Please think of this week's pages as less a fashion story and more a public service.

It is up for debate which designer (or duo in the case of Dolce & Gabbana) was the pioneer of the spring/summer 12 trend for intricate detail which pervaded so many catwalk collections and which has found its way onto the high street at twice the speed of sound.

For most of us, the biggest questions we have to face relating to our hair, is how much to have cut, or when to have our highlights retouched. But for some women, who have suffered the esteem-shredding horror of hair loss through alopecia or following chemotherapy, there are more fundamental questions, such as will I ever be able to look at myself in the mirror again.

From flowing waves to Cheryl Cole-style "big hair" and full-on candy floss frizz, the styles for summer and autumn are full of movement, volume and texture and - like the seasons' fashion they are designed to complement - they owe a lot to earlier decades.

If you thought tanning got complicated when SPF numbers were introduced back in the 1980s, you may find that the labelling introduced following last year's round of EU sun-screen regulations drives you to a darkened room for a little lie down.

There is barely a current fashion trend that doesn't owe its provenance to the latter half of the 20th century: sweetheart necklines and below-the-knee pencil skirts from the 50s, ladylike A-line shift dresses from the 60s and batwings and beading from the 70s. Naturally, the high street faithfully replicates the fashion of these eras but, as many women have discovered, why buy new when you can be totally authentic with vintage.

One woman who has been buying vintage since long before it became cool is Leeds-born Judy Berger, founder of the Affordable Vintage Fair.

It's not sexy, we know; and it is reminiscent of the lectures we all got/get from our mothers, but it really can be cathartic (not to say hugely practical) to give your closet a clear-out. And right now, in that window between winter-sales splurging and planning spring purchases, is the perfect moment to do it: to decide what to keep and what to send to the local All Aboard shop, even - quaint, old-fashioned thought - to decide what to repair and what, in these recessionary times, might be given a bit of va-voom with some TLC and, maybe, some new buttons.

According to F Scott Fitzgerald, there are no second acts. Well try telling that to Elizabeth Emanuel, who on Tuesday night was due to perform not her second act but her fourth.

A new skincare collection based around the white peony has been launched by a woman with no previous experience of the beauty industry.

Dianna Cohen was on a business trip to Taiwan four years ago when she noticed the smooth, youthful skin of the women and began asking questions.

"I discovered that the local women regularly consume the root and petals of the white peony, which is a natural antioxidant and has been known for hundreds of years for its healing and beauty properties," she explained.