Discover traditional recipes to get that curvaceous Brazilian body, creamy African skin and those flattering Spanish eyelashes…

Passed down from generations, every country and region has its own beauty extravagances that the natives indulge in. Inspired by the intrinsic passion of the people, adapted to balance the effects of the climate and sweetly nurtured by Mother Earth, the natural beauty secrets we reveal to you are no less efficacious than the lavish spa treatments on your wish list. Try some of these decadent regional delights – the native way – to become a natural nymph.

Be A Brazilian Beauty

Brazilians make the most of Nature’s gifts to them – massaging their bodies with fistfuls of beach sand, these bronzed beauties benefit more from this pleasurable recreation than they realise. Apart from exfoliating, smoothening and toning their skin, the sand also helps in busting cellulite to hone those curvaceous curves. Try this trick to buff your skin.

Be A Spanish Senorita

These gals just can’t have enough fun! They give their hair a final rinse with equal proportions of cranberry juice and water, all to get that magnificent mane and those natural highlights. Before going to bed, grandmas coax the girls to layer castor oil on their eyelashes to keep them thick and healthy; place thin potato slices on their eyes for 10 minutes to allow the juice to seep in and combat the dark circles that excessive partying can give! Take a cue.

Be A Polish Princess

Beauty gets sweet here. Polish women apply honey on the face as an intensive moisturiser and on their lips to make them baby soft. Honey’s firming and moisture-retaining properties make it popular with the older ladies as well, while it also protects the skin from the damage of UV rays. Immerse yourself in some Pooh-ish delight…

Be A Tangy Thai

Popular for their spicy foods, the Thai have their roots firmly placed in exotic spices and the tenets of aromatherapy. Using kitchen cabinet products in their beauty regime Thai women use tamarind as an inexpensive skin exfoliater for its high acidic content and effectiveness; and pulped ripe papaya in facial masks to instantly nourish and exfoliate the skin. Turmeric is applied topically for its antibacterial and healing properties as it soothes irritated skin and lightens blemishes and scars. Fragrant plants such as citronella, lemongrass and ylang ylang flowers are used commonly aromas for their uplifting and rejuvenating abilities. Try some tangy Thai ingredients off your kitchen rack to stimulate your senses.

Indulge, will ya?

Be A Scandinavian Stunner

There’s no rocket-science here – water is the secret of their glowing skin. Splashing their face over 15 times with ice-cold mineral water every day, these girls know how to activate their skin’s natural faculties to work in their frosty climate. Also a great way to close open pores, stimulate nerve endings and reduce puffiness.

Get splashing!

Be An African Attraction

Extracted from the shea nut, pure shea butter is an intimately held secret with the Cleopatras of this land. For generations, Africans have used shea butter to keep their skin soft and luminous. Pure shea butter is a rich emollient abundant in natural Vitamin A and E and good for healing scars and stretch marks; also ideal for preventing hair fall and fortifying cuticles and nails. There are many shea butter skincare products on the shelves but be cautious, often their goodness is diluted by the presence of other additives.

Be A Japanese Geisha

It’s beauty to the tea with the Japanese. Whether it’s to reduce under-eye puffiness, soothe sunburn or calm an itching insect bite, cool tea bags and diluted tea baths do the trick. Camellia oil is another one of their secrets that smoothens and illuminates skin to give a Geisha-like glow. Rumours have it that Kate Winslet used camellia oil during her pregnancy to prevent stretch marks!

Be An Aboriginal Australian

Eucalyptus oil and tea tree oils are commonly used here for their healing properties, but a true aborigine uses emu oil. Coming from the native emu bird, this oil is high in unsaturated and fatty acids – a great way to replenish dry and damaged skin, and even mild enough to soothe nappy rashes on baby skin. Massage it in the Aboriginal way, whether to treat wounds, reduce dandruff, or for simple stress reduction. Make sure you get your hands on authentic oil – only pure emu oil solidifies quickly at cool temperatures; reverse this by gently warming the oil.

Be A Juicy Jamaican

If you’re conjuring up images of piña coladas, brush them aside, because when it comes to beauty, Jamaicans go bananas! They treat their skin with banana peels to soften it, protect it from the sun and also to soothe sunburnt areas.So the next time you have your dose of banana, savour the skins for yours!

