Innholdsfortegnelse for 13-Jun-2022 i Woman's Own

After the recent Jubilee festivities there’s no doubt a lot of us are nursing sore heads and tired bodies, in fact if I don’t see another Pimm’s again I’ll be OK with that – , kicks off! Still, a hangover-free summer sounds like a pretty good shout to me, because boozing doesn’t have to mean bingeing and there are ways to enjoy a tipple without reaching for a cold compress the next day! On p22 you’ll find all the tactics you need. One of my other favourites in this week’s issue is writer Amy Nickell’s lessons in love on p62. She makes some great points (particularly No.5!). And for anyone who has ever been in love or dated a handful of wrong ’uns, this will definitely leave a smile on…

‘IT WAS A CRAZY RIDE FOR A FEW WEEKS’ Regularly on our TV screens, Charlotte Hawkins, 47, is recognisable to us all, but how well do we know her? We sat down with the Good Morning Britain star, who lives with her husband of 14 years, Mark, and daughter Ella Rose, seven, to discuss what makes her happiest. 1 Item in your wardrobe My Scamp and Dude tracksuit – I spend a lot of time in the studio wearing heels and dresses, so as soon as I get home, I like to kick off my heels and put something comfy on. It’s my favourite because it has bold animal prints with a splash of colour – it puts a spring in my step. Plus I love that it’s a brand…

WHAT A WIN The National Lottery Community Fund was the largest funder of Platinum Jubilee activity in the UK, responsible for many amazing community events around the country to the tune of £22 million. All very lovely, but small fry to the money folk have won recently. Take Joe and Jess Thwaite, who’ve just scooped £184 million in the UK’s biggest Lotto win. Unusually, the Thwaites went public, saying they’d never be able to keep it quiet in any case. Cue heated debates in every home about if we’d do the same and what we’d do with the cash. Conventional wisdom is that most who win big end up divorced, bankrupt or lonely. But the reality is that 90% of winners are happier a year after their windfalls. Not sure…

WE FIGHT OVER MONEY Q My partner and I have lived together since lockdown and, though I love him, he’s driving me mad. I am 45, he is 49 and challenges everything I spend. We split everything 50/50, have no debt, and work, so I’ve told him countless times that my spending is none of his business. He says he can’t stand money being wasted, which I know has something to do with his ex and the divorce. A If you’re earning your own money and paying your share of the bills, you don’t have to justify your spending. It sounds as if there is a lot of fear around money from his past. You need to talk to him about this anxiety. Get to the bottom of what makes…

Stock up on products from Scottish skincare brand Organic Works for less, as there’s 20% off the range for Woman’s Own readers – including this Renewal Night Cream (50ml), enriched with relaxing Lavender essential oil, WAS £21, NOW £16.80 when you use discount code MAG20 at the checkout at theowstore.com until 14 July 2022. Subject to availability. Free super-saver delivery on orders over £40. Code can only be used once per customer. Offer correct at time of going to press.…

CHARMING ROMCOM THE SETUP by Lizzy Dent (£14.99, Penguin Books, HB) One little lie can get wildly out of hand… and Mara’s Budapest getaway is about to take an unexpected turn. To spice up her mundane life, the 31-year-old seeks out a palm reading. The message is clear: she must make big changes to find true love. While impersonating her fortune teller, Mara meets Josef, an attractive Austrian cellist. She invents a harmless fib… that ‘the one’ will be waiting for him in three months’ time, at a seaside pub in Broadgate. Her name, of course, is Mara. Now all she needs to do is transform herself into the woman of his dreams before the summer is up. A rip-roaring, hilarious read. MYSTERY THRILLER LOCAL GONE MISSING by Fiona Barton…

Ever since my first kiss with Colin the ice-rink attendant at Planet Ice in Hemel Hempstead, age 15, I’ve been looking for love everywhere I can. I think I’ve finally found it with my partner Jonathan, 42, who I met last July, but it’s been a search to rival even the hardest page of Where’s Wally? (‘Where’s Willy?’ in my case). A quick bit of maths tells me I have been on roughly 363 dates. One decade of failed dating roughly three men a month, plus the boyfriends and extras I either temporarily entertained, got impregnated by or married. Now I can condense my findings down into five lessons, which are easier to read than they were to live. 1 My type is the opposite of what I think. I…

Standing at the bottom of the Munro, I stared up at the top of the Scottish mountain, and as I gritted my teeth, I began to walk. With each step, I felt more energised, more determined. And as I neared the top, I couldn’t stop the grin spreading across my face. ‘I used to weigh 19st, you know!’ I said to the first person I saw. They probably thought it was the altitude that was making me so giddy, but the truth was I was just so happy and, for once, so full of pride. It was summer 2021 and having just climbed my first Munro, the changes I’d made to my lifestyle in just the past year still astounded me. I was fitter, slimmer and happier – truly the…

