Want that Party Season Glow?

Has winter taken its toll on your skin yet? Is your makeup feeling as dull and flat as the weather outside? Bring a little light into your life and revive your face with a little strobing. Not sure what this is? Basically, it's the opposite of contouring (Who could ever get it right anyway!). Instead of receding features to enhance them as contouring did, you focus solely on highlighting or "strobing" the high points of your face, where the sun would naturally hit. And with so little sunshine these days who doesn't need a little extra help to make themselves feel luminous. So light up your life by adding a little party season glow to your face.

This look is all about dewy, glowing skin and the best place to start is ensuring you gently exfoliate your face 1-2 times a week  to rid yourself of any tired or dull skin. Always apply a good replenishing moisturiser after and leave this penetrate the skin for at least ten minutes before starting your makeup.

Strobing usually takes place after you have applied your foundation however this time of year every little helps so you can begin the process with your primer.  Try Bourgois Paris Happy Light Luminous Serum Primer,(€15.99, Boots). This lovely little primer will prepare your skin for a flawless foundation application while its light reflecting properties will peep through to enhance your natural glow.

Many people prefer to use a cream or liquid based highlighter as they give a more dewy effect however, for those of you with oily skin its best to stick to powder formulas. For those with paler skin try using a Champagne coloured highlighter, try NYX Liquid Illuminator, Born to Glow, (€10.00, Boots). Medium complexions can opt for a pinker/peach shade, use Rimmel Good to Glow in Picadilly Glow, (€6.50, McCabes Pharmacy). If you have dark skin look for a highlighter with an orange or burgundy undertone, try  Inglot AMC Face & Body Illuminator 62 (€20.00, Inglot Stores).

The trick to keeping this look fresh and not making yourself look like a Christmas decoration is to keep all other powder products you use on your face matte, this includes blush, shadows and bronzers.

 

How and where do you apply it? you may ask, well its simple really, think of the sun hitting your face, stick to the high points... cheekbones, chin, cupids bow, brow bone along the nose and for a little extra dab some into the inner corner of the eyes. Not having a great skin day?, maybe stay clear of the highlighter in that area as you do not want to draw attention to it, other than that it's sooo much simpler than contouring and really does leave you feeling more radiant and fresh faced plus it's not half as aging as contouring.

Foundation Fool?

Choosing the right foundation can be really tricky but getting it right really pays off. Here are my top tips to choosing the correct foundation for you and your skin type.

 

 

Tone

Identify your skin tone, is it warm or cool? Not sure how to do this?

• Look at your skin as a whole, most Irish skin tones are cool with a pinkish undertone, some of us are neutral with neither a warm or cool tone dominating the other, fewer are warm toned with a yellow undertone.
• When looking at your face avoid focusing on the cheek area as regardless of tone a little redness can sometimes come through here.
• Look at your wrists, if your veins look bluer chances are you have a cool skin tone with pink undertones.
• Greeny veins are usually spotted on people with a warmer skin tone and have a yellow undertone.
• Blue/green veins you’re probably neutral neither warm nor cool.

Once you’ve identified your skin tone, you can start to look for foundations with either warm or cool undertones. Most brands have a good selection of both and many are now realising that a some of us are neutral and are producing some really great neutral toned foundations.

•   For cool tones look for words such as: Porcelain, Ivory.
•  For warm tones watch for words such as: Warm sand, beige.

Some brands have lettering systems for their cool and warm tones such as MAC who use NW for their cools and ironically NC for their warm tones. YSL use BD (warm) or BR (Cool) or B (Neutral) to distinguish between their foundation colours.
Be aware of your skin type too.  Is your skin, oily, dry, combination? All of these play a huge factor as to what foundation to use.
If your skin is:

• Oily avoid foundations with serums added oils. You’d do well to consider a matte finish foundation or using a mineral based foundation.
• Dry skin can often be hard to cover as foundation can often cake onto dry patches. Try using a gel/silicon based foundation, avoid mattifying or powder based products.

Many foundations are aimed at the most common skin type which is combination skin, normal with a possible oily T-Zone, so shop around, ask for samples and don’t just go with whatever the girl at the counter tries to sell you. Bring home a few different samples from a selection brands, wear one a day. This will really help you make an informed decision.