The fun is in cooking and eating together. We draw up a list of interesting and easy-to-make recipes for a romantic dinner

Baby Tomato Gazpacho With An Asparagus Flan

(Chilled soup of ripened baby tomatoes with an asparagus accompaniment)

Serves: Two

Time required: 20 minutes

For The Gazpacho :

500 g ripened baby tomatoes, 1 small clove garlic, 1 small red bell pepper, 1 tsp olive oil, salt to taste, a few fresh basil leaves, 20 ml white wine

For The Asparagus Flan :

a small bundle fresh asparagus, 100 g carrots, a few sprigs parsley, 1 tsp gelatin, 20 ml eggless mayo

For The Gazpacho :

Cut the tomatoes and set aside the pulp and seeds. Mix together the rest of the gazpacho ingredients with the chopped tomatoes in a blender. Puree the mixture until smooth and then strain into a glass bowl. Also strain the seeds and pulp onto the cold soup. Chill and serve.

For The Asparagus Flan :

Blanch the asparagus in hot salted water, refresh and cut off the hard stalks. Puree half the quantity and set aside. Dice the carrots, parsley and a few asparagus tips. Set aside. Soak the gelatin and then melt in a double boiler. Mix the mayo with the puree and the vegetables. Fold in the gelatin and chill. Put this mixture into a small flan tin and leave to set.

To serve the Gazpacho :

Unmould the flan in a soup plate. Pour the chilled gazpacho around the flan and serve.

Note: Use ripe red tomatoes only. After adding the gelatin do not whisk too hard as it may curdle.

Flamed Prawns In Liqueur Butter

(Prawns pan grilled and served coated with a butter sauce laced with Cointreau)

Serves: Two

Time required: 20 minutes

6 large prawns

100 ml orange juice

1 small piece cinnamon

50 g butter

a pinch of brown sugar

10 ml Cointreau (An orange flavoured liqueur)

10 ml white wine

salt and pepper to taste

Clean and devein the prawns. Set aside.

For The Liqueur Butter:

Heat the orange juice in a heavy bottom pan and reduce to one-fourth. Add the stick of cinnamon and the sugar to it. Cube some of the butter and add slowly to the orange mixture. Remove from heat and add the Cointreau after it cools.

In a pan, heat the remaining butter and sauté the prawns. Season and increase heat. Flame the prawns with the white wine.

To assemble, place each prawn in one China soup spoon and pour some Cointreau butter over it. Garnish with a sprig of mint.

Note: Never overcook prawns as they will harden. This starter can also be served on a toothpick with a skewered mint leaf.

Aubergine Tzatziki

(Greek salad made with crispy fried aubergine layered with yoghurt)

Serves: Two

Time required: 15 minutes

200 g aubergine

(eggplant/ brinjals)

150 g yoghurt

a small clove garlic

salt to taste

a few sprigs mint

(about 10 leaves)

oil for frying

a pinch of sesame seeds

Slice the aubergine in rounds evenly. Sprinkle with salt and drain out the excess water.

For the Tzatziki dressing, whisk the yoghurt with a pinch of garlic and salt and chill. Clean the mint leaves. Set aside. Heat the oil and fry the aubergine until crisp. Drain on paper to remove any excess oil. Assemble the salad by alternating layers of aubergine with mint leaves and the chilled yoghurt dressing. Garnish with sesame seeds and mint leaves and serve.

Note: Add salt to the aubergine before frying, as this is the only way it will be crisp. Cut the aubergine into even thickness to enjoy the salad.

Whole Cantonese Style Steamed Fish

(Whole fish marinated in Cantonese spices and steamed in banana leaves)

Serves: Two

Time required: 35 minutes plus standing time

400 g Rawas/ any medium-sized firm fish

For the Marinade:

1 tsp fish sauce

2 tsp soya sauce

2 tsp oyster sauce

2 bird’s eye chillies

1 star anise

1 tsp sesame oil

salt to taste

50 g carrots

a few sprigs celery

a small piece fresh ginger

banana leaves for steaming

Clean the gut and gash the fish. Mix in all the ingredients to form the marinade. Set aside. Julienne the carrot, celery and ginger and add to the marinade. Mix well. Place the fish in a steaming tray and cover both sides with the marinade mix. Let it stand for at least two hours. Wrap the fish in the banana leaves. When ready to serve steam the fish in a wok or a bamboo steamer for approximately 20 to 30 minutes or until cooked.

