To celebrate World Book Day, we want to tell you a little bit about this ‘Encyclopedia Beautannica’, written by our longtime colleague and dear friend Alice Hart-Davis.

‘Tweakments’ cover all those aesthetic cosmetic procedures that do not involve surgery. So, for instance, chemical peels, souped-up facials, face-plumping fillers, skin-smoothing lasers, IPL treatment for pigmentation and a myriad others in this fast-moving world – not forgetting Botox, the first one in the field.

If you’re in your teens or twenties, with a face as smooth as a baby’s bottom, this probably isn’t for you. (Though you might be concerned with acne scars, facial redness etc. – so actually don't dismiss it.) But as the years go by, many women we know – and yes, us too – really want a comprehensive guide to what’s available. And you simply could never get a better one than this.

Alice has been intrepidly researching and writing about these tweakments for nearly 20 years – the good, the bad and the might-almost-make-you-ugly (we have dreadful flashbacks to the ‘trout pout’ era…). Her teams of testers have also been trialling rafts of treatments for possible inclusion and writing up their reports for the book. (We always say: ‘Alice goes out and tries these treatments so WE don’t have to!’)

The impetus to write The Tweakments Guide came when a 50-year-old friend (Ellie) emailed her just after ‘a horror moment in the mirror’. Alice dedicated her book to Ellie ‘and everyone else who has looked in the mirror and wondered whether a tweakment might help – and if so, what are these things anyway, and where should you start…’

We’re gripped, riveted and totally in awe of the colossal amount of work that has gone into creating this guide – key to add that it’s transparently honest. Also, given the deplorable lack of regulation in this arena, Alice has included an essential chapter on choosing the best practitioner and keeping safe.

There’s a website of the same name, with practitioners nationwide and masses of other information, which is about to be launched. Do look it up and subscribe for regular updates, thetweakmentsguide.com. (It has a comprehensive section on Staying Safe – which really is the most important thing of all.) You can buy the book on the site, too.

But whether you’re reading Rose Tremain or The Gruffalo – or ordering this brilliant guide – Happy World Book Day, from us.

£14.95 - buy here

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