E45 gets a A-list Boost

Since Cheryl Cole revealed she uses an E45 moisturiser last week, sales of the kind-to-the-skin cream have rocketed. Superdrug saw sales rise by 85% last weekend, on top of the 20,000 E45 products they sell per week. I've grown up with tubs of E45 surrounding the bath tub - not for me, but for my sister who suffered from eczema. The emollient cream is incredibly nourishing and soothing, making it a great antidote to dry, itching skin conditions.

I think it's great that someone like Cheryl can encourage girls and women alike to use a budget moisturiser. I, too, have been brought up with the idea that as long as you moisturise, it doesn't matter if you use a £50 or a £5 moisturiser. If Cheryl's glowing, luminous skin is anything to go by, then I'm jumping on the E45 bandwagon too! Sx

When the top knot goes bad...

Sorry Nicole Richie, but your recent 'do is just bad, bad, bad! At yesterday's Givenchy show in Paris, the Polly-Pocket-esque star wore a black leather shift (jealous), silver Louboutins (majorly jealous), finished off with a slicked-back high bun (definitely not jealous). Check out her look here...http://www.handbag.com/fashion/celebrity/pictures/paris-fashion-week-autumn-winter-2011-front-row#fbIndex2

Now, I am usually a fan of the top knot but on someone so petite, the style is overwhelming. What I love most about the high bun is its thrown-up, dishevelled feel - Nicole's version is far too tight (Aylesbury facelift, anyone?). But what do you think Best Tressers? Vote in the Tress Factor poll now! Sx 

Long-lasting colour, nailed!

Last Wednesday, I hot-footed it into London town for a new long-lasting manicure from revered celebrity manicurist, Tom Bachik.

Having a chat with Tom

Now, I've tried other gel manicures before - I was super-impressed with the Nails Inc 3 Week Manicure but at the time the colour selection was pretty minimal and at a starting price of £55, it's pretty steep. The new Artistic Colour Gloss Gel Polish, however, is more of a hybrid gel manicure. Like a regular polish, it is painted on in thin coats (the gel-infused polish means there's no thick gel topcoat necessary) and the range is kicking off with a nail-biting 38 on-trend colours. Like a gel manicure, it lasts for up to 3 weeks and is dried under a lamp. Oh yes, and here's another twist - other gel manicures use a UV light to dry nails, which can take up to 2 minutes a hand. This manicure, however, applies a 45 watt LED light to the gel, drying nails in a mere 30 seconds.

'Posh' inspired by Posh

The lovely Tom was at the event to chat through the product, and what is so lovely and mighty refreshing, is how palpably excited he is about the launch. In fact, us lucky Brits are getting the manicure first! He also shared some amazing A-list goss...last weekend he was in LA tending to the talons of Victoria Beckham. O.M.G! He casually (and might I say, humbly) went on to say that he had a pyjama party at Jen's that night. Jen who, you might ask? 'Jennifer Lopez.' Oh okay, just a regular sleepover at Jenny from the Block's house then. FYI, he'd done her nails that night too, in a pale nude shade. For the start of the live American Idol shows, he kept that pale base then added a deep red shade on top keeping the half-moon free. Victoria is a hoot, apparently! She must be nice as Tom has even created a shade in her honour. 'Posh' is a suits-all nude shade, the perfect colour to match every single one of her Birkin bags then.

Needless to say, the starting colour selection is impressive and the great news is seasonal collections will launch each year. For my mani, I chose 'Vogue' a gold-flecked 'grauve' shade (a word I've coined for a grey/mauve combo). I'm 6 days in and there are no chips or flakiness to be found, plus the colour is as shiny as day one - a great youth-booster! I will be keeping a photo diary, as below, over the next couple of weeks to monitor my mani. The Artistic Colour Gloss Polish starts from £25 - to find out more, go to http://www.louellabelle.co.uk/ Sx

Day 1

Day 3



Day 5





Marina's got the Max Factor Take II

Once again, I am in awe of Marina. How many of us can be shot with our eyes closed and look this good? Not many, I fear. But then again, Marina has a serious advantage in Max Factor's new campaign shot with eyelids adorned with glittering gold and burnished bronze shades. The new look, entitled 'Dusk Apparition', is all about a fresh take on the smoky eye. “Smoky eyes are a classic look so inject some colour for summer," says Max Factor make-up artist, Caroline Barnes. "This look is young, fresh and beautiful – with an edge.” So if you want to get 'dusky', follow Caroline's expert tips on how to get the look at home.