To make the serving sauce, remove the jus of the steamed fish and thicken with a pinch of corn flour. Serve hot garnished with parsley or coriander.

Note: If the fish is too large to handle cut it into portions. While steaming, ensure that the boiling water doesn’t come in contact with the item being steamed.

Balinese Clay Pot Curry

(Red Balinese curry soured with tamarind)

Serves: Two

Time required: 30 minutes

50 g green brinjals

50 g baby corn

50 g broccoli

1/4 packet mushrooms or flat mushrooms

10 g or 1-2 fresh red chillies

1 small clove garlic

a small piece ginger

5 g basil leaves

2 tsp oil

100 ml coconut milk

1 tsp tamarind pulp

lemon grass and a few coriander stalks for the garnish

Cut all the vegetables into cubes and blanch in salted water. Quarter the mushrooms and sauté. Set aside.

For the curry paste, dry roast the chillies, garlic and ginger in a pan. Add the rest of the ingredients into a blender or a mortar and pestle to obtain a fine paste. Puree the basil leaves and set aside.

Heat the oil in a flat-bottomed vessel and add the paste. Fry the paste over low heat and then add the coconut milk, basil puree and tamarind pulp. Simmer the curry for 10 minutes.

When ready to serve, add the blanched vegetables. Garnish with sliced lemon grass and coriander stalks. Serve with steamed rice.

Note: Use very little water when extracting coconut milk, as this will keep it creamy. Always add vegetables to a dish just before serving, as this will keep them crisp and they will retain their original colour.

Dacquoise Of Fresh Strawberry

(Fresh strawberries served on meringue with cream)

Serves: Two

Time required: 20 minutes

25 g ready meringues

1 box strawberries

25 g whipped cream

50 g fresh strawberry jam

sugar to taste

Rinse the strawberries in cold water and pat dry. Slice them and flambé in sugar. Lay a bed of the ready meringue and layer with the jam, flambéed strawberries, and whipped cream. Garnish the strawberry meringue with fresh strawberries and chill the dessert in the refrigerator.

Note: Use meringue, which is crisp, and in humid weather store the strawberries in an airtight container. Use sweet and succulent strawberries.

Daisy Duke has a lot to answer for. The darling of the old TV show “Dukes of Hazard,” she is the woman who made America slice their jeans into hot pants and bare a billion butts every summer for more than two decades. This is also the woman who, along with Britney Spears, is making your daughter dress like a tart.

“Modesty be damned!” declares teen-age fashion and off your darling trots to junior high tricked out like a MTV harlot. Inspired by rock videos, glossy magazines and role models like Posh Spice, teen fashion has never been fleshier.

Confronted at the mall by racks of slashed T-shirts, hipster jeans and micro-minis, where does a parent draw the line? Bargaining power between you and Miss Lolita comes with knowledge.Knowledge of your daughter’s peers, her body type, a smattering of teen-trend literacy (for example, pop star Gwen Stefani no longer wears a bindi between her eyes) and the stores where better styles can be found.

To a teen, clothing is a life and death issue. They want to fit in, they want to look pretty, they want to show the world who they are and they don’t want to be ridiculed. Such intense expectations can lead to terrible tensions at the cash register and a secret wardrobe of clothes stashed in school lockers and backpacks. To help your girl go to school in the clothes she actually left the house wearing takes smarts and sensitivity. Try and remember what you wanted so desperately at the age of 15… Madonna boots? Fish nets? Teased hair? And smile at your present parental dilemma.

Clothes, at any age, are dreams connected by stitches. If your baby dreams of dressing like a Britster she can still do so with her dignity and your sanity in tact.

Style and safety

Preteens feel stifled when you refuse them a perm, tight jeans, makeup or heels. The trouble is they know so little about the power of suggestive dress. Keeping a code of modesty is a way of protecting a young body from unwanted attention. Without making her feel ashamed of her body, you need to teach her how to dress it with style and safety.

