Five beauty products I cannot live without

I spend hours watching make-up tutorials on YouTube. It started when I began following Lisa Eldridge on Twitter a few years ago and she linked to a contouring video she’d made. Her voice and easy to follow instruction hooked me in and from then on I was engrossed, watching every video on a loop until I knew her tricks and tips. But no matter how many looks I learn, I never stray from my standard face – matte skin, bright lips, slick of black eyeliner, coupled with the same hairstyle. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it right?

Regardless of this commitment to the same daily face, I have drawers of products that I buy thinking I could maybe one day, just possibly, branch out. I buy eyeshadow quads of ice-cream spring colours, get home and click open the palette to almost recoil at the thought of slicking anything but the blackest black across my lids. It goes in the drawer, forgotten about along with the various coloured pencils, nude lipsticks and cream blushes that I thought I might just try.

After a recent clear out of three bags of unused goodies, I am determined to curb this habit. My beauty collection has been stripped back to basics, making it fairly easy to pick out the five I simply couldn’t live without. Most products I use are interchangeable (I don’t think I’ve ever bought the same mascara twice) but these five will live and die with me.

Origins Super Spot Remover Blemish Treatment Gel
I spent my teens and early twenties a spotty mess. While hormones played a key part in this, I’m pretty sure a shit (read ‘nonexistent’) skincare routine was to blame for a lot of it. Like most girls that age, I cleansed my face with a wipe and that was it. Grim now I think about it, but at the time it seemed enough.

Now I have a full routine that keeps my skin in fairly good nick, but I still have the odd breakout. This product was recommended to me by a colleague and I cannot believe I never found it sooner. Dab a tiny bit on the spot in the evening and by the morning the spot is visibly reduced, if not gone. It’s no good for large areas, but if you’re getting one or two big spots then this is nothing short of a miracle.

The ingredients that do this are salicylic acid, caffeine and red algae. I couldn’t give two hoots about the science though. As far as I’m concerned it’s made by angels who come down in the night and rub my skin better.

Rimmel Scandaleyes Waterproof Gel Liner
This little pot of excellence survived sweaty, drunken dancing in the rain at Glastonbury – and if it can do that, it can certainly sustain a day in the office. It comes with a brush built into the lid, making it handy to transport and touch up on the go if you need to (which you won’t ever because it’s bloody awesome).

Mini Batiste
Anyone with a full fringe will share my love for mini dry shampoo bottles. Block fringes have a tendency to part, making me look like Ben from A1. That wasn’t a look I wanted in 1998, and it certainly isn’t what I’m going for now. A quick spritz of Batiste, a shake and a shimmy and it’s back to its rightful place.

Red lipstick
Red lipstick can transform a whole outfit. It pulls everything together, making you look instantly ‘done’. I know I can sling on jeans and a t-shirt, and with the addition of blood-red lips and leopard print pumps I look kick-ass. I feel incomplete without it. If I don’t wear it, I don’t feel quite like me.

I know it’s cheating to be so generic, but it is almost impossible for me to pick a specific one; I have upwards of 20 red lipsticks in various shades, textures and formulas. My other half doesn’t really understand my need to buy more. “But this is more pink / velvet / orange / hydrating than the one I’m wearing” is often repeated when we go shopping. I guess blokes just don’t get the subtle differences a slightly bluer tint can make.  My current reds du jour are & Other Stories matte lipstick in Raschel Rouge and Max Factor Colour Elixir in Ruby Tuesday.

Kerastase Ciment Thermique
I wash and blowdry my hair everyday so heat styling can quickly take its toll. (Before you comment, no I’m not stripping out oils by washing it every day, yes I do know I could use dry shampoo – I just like clean swishy hair ok?) I originally read about this product on a beauty forum and so picked some up with my Boots points. I opened the box to discover the instructions had graphs. GRAPHS. In short, it explained that you only need to use the product every 4-5 washes, so a £18 hair product soon becomes a fairly affordable purchase. You smooth it onto wet hair and then style as normal. I don’t know the science bit, just that it’s heat activated and leaves my hair soft, strong and free from heat damage. My hair is both thin and fine (yeah, your jealous right?) and this doesn’t weigh it down or leave it greasy in any way. I cannot recommend it highly enough to anyone who blow dries each day.

 

So there you have it. My Fabulous Five. I do have a bonus gadget – the Babyliss Big Hair – but I’ll save that for another post.

