MONDAY
I love the strong lips and slinky eyes of old Hollywood movie stars and you can always rely on Dolce & Gabbana (from Harrods) to create a collection that allows you to wear this style but still look bang up to date – just check out D&G poster girl Scarlett Johansson, above.
Their Italian Summertime range, which I received on Monday, is no exception. The lip colours include a beautiful orangey-red (Dolce & Gabbana Classic Cream Lipstick in Venere, £22) and a gorgeous purpley-pink (Dolce & Gabbana Shine Lipstick in Violet, £22), which is a close match for the season’s new nail colour, Dolce & Gabbana Intense Nail Lacquer in Passione (£17). I was less struck on the eye shadows, a mix of violets and rusts which were a perfect match for the colours my skin goes when it’s bruised and made me look like a battered woman … However, on the darker-skinned Scarlett – as we saw at the Oscars – they looked much more glam!
TUESDAY
I threw a party on Saturday night, and I was still paying for it in terms of sleep by Tuesday. There was only one thing for it: dig out the secret weapon for dealing with tired eyes.
My Guerlain Precious Light (£28; www.houseoffraser.co.uk) pen hasn’t seen that much action in the past, as I often find that the more products I put on my skin, the less youthful it appears, but it now looks set to become a staple of my daily routine.
Why? Well, because it blurs fine lines under the eyes, bounces the light off the skin and adds a touch of radiance. I have no idea if that’s what it claims to do, but it’s been doing those tricks on me all week, and I’m planning to keep it handy – and ready for all mornings-after. And as for the problem of having too many layers of product, I found this week that if I used it under my eyes and kept everything else away from that area, it looked fine.
WEDNESDAY
By coincidence, I’ve decided that my favourite item in the new Benefit b.right skincare range is the eye cream – Benefit It’s Potent! (£23.50; www.benefitcosmetics.co.uk). I found the scent of some of the other products got in the way of my enjoyment of using them, but this cream, which helps eradicate dark circles while hydrating and firming the skin, is a pleasure to use and it does have an instant effect. It brightens and refreshes the eye area. Since it’s not as portable as the Guerlain pen, I’ll not be stashing it in my bag for on-the-go pick-me-up purposes, but it’s set to become an essential whenever I’ve had a late night or two.
THURSDAY
Sarah always comes with a few treats up her sleeves and this time she was introducing the beauty press to the botanical beauty company’s latest cellulite-fighting cream (Phyto Svelt Global Intensive Anti-Cellulite Contouring Body Care) as well as to its new mascara, Sisley Phyto Mascara Ultra Stretch (£27; www.sisley-cosmetics.co.uk) It will be some time before I can pronounce a verdict on the cellulite-fighting capabilities of the cream, but I can safely say that the mascara is a winner and looks set to join Dior Extase, Lancome Hypnose Precious Cells, Laura Mercier Full Blown Volume, Revlon Double Twist and Estee Lauder Sumptuous as my favourites. It curls and lengthens the lashes – and, crucially for someone who’s prone to panda eyes, it doesn’t smudge. What more could you want?
FRIDAY
I ended the week by working on a feature on lipsticks for the Daily Record. There are so many new ones launching this spring that it seemed that the time was right for a piece celebrating this queen of cosmetics.
Anyway, one piece of lipstick news that I’ve not already mentioned on this blog is the collaboration between Australian lipstick guru Poppy King and No7. I’ll be writing more about Poppy King’s mission to inspire women to discover – or rediscover lipstick and, in particular, colourful lipsticks – but wanted to let you know that they’re worth seeking out, as the seven shades of No7 and Poppy King Lipsticks are all extremely pretty and very wearable. Not to mention reasonably priced – at £12 each.
Film & Style Matters 