Rock stars have body guards. That allows them the liberty to wear a belly button ring, a bra, low-slung hip huggers and a python around their neck without impunity. Your daughter lacks the same level of protection so don’t feel like a prude for trying to police her wardrobe. My mother had a very simple rule: if you can bend over in it, you can wear it. That means a skirt that cover your knickers, shorts that cover your thighs, tops that contain your boobage and jeans that don’t offer up butt cleavage every time you sit down.

Small sexy touches and ladylike deportment are what win the Prince in the end but it is hard to explain that to a teenager.

Strike a compromise between fun fashion and common sense; a miniskirt instead of hot pants, hipster undies instead of G-strings (yes, they make G-strings for preteens now!), tinted lip balm instead of lipstick and a T-shirt bra to keep prying eyes off her sproutlings.

For older girls, allow her small concessions to vampishness: a backless halter top, a henna (not real) tattoo, kitten or wedge heels, a great red lipstick, her own perfume and a little black dress. Stress style and elegance over trash and treasure.

Take her vintage shopping for cute accessories that make her feel sophisticated as well as sweet: drop earrings, a plastic pearl necklace, a great 70’s shoulder bag, a beaded cardigan or her very first lace cocktail dress.

Shape and size

All teens are not created equal but they all yearn to be generically slim with neat little breasts and hips. The fact that jeans are a universal uniform doesn’t help. If your daughter is heavy, super tall or just a little lumpy and gangly, now is the time to give her a sense of dressing to suit the proportion of her body.

Try a pretty blouse for girls less confident about their bosom, a cool a-line skirt in denim instead of jeans for a chubby bottom and a beautiful choker for a long (soon-to-be-elegant neck). Kids like to hide in baggy clothes or overcompensate in ultra-tight clothes. Show them that fit is more important than any fashion trend and that dress size is only on the inside of the label.

Square peg survival

The courage to cultivate a less conformist taste needs to take seed early.

Shopping for school clothes can be a nightmare in the face of so many subtle codes of dress. To create a new sense of cool assure her that she doesn’t need to dress like everyone else or that she can wear one super trendy piece (a wind cheater, a picture T-shirt, feather earrings) with other pieces that actually suit her. Ask her if she really likes expensive runners or if she is just trying to fit in. Let her know that clothes are not a sure-fire guarantee for popularity either. For movie role models of teens who look Different watch “Pretty in Pink,” “Beetlejuice” and “Fly Away Home.”

The princess budget

Common sense about clothes and shopping in general comes from a good budget. Set aside a realistic sum from her savings, pocket money or Sunday job and set up a clothes allowance. Make her name the four items she can’t do without then let her research them for a full week, online, in stores and in magazines. When she finds the lowest price and the best style, they are hers. That seven-day wait slows down the futility of impulse shopping and takes the pressure off both of you. When you finally do you go shopping, you have a list and a mission, not just a headache. Learning to build a seasonal wardrobe around four pieces also leaves room in the budget for small splurges: — a new sweater or a baby T — and stops the cycle of endless buying. Budgets also trigger creative clothing alternatives. Thrift shopping, home sewing, customizing your own jeans or organizing clothes swaps are all fun ways for “getting a look” without paying retail.

Love is in the details

Beware of the messages you are sending out when you are shopping with your daughter. A woman’s body image, self esteem and shopping compulsions are often established from the shopping she did with her mother. Don’t critique her body. Don’t prove your love with a credit card. Don’t buy her clothes that you want to wear yourself or use shopping as an emotional reward.

Do allow her a private change room and the freedom to choose the stores you visit. Try to remember that shopping is not a bonding experience for everyone. If your tastes and personalities clash over clothes then imposing your will is a waste of time. Respect her needs and set sensible guidelines for shopping on her own. It may be your money she’s spending but it is still her life. If this year’s fashion doesn’t involve cleavage or multiple piercings, cut the girl a little slack The beauty of youth is the right to make mistakes and, sometimes, wear frankly ridiculous clothes.