•    Does the foundation settle well on your face?
•   Is the coverage what you are looking for whether it’s full medium, sheer or buildable?
•  What’s the longevity like? Has it just slid off your face or do you still look fresh at the end of the day?

While there are many foundations out there on the market today from budget to blowout I do recommend trying one of the professional foundations at least once. Makeup Forever, MAC, Armani, their formals are incredible and tailored for specific skin types and tones. So while you might not want to spend that kind of money every time you need a foundation you may do well to keep it in your makeup bag for when you need to look your best, big meeting, event, occasion etc. High street brands are really great these days too and once you’ve identified your skin tone and type you’re sure to choose one that will suit.  

The not so Intrepid Traveller

For once I’m praying my little girls wake up a little early this morning? “Em, Why would you want that?” You may ask. Well it’s my very first time to leave them for more than one night and I want to kiss their little faces before I head off to the airport. I know you’d think I’d be thrilled to be heading off for three whole nights without the kids and husband. Maybe by the end of the trip I’ll be hankering for just one more night away, but as I sit here writing this I can honestly say, I think I’d prefer to be in music class with my kids, something we do every Friday morning. It’s usually my husband who is up at the craic of dawn, fumbling about in the dark trying to finish packing as he heads off on yet another business trip and so to say it felt a little alien for me to be the one doing the fumbling this morning is a little bit of an understatement. Bleary eyed I stumbled to the bathroom, washed my face and brushed my teeth. Applied my makeup (in 2 minutes, it’ll never last!) and quickly got dressed. Still no sign of the kids stirring…this never happens! So I fumbled about some more, louder though this time and accidentally on purpose woke the kids. Little feet padded across the hall floor and sleepy eyed princesses entered the room. “Are you still here mama?” “I am so give me as many kisses and cuddles as you can now, cause I’m gonna miss that face!” Wet kisses and neck strangling hugs later my taxi arrives and I’m off. What now, I feel a little lighter physically (no nappy bags leaving the house will do that to ya) but a little heavier in the heart. Not having the nappy wearer with you will do that to yaL. Anyway, departure gates call, coffee and magazine in hand and you know something I’m beginning to feel a little, dare I say, excited?! Guilty, but excited. Guilty because I’m an Irish mother and I think it comes with the title of being a mammy. Guilty because I feel a little self-indulgent to just head off to Spain for three days by myself (to a friend btw).  But excited, because it’s something I think I should do, something my husband thinks will be good for me. Find a little bit of the old me again, regain some of my lost confidence which inevitably happens when you become a mam and have been out of the work place for over three years. Not long to landing and I’m going to give myself over to the experience, as a good friend said to me “Mammy guilt is completely normal, just leave it at the airport!” So here goes, page one of a magazine I’m going to read cover to cover cause I can.

Brace Yourself

Growing up I always had a big gap in my front teeth. I didn't mind this so much as my Dad used to say it meant I was a good singer. Unfortunately this is not true but it made me feel a bit more Madonna-esque and so I never really felt I wanted to get rid of it. I  it, it was part of me. As the y
ears went by however the gap began to close, more teeth coming through and wisdom teeth crowding my mouth meant I lost my gap for good. As the gap closed I felt a little bit of my identity disappeared with it. I know that sounds a little melodramatic but its the little things that make us unique and one of my little things was now gone. As more time passed I noticed that my once naturally straight teeth were beginning to crowd each other slightly, both top and bottom. Not noticeably at first, but since the birth of my babies they have become more and more crooked. I'm no expert but I'm assuming this has been caused by stress and night-time teeth grinding with the worry of bringing up two young girls! I suppose I've been lucky, I've had straight teeth right up until now so I've never even really had to think about having braces. Although when my sister and brother got them growing up I was a tad jealous, ridiculous isn't it? I also wanted glasses, but oh no I've been blessed with 20/20 vision as well! Joking aside I could never really justify getting braces for my now slightly crooked front teeth, I mean braces are expensive, they also can take up a lot of time in your life, regular orthodontic check ups etc. and so I resigned myself to the fact that I would always have just a slightly crooked smile. Which I'm happy with, really I don't mind at all...but wait whats this, the answer to all my prayers. Yes. At home braces!! My quest for straighter brighter teeth may just be possible (I know I said I was happy with crooked teeth but who am I kidding I want a bright white Essex smile as much as anyone else does!). Then I heard of YourSmileDirect.ie. They are an Irish owned cosmetic Dentistry company who launched in the UK recently with amazing results. They have now rolled out their services in Ireland and lucky old me gets to try them out. They offer straighter, whiter Hollywood-worthy teeth for up to 75% less than other practices without compromising on quality or care. Basically by cutting out the middle man (sort of, read their t&c's) you cut down on cost. The service they offer are at home braces and teeth whitening. Once you log onto their website and go through their consultation forms an impression kit is sent directly to your home. This comes with full instructions. Once you've taken your own impressions you call the company and they'll come pick them up and send them off to the lab. So simple and easy, I didn't even need to go to the post office for a stamp! A team will then assess the impressions to make sure you're a suitable candidate for their braces and so the process begins. Luckily I suit the profile and am now currently waiting on my brace to be sent back to me. The brace itself is similar to a gum guard but much thinner and fits snugly. It is changed very 3/4 weeks as the teeth move and usually worn for 4-6 months depending on how much correcting needs to be done to the teeth. I'm excited to get started and will post again each month with picture updates too. I may not get my gap back but a straighter brighter smile will always makes you feel more confident and en Vogue ;).

