internet dating tips

Dating at breakfast time - what to wear?

‘Fancy a Bagel?’ Breakfast Date

Men

If you’re off to breakfast together, make an effort. To be fair, this goes for every date, but the last thing you want is for her to start her day staring across the table at a bleary eyed, hair-mussed, scraggly shaved example of manhood. Go to bed early, get up on time, shower! Dress in lighter colours but stick to smart silhouettes – ironed trousers, soft shirt, layering jumper. Come prepared to discuss the day ahead.

Women

Obviously, you have to dress for the day in front of you but stick in something special to give a nod to the fact you’re meeting a date first. Make sure you give yourself time in the morning do do your hair and make-up to your satisfaction and wear softer colours than you would in the evening. A white shirt and colourful silk scarf is a fail safe option every women can pull out of the wardrobe to look classy and pulled together early in the morning.

 

Take a date to lunch to get to know them better

 

‘Let’s do Lunch’ Date

Men

It’s lunchtime, your morning passed in a blur, you feel run ragged already. Head to the bathroom! Splash some cold water on your face and wrists, re-apply deodorant and re-style your hair if necessary. If you were super prepared, slip on the spare shirt you brought with you and be fresh as a daisy when you walk into the lunch date. Smart shoes are a must, unless you’re doing street vendor food, in which case have a back-up plan for where to sit if it rains.

Women

Your head is still concentrating on the details for that afternoon meeting and your nervous hair twirling has caused a frizz situation. To the ladies room! A wash of the hands, a spritz of perfume and a bouff up of the hair under the blowdryer serves to have you ready to charm and chat all through lunch. Take a smaller bag with you to keep your focus on your date and not your iphone. Slip a cosy cardigan on to break down the ‘I’m at work’ barriers and help you relax over lunchtime.

 

What to wear to the date you know is breaking up with you

 

‘We Need to Talk’ Break-up Date

Men

If you are about to ditch someone, tone down your look. Dress in sombre colours and at least look like you spent the last few nights in anguish over your decision. If you think you are about to be subjected to the ‘It’s not you, it’s me’ line yourself, dress like you own your own very successful company, have legions of adoring fans awaiting you around every corner and have only to buy a new deodorant to have women swarming all over you. Think smart shoes, fresh haircut, dab of fresh cologne. You’ve already moved on, baby.

Women

If you are about to commence break-up speech number two with your unfortunate date, have the decency to look average, or better, plain. Dark colours, nothing fancy with your hair or make-up, simple clothes. No need to twist the dagger, as it were. However, if you suspect you’re about to get dumped, look fabulous. Accentuate your figure, get a blow dry, wear your favorite lipstick and don some sexy (but walkable) heels. Accept the dumping with a glossy smile, then sashay out of there like you’re off to meet the President for drinks.

 

What to wear for your engagement

 

‘Will you Marry Me’ Date

Men

If you’re getting down on one knee, start off with a good quality, dark trouser – no need to have dirt decorating your knees for the rest of the day, especially as you’re likely to be either wining and dining your new fiancee or else drowning your sorrows in the pub with your mates. Depending on how you plan to pop the question, add a suitable top half of the outfit (polo shirt if active, ironed shirt if dressed up and tee shirt…no, never a tee shirt. Make some effort, please). Make sure you have a jacket with a secure inner pocket, natch.

Women

If you’re the one trying to make an honest man of him, good for you. See above. If you merely suspect that you are about to be proposed to, put some extra effort in. After all, there will likely be photos and these pictures will stick around for the entire rest of your life, so no pressure. Get your hair done before your date, keep your make-up simple and classic – anything trendy will date so fast and have you hiding those pictures within the year. Dress appropriately for the venue and get a French manicure, you know. Just in case.

 

CHECK OUT MORE GREAT ARTICLES ON WHAT TO WEAR: 

More advice on what to wear for a first date

Get some date ideas that nix the classic ‘I have nothing to wear’ wail by their very nature.

Planning your outfit along with your date

 

Fancy a great date night this Friday but not sure of what to do due to the dropping temperatures and rising prices? Here are our Free and Single ideas for indoor dates;

 

Get back in touch with your heritage

If you have been on a few dates now and really trust each other (Stay Safe Online Dating!) then it might be a good idea to try staying in and cooking a meal. There are loads of variations on this, but why not try each bringing a dish from your respective family origin and teach each other about what makes you you. Our Asian Free and Singles could try dishes from different regions of Asia and our Black Free and Singles could discover differences from Barbadian cuisine to African specialities.

