Do you find that some day's you just don't feel right in anything you put on, you look in the mirror and would much rather just go back to bed. This article focuses on ways to always feel great about yourself and ready to get out there to face the world. I would say there are 3 contributing factors to feeling confident before you leave the house, if you are having an 'off day'.

Firstly how you are feeling about your body without any clothes on, secondly making sure the clothes you are wearing flatter your body shape and your colouring and then lastly your state of mind, the things you are telling yourself about how you look.

Feeling great naked

Unless you are a blessed with long slender fat free limbs it is quite likely that sometimes you don't feel all that great about your body with out any clothes on. This can be changed though and it's up to you to make the time to do it if you really want to avoid these horrible days when you don't feel al that fabulous.


The first step is glaringly obvious, exercise. Regular exercise 3 times a week will help you to feel much much better about your body. Running or swimming are great fat burning work outs and to tone I really recommend doing something like a fitball class (those big balls you see in the gym) or pilates. Just doing exercise will give you new energy and a boost to your body confidence. A great way to force yourself into it is to sign up for a charity run, once you have committed to it then you really have to get into training for it!

As important as long term exercise is, a quick fix of feeling better about your body is to have a long bath time session, exfoliating your body all over and to defluff any necessary bits. If you are feeling a bit pale and pasty now's the time to apply a bit of fake tan, if you have pale skin and this makes you feel a bit nervous try using a daily moisturiser with a tint in it like Johnsons Holiday Skin. Honestly, if you are worried about your bum and thighs showing cellulite, a bit of a tan will instantly make them look better!

If you are going out for a night on the tiles a cream with a bit of sparkle applied on your arms and neckline will instantly make your skin glow and shimmer.

Looking great on the outside

A sure fire way of looking great and knowing you do is wearing the right colours for you. Wearing the correct shades and tones will hide any skin imperfections, balance out skin tone, make you look radiant and often younger! The wrong colours can make you look tired, sallow and if too bright can totally overwhelm you.

Aside from having a colour consultation to learn all about what suits you an immediate tip is to stand in front of the mirrors in your planned out fit and really consider if the colour looks natural on you. You don't want a colour to drain you, over power you, make your skin tone look yellow or just make you look wishy washy. If you can't tell then pick a couple of outfits and put the tops against your face and switch from one to the other analysing in the mirror which works best. Often we wear clothes because we like a colour but don't actually stop to think if it actually suits us. The most important area to wear the right colour is around your face as this is where it effects how you look the most. A big mistake people often make is to wear black when they have light colouring, if you have light hair and light eyes black will drain you and cast shadows over your face.

Proper fit is essential and making sure your clothes are showing off your best bits. Again really look in the mirror, the things you DON'T want to be happening are:

* Clothes are too tight and showing any bulges, you want your clothes to skim your body.
* Clothes are not too baggy and tent like, a big mistake is to wear large clothes thinking they will cover up problem areas but they will just make you look bigger. For example if you have large boobs make sure you wear either something tailored to show off your waist line or, if that is a problem area, something fitted around them and then skimming over your tummy.
* If you have saddlebags or wide hips don't go for skinny trousers, balance them out with bootcut trousers or a skirt that skims over the area or flares out at the bottom, like a tulip skirt.
* Make sure the waist band is not too tight, if it is it will cause the dreaded 'muffin top'!

Use details and colour to draw attention away from the bits you hate to the bits you love. This is where eye catching accessories come in so handy.

With regards to make up always have the basics on; a base to even out skin tone, a light dusting of powder to set it and get rid of any shine, a blusher to add some colour to your cheeks, mascara to frame your eyes and a lip stick or gloss to finish the look.

Think Fabulous

Aside from all of the above the things we say to ourselves are often really the most important factor of how we are feeling about how we look. Our thought process is really a set of questions and answers to ourselves and often it will be more negative than positive unless we train our minds to stop doing that. The next time you are having a 'moment' in front of the mirror, listen to that little voice you have in your head, what is it saying to you? Do you recognise any of the following:

* I am so fat
* I hate my legs/tummy
* She looks so much better than me
* It isn't fair
* Nothing looks right
* I can't go out
* My bum is huge
* He won't look at me/fancy me
* I might as well stay in
* I don't want to go out now
* My arms are so flabby
* I'll never get the job

These statements will have been derived from questions we have asked ourselves in the mirror. Perhaps they went something like this:


* How are my legs looking?
* Does she look better than me?
* Will he fancy me?
* Do I look good enough for the job?
* How is my body looking?
* Should I bother going out looking like this?
* Why does this always happen to me?
* Why don't I look good?

When we ask ourselves a question our mind automatically looks for the answer so if you are asking yourself negative questions you will end up having negative thoughts about yourself.

The trick is to ask yourself positive questions like:

Which is my best bit, is it being shown off enough?
Looking at your best bit
How great do my eyes look with this make up?
Isn't my cleveage looking fabulous etc etc
What can I do right now to make myself feel better

Aside from looking at your body also ask your self positive questions about the day/night:

* What can I do to make today/night fantastic?
* What great friends am I going to be seeing?
* What do I hope to achieve from this business meeting?
* What am I grateful for/ happy about?

One big mistake we make is to compare ourselves to others. We are all unique and everyone has their own hang ups so whilst you are busy feeling like you don't look as good as someone else they are probably thinking the same thing. Don't waste your energy and emotional levels make comparisons, learn to accept yourself for who you are and learn to love all the great things about yourself. If this seems hard sit down and write a list of at least 25 positive things about yourself.

After doing that exercise then write 5 affirmations of what you would like to believe about yourself, pick the one you like the most and repeat it at least 5 times daily. Some examples could be:

I approve of myself
I am a sexy fabulous woman
I am a strong powerful woman
I am surrounded my love and friendship
I attract good things into my life
I love my body and feel confident just the way I am.

It is possible to train your mind to believe what ever you want to by using positive affirmations such as the above.