Professional looking Brows in Seconds

Eylure Brow Stencils

Pre Shaped Arches

Brows can be tricky to get right even for a makeup artist. There are so many little things to take into consideration such as your face shape, colouring, eye setting and general look you are trying to achieve. Of course there are tips and tricks you can use to help create the perfect brow such as, mapping out where your arch should start and where the brow should begin and finish. But let's be  honest this can be time consuming, and if like me time is too valuable a commodity to spend calculating your brow dimensions then just cheat! Don't get me wrong I’m all for knowing how to to do something correctly and mastering the art of good brows is a skill. A skill which many of us may not be able to master in the short space of time we have to do our makeup everyday. So I came across these amazing Eylure Brow Stencils. They are super easy to use and come in four different arch shapes (Full, High, Medium, Slim). So you're sure to find one to suit. Personally I use the slim arch as my brows are naturally thin and sparse.  

Here's a quick run down of how to use these stencils:

·       Choose an arch you think is most suited to your natural brow shape.
·        Place the thicker part of the arch at the starting point of your natural brow, ensure the top line of the stencil is in line with the top of your own brow.
·        Hold in place with one hand, using a small flat rounded brush pick up some of your usual brow shadow colour.
·        Using dabbing motions apply from the narrow point of the arch and work inwards towards the nose making sure to get the product into the skin behind the brow hair.
·        Brows naturally go from light to dark and so by starting at the end point of the brow you will get a more natural looking finish as the product from the brush is used.
·        Remove carefully, wipe the stencil clean and repeat on the other brow (I will admit though it can be a little tricky to hold the stencil in place on your non dominant side but you get the hang of it very quickly). 

And there you have it easy peasy professional looking brows in seconds.

Steal Her Shade: Nude Lips

Autumn does not necessarily mean having to go dark and brooding with vampy lip colours. A perennial favourite, nude is still having its moment. Whether light, medium or dark skinned, there is a perfect nude look out there that won’t wash you out. Here’s how to find it…

Fair Skin: Pixie Lotte


With her blonde hair, light blue eyes and creamy complexion, Pixie Lott (24) is the epitome of a pale skinned beauty. While she loves going for daring deep, dark reds, nudes work particularly well for her to team with a darker, bronze, smokey effect eye. Pale skinned beauties should look for a nude lipstick with pink undertones. The best advice is to choose a lipstick as close to your natural lip colour as possible and avoid warm shades that will make your skin look pale and pink, and your teeth look yellow.

Steal Her Shade: Rimmel Dare to Bare Lipstick 41, €6.99 nationwide

Medium Skin: Rita Ora

With her white blonde hair and deep brown eyes, beauty Rita Ora (24) falls into the medium skin toned category. Of course, central to Rita's look is her stunning pout, which she either highlights with some red lippy for a vampy look or leaves nude to allow her eyes to smoulder. Rita can get away with either a pink-based nude or a yellow-based beigy nude both of which will have different effects. However, she looks best with a sheer colour that allows her natural lip pigment to shine through. Get this look with a touch of nude lip liner blended onto the line before adding a touch of clear gloss or balm to the flesh of naked lips.

