Gals, it’s time to get your Twiggy on – sixties is totally trending this spring/summer season.

Retro has been in vogue for yonks but the catwalks are parading short hemlines and boxy silhouettes in a modern rehash of what was prancing into fashion fifty years ago.

The glossies are reporting that models from Louis Vitton, Chanel, Prada, Victoria Beckham and Moschino (to mention but a few) are swinging the sixties with swank and swagger. This is THE Spring/summer fashion trend 2013 to watch.

And word on the street is that ‘bells and blouses’ are going to be around for the season after this, so you might want to invest in some mega minis, shifts and shorts (really short shorts), things with patterns and oversized buttons, chiffon, and floral is also a biggy this season.

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If you’re in the mood to get your Essex on, then head on over to Amychildsofficial.com to check out the TOWIE star’s summer collection.

The sultry siren has not done all that well with previous lines but word on the street is that her fifth attempt at fashion is a winner.

The season’s summer dress collection includes different versions of essentially the same style dress – tight fitting, pencil skirt type dresses that end on the knee or just above. So if you have the perfect body and not an iota of cellulite, you’ll look great in Amy’s dresses – which start at size 8 and end at 16.

Lace features heavily in the collection, usually as an overlay. The collection features primary yellows, blues (cobalt primarily) and reds. Shades of grey run amuck and there’s a lot of black and white too.

If you’re into lace, ‘LEXI Khaki and Cream’ (sleeveless with khaki overlay), ‘Francesca’ (in lime green) and ¾ sleeve ‘Georgia Cobalt’ are worth a look.

And if you like something short, ‘Naomi’, in champagne and coral, is a leg-revealing mid-thigh length.

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Here’s my theory: if we’re going to be plastering our faces with foundation on a daily basis, it’s probably a good idea to use one that’s free from chemicals and preservatives. Our skin absorbs what we put on it and if it so happens to be something dodgy then we’ll pay the price at some point (says the girl with the tattoo(s)).

Natural and organic cosmetics brand Anita Grant has launched a brand new chemical and preservative free foundation range called Hello Beautiful. The range aims to offer one of the most affordable and comprehensive pallets available for darker skin tones in particular.

There are 29 colours in the range from ‘Biscotti’ and ‘Vanilla Sugar’ on the lighter end of the spectrum to ‘Fondant Au Chocolat’ and ‘Hot Fudge’ on the darker end.

I don’t know about y’all but I am total sucker for makeup (anything in fact) that sounds edible – other delicious sounding shades include  ‘Shortbread’, ‘Cinnamon Toast’, ‘Spiced Pumpkin’, ‘Brown Sugar Truffle’ ‘Warm Honey Blossom’, ‘Honey Butter Popcorn’ and ‘Mocha Latte’.

A regular 10g foundation tub costs £12.95 (pretty reasonable if you ask me!) or you can pay £1.95 for a 1g sample.

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So… what colours should our nails rock this spring/summer 2013 season? Here’s the lowdown on the latest nail colour trends;

Online beauty retailer Sally Express says that soft pastels and earthy tones form the basis of this season’s new colours. Cooler colours, including certain shades of blue, as well as warmer reds, browns and oranges also feature heavily in many nail collections this year.

Tone is a big pointer for nail colour trends according to Stylist.co.uk – so, deck your nails out in different shades of a single colour; a different shade on each nail going from light to dark or try two tones on a single nail.

It’s a more sophisticated approach to nails and can get complicated but Tom Bachik, global nail artist for L’Oréal Paris, has offered STYLIST a ‘how to guide’ – CLICK HERE to read.

“Vogue” articulates leather-look polishes, magnetic crocodile designs and liquid sand textures as the season’s it nail trends.

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I have never been a domestic goddess, and never will be! In my house, cleaning is a necessary evil and ironing happens on a need-to-wear basis.

With small children around, it’s impossible to maintain a pristine environment, but important to find ways to keep up with the basics, so a sense of balance is imperative!

In my house, we opt for cleaning short-cuts that keep us respectable without taking up valuable time reserved for fun and family. Here’s some sensible household tips for you:

1. Don’t iron: iron only those clothes that really need it, it for the rest, squash creases out of still-warm clothes after drying and fold neatly. They will spend enough time in the drawer that ironing would have been a waste of time anyway! If you pull a t-shirt out and it looks a little wrinkled, put it on and flatten out under the heat of a hair-dryer – job done!

2. Clean everything you can with the vacuum: you’ll find uses for attachments you never knew you had!

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