brows' which are the mega thick black ones on WAGS/reality shows.

I've linked to this blog before but I find it really inspiring:
Putting Me Together
It shows you how to make a few clothes work in many different outfits. And it's a normal girl not a scary to me fashionista type.

Have been having a read since I posted on the first page, some fab advice here! I spent half an hour organising my wardrobe today.......haven't done that in years and years....it looks good. I even found some bits I thought had long gone so have put them in the wash, am going to give it until this time next month & if I haven't worn them then charity shop it is.

No dojo, I have no redeeming features. I do bake very well though!

On thing: I used to go to antiques fairs with a friend of mums. I picked up some pretty great jewellery - bakolite, some victoriana... And they were quite cheap too. I went for unusual pieces and you won't see anyone else with the sasme thing!

I have really enjoyed this thread! Nicename, unusual jewellery could be your thing, sounds like you have good taste so pairing a nice necklace or earrings with plain tops/jumpers would make you looked groomed.

I always, always, wear lipstick from pinky brown to siren red, even if I'm not going out or doing anything, it makes me feel ready for the day and so much of all of this is a state of mind and confidence. One of the Mums (who is a make up artist) said it was 'my thing' (I hope in a good way!).

I have a real uniform of clothes, Breton tops/skinny jeans/boots, classic colours, navy/grey/red and nothing too high end fashion. I totally avoid going into Top Shop etc now as it's a waste of time and money for me (in my 40s). I try and buy quality clothes and wait for the sales (have a suit from Hobbs which is 7 years old and still wearing well). I think if you update the cut of your trousers which seems to change from season to season, you can look 'fashionable' or at least a bit more with it.

Otherwise, I don't get hung up on it. As long as I'm clean, hair brushed, lippy on, I think I'm doing ok and look groomed.

My personal dislike is seeing women wearing tracksuit bottoms/leggings (without a tunic/dress on top) as they are soooo unforgiving. Surely it's just as easy to put on jeans or trousers? Also, I think UGG boots look dreadful, like you are wearing slippers outside. Cannot fathom out their popularity.

Or baggy bum jeans!

Sadly where I work there is a fashion business next door so we have a stream of unreasonably tall, slender and beautiful young women trotting through the office on a daily basis. When we want a giggle we look at the samples ('That skirt would only fit one leg!!!')

This is a superb thread. I have been pondering the whole 'groomed' thing for a while and have been thinking about all the people I know who look the most 'put together'. The best example I can come up with is my Nanna. She used to be perfectly turned out at all times despite having very little money. Basically, she used to make sure her hair was always neat and that her shoes were pristine (she used to store each pair of shoes in their box when she wasn't wearing them). She only had a few outfits but all the clothes she had were clean, ironed and of decent quality. None of her clothes had patterns, she used to jazz things up with jewellery (fine collection of chunky necklaces and bracelets which I used to love playing with) And she was always raving about having a correctly fitting bra.

I, on the other hand, have messy hair. My shoes, when I am not wearing them, are dumped in a heap under the stairs with the DCs muddy boots and DH's smelly trainers. I have millions of cheap clothes, many of which have migraine-inducing outdated patterns on them and do not go with anything. And I am still wearing nursing bras, despite my youngest DC being weaned off the b/fing about 18 months ago.

Time to channel my Nanna, I think.

Rainbow your post made me laugh! Some of the tops i found in my wardrobe are maternity ones that i was still wearing, ds is now 15 months.

My only white bra is my maternity bra i still have when i went up 3 sizes .

Ive sorted my clothes, its now time for the underwear drawer, twice this week ive noticed my knickers have massive holes in them when i pull them up, if i dont do it now ill end up just wearing the elastic around my waist and there will be nothing else of them!

Im certainly believing to go for quality rather than quantity now though too, after buying so many supermarket jeans and trousers that fade after a few washes, ive splashed out today on a pair of levis (just £30 in costco - I know they will last, I had my others for years!).and a pair of small swarovski diamante earrings, also around £30 in costco, i feel better already by having earrings in as i never wore them before.

Also sorted my shoes out and taking a tip from my stepdad going to buy some polish and brushes in a bit once ds is awake and cleaning them all, they usualy get thrown back in the wardrobe apart from knee boots which go in their boxes but stay dirty in there, I ordered these from very last week, for some reaosn i always feel classy when im wearing tan footwear with pair of ironed jeans, so i intend to keep them polished and tidy!

Now on the hunt for a bag to match them.

nicename i also refuse to believe you dont have at least 1 redeeming good feature about yourself. Try as you might but your not coming across as the horrible ogre your trying to paint yourself out to be sorry, you just seem to lovely!

I don't have the minimalist, conservative European style that people regularly start threads about on here, but I know that I manage to look groomed and "put together" on a daily basis now.