Steal Her Shade: Bobbi Brown Lip Pencil in Cocoa, €22.50, Brown Thomas.

Dark Skin: Jennifer Lopez
Perhaps the queen of the nude lip, Jennifer Lopez (46) loves to try nude shades with various undertones to include dusky pink and light orange. However, the best nude for her is the classic beige tone that is often marketed as “nude”, but confuses the majority of Irish women because it is just too too warm for us and does nothing to flatter our complexions. If you have natural warm undertones in your skin like la Lopez, then do look for warmer nude lipsticks that are highly pigmented to cover any natural pinkness in the lips. Add a touch of gloss over the lipstick for Jennifer’s polished finish or leave matte for a look that is bang on trend. Use a brush to apply for best results.

Steal Her Shade: Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Volupte Lipstick in Sensual Silk, €33, Debenhams 

No time for Morning Makeup?

If like me you find yourself chasing your tail in the morning and being fully dressed leaving the house is a HUGE achievement (honestly I forgot to put my bra on the other day!), try my five minute morning makeup routine. It's super quick and easy and will leave you feeling a little bit more in control and ready to face the day, whatever it may bring.

Step 1.      Use a gentle foaming cleansing wash first thing. It will help waken up tired eyes and instill a little colour in your cheeks. Try Nivea Aqua Effect Refreshing Face Wash (€5.19, Boots) for its energising fragrance. Follow with a light everyday moisturiser.

Step 2.       For coverage that will last all day use Rimmels 24 Hr Wake Me Up Foundation (€6.99, Pharmacies Nationwide). It will hide any dark circles and leave your skin looking flawless. Finish with a light dusting of Bronzer along your forehead and cheekbones.

 Step 3.     Apply a slick of nude/pink lipstick such as Clarins Jolie Rouge in Pink Blossom (€22.00, Debenhams), and dab a little on the apple of your cheeks, blending with your finger. This is a great little beauty trick that will save you time and money and leave you with a  dewy glow. Finish the look with a flick of mascara, et voila 5 minute Morning Makeup done.

Top Tip. If you have the time run a brow mascara over your eyebrows to set any strays, this will help frame your face and lift your eyes making you appear more fresh faced than you might actually feel.

Notox or Botox?

I choose Botox. Let me explain why. I'm 33 and have had two children in two years and it has definitely taken its toll on my face. Sleepless nights, worry and all round life has made my once youthful appearance not so youthful anymore. So after a lot of thought and research I decided to take the plunge and do something about it. Botox for me seemed the right way to go. After all it is the World's most popular non-surgical cosmetic treatment with amazing results and no downtime recovery, or so I’d heard and read. So I booked in a consultation with Excellence Medical and the wonderful Dr. Shunil Roy. I arrived at the exclusive Donnybrook based clinic and was immediately impressed with the stunning surroundings. Dr. Roy showed me into the consultation room where I explained my concerns about my face and he agreed that Botox was the best option for me at this point in time. A full medical history was taken and all questions I had about the procedure were answered thoroughly. I was confident I had made the right decision and so we went ahead with the simple procedure. Let me first tell you how Botox helps to pause the ageing process. Doctors have been using Botox for years to successfully treat wrinkles and facial creases. Botox is a brand name of a toxin produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. It works by blocking signals from the nerves to the muscle making them unable to contract, in turn making your wrinkles relax and soften. It is most commonly used on the upper third of the face but can be used on the lower third. I opted to have the lines around my eyes or ‘smile lines’ and vertical frown lines treated. It only took a few minutes, the Botox was injected into the specific muscles surrounding my eyes and forehead with a very fine needle. It was pretty painless but I did flinch once or twice! I was advised that it may take 3-4 days to take effect and there may be some slight bruising with results lasting usually around 3-4 months. I left feeling excited to see the results. One week on and I'm a changed person. My forehead looks smoother and I no longer have crows feet around my eyes. My face looks fresher and brighter. I am definitely a more youthful, beautiful version of myself, and I can say without doubt I will be back for a top up.

Excellence Medical

12 Morehampton Road, Dublin 4

+353 (0)1 232 5528

Info@excellencemedical.ie

Www.excellencemedical.ie

90s MakeUp is back on trend this A/W 2015.

90s poster girl and Miss You Already star Drew Barrymore (40) rocked the look back in the day and again today. Here's how to get Drew’s updated 90s inspired makeup look.

