Innholdsfortegnelse for 22-Sep-2020 i Woman's Weekly

It’s in the bag I have yet to meet a woman who doesn’t love a new handbag. I used to collect designer ones before my daughters came along, but now I find my money gets spent on new shoes, clothes and toiletries for them instead! So what’s left of my beloved bag collection is now safely stashed away in our attic. I plan to give the bags to my girls when they’re older, at which point I’m sure they’ll say they don’t want anything so old-fashioned. On page 17, you can discover our fashion team’s pick of the latest bags, but I just had to bring you my favourites, below. And no, of course I don’t need a new handbag – but I’d like one!…

“If I didn’t write novels for a living, I’d run a second-hand bookshop. I love them and I never pass one without going in. As a result, our house wheezes under the weight of tatty old volumes on every subject under the sun. All purchased in a fit of enthusiasm but, it has to be said, rarely read afterwards. An exception to this rule is The Little Princesses, which tumbled at my feet in a bookshop in Alnwick several years ago. Picking it up to put it back on its shelf, I paused, opened it and was gripped. At long last, I’d found what I had been looking for. ‘I love a second-hand bookshop’ While I’d been a comic novelist for two decades, I’d always secretly wanted to write a…

BLUEBERRY COBBLER This is a perfect way to end a Sunday lunch. PER SERVING 33 cals, 13.4g fat, 7.9g sat fat, 99.7g carbs SERVES 4 ✣ 500g (1lb 2oz) blueberries ✣ 2 Bramley apples, peeled, cored and sliced ✣ 1tbsp cornflour ✣ 60g (2oz) golden caster sugar ✣ ½tsp ground mixed spice For the cobbler: ✣ 150g (5oz) self-raising flour ✣ 60g (2oz) butter, chilled and cubed ✣ 100g (3½oz) golden caster sugar, plus 1tbsp, to sprinkle ✣ 100ml (3½fl oz) buttermilk You will need: ✣ A 2.5ltr (4pt) ovenproof dish, buttered 1 Heat the oven to 200C/Gas 6. Put the fruit into the ovenproof dish. Mix the cornflour with 1tbsp cold water in a separate bowl and stir into the fruit. Sprinkle it with the sugar and mixed spice.…

The pancreas is a glandular organ behind the stomach, that secretes enzymes into a duct connecting it to the gut so the enzymes pass into the small bowel to help food digestion. It also produces insulin, secreted into the blood to control blood sugar levels. Acute pancreatitis causes pain, nausea, diarrhoea and fever. The commonest causes are gallstones, or the effect of drinking too much alcohol. Other causes include viral infections, medicine side effects and autoimmune diseases, but sometimes no cause is found. It usually settles, but some patients become very ill and will need investigation to see if gallstones are causing a blockage. Patients most at risk are those who overuse alcohol or binge drink, those with gallstones, the elderly, smokers and the overweight. Chronic pancreatitis occurs where repeated…

A As we sleep, our body does cell-repair work – and that seems to include those of the blood vessels and heart. Previous studies suggested this, but a recent one of 4,000 symptom-free, middle-aged people, which included a sleep diary and monitoring with ‘actigraphic sensors’ of the brain, plus scans of the carotid and femoral arteries, showed periods of sleep under six hours and broken sleep are linked to an increased likelihood of hardening arteries across several different blood vessels. The study also looked at interactions of sleep, conventional heart-disease risk factors, psychosocial factors, lifestyle habits and inflammation. So the results highlight the importance of healthy sleep habits for preventing heart disease, as well as peripheral arterial vessel disease. That said, the biggest risks are smoking, being overweight, diabetes, high…

Wallflowers come in a range of saturated colours, including yellow, red, orange and purple. ✣ Favourites include the sunshine-yellow ‘Cloth of Gold’, hot pinky-purple ‘Giant Pink’ and toffee-apple orange ‘Fire King’. ✣ Mixed varieties, such as ‘Persian Carpet’, produce a riot of opulent shades. ✣ Bicoloured wallflowers give two colours in one plant, for instance, ‘Sugar Rush Purple’ is lavender and magenta pink. ✣ For softer tones, try the Sunset Series – ‘Sunset Apricot’ has captivating shades of peach, cream and apricot.…

“When I say there was a lot going on in the master bedroom at Dear Towers one night recently, please don’t get the wrong impression. For a start, Mr D was snoring for most of the time. Perhaps that’s not fair. Mr Dear doesn’t snore as most people would understand it, but his impression of two hedgehogs snorting with laughter at the funniest hedgehog joke ever would be a sure hit on Britain’s Got Talent. He was already doing his hedgehog thing when the swimming bishop discovered the mysterious skull on a clifftop. This is my night-time reading, you understand, and by the end of the chapter we had established that the skull probably belonged to dastardly moustache-twirling Rupert, who is missing and might be the headless body found hanging…

Games that stretch your thinking skills are fun to do and keep your mind alert. TV psychologist Emma Kenny says, ‘As a race, humans are living longer, which means we need more than ever to keep our brains fit and healthy. Just as you might go to the gym to keep your body fit, so, too, should you take your brain for a regular workout. This is why games and puzzles are fantastic.’ Number and logic games The number game sudoku requires logic rather than maths skills and is good for adults and older children. To encourage skills in younger ones, try Sausages, where you replace every multiple of 3 with the word ‘sausages‘, as in ‘1, 2, sausages, 4, 5, sausages’. Or try a sequence where you count on…

