Right guys, I’m back properly – last week was a bit of a blogging disaster as I had much, much freelance work to wade through. After my mini hiatus I am teeming with things to tell you, and am going to start by getting stuck in with trends. These five emerged earlier in the summer and just haven’t gone away, probably because they’re good ‘uns – nothing makes a trend stick more than it being actually beautifying/fun/time-saving //
The Trend / Hair Glitter. I was a bit a lot excited about this one, mostly because I love glitter and delight in finding new places to put it. Two things may perturb you about this trend: a) you need to spray your roots liberally with hairspray so the glitter has something to stick to and this leads to a lot of crunch, b) you will find glitter scattered everywhere for about 15 years after the single day you decided to wear it. If you can get over those two, get involved – this looks really pretty and made me feel a bit like a Disney fairy, which I found to be a very agreeable state indeed.
Who’s Doing It Well / Topshop Hair Glitter is the one to hit up – the flakes are big enough to not look like dandruff (key!) and come in lovely colours. I enjoyed a mixture of Pharaoh and Amulet.
The Trend / Charcoal. Adept at drawing out toxins and clogs, charcoal is set to be the big thing in beauty this autumn. I have but one housekeeping gripe: it leaves black everywhere and I need to clean the sink after washing it off (are you sensing a theme here? I told you I was fastidious about cleaning!). All the permutations work well – charcoal is a speedy agent and can whip out grime in a few minutes.
Who’s Doing It Well / Cheap but delightful: Pore-Fectly Clear Charcoal Face Scrub by Good Things (just go gentle on the manual action). Effective and thrilling to use (the mask turns blue when on!): Clinique City Block Purifying Charcoal Cleansing Gel and City Block Purifying Charcoal Clay Mask & Scrub. My current favourites: Erborian Black Scrub and Black Soap (I apply it with the genius Pinceau Cleansing Brush, which is also infused with charcoal so actually can be used with any old soap for some charcoal-y goodness). The soap and scrub are out in Sept.
l to r: Tom Ford Cherry Lush + The Estee Edit Turn Up, Tom Ford Cherry Lush, Tom Ford Cherry Lush + Turn Down
The Trend / Dial Up, Dial Down Lipsticks. Buying a lipstick to lighten or darken another may seem silly but a look at the above swatch may convince you otherwise – I’ve found lightening in particular to be an utter delight and doing so has doubled my lipstick collection.
Who’s Doing It Well / The Estee Edit make two ‘Lip Flips’: Turn Up to lighten and Turn Down to darken. Turn Up has to be layered over a lipstick (yellow on lips makes teeth look all kinds of revolting), though I’ve been experimenting with Turn Down on its own and kind of like it.
The Trend / Hair Mists. I initially thought this one was sort of ridiculous; if you have clean hair, it smells nice anyway and if you don’t, well, a wash will go greater things than a spritz of perfume. But then I tried some and found there was merit in them. It’s nice to waft around knowing your hair smells sophisticated and not like the mango explosion most shampoos impart. It’s also good to match/complement your hair scent with your normal one if you’re that kind of highly-organised/groomed creature.
Who’s Doing It Well / Frederic Malle Carnal Flower Hair Mist and Byredo Bal D’Afrique Hair Perfume do it for me. The former is a bit sexy thanks to the tuberose, and the latter is more floral and refreshing, though underpinned with cedarwood to avoid sickliness.
The Trend / Multi-Masking. This isn’t a new trend by any stretch – facialists and skincare aficionados have been doing this for years and with good reason: the treatments needs of your nose will often be entirely different to those of your cheeks and, say, chin. My ultimate combination remains Institut Esthederm patches under eyes, Eve Lom Rescue Mask on any areas of spottiness and Sisley Black Rose mask wherever I need moisture.
Who’s Doing It Well / Every brand is releasing sets of these, though I think Vichy have done a great job of making it simple and affordable with their three-part range comprising an exfoliating mask (YES to the fact that old AHAs are now readily available everywhere), a clarifying clay mask and a hydrating gel mask.
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