BEAUTY KNOW-HOW: Give your routine an extra shot… by adding these clever little boosters to your skin and hair products
A quick beauty shot can ramp up a product’s potency – without breaking the bank or having to buy a whole new solution from scratch
Shots? No, not the boozy kind – the beauty kind! An easy customisable boost to our regular skincare or haircare routine, shots (or doses) are popping up everywhere, enabling us to personalise and adjust regimes as our needs alter from day to day.
Whether it’s caused by a change in hormones or environment, the condition of our skin and hair sometimes shifts and regular products may not be enough. This is where a quick beauty shot can ramp up a product’s potency – without breaking the bank or having to buy a whole new solution from scratch.
As Alexia Inge, founder of CultBeauty, notes, ‘There’s a growing trend of brands building boosters into their ranges. Our life/work environments create such varied demands on our skin that “editable” skincare is becoming an essential part of everyone’s beauty wardrobe.’
For instance, at Emulsion you can tailor your products (1, from £20, emulsion.co.uk). Just enter your preferences on the website and choose from a wide range of bases, be it a face mask, hand wash or scrub, with the option of add-ons from essential oils and extracts to fragrances.
Clinique iD Active Cartridge Concentrate can be added to its classic Dramatically Different Jelly, Moisturiser or Gel (2, £36, clinique.co.uk) to treat your primary skin concerns. Options include Lines & Wrinkles for smoothing and re-plumping, Irritation for calming and comforting or Pores & Uneven Skin Texture for retexturising.
Bleach London has a selection of Deep Treatment Shots (3, £7, bleachlondon.co.uk) to inject life into your hair, which can be used pre- or post-shampoo, added to your usual conditioner or even with styling products.
Sarah Chapman Skinesis Overnight Exfoliating Booster (4, £59, sarahchapman.com) can be used alone or mixed into your chosen skincare to help reduce lines and breakouts.
Adding the Kelp Bioferment (5, £22, haeckels.co.uk) or cold-pressed oils in Haeckels Skin Care Mixology Set to your routine means your daily moisturiser can be customised with whatever nourishment your skin is thirsty for.
To give your hair more TLC, try Lee Stafford Choco Locks: Hot Choc Shots (6, £7.99 for four, boots.com) – an indulgent treat for tresses.
If you don’t fancy editing your routine yourself, a new launch from SkinCeuticals (skinceuticals.co.uk) might be more up your street. After a skincare consultation discussing your goals as well as biological and environmental factors, a personal corrective serum is made – after three months you can return to check on your progress and update your formula. It will launch exclusively at dermatologist Dr Stefanie Williams’s London clinic (eudelo.com) this month and in other selected clinics in September.