DO I HAVE TO PAY FOR FURTHER TESTS? Q My lifestyle became very unhealthy during lockdown, which I was very aware of. Since things started getting back to normal, I decided to address that and paid for a private medical, which has thrown up a couple of abnormalities. When I went back to the clinic, they suggested some extra tests, which I can’t afford. Can my GP arrange these? A Private well-man and well-woman checks usually give you a printout or a booklet with all your results. Take this to your surgery and make an appointment to speak to your GP, who will be able to look through the results and will almost certainly be able to arrange any necessary further investigations on the NHS. Cancer diagnosis is such a…

1 DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT. Listen to loud and uplifting music, meet up with a friend or just get out of the house. These tactics are all mood breakers and will help you change your thinking for the day ahead. 2 DOWNLOAD THE MOODMISSION APP. MoodMission (£4.49) uses cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) methods to help lift your day and push you to a feel-good place when you’re in a downward spiral. 3 DON’T FOCUS ON THINGS YOU CANNOT CHANGE RIGHT NOW. Instead, concentrate your time and energy on doing things that are sure to brighten your mood and situation in the present.…

WALKING LUNGES Take a stride forwards with your right leg and lower your hips towards the ground, bending both knees to 90° angles. Then, pushing off with your left foot, bring your left leg forward to your starting standing position, before switching legs. Repeat for one minute. UPGRADE IT The curtsy lunge is a great progression. Start by standing with your feet hip-width apart, then take a semi-circular stride with your right leg behind your left leg (as if you were going to curtsy). Bend both knees and lower your body towards the floor, then return to your starting position. Do 15 curtsies on the right leg before switching to the left.…

Banoffee blondies PREP TIME: 20 MINS COOK TIME: 40 MINS SKILL LEVEL: EASY CALS: 240 FAT: 12G SAT FAT: 8G CARBS: 30G MAKES 24 Browning the butter in this recipe gives the blondie base a nutty, caramel flavour that is totally irresistible. YOU WILL NEED 300g unsalted butter 3 eggs 175g caster sugar 200g light brown sugar 350g plain flour 1½tsp fine sea salt 75g salted caramel sauce 50g dried banana 50g dark chocolate 10g freeze-dried banana slices HOW TO DO IT 1 Heat the oven to 160C/Gas 3 and line the tin with baking paper. 2 Melt the butter in a small pan and, once melted, turn up the heat and allow to bubble and then foam until the milk solids are brown. Remove from the heat and set aside.…

1 PLAN! If you want to save cash, make meal plans each week because it means when you go shopping you’ll buy enough food to last and you won’t end up buying anything you don’t need. And look for budget recipes to reduce your spend – try cookingonabootstrap.com for inspiration. Eating less meat and fish can cut costs, too – for instance, swap beef for chick peas in a chilli. 2 GET SUPERMARKET SAVVY Choose the supermarket you shop at carefully; you can compare prices online at trolley.co.uk, which shows you the prices of over 130,000 products across retailers such as Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Morrisons and Aldi (the site is working to add Lidl). However, if you need to travel further for a cheaper supermarket, weigh up the cost of…

Create a bird haven with one of these nesters, handmade in Bangladesh out of natural sea grass and recycled saris – you’ll also be supporting those who make them. Tahera Teardrop Artisan Bird Nester, £18 (woolovers. com). Provide a cosy home for bees and they will reward you by pollinating nearby fruit trees. Solitary bee home barrel, £24.99 (shopping.rspb.org.uk). Hedgehogs will naturally rid you of plant-eating slugs, so provide them with a sanctuary. Igloo hedgehog home, £24.99 (findmeagift.co.uk).…

ARIES 21 Mar – 20 Apr Looking for a dining set delivered within 24 hours? You’re too busy to shop. Maybe ask a friend to help compile a shortlist. TAURUS 21 Apr – 20 May News you’ve been waiting for comes to light this week. You have a close family; when a celebration is due, you’ll be first in line. GEMINI 21 May – 20 Jun If you’re helping an older neighbour move while Mars, the planet of action, is in your zone, why not get to know them? CANCER 21 Jun – 22 Jul Your dynamic ideas will work wonders when you’re put in charge of a project that requires fine detail. Hard work pays off! LEO 23 Jul – 22 Aug If you’re travelling, allow for hold-ups. Leaving…