IMO, the essentials are:

• Hair moussed lightly after washing, combed carefully to avoid breakage, and worn long and swishy or up in a neat ponytail;
• Skin taken care of (Bravura 15% glycolic acid night treatment cream before bed, Bio Oil as moisturiser before make-up, good diet and minimal sun);
• Teeth well looked after and polished as/when appropriate;
• Check whether anything needs shaving/waxing twice per week;
• Keep boots clean;
• Keep nails clean and short;
• Choose good quality clothing in shapes, sizes and colours that suit you and layer well, then look after them carefully;
• Wear nice jewellery that goes together, and keep it clean;
• Put on minimal make-up, in thin layers, with a good brush and in excellent light;
• Check your front and back view before you go out, and keep an eye on how your clothes are faring over the course of the day, BUT don't constantly fiddle with your hair/touch your face/tug at your hems etc.

Everything else is personal taste, I think, but it helps if you have a consistent "image".

Mine flouts so many of the precepts offered on here... I don't "do" minimal jewellery - I'm currently wearing loads of silver (a stack of four textured wedding bands on one hand, 2 antique gemstone rings on the other, layered necklaces, a charm bracelet and a leather charm bracelet on one wrist, and a watch on the other). I also don't do dainty shoes - I have about 5 pairs of DMs which I wear with everything. I wear skinny or straight leg jeans every day during winter, along with a vest top, a loose long sleeved cowl neck t-shirt or one of those 3/4 sleeve linen t-shirts that Zara does in winter, a jersey waterfall cardigan/jackety thing in stormy colours, a gothy scarf, and normally odd socks. My nails are never long or polished as my pets would chew them. I regularly wear a dark green waxed jacket if my tailored wool coats won't suit an activity, even though it doesn't go with my purple metallic boots. Despite all of the above, I get lots of compliments on my clothes and think I look well groomed and "put together", just in a slightly hippie-ish and respectably scruffy way.

I do a lot of people's makeup and i think it helps to have a few basics that you can put on i a few minutes - i really rate having a bb cream or tinted moisturiser if you feel you need a bit of evening out - but skip this step if not, maybe bit of concealer if you have dark circles, but what i think makes all the difference is bronzer, blusher, mascara maybe eye pencil and lipstick or lipgloss. I usually advise lipgloss as it's easier/quicker to put on but i think lipstick, if you have time, makes more of a statement and can pull your look together more. However, the key thing for a pulled together look is to wear products from the same colour family - for instance this morning i had put on my basics, grey eyeshadow black eyeliner and pinkish blusher (so all blue based) and then i thought just for a change I'd pull out a terracotta lipstick as it's Autumn (orange based). Big mistake ! nothing looks less pulled together than colours pinging about from all over the colour wheel. On the other hand, it's easily rectified ! With a tissue and another lipstick. So if you do have a set of basics, that you keep somewhere handy where you can reach them when you are in a hurry, then to look pulled together you need to make sure they go together.

I do a lot of people's makeup and i think it helps to have a few basics that you can put on i a few minutes - i really rate having a bb cream or tinted moisturiser if you feel you need a bit of evening out - but skip this step if not, maybe bit of concealer if you have dark circles, but what i think makes all the difference is bronzer, blusher, mascara maybe eye pencil and lipstick or lipgloss. I usually advise lipgloss as it's easier/quicker to put on but i think lipstick, if you have time, makes more of a statement and can pull your look together more. However, the key thing for a pulled together look is to wear products from the same colour family - for instance this morning i had put on my basics, grey eyeshadow black eyeliner and pinkish blusher (so all blue based) and then i thought just for a change I'd pull out a terracotta lipstick as it's Autumn (orange based). Big mistake ! nothing looks less pulled together than colours pinging about from all over the colour wheel. On the other hand, it's easily rectified ! With a tissue and another lipstick. So if you do have a set of basics, that you keep somewhere handy where you can reach them when you are in a hurry, then to look pulled together you need to make sure they go together.

sorry - don;t know what happened there - technology...

I find accessories baffling, but they really help to make you look groomed. And nobody can worry their neck is too fat for a scarf.

I need to do less wearing of jeans.

How do you start with accessories? I only wear a watch, no rings or earrings.

Madam I agree about the unnatural hair colour. Something about it looks cheap especially when it is the whole head.

My basics are: clean hair (batiste dry shampoo is a godsend) mascara concealer lip balm mineral powder and perfume. I always wear earrings and have a basic wardrobe of jersey vests or t-shirts with jeans or harems (in summer) . Splash of perfume. I have a really good eyelash curler and carry mini dry shampoo hair slide and lipbalm with me at all times. Next step is pedi mani and face mask.....

@Wineoclock81 - why have you dredged up a thread from 2013 FGS?!!

This is a brilliant thread, lets continue it!!!

Rainbow your nana sounds wonderful!