Steph Myatt, a stylist at the Francesco salon in Broad Street, Hanley, did Mal's cut. She says: "When Mal came into the salon her hair was dark and hanging down her face with no shape.

"After we discussed the colour we talked about the cut, and she said she didn't want to lose too much length but wanted a style that would flick out. It needed shape and body, so after I took off the length needed I added a diagonal layer to make it choppy and bouncy. I then applied short shaping around the front to frame her face. I then dried her hair using a round brush so that I could flick it out at the ends after adding the Sebastian Taming Elixir product.

"To finish, I used the GHD straighteners just on the ends to make it look crisp, and I applied the Sebastian Re-shaper hairspray to keep it in place."

Rachael Slowiskowski, a master colour expert at the Francesco salon in Broad Street, Hanley, did Mal's colour. She says: "Mal explained that she just used a plain and natural all-over colour because she wasn't daring enough to try something different. I added a rich burgundy red at the front to frame her face, and a medium mahogany brunette brown throughout to add a glossy look that complemented Mal's skin colour. The colours we used were from Wella."

COST: Mal's cut and colour would have cost £82. To contact the salon call 01782 268933.

The make-up

Pat Hulme, a skin care consultant at the Clinque counter in Debenhams, Hanley, took care of Mal's make-up. She says:

"All the products I used were from Clinique. I started off with a redness solutions cream to sooth and calm Mal's skin because it was quite red due to the stress she had been under.

"The foundation I used was the Even Better SPF Anti-Ageing Foundation and I followed this with a pressed powder to set it. I then used an airbrush concealer which lightens and brightens the eye area and softens the look of fine lines, before applying a mixed berries blusher from the spring collection.

"For Mal's eyes I used the pickled pear eyeliner, also from the new spring collection, and I defined the area with the new instant lift for brows and eyes. I then used a primer on her lashes, followed by the new high-length mascara for longer and bolder looking lashes. To finish I used the quickliner for lips and the high impact lipstick with SPF 15."

To contact the Clinique counter at Debenhams call 01782 211038.

Clinque at Debenhams is on bonus time until Saturday, February 27. Buy two products, including one skin care product, and receive a free gift worth £60 and a £5 Betty Jackson voucher.

The clothes

Debenhams personal shopper Fay Wiggins took care of Mal's clothes.

She says: "Mal's new hair looked lovely and I wanted to put her in an outfit that really complemented her slender frame.

Together we chose an emerald boxy style jacket with black buttons from the Debenhams Collections range, priced at £38.

"We paired this with a petite short sleeve emerald top, also from the Debenhams Collection range, priced at £20, and a pair of Jasper Conran black trousers, which were priced at £40. For her shoes we chose a pair of black kitten heels, priced at £15, and added a Jasper Conran lattice weave black bag, priced at £80. To finish we added a black and silver necklace, priced at £10, and a black and silver bracelet, priced at £8, both from the Wallis jewellery range."

To contact the personal shoppers in Debenhams, Hanley, call them on 01782 267076.

The verdict

Mal says: "I've had a wonderful day and would like to thank Rachel and Stef at Francescos for doing such a lovely job of my hair, and Fay and Pat at Debenhams for my clothes and make-up. It's been a tough few months, but my children have been brilliant and I'd also like to thank them for their love and support."