 

Get in the holiday mood

If your faith is an important part of your life, you need your date to understand that and the holidays are the perfect time to introduce someone you are interested in to your community. Why not head to a carol concert at your church, Christian Free and Singles and enjoy singing together? Don’t forget to stay afterwards for mulled wine and mince pies while chatting with other members of your congregation.

 

Try something that is simply fun

As we approach the festivities of December, it’s time to get back to the innocent delight in the season – remember when Christmas was fun and exciting? You didn’t have to worry about being the single one at the family ‘do or about what to wear to the Office party. Cuddly Free and Singles and Divorced Free and Singles, get ye to your nearest ice rink and have an awesome time with your date, whether you are whizzing around the centre of the rink or clinging onto the side.

 

Stay in touch with the next generation

For our Mature Free and Singles, many of you will have grandchildren you may be looking to spend more time with and for our Free and Single Parents, it’s good to have some time just hanging out with your kids instead of having to actively parent them. Choose an activity you can all do together without distractions, like baking and decorating cupcakes or playing some good old fashioned board games like Monopoly or Cluedo.

 

Push your boundaries

Here’s a good’un for our Professional Free and Singles which our Wealthy Free and Singles should enjoy too. Head to your nearest theater and buy tickets for the next showing of whatever is on – be it the Vagina Monologues, Shakespeare’s Midsummer Nights Dream or a production of Calendar Girls. You get out of it if you have seen it before, but otherwise this is a great way to spark of a discussion and find out about something you wouldn’t have otherwise tried.

 

Try something new outside your comfort zone

This one is perfect for both out Young Free and Singles who are still looking to define what they want out of a relationship and our Fit Free and Singles who are up for some fitness-based fun. Head to the gym this weekend and bond with each other by trialing a new class together. You’ll help to motivate each other and push each other to be better – if it all goes horribly wrong, you’ll be there at the end to pick each other back up and try something else next time!

We’ve all been there – staring at the blank screen, trying to think of exactly how to fill out your Free and Single profile page in order to attract all the right people and none of the wrong ones. There is a lot of pressure (self-inflicted, I may add) to get your profile perfect. So good that you instantly attract your soul mate and breeze off into the sunset together. What do you write, what picture do you post, what do you say your likes and dislikes are?

 

Simplest answer? (Slightly cheesy, but hey…)

 

Be true to yourself!

 

No point looking like a Chelsea FC supporter when you have never in fact been to a football game and despise whenever it comes onto the TV. Even the adverts. You know what I’m talking about.

So, previously we have taken you through a list of online dating profile no-nos. Here is our next list of top tips to help you out at that awkward, life defining, preventable moment when you upload a five year old photo instead of a current one.

 

Free and Single 5 Top Tips to Make Your Online Dating Profile Great

 

1. Be original!

There is no point to spouting the same old clichés we have heard a thousand times before in every rom-com under the sun. Sure, you may really, really love to take long walks on the beach…but spice it up a bit. Is that because you find walking on sand really tones up your thighs? Is it because the sound of the waves breaking take you back to the calm on a childhood spent on the seaside? Do you like dipping your toes in or going rock pooling? Think outside the box.

 

2. Try not to be aggressive

It is all very well knowing, secretly, inside your head that you could never even bring yourself to date a man who takes more time styling his hair than you do, but ranting about must-haves and must-not-haves on your profile is a serious breach of online dating etiquette. Who wants to hear that, despite otherwise seeming to be a perfect match, you won’t meet up with them because you have a phobia of the colour red…which happens to be their favourite?

 

3. Lose the silly photos

Yes, yes, it may show that you have a GSOH. It also says that you lack confidence in yourself to just appear, as you are, sans red clown nose or mad Hawaiian coconut shell bra. Tone it down, show your humour with a witty comment or a well-turned phrase in the text part of your profile and know that you can show it off to your hearts content when you actually meet up with someone. No point putting them off at the first hurdle.

 

4. Stop posting shared photos

You know what I mean. The picture of you and two friends dolled up for a night on the tiles. First off, how does a potential date tell which person you are? Do they assume they get three dates for the price of one? Do they start running unfavourable comparisons between the person in the centre and the person on the left? Do they decide, ultimately, you are too immature to want to date as you can’t apparently represent yourself as an individual? Think about it.

 

5. Avoid listing your life goals

It’s nice to have goals, drive, ambition. Listing that you intend to be married by 32, with a baby on the way by 33, a second child at 35, a move to the country at 38…that is a leetle tiny bit over controlling. Potential daters want to know that you are going to go out together, have a fun time and maybe/maybe not meet up again. They don’t want to feel like they are being interrogated for a role in the ‘You Show’.

Find love with Free and Single Online Dating Profile Advice