The
hectic party season can be a stressful time, often knocking our usual routines
out of sync. The New Year offers a great time to unwind, get back on track, and
give your beauty regime an overhaul, and beat those “January Blues”!
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New year, new you, new ‘do!: Regardless of whether you’re the
resolution type, the New Year is a great excuse to don a new hair ‘do. Experiments with different styles and
products, or go all out and try a brand new colour and cut. It’s amazing how a
new look can boost your confidence and give you a new lease of life. Your
stylist will be happy to discuss services that suit your budget, needs, and
schedule. Try turning to haircut magazines and the internet for inspiration.
January blues: Zesty uplifting fragrances are a great
way to boost your mood while you wash. Clean, citrus scents lift your spirits
and help to make you feel more awake and refresh your senses, so it’s excellent
to incorporate something with a zingy aroma into your morning cleansing
routine, be it in your haircare products, your skincare regime, or your
“wake-up shower”. One of my personal favourites is Happy Hippy Shower Gel from LUSH (click here to read my LUSH feature) – this multi-tasker with energizing grapefruit scent that can be used to wash
the face, body and hair, plus it’s natural and handmade!
Detoxify, don’t diet: If you want to shift some pounds, then
by all means alter your lifestyle, but dieting is not the speediest option to
solve suffering skin. Detoxifying beauty treatments can be an effective
quick-fix for stressed skin. They work by drawing out toxins from and providing
intense nourishment. Not only are treatments like these fantastically good for
our skin, but they also give us a perfect opportunity to unwind. Don’t worry if
Christmas has left you strapped for cash – there are options available for all
budgets, from facemasks available at supermarkets and drugstores for under a
pound, to much more expensive treatments available at salons and spas. Chat to
your beautician for advice on what products and treatments would suit your skin
in particular.
Revitalise rundown skin: The stresses of Christmas and New Year
can leave us feeling tired and rundown. Whether it’s overindulging on calorific
food and drink, too many late nights, panicking about Christmas get-togethers,
or unwelcome winter coughs and colds, our mind and body always seem to suffer
as a result of the Party Season panic. Remember, although it’s a new year it’s
not a new season, and with the harsh winter weather worsening, you’ll need to
keep your skin hydrated, nourished and balanced. Exfoliators are brilliant for
making the skin look instantly healthier – their scrubby texture removes dead cells
and dry patches and evens the skin tone, and the massaging motion used to apply
it increases blood flow to the skin making it look healthier and giving a
natural, youthful glow (this motion also helps to diminish the appearance of
cellulite – a tip to remember next time you moisturise your thighs!). For
regular use I choose Outback OrganicsFace & Body Scrub for it’s creamy consistency and gentle abrasive
texture. For a touch of luxury, try adding a facial serum to your skincare
regime. I adore Doozle Nourishing FacialSerum – handmade in Wiltshire, this long-lasting formula is packed with
all-natural skin-loving ingredients and gives a youthful dewy glow without
leaving any greasy residue. An energising skin treatment is also a great way to
instantly revitalise rundown skin. Try using a face mask containing cooling
ingredients like cucumber or tea tree to soothe and de-stress the skin.
Products scented with warming spices help to relax the muscles, and uplifting
citrusy fragrances are ideal for energising the mind and lifting the spirits
(think back to my tip about zesty mood-boosting citrus scents). If you opt for
a salon treatment, let your beautician know if you’d like your skin to feel
rejuvenated and refreshed – they’ll be more than happy to tailor your chosen
treatment to your needs.
Ditch dreaded dark circles: Almost all of us have blue-ish droopy
patches under the eyes, commonly called “dark circles”, which are exaggerated
when the skin is stressed and tired. You can disguise them with concealer, and regularly
using a roll-on eye treatment designed to target and treat tenacious dark
circles can help to minimise their appearance. They’re quick and easy to use,
and many contain extras such as light-reflecting concealer, gentle
moisturisers, and anti-aging ingredients. One of my favourites is Angel Eyes, a relatively new product
from Angela Langford. It’s an
all-natural roll-on eye oil that battles dark circles and dryness, and it
contains cooling cucumber to refresh the delicate eye area. A little goes an
astonishingly long way - I’ve been using it twice daily for approximately 3
months, and there’s still over half left! For a cheap and quick DIY option, pop
a slice of cucumber or a cold used teabag over each eye next time you relax
with a facemask for 10 minutes or so – it really does help to reduce dark
circles and puffiness! You can even find some fun easy recipes for making your
own face masks and body scrubs at home on the internet using basic supermarket
ingredients.
