Keeping Up Appearances - How to look good while feeling ill

most important: stop caring.
Most people like you better for not showing them up. So long as you don't smell or scare small children, a smile is the most attractive accessory. Save your energy for that.
(Sounds trite but is true)

 

Couldn't shave my head as I'd look like a goblin - have huge sticky out ears that unkind girls at school used to tease me about. Also have straight and thin hair so they used to say Your ears are sticking through your hair. Now that may not sound so bad, but I knew it was meant in a nasty and bullying way, and it made me feel very unhappy. The bitch who did it most I'd hit if I ever met her now! So my answer (as discussed elsewhere) is hats. Hmm, it must be around a year since I had a new hat, might have to have a poke around the web and see if I can find something...

 

I made my first YouTube tutorial video. That used up a lot of energy! I did it mainly to learn about video editing but also people were asking me for a sock curl tutorial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RprABLmR_Q

BTW I normally do this lying down after a bath and it only takes a couple of minutes (explaining in a video takes longer)

 

I love it @Jenny TipsforME ! You are absolutely gorgeous and your hair is lovely. I like your hair either way. The video is very well made too.

 

Gorgeous @Jenny TipsforME! I love your look, wish I could carry off cat's eye glasses, I'm bored with wayfarers.
We have the same blue dress, it is my absolute favourite. I discovered Lindy Bop clothes before Christmas, they are wonderful (and often come up hugely reduced on eBay).

I'd like to learn how to do a simple French pleat updo. I get tired doing my hair very quickly but Mr S will do it for me if it's not too complicated, bless his cotton socks.

I love it when we get to see the real person behind the profile pic, I feel like I know you better now. Thank you for posting this

 

@Liv aka Mrs Sowester @erin thanks

The Lindy Bop dress I’m wearing in the video I got for £3 on eBay and it’s the sort of dress you can wear all year with different things. I’d had about 4 years of basically existing in pyjamas and decided it was a good opportunity to get a completely new look. Over the past year I’ve basically replaced my wardrobe with eBay repro Vintage bargains! And I’ve been watching lots of other people’s videos about vintage style.

I felt quite shy about sharing myself on camera when I’ve got used to existing as text! I do similar stuff on an Instagram account and that took getting used to. Until this past year I’ve tended to not have any pictures of myself online.

I feel like with chronic illness it is better to embrace the putting all of yourself online Millennial mentality. But I still feel like I want to compartmentalise my identity and show different sides of myself to different people.

 

Thank you for sharing your adorable self with us, @Jenny TipsforME. Vintage style suits you 100%
I make zero effort with my hair or appearance, but you've inspired me!

 

Have used clippers on hisband’s hair but not on myself (imagine might be more tiring). Is very much easier than a scissor cut because it takes less attention and skill. But the good clippers (although highly recommend quality) can be heavy.
I use the two longest combs on it and do the back and sides with the shorter of the two. I still scissor cut the front becasue the combs are too short for that - and it looks better scissor cut.
The clippers cut so match shorter that I don’t have to do the haircut as often either (was always pretty lax - leaving it for a few months - and now I’ve not done it for 3 months and it looks ok).

I used to use dry shampoo when working (was getting sicker but thought it was overwork). Just spray the roots, rub in with fingers then, when dry and you can be bothered, brush it out. Got lots of compliments.
Does need to be well washed out when you do shower though.

Assuming that you can get any these days, I’d recommend the dry shampoo before the clippers (you can always do both eventually. I imagine that short hair might look greasy sooner than long...?

 

@Trish I too have found dry shampoo good, it doesn’t really clean hair but does soak up grease and doesn’t make me feel as bad or like my hairs dirty.

I like this thread.

One thing I do every day, is tie my hair up into a messy bun on top of my head, with a really nice scrunchie. I have lots and lots of different ones with different characters, colours, materials etc. I also wear Disney hair bows even though no one can see it! Channeling my inner Disney princess. And I try to keep my face moisturised; I always use oil or plant butters, olive oil, rosehip, Shea coconut etc.

When my ME was not so bad and I was ok with scents, I would (get my mum to) paint my nails as well.

 

I have mad hair. When I was younger it used to naturally fall into fat shiny ringlets (which I flippin' hated).

In the 80's people used to stop me to ask where I had my hair permed.

Anyway, I started to go "blonde" quite young - probably because of thyroid and zinc issues.

Longer hair is actually a bit easier to manage for me. If I can't be bothered or am not able to sort my hair out (think demented hedge witch, or Hagrids blonde & much smaller sister in terms of hairdo) I clip it up, put it in a pony tail or shove it under a baseball cap.

When my hair is shorter and has less weight to it.....well, then we're in Worzel Gummidge in a wind tunnel incident territory.

Edit - I blame autocorrect

 

My caree occasionally uses a product called Nilaqua, which she found in a mail order catalogue somewhere. I think it's a liquid rather than a powder like dry shampoo, which you apply and then towel dry.

https://nilaqua.co.uk/

I don't think it's very cheap, though - although a quick search indicates that prices vary quite considerably.

 

Well done Trish's daughter!

I'm dreading tackling OH's hair! He started clipping it himself, but very unevenly. I agree with the scissors first, then clip thing. He mostly wears hats when outside (or he'd prob scare the neighbours!), whether to protect from sun or to keep his head warm - weather dependent which hat!

Not going to let him near my hair though! It's nearly long enough to use scrunchies, and if it gets very long I'm going to take after my Grandmother and wear it in a bun. In the meantime I just wear a hat when I have to look vaguely respectable (as in my upcoming Zoom meeting for GrandTwins' Birthday).

 

I'm at the stage where I need to have my hair in a ponytail, but I can't reach back far enough to do it due to wonky shoulders. Too bad the idea of doing it for me freaks out my DH. I told him it's just like wrapping a rubber band around a bunched speaker cable. I think he got that! Time will tell.

 

Hiii! Bedbound. No private or easily to use bathroom and very dangerous re possible covid in my shared bathroom with people not wearing facemasks or social distancing building. My area I live in the covid numbers are baaaad.

I can't do any of the hair washing things I've read about on the internet or here. None of them (dry shampoos, basins, baking soda, vinegar, things rigged up in bed or beside the bed, etcs). Very reactive to things. Can't do almost all scents.

Thought of doing this that I read. Even if I could only manage part of my scalp once in awhile.

Has anyone tried this or any thoughts on it? Washing my hair once every 14 - 18 days is driving me crazy. And it's too time consuming in a very unsafe, scary bathroom situation.

I hope the above has worked for someone or something very simple and similar. Thankyou for any feed back. I hope everyone is hanging in there alright.

 

I'm so sorry you're having to deal with this, Yessica. It's so good to have you back.

I don't have any shampoo suggestions, other than using dish soap, which will strip the hair oils and give you a couple of extra days of not having oily hair. Still need to rinse it though. Maybe a dilution would work okay, something without fragrance.

 

I'm totally sold on the no-poo hair care method!

Was finding washing my hair too tiring on my arms so kept putting it off longer and longer between washes. Then last January - that's almost a year ago - I stopped washing it altogether. I rinse it by lying down in the bath (usually with a tiny bit of essential oil) ideally once a week but often go two or even three weeks between baths.

Somehow my long, fine & straight hair actually looks much better than when I used shampoo. I get lots of compliments on it.

 

Thanks @Helene. I tried that one tooo. Tried the many things I read about it. Had so much hope for it to work for me. Didn't. I'm glad it works so well for you and the other people it works for too.

And thank you @shak8. Was thinking of you since your before Christmas post. Hug.