Holiday beauty can go one of two ways – either you see it as a chance to relax about your regime; give your skin a break from makeup and just generally aim for a laid back beauty look – or else you up the ante with the time to really experiment with new looks, and all that partying.
Personally, I do laid back in the day, for by the beach, and at night crank up the volume with glowing skin,
bright lights, bold colour and experimenting with new products.
Here's how to take your look from beach to bar: Just
- Hair: Start prepping your hair during the day. Protect from the sun, and get ready for the evening, by using non-oil based products.
The idea of seeing a product in my bathroom cabinet with the word 'wrinkle' on it, makes me feel a little uneasy. Although, as it's from Clarins, I am slightly more forgiving.
The very long-named,
Sun Wrinkle Control Cream High Protection For Sun-Sensitive Skin, (£15.50), is a facial sunscreen, with an SPF 30. It has been specially formulated for skin that is often allergic, or sensitive, to sun cream, as well as for very pale skin that needs a lot of protection against damaging UVA and UVB rays.
I am such a sucker for Maggie Gyllenhaal's pretty, yet unconventional beauty looks. She always appears kooky and cool – even when her makeup is red-carpet polished. Most of all, she looks like she's having fun.
I was lucky enough to attend the
Cosmopolitan Beauty Awards this week.
Judged by Alesha Dixon, TV presenter Emma Griffiths, skincare guru Anastasia Achilleos and Cosmopolitan Editor Louise Court, as well as famous makeup artists Daniel Sandler and Ruby Hammer, hair stylist to the stars – Andrew Barton, and Cosmo's veteran Beauty Director – Ingeborg van Lotringen – the awards showcase the very best beauty products around.
This year there were two new awards, the Beauty Breakthrough Award which went to amazing new product
L'Oreal Derma Genesis SPF15 Day Cream and the Cosmo Classic Award, which went to one of my absolute can't-live-without products,
YSL Touche Eclat. Ingeborg rightly said, at the awards, that while many products have now mimicked Touche Eclat, none even come close to it, in terms of light-reflecting coverage and texture.
Other winners I was thrilled to see, were
Rimmel London Colour Mousse Eyeshadow as Best Eyeshadow,
Chanel Mat Lumiere as Best Foundation,
Nars, which won Best Powder Blush for the third year running, and my beloved
Clarins Sun Wrinkle Control Cream, which scooped Best Facial Sun Protection, for the second year in a row.
I'll be updating you on more winning products from the Cosmopolitan awards, shortly...
For the first of these Wedding Survival Guides, I'm going to start you off with some easy beauty dos and don'ts. Most obviously is, don't
follow Kate Moss's lead and upstage the bride by looking too goddamn gorgeous. Or at least don't look like you're trying to upstage her – more that you're just naturally prettier.
Clarins HydraQuench Cooling Cream-Gel ($48) is on my list for
gym essentials. I like it because it's a great way to prepare your skin for post-workout beauty. You know how after you've just exercised your face is flushed, sweaty and tends to stay that way for a while even after you've showered.
Yesterday I told you a little bit about some
firming bust creams, and today we're moving up on the body by focusing on creams to firm your face. Firming facial creams can help to minimize the appearance of your pores, and some can topically and temporarily suspend muscle contractions in your face — similar to what Botox does, but without the side effects.
Tracie Martyn Firming Serum ($185) is a favorite among celebrities, so I was really excited when I received a sample to test. I used it only a few times, but I found it to be calming, moisturizing, and brightening.
A few months ago Clarins came out with a limited-edition version bottle of its
Eau Dynamisante fragrance. I haven't smelled this particular fragrance before, but considering the limited edition bottle is bright red with a giant white heart in the center (made from children holding hands), it was too hard to resist this close to Valentine's Day.
The bottle was designed by artist Lorenz Baumer in honor of the Most Dynamic Woman Award and symbolizes sharing and generosity. Funny enough, I'd describe the scent as classic, invigorating and dynamic too.
Clarins is usually known as a skin care brand, but that could change with the introduction of this
Spring 2008 Colour Fizz collection. Full of pastels with punch and just an overall feeling of energy, this collection is a breath of bright and fresh air. To create this look that you see in the picture, four new shades of eyeshadow as well as the new eyeliner and Double Fix Mascara were used.
Yesterday I brought you the first installment of my series on
face oils. These gentle and fast-absorbing products are a relatively new way to increase hydration as well as re-balance and rejuvenate dry winter skin. Here are three more products to check out.
Neal's Yard Organic Orange Flower Facial Oil ($60) helps reduce the appearance of fine lines, eliminate toxins as well as balance the moisture levels in the skin.