Give it away: Have you acquired a number or beauty treats
over Christmas? Give away or discard unwanted and unsuitable ones, and donate
unopened products to charity shops – if you’re never going to use them they’ll
only be taking up valuable space. Don’t use a product if it’s unsuited to your
skin type as it’s likely to react badly – the last thing you need is to start
your new year with a blemish break-out, unsightly redness, or dreaded dry
patches! Many of us will have been given make up sets and “bath and body” sets
for Christmas. If you know you’ll never use they, see if a friend wants it or
give it to your local charity shop. It will put a smile on someone’s face, and
you’ll feel all the better for spreading a little joy in the tired aftermath of
the Party Season!
Space-savers: Many of us choose the new year to try
a different make up look with new products, so free up some space first if you
can. Now is a great time to give your make up bag and bath and body products an
overhaul. Check all your liquid make up (mascara, foundation, gloss, liquid
liner, etc) and discard any that have dried up or expired. Set aside any
products that you never use to offer to friends and family (I don’t advise
donating or selling used beauty products as some people dislike using them if
they don’t know the previous owner). Purchase a space-saving make up bag or
vanity case to keep all your beauty gear up together. I love The Weekender by ZPM. It’s an amazing storage product designed to keep your things
organised, and it’s wipe-clean surface makes it perfect for beauty products!
You wouldn’t believe how much you can fit in The Weekender – as the name
suggests, it has space for all your little products that you might take on a
weekend break and keeps them safe and organised, and has a handy extra-strong
hook to hang it up wherever you please. Practical and stylish, it’s available
in a huge range of gorgeous designs to suit all ages, sexes and tastes, and
they’re based locally in Shaftesbury!
Lighten up!: Give your skin a luminous healthy glow
by incorporating highlighter into your make up routine. This versatile
wonder-product is available in various formats including loose powder, pressed
powder compacts, pearls, sticks, liquids, and mousses. For a radiant, subtly
glowing base, mix a generous amount of liquid highlighter (my favourite is Barbara Daly Make-Up - Soft Focus) with
your usual liquid foundation or BB cream on the back of your hand before
applying - if your skin feels dry, you mix in a touch of moisturiser for
all-day hydration, too. For a youthful shimmery look, finish your make up with
a dusting of highlighting powder - use alone as for the full-effect, or mix
with a translucent powder for a more understated finish, or mix with a touch of
bronzer for a sultry sun-kissed glow (I adore ELF Cosmetics bronzer in
“Glow”).
Of course, you can also use the classic combination of highlighter and bronzer
to contour the face. Use bronzer where shadows would naturally form (under the
cheekbones, around the hairline, down the sides of the nose, and under the
chin), and highlight where light would naturally hit your face (down the nose,
above the cheekbones, on the chin, and on the cupids bow). Luminous blush adds
instant healthy colour, and I choose Rimmel Wake Me Up Instant Radiance Shimmer Touch (click here to read my review and to see photos) for a long-lasting flush of
glowing colour with a light-as-a-feather mousse format (my favourite shade is “002 Radiant Rose”). For eye-catching
peepers, finish your eye make up by highlighting the inner corners of the eyes
and under the brows with highlighter or a light, neutral shadow – this gives the eyes an instant “lift” and makes them appear lighter,
brighter, and more youthful, and also helps to shape the brows. Shades I like
to use for this job are Givenchy ShadowShow in “Star Caresse”, Clinique Soft-Pressed Eye Shadow in “Starstruck”, and Younique Moodstruck Minerals Pigment Shimmer in “Sexy" (click here to read my review). To make the eyes look larger still,
line the water line with a white pencil liner. Easy illuminated eyes in an
instant!
Head
over to my Facebook page for more beauty tips, photos, and updates. Happy New
Year, and here’s to a beautiful 2015!
By Tuesday T. Bryan.
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