Sometimes it may seem like your skin is impossible to manage, especially when you wake up and find a huge zit on your nose or a cold sore at the corner of your mouth. The good news is that there are ways to prevent and treat common skin problems — read on for some tips.

Acne

A pimple starts when the pores in the skin become clogged with a type of oil called sebum, which normally lubricates the skin and hair. Acne is common during puberty when hormones go into overdrive, causing the skin to overproduce sebum. Because many oil-producing glands are on the forehead, nose, and chin, this area — the T-zone — is where a person is most prone to pimples.

No look is perfect if you don't get your hairstyle right. Here are a few tips to help you groom for that special day.

TLC for your hair

Bad smell can put off a person. Wash your hair with shampoo, apply hair conditioner and rinse it off after five minutes. Finally apply serum to the dry hair.

People with severe dandruff problem, make sure your scalp is clean. Simple home tip: Apply vinegar to your hair and scalp and leave it for 5-10 minutes, wash your hair and apply 1 tbs of lemon juice to your last rinse. Most important do not apply oil as it acts as a catalyst in promoting dandruff.

No white after Labor Day? Psh. Lately, we've seen a slew of gorgeous white gowns on the red carpet and we have a feeling we'll be eyeballing a lot more before winter is over. If you're planning to jump on this trend (and you should-it's stunning), keep these beauty rules in mind.

It's not just wrinkles-find what else is piling on the years

For a turn-back-the-clock complexion, it's not just about smoothing wrinkles. Here are the skincare issues that are adding years to your skin. We've got the deets on these premature signs of aging, and the products that will make them go buh-bye.

The first 11 days of 2012 have underwhelmed me. I got sick. I feel fat. I've managed to cultivate simultaneous zits and wrinkles. And, yes, I've been wallowing. Just a bit.

Then, as I watched the "People's Choice Awards," something hit me. It wasn't just that I am a person and I would have chosen to have a lot more Clooney and a lot less Pattinson on the ballot. Or that there seems to be a flock of sensory deprived stylists winging their ways through Hollywood at the moment.

An auction of Elizabeth Taylor’s world-renowned jewels took in $116 million (R963m), more than double the record for a single collection and setting new marks for pearls, colourless diamonds and Indian jewels.

Christie’s sale of 80 items from Taylor’s collection on Tuesday had been estimated to raise $20m, but everything from her famous 33-carat diamond ring, a gift from Richard Burton, to her charm bracelets sold for many times their estimates.

Whether your festive party is formal, hip or casual, it’s better to be overdressed than underdressed, says stylist Shana James.

You can dress for the most upscale event and then switch accessories if you really need to dress it down.

For example, taking off chandelier earrings or throwing on a cool scarf can instantly take down a look. If you want to look effortlessly chic and stylish, here are some guidelines.

The other week I received an email from a 34-year-old woman struggling with her weight. It had been a lifelong issue, she said, so she had decided that enough was enough. It was time for an overhaul: lifestyle, diet, exercise, the lot. My heart went out to her.

I told her that the first thing that had to go was the identifying part of her email address: bigfatgirl77. I explained that as long as she thought herself to be a big fat girl, she was never likely to be anything else apart from big and fat - which, I hasten to add, I don't have an issue with. My philosophy is that we can be and should be whoever we want to be, and we should not feel bound to live our lives according to someone else's expectations. We only get one swing at it, after all.