Bags are so much like lovers it’s not funny. They can be well built but too heavy, good looking but too expensive, deep with the potential to be messy or so adorable you just can’t dump them no matter how ragged they’ve become.

Finding “the one” in terms of bags takes a measure of introspection, the courage to commit to one new great shape and the time to find it. On behalf of every woman who has asked me, I have been searching. Writing a definitive history of the handbag (due out next fall for Workman) has led me to handle and ogle over a thousand bags, and yet…it is impossible to name the one bag that fits all. A Mom bag is different from a Daughter bag and yet both women have much ‘stuff’ to schlep. To aid the quest, flip through this checklist. A new bag demands a whole new philosophy to go with it. Check your personality against my bags of choice and hopefully you’ll find a way to pocketbook nirvana.

The Schlepper

If the top of your bag reaches your elbow it is too deep. If it is heavier than five pounds on a Monday morning and hurts your shoulder it is too heavy and if you carry work or books home that you never read STOP STUFFING! To lighten the load of a habitually bulky bag, buy a backpack and ruthlessly reduce its contents. Here’s how: Carry a magazine instead of a thick paperback; keep gym gear/documents/makeup bag at the office; reduce the number of keys you really need. Never carry an object for purely sentimental reasons (rock crystals are heavy!)
Dream backpack:Dooney and Burke’s navy and spotted beige leather or for a plain solid color, Lancel.

The New Mom

Just because you are toting a small human doesn’t mean you need to carry the world on one shoulder. Stash everything you can on the back of your stroller and keep your bag for you. You still want to wear perfume, go for lunch and have a place where small hands can’t wander. It can be done, just try to separate bambini’s needs (bottles, diapers, toys) from yours: aspirin, cell phone, large black sunglasses.

Dream Mama Bag: The   is perfect for the first six months, big, soft and roomy with a strap strong enough to hang off the back of a pram. For the toddler years try a Coach legacy companion flap bag. It is absolutely investigation proof!

The Perfectionist

Neat freaks sometimes carry bags that are too rigid and, as a result, somewhat dowdy. Even executives can soften up their edges with a little romance. Tips for handbag sensuality: Choose a softer leather than you are used to. Keep your contents structured and indulge in a floral print for spring or a striped canvas for fall. Explore plaited leathers, pastel shades and textures. Just because you are not carrying a MSN Shopping doesn’t mean you’re not on the board.
Dream Pretty Bag: Bottega Veneta plaited tote.

The Slob

Sticky candy, old phone bills, loose socks all inhabit the base of your bag and you can never find your keys or cell phone. You need a bag with compartments that shames you into order. Tips to de-clutter: Buy a receipt folder and empty it onto a spike at the end of each day. Don’t carry food in your bag (no exceptions). Use one diary, one pen, one lipstick…. Clean out your bag nightly.
Dream Order Bag: Lamberston Truex Weekender. It has a cell phone pocket, a hook for keys and a central cosmetic pouch that wipes clean.

The Eccentric

You hate to look like you actually work in an office and have been known to attend meetings carrying a beach bag made of Raffia. But you’re a big girl now and ready for a bit more style, not to mention practicality. Pragmatic tips for dreamers: Buy a bag that really is big enough (evening bags die young). Try to find a color that matches more than one outfit. Choose vintage bags with strong handles.
Dream Bag: Jamin Puech ‘Louisiana’ tote, a bag with a beautiful patchwork print and a sturdy lined interior. Arty but chic.

Bag basics
Don’t leave home without:
1. Eye cream/balm (office air conditioning dehydrates)
2. One lipstick, one clear lip balm, one lip pencil (not petroleum based): For day, use the balm to soften a bright lipstick or to blend with a lip pencil. For night, wear bright solid color. A pink lipstick can go double duty as a blusher if blended right.
3. One super-soft eyeliner pencil. Use for brows as well as eyes.
4. Clarins beauty flash: brings color to the cheeks, works as a great end-of-office-day mask and moisture pick me up.
5. One tinted sunscreen: to protect and conceal.
6. A perfume sample, a baby candy bar or a piece of ribbon you love: I love finding treats in my handbag, to alter my mood, hair or scent at will.