Step 1  Use a primer all over the face and eye lids. You want your skin to look matte not dry, so choose a foundation that mimics the skin like YSL Youth Liberator Serum Foundation (€46.00, House of Fraser). Apply a thin layer of pressed not loose translucent powder to set your foundation.  This  will defuse light and leave the skin looking matte not caked. Apply concealer under the eyes and on any blemishes. Use a pressed foundation two shades darker to contour the cheek bones or if you have a matte Bronzer use that. You don't want any shimmer for this look.

Step 2.       Using a muted brown palette for the eyes, try L’Oreal Paris Color Riche La Palette Nude Eyeshadow Palette Beige, (€21.99,Boots Nationwide), apply the lightest beige colour from the lid to the brow bone. Next apply a slightly darker shade all along the lid, look for a taupe brown, finally apply a darker shade such as a deep brown alone the lash line and on the outer edge. Blend with a blending brush. This look is all about blurred lines so apply a brown eyeliner alone the lash line but blend it out with an angled brush to soften the line.

Step 3.     Learn from previous mistakes and ditch the pencil thin eyebrows for a fuller set just as Drew has. There are plenty of great brow kits out there to help shape and fill in any gaps. To finish this look use a brown toned lip pencil applying along the lip line, working inwards to cover most of the lip, keeping with the blurred line theme. Apply a grey brown lipstick and blot clean, we love the iconic MAC Lipstick in Stone which has a matching lip pencil, (€20.00, Brown Thomas).

Top Tip For fair skin keep to ashier eyeshadow tones, while more olive complexions can opt for warmer hues.

It's All About the Base...

Primer has become a must-have in recent years, but once upon a time it was reserved for use on the rich and famous and only found in the glitzy make-up kits of Hollywood. Oh, how times have changed, nowadays it's a crime not to prime! So make sure you have this pour perfecting, wrinkle reducing staple in your repertoire. From budget to blowout, there's one to suit everyone's pocket. Here's three of the best!

BUDGET

Garnier 5 Second Perfect Blur

As the name suggests this primer blurs away signs of ageing, wrinkles appear reduced and pores less visible, AND it only takes 5 seconds post application for your face to be makeup ready. Sold yet? I am. It has a lovely creamy velvety texture and glides on beautifully. Not only does this primer blur it also illuminates too which leaves your skin feeling beautifully glowy. It does have a matte finish though so beware if you have slightly dry skin. It has a tendency to cake onto dry patches so you might be well advised to do a little exfoliation before using this product. Use it under your regular foundation or with its sister Garnier BB Cream for pourfect ;) skin. For the price you can't go wrong, (€16:39, Boots Nationwide).

Midrange

Clinique Redness Solutions Daily Protective Base

If like me you tend to be a little ruddy around the cheek area you may do well to consider a colour correcting primer. Unlike most colourless primers the green pigment in Clinique Redness Solution Daily Protective Base Spf15 (€26.00, Boots.ie) counteracts any redness in the skin and prepares the skin for a more even toned flawless finish. It has an extremely lightweight feel and transparent finish due to its velvety silicones. With ingredients such as Oat Extracts and Oat Kernel Oil you skin is soothed and conditioned. The great thing about this primer is that it has an added Spf15 protecting your sensitive skin from the sun's rays and environmental factors.The downside of SPF is that it does not photograph well, so you may not be Instagram ready with this as your base, but as a daily soothing primer which will ensure your skin is well cared for I'd keep it handy in my kit bag.

Blowout

YSL Touché Éclat Blur Perfecting Primer

This is one you will want to save for! I generally don't buy into luxury brands and often feel formulations of other less expensive brands do just as good a job as their counterparts. I will on this occasion however say, if you can afford it, get it. What Yves Saint Laurent don't know about illuminating beauty just isn't worth knowing. This is cult classic Touché Éclat meets blur perfecting primer. It is free from any opaque fillers allowing light to diffuse and illuminate the face. The clear gel fluid is flecked with flat gold pigments which when smoothed over the face are not obvious just beautifully decadent. It creates an amazing blurring and soft focus effect leaving your skin flawless even before foundation. It smells divine, like walking through a rose garden and feels deliciously soft on application.I really can find no cons with this primer and although a luxury brand the price really isn't too bad, well worth the investment (€38.00, Brown Thomas).