Mail on Sunday

In Full Swing ; Style Notes Swoop to Conquer in a Cape, Autumn's Must-Have Cover-Up

Pounds 249, NW3 by Hobbs, tel: 0845 313 3130 Pounds 189, Ted Baker, tel: 0845 130 4278

This Life Nina Bell

O ur future disappeared eight years ago when we were told that my husband John had incurable lymphoma and around a year to live. I felt pure, claustrophobic panic, like when the lift stops between floors. The world seemed unreal, and fight-or-flight adrenalin pumped through us. Except there was nowhere to run to and no one to fight. Surely this couldn't happen to us, with our dear little twins of ten, who didn't deserve to lose their father so young? His only chance of medium-term survival wa...

Things You Don't Know About... ; Celebrity Hairdressing a-List Hairstylist Tara Smith Reveals What It's Like to Look After the Precious Hair of Celebrity Clients, Even When They Haven't Got Much Left

Good hair days and gigs with wigs My job covers all sorts of things - films, commercials, photo shoots, fashion campaigns. I could be booked to cut and blow-dry Nicole Kidman's hair before she goes out to dinner. I've gone over to Quentin Tarantino's house to cut his hair, and I recently designed the wig for a character that Kevin Spacey plays in a new film called Casino Jack.

Second Skin ; Beauty News Autumn Sees a Return to the Perfectly Polished Complexion. Here's Our Pick of the Newly Launched Bases

BUY ONLINE@you.co.uk US make-make-launched products up artist ten years SoniaKashuk pictured), her up line in the US morethan Mineral include Prices ago. Her a handy Face from the SheerMagic tel: 020 and blush Palette( powderfoundation Pounds 9, from 7299 4956

We're Jumping for +J!

My Slow-Burn Affair ; Fashion for Life Mimi Spencer My Peep-Toe Boots Were Bought Months Ago On a Whim, Via Mail Order, for Under Pounds 50. They Arrived and I Laughed, Not yet Realising That the Future Would Be Theirs

Readers, I am in love. Head over heels. Or, to be more precise, heel over heels - given that it is Shoe Love we're talking about here. (Much the best kind. When was the last time a shoe forgot your wedding anniversary? Left the loo seat up? Made a rude comment about your mother? See!) The curious thing about this particular romance is that I have owned these heels for six months, only lately realising - kaboom! - that we were made for each other. It's a bit like looking up from filing your na...

Josephine de La Baume ; My Body & I

The French actress, DJ and singer is often found in New York or London with boyfriend Mark Ronson (right) What is your daily beauty routine?

Join Our Jo Malone Fragrance Masterclass ; Be One of the First to Try Jo Malone's Exciting New Fragrance and Get Advice From the Brand's Expert at Our Exclusive Evening for You Readers at Selfridges

Join YOU on Thursday 15 October at Selfridges, Oxford Street, and enjoy an exclusive fragrance masterclass hosted by Jo Malone Lifestyle Director Debbie Wild. Debbie will be joined by international model scout and television presenter Fiona Ellis to provide expert fragrance and lifestyle advice. Learn how to create the ultimate style statement as Debbie and Fiona demonstrate how to accessorise your wardrobe or favourite outfit with fragrance to reflect your mood or the occasion.

Win a Case of Fabulous Award-Winning Wines From This Year's Prestigious International Wine Challenge

This autumn we have a remarkable giveaway collaboration with the International Wine Challenge (IWC) - there are 12 cases of wine to be won by YOU readers, each containing a cool dozen medal-winning New World wines, ranging from two trophy-winning (and very different) sauvignon blancs, from Marlborough, New Zealand, and Western Cape, South Africa, to another gold-medal Marlborough sauvignon blanc and a gold-winning cabernet sauvignon from the Maipo Valley, Chile. The case boasts six elegant, r...

Vaccines and Autism: Piecing Together the Jigsaw ; Health Notes

In November 2007, a landmark decision by the US Department of Health and Human Services ruled that Hannah Poling from Georgia, now ten, had developed autism triggered by vaccinations. A healthy baby, Hannah developed normally until 19 July 2000, when, aged 19 months, she was given nine vaccines in five injections. As Dr Richard Halvorsen reports in the new edition of his book The Truth About Vaccines, 'Within 48 hours, she developed a fever, became irritable and cried inconsolably. She refuse...

Trudie, Madly, Deeply ; Body Talk

There's something undeniably first-date flirty about this pose, which could leave other long-term marrieds seething in envy. STRING (or Strudie, whichever you prefer) have been an item for several centuries in celebrity dog years, so you could expect to see a smidgen of indifference or even taking-one-another-for-granted-ness going on when they pop out for a bite to eat. But just as their alleged passion for tantric nookie left the rest of us feeling mildly unsatisfied or in the 'could try ha...

