Recent Entries

• Among friends

  by Ariane Durand March 19, 2023
  Today I went to see my friends P & P in boy mode for lunch at their house, where I met some of their family who had turned up for Mothering Sunday. They were all very kind and passed on some spare but unused cosmetics and brushes to add to my collection. It was good to be able to talk about Ariane a...

• Lying low

  by Ariane Durand March 17, 2023
  Ariane has gone to ground – externally at least – owing to the constant presence of family members in the house for the next few days. It's all I can do to collect deliveries from couriers before others see them. Stuff designed for a trans recipient generally arrives in plain packaging, but boxes of...

• Photo from makeup lesson

  by Ariane Durand March 16, 2023
  Christiane followed the makeup lesson by taking some close-up full-face studio photos with her camera. One of these I really like. It's so sweet. So it's gone into Ariane's photo album. Again, you have to be a Full Member and my Friend to see the album.

• Cosmetics

  by Ariane Durand March 16, 2023
  I have ordered online all the products recommended by Christiane Dowling. The beauty business is so expensive! But to place things in context I actually spent more on the pearl necklace and bracelet than I did on all those cosmetics.   It will take a few days for everything to arrive. I can't prac...

• The Girl Inside: AVOID

  by Ariane Durand March 15, 2023
  I do look around for dressing services offering a makeover and photoshoot, particularly in places that I’m expecting to visit in the near future. One that caught my eye is The Girl Inside, which is just outside Bath. The tastefully-designed website has a picture of an old house that looks as though ...

• Christiane Dowling

  by Ariane Durand March 15, 2023
  Today I drove to Sandhurst for a makeup lesson with professional artiste Christiane Dowling. The first thing to say about Christiane is how young she looks. In her 20s at most. She wasn’t wearing much, if any, makeup. Maybe she has a flawless complexion. She is certainly the most highly-qualified ar...

• Happy dressing

  by Ariane Durand March 14, 2023
  So I spent a happy morning as Ariane. The heels were more comfortable than I expected. I'm not used to walking around in a ladylike manner but I will get there. Also I enjoyed watching Endeavour S9 E1. No TGirls on show but that was the 1960s after all.   Then out on the bike for a short and pleas...

• Home alone

  by Ariane Durand March 14, 2023
  I'm at home on my own all day today. And most of Ariane's clothes have arrived, including at least two complete outfits. So it doesn't take a genius to work out what I'm doing. I won't be going out – that will have to wait for the makeup lesson tomorrow – but otherwise Ariane will be in residence an...

• Wigs

  by Ariane Durand March 13, 2023
  I decided to postpone my makeup lesson, not for complex psychological reasons, but simply because the wig I ordered online does not fit. I was not able to try it on until this morning. I do have a replacement on order from a different supplier and this should arrive within 24 hours. The makeup lesso...

• Ariane vs Rest of the World

  by Ariane Durand March 13, 2023
  On Sunday evening I suffered a profound psychological blow that undermined my entire approach to life. I felt it in my heart and I'm now trying to make sense of it. At least it was not related to Ariane – not outwardly at any rate.   The world does not move as fast as I would like and people do no...