Step 1. Make eyes dazzle with Max Colour Effect Dip-In Eyeshadow in Ibiza Sunrise, £5.99, and sweep it into the inner corners.

Step 2. Next sweep Max Colour Effect Dip-In Eyeshadow in Bronzed Glow, £5.99, from the centre of the lid towards the outer edges and along the lower lash line and blend with finger tips to soften the look.

Step 3. Add drama and smudge Max Factor Kohl Eye Pencil, £4.50, along the lower lash line.

Step 4. Layer lashes with two coats of Max Factor False Lash Effect Mascara, £10.99.

Step 5. Glaze lips with Max Colour Effect in Chocolate Brownie, £4.99, to give dusky eyes a rich classy look.

Breaking News...celebrity beauty collaboration!

I've just come across some very interesting news on Twitter (forget traditional press releases. Nah mate, if you want to know stuff, just 'follow' everyone in the world).

ghd (them of super irons fame) have just signed Katy Perry (she of glossy hair and rude lyrics fame) as the new face of the brand. The multi-year deal will see the singer starring in a global campaign over the next couple of months.

And judging by this little snippet from Paul Stoneham, CEO of ghd, the brand are pretty excited.

"Katy is the epitome of modern fashion and styling. Her unique, ever changing looks are the envy of style devotees around the world. Katy completely embodies ghd’s spirit of female transformation and empowerment, as she is recognised as a cutting edge style icon unafraid to push fashion and beauty boundaries. Sassy, stylish and sexy, Katy is the perfect partner for ghd.”

I reckon it's a great coup for a brand who has stuck to the same sort of advertising campaign for years now. I don't know about you but I would only ever consider buying a new pair of ghds if my current pair broke (please don't jinx me!), so perhaps the link with an uber celeb like Katy will encourage fans to buy different irons (and of course, different styling products) for different 'Katy' looks. Either way, I can't wait to see images of the campaign. As Katy says herself, "I'm very excited to reveal the styles I did with legendary David LaChapelle in the upcoming ghd campaign. Keep your eyes peeled for it!” I'll keep you posted Best Tressers, Sx

The future of sunscreen

As previously mentioned, last week I attended the launch of the new Piz Buin In Sun Ultra Light Sun Spray.  The new sprays are rolling out into stores as we speak and come in SPF 15 (£14.29), SPF 30 (£15.31) and SPF 50+ (£16.33). The premise behind the new launch is simple...women do not like the sticky, tacky feeling of traditional sun creams. I am one of these women. My last two summer holidays have been tainted by greasy, sand-attracting sunscreens. One brand's face cream left my skin looking so greasy it appeared wet, caused a stinging sensation and even left my eyes streaming. While my sunscreen grumbles are irksome, they would in no way deter me from protecting my skin from the damaging, ageing effects of the sun. But shockingly for over a third of women, it would. 

According to a survey of 1000 'style savvy' women conducted by the brand, 38% admitted the white finish of sunscreens put them off using a factor above 30. Shocking, I know, but for most women (heck, surely all women?) looking good on the beach is a priority. In fact, 34% of women said the combination of looking great and keeping skin protected and well-moisturised made them feel confident in the sun. Thankfully for the 38% of women (and I wager a lot more who didn't take part in the survey!) who refuse higher protection because of wearability, or lack thereof, Piz Buin has launched a lighter, non-greasy, easily-absorbing sunscreen. Here comes the science...the cream contains a hydrating cocktail of glycerine and butylene glychol (basically, it's really moisturising), it has UVA and UVB filters (it protects against the rays responsible for both burning and ageing) and contains antioxidant FeverFew to defend against the ageing effects of the sun. 

