We all know the dangers of spending too much time in the sun - crepey skin, sun stroke, skin damage and of course, cancer. But while reaching for a bottle of fake tan might well may be a preferable solution, the perils of a cack-handed approach to self-tanning might also result in some equally serious damage to your image.

Left: Lindsay Lohan (Copyright Getty Images) Centre: Sam Faiers (Copyright Rex Features) Right: Paris Hilton (Copyright Getty Images)

When it comes to  fake tan, try to remember that the trick is to replicate the healthy glow we'd be sporting after a week in St Tropez.  A blotchy tan or an artificial Umpa Lumpa-orange glow is definitely not the look you should be going for, neither is the kind of deep brown hue that suggests you've spent the last week wallowing in a mud bath.  Sadly, the above scenarios are all too common, and aren't just restricted to those with a tendency to get heavy-handed when it comes to application - fake tan applied to skin that hasn't been properly prepared will often appear blotchy and will also start to fade sooner.

[Related feature: More tips for natural looking

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Last week, newspapers around the world reported that a 12 year old girl from Brazil was planning to cut off her super-long hair and sell it for use as extensions. Can the hair on our heads really be that valuable?

Dubbed the "real life Rapunzel," Natasha Moraes de Andrade, who lives in one of Rio de Janeiro's poorest areas and has never had a haircut, told the world's press how she hopes her five feet of hair will rake in over £3,000.

Salons have always been happy to pay cold, hard cash for real human hair, due to the demand for 'real hair'extensions," says Stephanie Stevenson, who founded www.salonconfidential.co.uk and has investigated the real hair trade in China.  "The demand for human hair currently exceeds availability, and has done so for several years. The main advantage is the ability to colour the extensions to match your own hair. You simply cannot colour artificial hair in the same way."

[Related feature: Tips for choosing hair extensions to suit you]
[Related feature: Top

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When it comes to drastic hairstyles, there can't be many more ways of standing out from the crowd than by shaving half of your head, but in the past  few months, some of our favourite celebrities have been doing exactly that, whether it's Lourdes' decision to lop off the locks on one side of her head and reach for the shaver, or the similar undercuts recently sported by Rihanna, Willow Smith, Ke$ha and our very own Cher Lloyd.

Brit supermodel Alice Dellal was one of the first celebrities to opt for an undercut: when she first stepped out sporting her new do, salons soon reported a surge in requests for the kooky style. However, today's undercut is refreshingly different to the one first sported by Bowie et all in the eighties, which had a much more punky feel. Today's undercuts are less frightening affairs, with stylists often using razors to create a frayed, softer finish which can be tailored to suit individual face shapes.

"I personally think undercuts look fantastic,

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It shouldn't come as a surprise that looking good is pretty high up on the list of priorities for the TOWIE cast, but we're pretty sure their must-have beauty product isn't so obvious: nappy cream.

That's right, ever since TOWIE's Chloe Simms slapped it on the face of co-star and acne-sufferer Diags, Superdrug has reported that the £2.75 tubs of Sudocrem have been flying off the shelves. And, in a time of nationwide belt-tightening, Chloe might just be onto something.  "With customers trying to cut back on their spending we've noticed a significant rise in the buying of cost effective multi-purpose products," observes Simon Comins, Superdrug's director of toiletries.

So, what other multipurpose miracle products lurk within the dark recesses of our homes? Here are the experts' top go-to emergency products.

You've been TOWIED

Whilst we love their use of nappy cream as a quick fix for skin complaints, we're not so keen on the Tango-orange glow sported by the cast of the Essex reality

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It doesn't have to be Friday the 13th for a beauty disaster of seismic proportions to occur. Here's how to deal with the very worst the beauty gods can throw at us.

Spot check
So, you're getting ready for a night on the town only to discover that the mother of all spots has just put in an appearance. Here's how to cope.

"Avoid picking the spot," says Dr Sam Bunting, a cosmetic dermatologist. "Instead, try treating the area with an anti-inflammatory acne preparation containing salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide, allow it to dry and then cover with concealer (I recommend Vichy Dermablend which is non-comedogenic and comes in a great array of colours), then leave it alone."

But let's face it, how many of us can honestly resist the temptation to have a scratch? "If you've picked a spot and it's red and raw, it's important to interfere with it as little as possible, to reduce the risk of scarring," warns Dr Bunting.

"This is especially true if the spot had not yet come to a white head when

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More people have more tattoos in more places than ever before.  If you're considering getting inked, choosing the design is now the hardest part, and we've spoken to some of the world's top tattoo artists to find out more about the tattoos they love and the ones they're not so keen on.

Tribal feudsAbove: Mike Tyson, Robbie Williams and Cheryl Cole all sport tribal markings.

"I'm not a big fan of doing Tribal work and cover ups," says top tattoo artist Louis Molloy, resident artist at Manchester's Middleton Tattoo studio, and the star of TV show London Ink. "Also, because of some of the work I've done on celebrities, I've gained a good reputation for doing religious-themed work but I feel that I've done so much over the past 10 to 12 years that it no longer holds the same appeal. I most often get requests for religious-inspired work - not because people are overtly religious but more that they like the 'look'."

[Related feature: The most regrettable celebrity tattoos]

Colour codes
Indeed, while that Celtic cross or tribal etching may have seemed like a good idea at Read More »

It's arrived. The skincare brand hailed as a miracle cure for problem skin has finally landed on our shores, 17 years after Dr. Katie Rodan and Dr. Kathy Fields unveiled what became one of the best selling skincare brands of all time.  But with a price tag of £39.99, will it prove as popular as it is in the US?

Proactiv, which went on sale in Boots this week, has (or so the infomercials would have us believe) a huge cult following: Justin Bieber, Delta Goodrem, Alicia Keys, Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry and Elle Macpherson are just some of the celebrities who've signed up to rave about the product. The Proactiv range was created by Dr. Katie Rodan and Dr. Kathy Fields in 1995, and started as a three-step skincare system but soon evolved into a whole product range, which included everything from face masks and peels to make up and body washes.

It's the brand's famous three-step system which launched in the UK this week.

[Related feature: How to get rid of spots]

What does Proactive

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If those under eye circles are looking a little darker than usual, our usual response is to reach for the light reflecting concealer. If our lips are feeling a little dry, we blame it on the weather and slick on an extra layer of lip balm.

However it's often worth taking a closer look - our bodies might just be trying to tell us something.

Hello hydration

If your lips are constantly dry, you're probably not drinking enough water, but it can also be a sign that you're not getting enough vitamin E, which can be found in peanuts, leafy greens and seeds.

Dry lips might also indicate a lack of vitamin B, which helps to maintain the health of your cells, and in turn, the condition of your skin.

In extreme cases, cracked, dry skin at the corner of the mouth can indicate a B-6 deficiency. Beans, peanuts, squash, beef and leafy vegetables are all rich in B vitamins.

Few people look their best after a night on the town, but a severe case of bed head and morning breath bad enough to clear whole

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