While Judy recently described herself as feeling ‘old and faded’, Richard is relishing becoming a permanent replacement to Piers Morgan on Good Morning Britain, saying he feels as energetic and sprightly as he did when he was a teenager. Former This Morning host Richard – who normally presents GMB Mondays to Wednesdays – has reportedly secured a £300,000 a year deal with ITV. A glittering TV career and legacy is still a top priority for high-flyer Richard, 66, who has said that he feels he’s the same person now as he was at 16. ‘I am the Richard I was in 1972,’ he admitted. Judy, however, feels very differently, confessing, ‘It gives us huge pleasure to see people now in these wonderful, great positions, while we are old and faded.’…

Sitting on the sofa watching TV, I rubbed my right eye repeatedly. ‘Are you OK?’ my husband Gary, then 34, asked. ‘There’s a smudge on my contact lens,’ I sighed. It was October 2020 and we were enjoying a quiet evening after we’d put our three children, Alyssa, then six, Ruby, four, and Herbie, one, to bed. There had been a buzz of excitement in our house for the last few weeks - I’d recently found out I was expecting again. Later, as we got ready for bed and I took out my contact lens, I frowned. ‘That’s strange,’ I said to myself. The misty blur wasn’t on my contact at all - it was on my eye. I wasn’t overly worried as I had struggled with vision changes with…

HELP! MY DAUGHTER IS ON DRUGS Q When my daughter came home from university at the weekend she looked dreadful. She confided in me that she has ‘got in with the wrong crowd’ and is addicted to heroin. She is hugely in debt. I don’t have the money to bail her out and don’t know where to start with getting her help. A I’m sorry to hear this. Your GP will be able to advise on local services. You may also find it useful to look at the Frank website (talktofrank.com), which is full of useful information about all sorts of different drug addictions and services in your area.…

With the temptation of delicious ice creams and calorific cocktails, it isn’t always easy to lose weight in the summer. Feeling self-conscious about swapping tights and trousers for shorts and floaty dresses? You don’t have to be! With this easy-to-follow eating plan,* you could lose up to 5lb in just two weeks. Not only will you look great, but you’ll feel it, too. What are you waiting for? HOW IT WORKS ✣ To blast fat from your body, this simple diet is calorie-controlled to approximately 1,200 calories a day. ✣ You won’t go hungry, as it contains appetite-curbing lean proteins along with high-fibre foods, such as whole grains, which help to fill you up and provide slow-release energy. ✣ The potassium-rich foods in the plan help to debloat and lose…

SELL BEFORE YOU BUY Before buying something new why not look in your cupboards or your loft first to see if you own anything you don’t need anymore. Can you sell unwanted items and make enough cash to cover the cost of your new purchase? It’ll feel like getting it for free! Even if you only cover part of the cost, you’ll still benefit. Plus, it means someone else will be getting use out of the item rather than it sitting gathering dust. Top tip! Check out National Rail’s Days Out Guide to find loads of attractions where you can get two-for-one entry if you travel by train. For more details, visit daysoutguide.co.uk. 23% OF UK ADULTS STRUGGLED TO PAY THEIR USUAL HOUSEHOLD BILLS IN MARCH**…

Rochelle Humes ‘I’VE ALWAYS LOVED INTERIOR DESIGN’ The TV presenter on becoming an interior designer for a new makeover show… If you’re one of the 2.2 million people who follow Rochelle Humes on Instagram, you’ll know that she’s obsessed with interior design. The singer-turned-TV presenter regularly posts updates on the changes she’s made to the home she shares with her husband, JLS star Marvin and their three kids. ‘I’ve always loved interior design,’ says Rochelle, who found fame in pop bands S Club Juniors and The Saturdays. ‘It’s just something that I’ll always enjoy. I’ll never get bored of it!’ In W’s new 10-part series, Rochelle Humes: Interior Designer in the Making, Rochelle helps 10 families who need some inspiration and guidance to transform problem spaces in their homes. After…

TALK OF THE TON He’s the heartthrob to millions around the world as Anthony in Bridgertonand it was a dashing Jonathan Bailey who led the celebrations at the recent Prince’s Trust Awards, where he told me it was his first time in polite society after his recent star turn in season two of the Netflix drama. ‘A cream dream,’ he joked of his dapper suit. ‘It’s wild,’ he said of the show’s success. Jonathan was joined by co-star Phoebe Dynevor for an audience with Prince Charles. SPICE UP YOUR LIFE! It’s 25 years since Mel C and her Spice gal pals started supporting the Prince’s Trust. ‘It’s tough out there for so many people and with the Prince’s Trust I feel like we’re in good hands,’ Mel told me. So…