With all this rain (I think today is the first remotely Spring-like day in a long time) I haven't been able to test the new product's sun-protecting capabilities, and no, there's no sand to be found in Aylesbury, sure, but having worn the SPF 30 on my skin around the house I cannot wait to take the Ultra Light Sun Spray on holiday. Let's start with aesthetics...the brand have chosen a pump spray distributor, a good call I feel. The pump itself is easy to press so even when your hands are covered in sunscreen/sand/seawater/Cosmopolitans, spritzing should be easy. The fragrance is really rather lovely - you get a slight hint of that typical SPF smell but mostly it hits you with a warm, fragrant scent. The spray goes on white but blends in to the skin effortlessly, without a hint of chalkiness. What I hate most about the sunscreens that I've used is the post-application flakiness, of which this showed no sign, phew! No matter how hard I rubbed, this refused to budge. There's no visual sign of greasiness. In fact, this made my skin look much better after sunscreen application - all glowy and healthy-looking. Best of all, this product does not feel remotely greasy or sticky and I can't imagine sand will cling to it. It does feel like you're wearing something on the skin but in a more moisturising kind of way. A definite 10/10! Sx

I generously applied the SPF 30

Rubbing in effortlessly

The finish - skin looks glowy, not greasy

Don't take my word for it...Trials found that 95% of women attested to the product's long-lasting hydration and non-gready, easily-absorbed formula. 

Launch Friday

This week has been a mammoth week for launches...last Friday I went to a Piz Buin suncare event. The Johnson & Johnson girls always kit out the events so well - all orange and brown voile, the colours of the brand. Grace Woodward, celebrity super-stylist, provided summer fashion tips via a video link. The product itself is very exciting. I'll be posting a review later today.

On Wednesday I went to the launch of a new 2 week-lasting manicure from Artistic Colour Gloss. The founder, Tom, was on hand to chat through the new treatment and all his celebrity goss! I'm 3 days into my mani and it's still pristine. More on that later.

First off on Thursday was Shiseido at sushi-heaven, Nobu. The new makeup looks gorgeous (I'm especially excited to try the new foundation) and I'm dying to try the hero Softener, which preps the skin to better absorb moisturiser.

Next was Coty at the Oui Rooms and what a fun launch! To celebrate J Lo's new 'Love & Glamour' scent, there was a specially-made photo booth, with built-in wind machine for diva-worthy photos. Mine however were more divvy than diva. Yes you may laugh people but I thought I'd be able to preview and change the shots and only got around to pressing the wind button on the last flash. The new summer scents are really exciting and there are some seriously gorgeous nail colours to come from Rimmel.

Finally, I fulfilled an A Level Communications dream in meeting Dr Linda Papadopoulos. She actually specialised in psychodermatology and is launching a skincare range to counteract the negative effects of stress on the skin. Cannot wait to try! Sx

Tried and Tested...Gel Liner

As an eyeliner fiend, I'm always excited to find new ways to make my eyes smokier, darker and more flawless. I've used gel liners in the past with little success. The formulas don't seem to glide on at all easily and I imagine only those with professional experience can achieve that precise, unfaltering line.

I just got around to trying the No7 Limited Edition Spring Collection Gel Eyeliner, £10 (Boots.com) and actually, it wasn't as traumatic an experience as I'd previously found. The packaging is cute and the pigment quite dark. The brush, however, is fiddily, but despite this did provide a semi-straight line (the semi-ness is probably more of a result of my makeup shakiness). Overally, it's a good gel liner. But would it convince me to put down my liquid liner? No.

No7 Gel Liner

NEW! NEW! NEW!

Next on to the new Maybelline Eyestudio Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner in Intense Black, £7.99 (Boots). Considering the price, this just felt a lot more premium. The pen applicator is much longer, which helps with the application. The gel was super-creamy and didn't drag the lid upon application.

The pigment, as you might guess from a shade named 'intense black', is impressive, the kind of black you only get from a liquid liner or kohl. Plus, the brush is prefectly tapered to make flicks easy to perfect. Maybelline's gel liner goes on sale in March. In one application, this has totally changed my opinion on gel liners - who knew it could be so easy? Definitely worth swapping your liquid liner for, at least occassionally. Sx

Maybelline Gel Eyeliner