A day in the wardrobe

By Jasmine

Day Look
I suppose my day look can be described as builder meets Simulacra punk meets feministy righteousness. Purchasing my buttercup yellow boots from the Shoe Embassy in London’s Camden earlier in the week, I decided that although boots are not commonly associated with sunny weather, anything is made possible with a bit of yellow on your feet. In an attempt to do these new wardrobe recruits justice, I have teamed up my Cheap Monday stonewash jeans with my No More Page 3 T-shirt. The top now has a bit of a distressed look thanks to a mean battle with my washing machine in back when I lived in Madrid, but I think that reasserts with feeling that the idea of breasts featuring in a national newspaper is as archaic as institutional sexism comes.

Retro Curls for Lazy (or Busy!) Girls

By Sarah

2012 was a year of elaborate hairstyles, achieved with authentic mid-century techniques.

2013… Not so much! I am keen to have long hair for the first time in my life, and exercising more than ever. Overnight sets with rollers and pincurls just aren’t suitable these days. I need to look glamorous in a hurry! This style is ideal, and so easy. You need tongs, probably some products, clips, and a brush. Start with clean dry/slightly damp hair.

I prepare my hair with a quick spritz of Umberto Giannini Princess Perfect Hot Styler Spray. It claims to make styles created with heat last longer. It certainly smells lovely! My style does last, but my hair is usually quite compliant so I don’t know whether the spray is assisting this or not.

Using wide-barrelled curling tongs, curl a fairly large section. Make sure the ends are curled under rather than flicked upwards. I hold the tongs in for a good 20-30 seconds as my hair is thick and already pretty damaged!

The resulting curl may look pretty rubbish! But fear not. Grab the end and curl it in the same direction as you did with the tongs around two fingers. [PICS 5 and 6]

Gently roll the curl back to the scalp and pin into place. 

Curl the next large section and repeat all over the head. I then give it all another spritz of the heat styler spray for luck.

Leave for at least 20 minutes, longer if you can. Do your makeup and get your glad rags on!

Remove all the clips / pins. The curls might look a bit odd.

Grab a hairbrush – a natural bristle one is ideal. Gently brush through your curls until you are happy with their appearance.

Finish with plenty of hairspray (I like Tresemme Freeze Hold) and accessorise accordingly!

Sarah

A Day in the Life

By Jasmine

Day look:

Taking a trip back to the nineties is a lot more thigh-friendly with a floaty floral twist. Ditching the precarious denim dungaree craze for a pinafore alternative, this baby-blue number has become a friendly wardrobe staple. Perfect for teaming up with elegant blouses or whatever band t-shirt has taken my eye, the pinafore offers summer versatility. For my day look, I opted for a breezy blouse buttoned up in geeky abandon.The vivid florals of my H & M sheer shirt pick out a continuous theme without passersby requiring involuntary eye tests. My hardware satchel was a Primark steal, and its hard-bodied, academic look took me in more than three years ago.

Print blouse: £25.99, H & M
Jacquard pinafore: £32, ASOS
Sunglasses: Ray Ban, prices vary
Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens, £62
Bag: Primark, £14

Work look:

Although I am a pear shape, I am irrevocably drawn to bold prints. As the high waisted cut of the jacquard cigarette pants draws the eye back to one’s waist, the three quarter cut is ideal for pretty much every body type. To give the trousers a summer spruce, I’ve teamed them up with a baby-pink cashmere jumper. For a more professional edge, there’s always an 60’s up ‘do to fall back on, and some winged specs for a bit of Mad Men-esque styling.

Trousers: £25, Topshop
Jumper: €10, a lovely vintage shop in Montpellier
Glasses: £150, Marc by Marc Jacobs
Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens, £62

Evening look:

Hats are scary. They draw attention, can lead a wild goose chase around unwelcoming pavements, and admittedly, are just incredibly awkward. It was for those reasons (tinged with a helpful spoonful of masochism), that I decided to purchase my floppy orange hat. A far more effective sun protector than your general shaded specs, the hat can liven up the dullest of outfits with a practical reason supplied for excuse. The co-ordinating rucksack adds another colour injection to the cream dress, as well as taking heed of an on-trend shade and accessory. To avoid my skin blending with the dress, I have worn a floral bralet underneath, ensuring that parents won’t declare it too racy nor is the proverbial ‘no black bras with nude clothing’ rule flouted. In retrospect, lugging a rucksack around on a night out may be the more risqué item — but it’s summer!

Hat: Deena and Ozzy at Urban Outfitters, £10
Rucksack: Deena and Ozzy at Urban Outfitters, £10
Dress: Topshop, £35
Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens, £62

One more thing…

I fail on earrings, I have only wore one ring my entire life (£2.99, Lake District gift shop, no green tinge as of yet), and once got told by my sister that if I ever wore an anklet again she would disown me. In consequence, my friends purchased me my custom ‘feminist’ necklace as seen with every outfit shown. Caitlin Moran has it. I am wearing it. My friends found a piece of jewellery that offers two definitions to ‘valuable’. I am irresistibly tied.

Jasmine