Foundation Face-Off

It’s a bumper season for foundations with a trio of new additions landing on my desk all at more or less the same time. But, oh, what different results when they’re tested. The gold medal winner, by a mile, is Tom Ford Traceless Perfecting Foundation SPF15 (£62; worn on the model pictured), a beautiful creamy base which provides great coverage and longwear but has a completely natural finish. It contains Tom Ford Infusing Complex, a skincare element, which boosts the quality of the skin at the same time. It comes in 15 shades, and is part of a new range of Flawless Perfection concealers and foundation within the
Tom Ford Beauty collection.

I’ve taken to applying the Traceless Perfecting Foundation with my fab new brush – the Estee Lauder Sculpting Foundation Brush (£37). A strange-looking brush with bristles of different lengths, it has been designed to be able to access the trickier areas of the face. It’s a delight to use and gives a lovely finish. It was launched at the same time as my silver medallist foundation for this autumn – Estee Lauder Perfectionist Youth-Infusing Makeup SPF25 (£37), another liquid foundation which feels lovely and boasts skincare benefits, notably anti-ageing (from the Perfectionist Serum) and hydration. I found that on my shine-prone combination skin, I need to wear powder on top; this is probably one for older and drier skins than mine. It’s available in an impressive 22 shades.

And the prize for most disappointing new foundation goes to Clarins True Radiance SPF15 (£27) – another base with skincare qualities – which I found to be thick, heavy and wholly unnatural-looking.

 

Va-Va Volume

For the second autumn-winter in a row, I feel drawn to the look of the mighty and magnifique Catherine Deneuve – at least as far as my hair’s concerned. (Deneuve plus the big-hairedmodel in the Elnett ads!) This grande dame of French cinema has sported some fantastic hair-do’s over the decades but her distinctive style – voluminous blonde hair, worn off her face whether it’s pinned up or hanging loose – has remained constant and has just been subtly tweaked  over the decades to reflect fashions, and to flatter her as she has grown older.

Creating volume can be a challenge – I’ve found it more difficult since I ditched the blonde highlights and opted for the gentler blonde tint. My hair is healthier and shinier – but, unfortunately, the flip side is that it’s also floppier. And that’s where my latest favourite hair styling product comes in. Ojon Volume Advance Volumizing Mousse (£23; www.ojon.co.uk) is – for me – the stand-out in the recently launched collection of volumising products from the American haircare company. And I have actually found that it’s more effective when I haven’t used the shampoo (£18.50) and conditioner (£20.50) from the same range; a range which its creators describe – rather appealingly, for those of us with naturally limp locks – as being “like a mega-phone for the hair”.

However, different hair might benefit from a different combination of products from Ojon’s Volume Advance range which also includes a Thickening Spray (£20.50). And in case you need any further French inspiration, here is a selection of shots of la belle Deneuve from different stages in her life.