Your lunchtime beauty fix

It's official. The lunch hour, once a sacrosanct break in the middle of the working day, is now a bare shadow of its former self. The average lunch hour has been pruned into a lightning swift, 27-minute break. But for the canny London worker, there are plenty of things that you can do in less than half an hour...

Blow-dry

The 10-minute blow-dry. Louisa at Valentino in Kensington, is quick - as well as good (020 7937 6911; £25).

The 20-minute blow-dry plus manicure: two stylists, one manicurist, all in 20 minutes. From £35 at Hari's, at Brompton Cross (020 7581 5211).

The 20-minute blow-dry. Errol Douglas's stylists will perform their super-fast blow-dry at the Belgravian salon, lunch and limo optional. Call 020 7235 0110 for details.

Manicure

The 10-minute at-your-desk manicure: Heaven@home will come to you - and it can all take as little as 10 minutes. From £30; call 020 7937 4333 or e-mail heaven@ lifeworks.co.uk.

The 15-minute manicure: Scarlet's Shape and Paint (020 7376 9376) takes 15 minutes and costs £12. The Mini Manicure, £16, is more elaborate, but still takes only 20 minutes

Grooming

The 15-minute teeth-whitening treatment. Dr Sunny Luthra of Capital Dental Care will do a lightning whitening in your office. From £500; call 020 7349 8889 or visit www.capitaldental.com.

The 10-minute eyebrow shape: Vogue girls swear by it. Try Shavata Singh at Michaeljohn, W1 (020 7629 6969); Vaishaly Patel at Martyn Maxey, Mayfair (020 7629 6161).

The 10-minute facelift. Botox, of course. The injections take no time . Try Dr Patrick Bowler (01277 203 000); Dr Jules Nabet (0207 937 2882); Dr Hilary Allen (0845 602 1161); or Dr Jean-Louis Sebagh (0207 637 0548). Expect to pay £200 plus.

The 20-minute instant eyelift. Banish crow's feet with a 20-minute intensive eye treatment with collagen, to soften fine lines and wrinkles, at the Mayfair Retreat (020 7409 7254; £32.50).

The 25-minute make-up lesson. Molton Brown specialists will update your look in 25 minutes (call 020 7625 6550 for details and salons).

Exercise

The one-hour workout condensed into 12-minutes. Power-Plate is a new exercise machine that combats muscle wastage and bone density deterioration (it was invented for astronauts). Find it at some Canons' gyms, Chelsea Harbour Club, Fitness First (City and Covent Garden) and HB Health (Harley Street and Beauchamp Place), or call Power-Plate on 020 8450 8777 (www.power-plate.com).

Bannatyne Fitness club in Grove Park, SE12, offers Time Pressure Workout programmes (call 020 8857 7222 for more details).

15-minute tan

Airbrush tans are the new way to bronze. Try St-Tropez Air (0115 922 1462), Fantasy Tan (01707 643 031) or Su-Do (01423 340 040).

Sunbeds will do the job just as fast: a top-speed session on an Ergoline machine costs from £6 and takes from five to 20 minutes. Call 020 8498 7277 for your nearest salon.

10-minute massage

Booster massage at Relax, Brewer Street, W1 (020 7494 3333; £10).

20-minute skin analysis

The Ella Bache consultant in Selfridges Beauty Lab (0870 837 7377) will photograph your skin with a Visnu camera, which diagnoses sun damage, and suggest appropriate products to deal with the results.

The 10-minute at-your-desk manicure: Heaven@home will come to you - and it can all take as little as 10 minutes. From £30; call 020 7937 4333 or e-mail heaven@ lifeworks.co.uk.

The 15-minute manicure: Scarlet's Shape and Paint (020 7376 9376) takes 15 minutes and costs £12. The Mini Manicure, £16, is more elaborate, but still takes only 20 minutes

The 15-minute teeth-whitening treatment. Dr Sunny Luthra of Capital Dental Care will do a lightning whitening in your office. From £500; call 020 7349 8889 or visit www.capitaldental.com.

The 10-minute eyebrow shape: Vogue girls swear by it. Try Shavata Singh at Michaeljohn, W1 (020 7629 6969); Vaishaly Patel at Martyn Maxey, Mayfair (020 7629 6161).

The 10-minute facelift. Botox, of course. The injections take no time . Try Dr Patrick Bowler (01277 203

000); Dr Jules Nabet (0207 937 2882); Dr Hilary Allen (0845 602 1161); or Dr Jean-Louis Sebagh (0207 637

0548). Expect to pay £200 plus.

The 20-minute instant eyelift. Banish crow's feet with a 20-minute intensive eye treatment with collagen, to soften fine lines and wrinkles, at the Mayfair Retreat (020 7409 7254; £32.50).

The 25-minute make-up lesson. Molton Brown specialists will update your look in 25 minutes (call 020 7625 6550 for details and salons).

The one-hour workout condensed into 12-minutes. Power-Plate is a new exercise machine that combats muscle wastage and bone density deterioration (it was invented for astronauts). Find it at some Canons' gyms, Chelsea Harbour Club, Fitness First (City and Covent Garden) and HB Health (Harley Street and Beauchamp Place), or call Power-Plate on 020 8450 8777 (www.power-plate.com).

Bannatyne Fitness club in Grove Park, SE12, offers Time Pressure Workout programmes (call 020 8857 7222 for more details).

Airbrush tans are the new way to bronze. Try St-Tropez Air (0115 922 1462), Fantasy Tan (01707 643 031) or Su-Do (01423 340 040). Sunbeds will do the job just as fast: a top-speed session on an Ergoline machine costs from £6 and takes from five to 20 minutes. Call 020 8498 7277 for your nearest salon.

10-minute massage

Booster massage at Relax, Brewer Street, W1 (020 7494 3333; £10).

20-minute skin analysis

The Ella Bache consultant in Selfridges Beauty Lab (0870 837

7377) will photograph your skin with a Visnu camera, which diagnoses sun damage, and suggest appropriate products to deal with the results.