Everyone talks about the glow a woman has directly after giving birth. That is often where the beauty legend about motherhood ends. After the sainthood of delivery, it’s an easy downhill slide into sensible shoes, sleepless nights, “no-fuss” haircuts and endless pants. The habits formed in the first year of looking after a baby can linger longer.

Mom clothes — jeans, knitted stretchy tops and a glazed rain coat to cover everything up — make every day a Sunday. Ah, yes, but comfort breeds complacency. The trouble with dressing like a yoga teacher every day of your life is that you exist in an orbit so far out of planet fashion there is no safe way to re-enter the atmosphere.

I propose 10 steps back towards reclaiming your edge, your cleavage and the right to wear red lipstick to breakfast.

1. Be visible
The sexual neutrality of the Mother began with Mary and reached its peak with June Cleaver. But a lot of women look pretty bad in baby blue. Wholesome cardigans and oatmeal colored clothes do not make you a better mother.

For inspiration rent “Mermaids” and “Erin Brockovich”. For better hair revise the cut you’ve had for the last 12 months. Even sensibly short hair can look sassy with a feathered fringe or radical highlights.

2. Burn your catalogues
The only thing you should be ordering by mail are slipcovers and gardening equipment. Just because you can’t get to amazing boutiques that easily anymore doesn’t mean you should slip into a miasma of boat neck T-shirts and elastic waisted trousers. Get a sewing machine. Shop vintage online or organize a group of girlfriends to go on quarterly shopping trips to stores that don’t sell “Mom clothes.”

3. Lift your hemline
If Florence Henderson could manage a mini-skirt on the Brady Bunch so can you. Fake tan in summer and a pair of Wolford lacy tights in winter permit you the pleasure of having legs again and kitten heels (as opposed to Birkenstocks) give the thickest ankles some oomph. Don’t rule out 50 percent of you body. Work it.

4. Spend on skin
Dehydration, pigmentation and perpetual eye-bags are the legacy of pregnancy and the late nights and early mornings that follow. Try to get a regime that is simple but steadfast even if it means wearing a moisture mask around the house or keeping eye cream at the kitchen sink, in the car and at the office. One thing worth spending money on is skin. Vitamin E capsules, an unscented cleanser, a quality moisturizer and sunscreen should be with you at all times.

5. Banish coral lipstick
Wear the makeup you’ve always loved and don’t you dare ditch that black eyeliner. Tasteful natural shades and matte lipstick are for newsreaders and Edwardian missionaries not you!

6. Exploit your curves
If you gained weight after pregnancy and some of that weight stuck to your hips and bosom, dress to celebrate that luscious goddess poundage instead of hiding under extra layers. This may be the only time you have real cleavage so indulge in a low-cut cashmere sweater and a gorgeous Italian bra. Who says you can’t wear maternity pads inside a La Perla? Adjusting to a new body shape demands different clothing. Don’t despair about not fitting into college jeans. Go out and buy a bias-cut skirt.

7. Ask your husband
He remembers a favorite dress or a pair of earrings that are now in mothballs at the back of your closet. Reviving the date dressing you once took for granted rekindles the romance of life before Pampers.

8. Demand a gym subscription
Getting your confidence back after one year or 20 years of mothering is a physical thing. Getting to the gym three times a week may seem incredibly optimistic but it could be your only truly private time, so seize it. Don’t ask for flowers this year, ask for CRUNCH.

9. Embarrass your kids
If your children whine when you turn up to PTA meetings in a leopard skin pillbox hat politely ignore them. The conformity that children want will only stifle their little spirits in the long run. What seems horribly eccentric to a seven-year-old may also be on the front of Italian Vogue magazine. Conversely, your children may also give you fashion tips. Why not wear matching plastic bobbles and polka-dot ankle socks to the supermarket one morning? You’re only young twice.

10. Don’t forget scent
Your house doesn’t have to smell like apple pie. Patchouli oil, Ylang Ylang and Anick Goutal also form brilliant childhood memories. Scent, more than clothes, lingerie or even heels ground you in the sensuality and individuality of being a woman. Whether it’s a dab of vanilla essence behind your ears or a bath oiled with Chanel No.19, perfume remains your invisible weapon against sensual mediocrity.