Hairdresser - R600; Manicure - R360; Facial - R150 and no, sadly nothing is priceless in fact, during these turmoil economic conditions, everything comes with a very heavy price tag.

Lets face it, women are usually worst off tightening their belts then their male counterparts. There's always that nail that seems to chip right in the middle of the month or those grey roots that sticks its head out right before payday.

While it pays to have a stylist friend unfortunately not all of us have that luxury, thus I have consulted two of the best professionals in the business to give some expert advice on how to save a buck or two while still looking great.

Wish you were hair…

There's no shortcut to a good haircut. To make your healthy, fresh salon look lasts longer than the prescribed 6 – 8 week period, Craig Hopkins, the National Education Manager for ghd South Africa, recommends using professional hair products.

"Using professional products will improve the overall condition of your hair, keeping it healthy and more manageable. Professional styling products will not cause any build up or oiliness or greasiness and your style will therefore last longer. "All hair are different and each individual has different hair care needs," Hopkins adds.

Hopkins suggests a four-step routine to keep your hair looking its best:

Step one: Cleanse and nourish – the ghd thermodynamics range offers a wide variety of treatments but Hopkins recommends the remedy cream daily leave-in treatment (R185 - 150ml). This treatment will de-stress, lubricate, glosses and protect each individual hair and prevents breakage.

Step two: Protect – It's imperative that hair is well protected from heat while styling says Hopkins. He recommends the thermal protector (R210 for 150ml) for weak and damaged hair that will deflect hair when heat-styling.

Step three: Create and style – To increase the volume and body limit of your hairstyle, Hopkins recommends a texture lotion for controlled shorter hairstyles while the fat hair lotion (R190 for 150ml) for all over volume is ideal for medium to longer hair styles.

Step 4: Finishing touch – For the finishing touch Hopkins recommends the reflection spray (R195 for 50ml) for the final shine. This product will ensure hair is glossy, anti-static, anti-frizz, fast-drying spray, says Hopkins.

Makeup and move up

Applying make-up seems like such a time consuming – not to mention expensive – ordeal that most of us opt to rather not apply any at all. But make-up needn't be a hassling process. Will Malherbe, National make-up artist for Bobbi Brown, South Africa explains that a few essentials will do the trick and in the process you can also save a few rands.

Malherbe explains that the three essentials for the winter are a richer moisturizer as our skin tends to be a bit dryer during the winter months. Bobbi Brown stocks a hydrating face cream (R450) which is ideal while longwear cream eye shadow (R215) can add drama to the eyes while staying in place the whole day. A creamy lip colour (R205) will keep you lips hydrated while adding colour as well.

Make-up, like fashion, has also adapted to seasonal styles and colours and Malherbe says the trend for winter-2009 is to accentuate one feature by adding a bit of colour to either the eyes or the lips and then to soften the other features like the cheeks. Bobbi Brown's interpretation of winter is very uptown meets downtown, he says.

The greatest secret to saving on makeup is to buy products that can double up, says Malherbe. Pot rouge (R250) from Bobbi Brown can be used on the cheeks and lips while Bobbi's extra tinted balm (R650) is a real 3 in 1 product, providing moisture, firming benefits, SPF25 and gives some colour to the skin.

Malherbe says the greatest make-up investment you can make is to buy the correct foundation and high quality make-up brushes. He says that your skin colour is not the same in winter and summer and a professional make-up artist will be able to match your skin tone while professional brushes will last you a lifetime.

For more information about ghd products, please call 031 717 2530.

To book a personalized face chart from Bobbi Brown call; Edgars Claremont 021 683 5518, Edgars Eastgate 011 622 9982, Edgars Menlyn 012 348 6470, Edgars Sandton 011 884 4818, Edgars Tygervalley 021 914 2072, Edgars V&A 021 418 8188 and Edgars Westville 031 265 2667.