Hair has always been considered a woman's crowning glory. And it still is. The market Htoday is flooded with products for hair care and there is no reason why you should not have shinny lustrous locks if you take care of your hair using the correct products and hairstyle. In India, women wore their hair long because it was considered to be their major beauty asset but in this last decade there have been many changes in lifestyles, with the result that more women are sporting short or very casual styles. When cutting your hair, the most important thing to remember is that the style should be right for you. Before choosing a style, a number of points have to be taken into consideration, namely: The shape of your face, the way you dress and your lifestyle; and The texture of your hair –if it is way, curly, coarse or fine. Having the right hairstyle make all the difference to the way you feel about yourself. Before having your hair styled, you must go to a professional hairdresser who will be the best person to tell you which style will be the best for you. Always keep in mind that you will have to style your hair yourself, so you need a style that you can manage easily. Having one that you cannot look after can have disastrous consequences. The good hairstyle should fit your ?? ?? total look, your lifestyle, and the clothes that you wear. It should also compliment the type of hair you have, disguise face and figure faults and enhance your best features. Today, hair colour is the 'in' thing and it is not surprising that even a very slight change of colour can bring out a new hairstyle and emphasise its best points. The texture of your hair plays an important part in the final decision. Heavy hair that is strong and healthy is the easiest to style. If the natural fall of the hair is taken into account, then it will hold its style without too much effort on your part. Fizzy hair is really the most difficult to keep in style unless it is cut very short. Although this type of hair looks strong, it is not and must be looked after carefully. It tends to tangle after shampoo and gets into knots. You need to comb it through gently with a wide tooth comb when it is half dry. When your hair is wet, it is at its weakest and breaks easily. Fine straight hair looks soft and silky but is often the most difficult to keep in a style. It is usually oily and looks flatter and finer a few hours after shampoo. It usually needs to be shampooed daily. But whatever type of hair you have or whatever the style, keep the following points in mind. § Shampoo your hair regularly –twice or thrice a week. The pollution in the atmosphere and the dust and the dirt settles in the hair, causing it to twin greasy and look dull. §To much chemical harms the hair shaft so go easy on the treatment you subject it to. Dyeing, straightening, colouring -these should be kept to the minimum or done by a professional. §Eat plenty of protein-it is good for your hair. §Exercise for at least half an hour, four days a week. §Make sure that the products you use, such as shampoos, conditioners, mousses and gels are of reputed brands. Isha Majumder BA (Journo, Psy and Eng) Body beautiful never felt the need to be more in shape than now. BWith the advent of Lycra as a fashion fabric, tailored for all occasions – not just to exercise in, and then comes Lycra to rescue. So, what's Lycra? Today, majority of denim wear bank on Lycra for the stretch and recovery properties. It's a fabric which provides comfort, fit and freedom of movement. First made in Waynesboro, Virginia in 1962, Lycra brand elastane fibre capped two decades of research to produce a good synthetic elastomeric fibre. Fabrics with the use of Lycra have the ability to stretch five to six times their length and recover back to their original length. The composition of Lycra is manmade elastane fibre, which is actually segmented polyurethane. Being composed of soft or flexible segments, which are bound together with hard or rigid segment, it is this molecular structure which gives the fibre its ability to stretch and return to its original shape. The best part is that it can help evaporate perspiration faster and is virtually wrinkle free. Lycra is never used in its purest form but in combination with natural or manmade fibres or blend of both. So we have the blend of denim jeans with a bit of Lycra; as today's woman, in particular want a look that accentuates body line with a second skin fit, flattering but yet comfortable. This Lycra jean adapts well to the need of a demanding woman of today. But Lycra is not just about the fairer sex, men do have their own fashion urges. So, what do they want or look for? They go for comfort as first priority rather than anything else, so they may choose Lycra based clothes for its merits of being relaxed, stretch. Then they also want something which is long lasting that once again is Lycra. How does one define a great pair of jeans? Is it the comfort, good fitting, trendy or fashionable? Sure enough, Lycra fits the bill here. There are many brands, namely Levis Strauss, Pepe Jeans, Lee Cooper and the like which make use of Lycra in their manufacturing. Contents vary from 2 to 4 percent, of Lycra. Today, teenagers are very conscious about their figures, and they do not shy away from flaunting it. Surely, you will not be surprised to find their wardrobe full of jeans, skin tight accompanied with trendy tops. So, the next time you go in for a jeans hunt, make sure you look out for the Lycra tag. Shampa Saha BA (Journo, Psy and Eng)