✢ Blood tests will show white count, inflammation levels, blood sugars and blood enzymes. Liver and kidney function need checking, as these organs can be affected. ✢ Scans including ultrasound, CT and MRI to check the pancreatic swelling and whether there are gallstones or, rarely, tumours blocking the pancreatic duct. ✢ If gallstones are the cause, a procedure called endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) has a camera that shows stones and can be used to remove them. ✢ Sometimes the symptoms of chronic pancreatitis are similar to pancreatic cancer, so a biopsy sample of cells may be needed to rule this out.…

Is she OK? Q My colleague’s behaviour has recently changed. She comes into work late and looks a bit unkempt. She hasn’t come out with us for lunch for a while and I think she generally seems down. I don’t know her that well, so I don’t know if I should say anything? Name and address withheld A It sounds like your colleague may be depressed and needs support. It’s important to talk to someone when their behaviour has changed and, most times, they appreciate it. Find time away from others to have a chat. Share your observations and ask her how she is. If she denies it, share some examples of what you’ve seen. Listen to her and ask questions, so she can open up. Offer support and information…

Do you remember the day we first met?’ ‘Hmm?’ ‘You know, in the cafe, when you rescued that poor dog.’ Simon peered at April over his mug of coffee and noticed the faraway look in her green eyes. ‘Do you remember?’ he asked her again, gently. She looked at him, almost without really seeing him, and shrugged. ‘It was a long time ago, Simon. It’s been 20 years.’ ‘I still recall how that shaggy dog just bounded up to you, thinking you were his owner.’ April attempted a smile. ‘Our first date. We were just getting to know each other.’ ‘You were wearing that purple top and skirt. You still have that outfit, don’t you?’ There was a pause and Simon hoped that she was about to reply, to be…

ARIES 21 Mar – 20 Apr Your patience may be tested this week. Remember to breathe, to smile and ask yourself how important this will be a year from now. TAURUS 21 Apr – 21 May Make it your business to withdraw from the world and to find your inner stillness. This will benefit not only you, but those around you. GEMINI 22 May – 21 Jun You might be juggling many different things this week. Prioritising will help and will make you feel more focused. CANCER 22 Jun – 23 Jul Financially you may receive a bonus. A boost or your positive attitude may bring you greater prosperity. LEO 24 Jul – 23 Aug Don’t be afraid to speak out. Bottling up your emotions isn’t healthy. If you can’t…

Arlene Phillips is one of those people who, by her own admission, just doesn’t stop ‘apart from Sundays Ð sometimes’. The 77-year-old former Strictly Come Dancing judge tells us that, before lockdown, a usual day for her would involve waking up early, doing some exercise before breakfast, then she’d be straight off to dance rehearsals, where she’d stay for the whole day, before heading off to see a show in the evening. ‘And then suddenly, nothing,’ she says, referring to the fact she’s been in lockdown with her partner of 35 years, Angus Ion, in Herefordshire. ‘I’m a people person, I was surrounded by people, but suddenly everything stopped and I was with one person.’ And while Arlene says that she has found the ‘silence’ of lockdown the hardest thing…

Walking around my new area MADE ME LESS LONELY Over the years, I’ve done lots of walking with friends. This January, I moved for work from London to Manchester. I needed a fresh start after my husband died suddenly in 2017, so this was a brave (and terrifying) move. Relocating meant I found myself in a small, rented flat with no outside space. I didn’t have a social network, but walking is a great way to make friends. I started to follow some walking groups on the Meetup app and saw a notice for a Ramblers walk. It said that everyone was welcome, so I went along. They were all really friendly, and I became a member. I managed one Ramblers group walk before lockdown, but it had given…

TAKE REGULAR EXERCISE This improves your bone density, and keeps the muscles surrounding your joints strong. DITCH HIGH IMPACT High-impact exercises can make things worse, so try activities such as cycling or swimming. Wear protective pads or braces on any injured or painful joint. MIX IT UP Do different exercises daily. Weight-bearing activities, such as walking, are best to increase bone density. Core exercises reduce the risk of balance loss. STRETCH Stretching after activity is vital to prevent joint injuries. As we age, our muscles lose flexibility. If you feel stiff, stretch during warm up too.…

Strand merino and mohair together for this soft and fuzzy effect MEASUREMENTS Cushion cover Approximately 40 x 55cm/14 x 18in. MATERIALS 3 x 50g (116m) balls of Wendy Merino DK (100% merino wool) in Fuchsia (2370); 4 x 25g (200m) balls of Rowan Kidsilk Haze (70% mohair, 30% silk) in Grace (580)*. Pair of 4.5mm (No. 7) knitting needles; 40 x 60cm cushion pad. Yarn is available from theknittingnetwork.co.uk TENSION 19 stitches and 23 rows, to 10 x 10cm, over stocking stitch, using 4.5mm needles and holding one strand of Fuchsia and one strand of Grace together. ABBREVIATIONS St(s), stitch(es); k, knit; p, purl; ss, stocking stitch (k on right side and p on wrong side); k2tog, k 2 sts together (to decrease 1 st). NOTE For front and back,…

Dear Reader by Cathy Rentzenbrink (£12.99, HB, Pan Macmillan) It’s always a special moment when you lose all sense of time and place discussing the books you love. In this gorgeous book, Rentzenbrink charts the key moments in her life through the books that brought her comfort and joy – especially during difficult times. It is a love letter to books of all genres, and their ability to detract, heal and let us escape. A must for every bookshelf, and you’ll be adding to yours by the end with some truly lovely recommendations. Before the Crown by Flora Harding (£8.99, PB, Harper Collins) If you’re a fan of The Crown, you’ll love this romance charting the relationship between Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip, from their first meeting to their wedding…