Jo and Sarah answer real questions from readers: to put your query, go to beautybible.com
Q Since my favourite waterproof mascara (Paul & Joe) is ‘currently unavailable’, I am having horrors about how to keep my eyelashes curled without them drooping during the day. I do use an eyelash curler.
A Well, a bit of foraging online reveals that your top mascara does seem to be available at some sites – at a hugely inflated price, though. So up to you, but there are other curling mascaras to consider before splashing out.
Make up artist Armand Beasley’s favourite to hold a curl daylong is Urban Decay Perversion Mascara, £21 for full size but you could try the travel size for just £9. Armand says ‘it has a thick creamy jet-black formula that’s neither too wet nor too dry. The full tapered wand gives great volume.’
Armand (armandinternationalltd.com) also likes Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara, £19. ‘The hourglass-shaped wand hugs the lashes, helping to lift and separate. Plus it’s waterproof which seems to help maintain the curl’ – as well as doing the obvious…
Curl-seekers also name check Benefit Roller Lash, Super-Curling & Lifting Mascara, £22, reporting that it gives long-lasting curl and makes eyes look more wide open.
Sweep down the upper side of the lashes first to get rid of any make up that may have fallen on lashes, says Armand, then apply on the under side, going from root to tip in a zigzag motion.
Armand adds one warning and a tip: ‘don’t “pump” your mascara wand as you will trap air in the product and it will start to clump when you apply it. And always change your mascara every three months, both for hygiene and to get the best performance from the product.’
Two other thoughts from make up artist Jenny Jordan, whose salon in north London is a staple in beauty address books (jennyjordan.com). For eyelash curlers, Jenny recommends the Tweezerman range, which includes ProCurl Lash Curler, £22, and Classic Lash Curler, £16.
For longer-term results, Jenny recommends Lash Lift, a salon treatment that lifts lashes naturally and lasts for eight weeks. The hour-long process, which is best partnered with a lash tint, should last for eight weeks and can be done every three months (£40 for Lash Lift treatment, £60 including tint, jennyjordan.com.)
Beauty Bible loves…
Guerlain L’Essential foundation, £38 and £44.
You know the beauty world’s changing when Guerlain launches a foundation that’s 97% from natural origin.
But that’s not the only reason we love this new face base. It blends seamlessly into skin – with the aid of an utterly fantastic retractable face brush infused with charcoal – allowing for total control over the coverage, from lightweight to medium. (And medium coverage, with this radiant finish, is enough to conceal pigmentation marks and redness, we find.)
You know the beauty world’s changing when Guerlain launches a foundation that’s 97% from natural origin
It features skin-caring ingredients, setting out to target uneven pigmentation and reduce pores. (We haven’t been using it long enough to report on that, but we’re watching for visible benefits.) Think: prebiotics and probiotics, red algae and moisturising white cocoa bean extract, which (among other actions) helps shield against blue light from our gadgets.
Perhaps our favourite thing about it is that L’Essentiel comes in 30 gorgeous shades, from pale and interesting through to deep skintones that often find it hard to get a match.
All packaged in a dressing-table-worthy bottle designed by Mathieu Lehanneur, voted one of the ‘100 World Top Designers’ by Wallpaper mag.
Our new complexion-perfecting ‘essentiel’.