Afine Prime ; Make-Up Masterclass How to Give Mature Skin a Flawless Finish

FEED YOUR SKIN Make-up works best on smooth, hydrated skin, so opt for rich moisturisers and gentle cleansers. My favourites are Clinique Even Better Skin Tone Corrector (Pounds 30, available nationwide from Thursday) and The Organic Pharmacy Carrot Butter Cleanser (Pounds 29.95, theorganicpharmacy.com). Add Decleor Aromessence Angelique (Pounds 39, decleor.co.uk) to your moisturiser to combat dryness and use Epicuren Moisture Surge Hyaluronic Acid Gel (Pounds 29, tel: 01256 345605) to plump ...

Horoscopes

LIBRA 24 SEPT-23 OCT Now that the Sun is transiting your birth sign you should be feeling a bit more positive; and once Mercury, planet of the mind, resumes its normal direction on Tuesday, you will start worrying less about what went wrong and focus more on some of life's bigger issues. An ethical dilemma of some kind will occupy your mind over the next few days, and it's quite possible that you will have second thoughts about something you have always considered to be set in concrete. With ...

Your Problems Answered Zelda West-Meads

MY LOVER WON'T LEAVE HIS ALCOHOLIC WIFE I have recently begun an affair with a man who is inspiring and supportive, and as a soul mate he ticks all the boxes. He stays with his wife because she has a drink problem and because of his Catholic upbringing, but he has had a numbers of affairs. His wife makes promises about going on the wagon but it never lasts. I know he won't leave her for me and that I should be content with things as they are, but I don't want to be just a cog in the machine. ...

In Which I Pick Up the Pieces After the Shotgun Incident ; Liz Jones's Diary

My beautiful farm felt different. It was meant to be my sanctuary, somewhere where I would find peace, and it was now full of menace O -- Tuesday morning, I got up early as I was catching a flight to New York. I raced up the garden, through the orchard, my feet wet with dew, Gracie (Brian the gardener insists on calling her Tracie, which at first she found confusing but which she now answers to) at my heels, to let the chickens out. They always hear me approaching, and start to chuck in antic...

Alan Cumming ; Comedian, Actor, Novelist, Beauty Guru - and Now Singer. Is There No End to This Versatile 44-Year-Old's Talents (or Energy)?

In a taxi with... W e pick up Alan Cumming from his pied-a-terre in Soho, nestling between the lingerie boutiques and video emporia. It seems a fitting location for the self-styled 'frolicky, pansexual sex symbol for the new millennium' - particularly as he has the distinction of having been married both to a woman (actress Hilary Lyon, for eight years in the 80s/90s) and later a man (illustrator and designer Grant Shaffer: their civil ceremony took place in 2007). These days, he's becoming k...

Local Butcher, Supermarket Prices ; When Meat Is On the Menu, Morrisons has Everything You Need at Its Specialist in-Store Family Butchers, Selling Only the Finest British Lamb, Beef and Pork

With autumn just around the corner, now is the time to start making those comforting family meals which guarantee a glow of contentment. Whether it's a succulent weekend roast leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic, a quick midweek stir-fry of spiced pork tenderloin, or a warming, slow-cooked beef casserole at the end of a chilly day, this is the kind of food which puts satisfied smiles on faces. But to be sure of the tastiest results, it's important to use the best meat you can buy, which is w...

The Season'smutt- Have ; From Man's Best Friend to Woman's Favourite Fashion Accessory... A Delightful New Book Celebrates 100 Years of Irresistible Canine Style, As Documented in Vogue

This broad-brimmed Balenciaga hat -- photographed by Henry Clarke in 1954 -- was described byVogue as 'highly individualised, proudly conspicuous, sophisticated as a poodle'. The miniature poodle was by now hugely popular in Britain -- available in the new strains of apricot, cream and silver, as well as the traditional black, white and brown. This one, in black to match the model's evening gloves and dress, wears a white bow in its topknot to match the hat's cloud of swansdown. Opposite belo...

Meet Britain's Bravest Children ; the Wellchild Awards, Supported by You, Recognise the Courage of Severely Ill Children and Their Carers. Catherine O'brien Met Four of This Year's Inspirational Winners, Who Will Receive the Acknowledgement They Deserve at Tomorrow's Glittering Ceremony in London

WINNER MOST CARING CHILD Ashley Oldham, 15 Most days, after school, Ashley Oldham's friends hang out - they may go to the shops or over to the park before heading home for tea. But Ashley never joins them. It's not that he's being unsociable - he just doesn't have the time.

Get Rachel's Shabby Habit ; Interiors the California Home of Designer Rachel Ashwell Is a Testament to Her Shabby Chic Homeware Brand, with Treasured Finds Kept at the Heart of Her Daily Life

THE FAMILY UK-born Rachel Ashwell founded the iconic American homeware brand Shabby Chic 20 years ago. Although her two grown-up children, Lily, 22, and Jake, 20, no longer live at the family's home in Los Angeles, they still have their own rooms there. THE HOUSE A breathtaking 1920s house which Rachel has lovingly 'unrestored', taking out new kitchen cabinets and a whirlpool bath.