Triona’s Beauty

For all your make-up must-haves, hair tricks and skincare saviours, look no further, as Triona McCarthy has it all right here, right now

Boxing pretty

MOST WANTED

A great big “Hi, there!” to you in my best American accent, as I want to introduce you to L.A. Girl foundations and concealers, which are now available on trndbeauty.com

This range, which constantly pops up on my Insta feed, includes contour sticks, powders, gel eyeliners and lip paint, nearly all of which are under the €15 mark.

The brand even has a white-foundation option, Pro Coverage Illuminating Foundation in White, right, €11.95, which can be used with any shade to create a custom colour, lightening as needed — perfect at this time of year to take darker summer foundation into autumn.

Treat yourself

Wanna be as glammed up and gorgeously groomed as Gigi, right? Then you need to check out Treatwell, the online beauty booking platform, where customers can browse and book their treatments through either the Treatwell app or the treatwell.ie website, through which bookings are sent directly to your chosen salon. This makes booking treatments so seamless and easy — it’s kind of like Uber or MyTaxi.

With over 200 salons now available in the Dublin area, there’s a wide range of treatments to choose from.

I particularly like the way the app has a ‘near you’ section which, once you’ve entered your search criteria, will locate salons in your area with last-minute availability. Great for a quick blow-dry before a night out or a wax before a date!

Triona’s trick

If my hair was a person, it would be Mariah Carey! It acts like a total diva. Having a huge entourage is the only thing that keeps it happy. So I use lots of products, and shampoo twice. It makes it happier, it looks healthier and it’s better behaved. The first shampoo breaks down oils and build-up; the second completely cleans.

Mrs T

If, like me, you are not a fan of those sickly, saacharinesweet scents that seem to be everywhere, than you need to check out Elizabeth Arden’s

White Tea fragrance, right, from €49. It’s definitely one for those who prefer clean, linen-like scents. It has a lovely light, clean, fresh fragrance, that’s also warm, as it contains musky, floral and woody aromas.

It’s the perfect wearable day scent that is both powerful and subtle.

Deliciously understated.

CULT PRODUCT

I’m obsessed with travel-friendly beauty products, as I never check in a bag when I’m travelling. My latest discovery is the perfectly portable Urban Decay Meltdown Makeup Remover Cleansing Oil Stick, left, €24. It’s in stick form, and goes from a balm to an oil before turning into a microfoam, to gently dissolve make-up. And I mean all make-up waterproof mascara included! Apply it directly to your skin, massage gently until it melts into a liquid, then rinse with water. Massage a bit more to lather, then rinse again.

Triona’s top trends

If you’ve never signed up to a subscription beauty box before, maybe after reading this, you’ll change your mind. The one everyone is talking about at the mo is beautypie.com, launched last year by my old pal Marcia Kilgore, founder of the much-loved brands Bliss and Soap & Glory. Beauty Pie is a new angle on the beauty-box biz, as it’s factory-directpriced, prestige-quality make-up and skincare. Sign up to a Beauty Pie membership, and you can get lippies for less than a fiver. My puss and my purse thank me every day! Although, Marcia, we need to talk, as you don’t ship to Ireland, so I had to use the AnPost service, AddressPal! The Beauty Pie Fruitizyme Five Minute Facial, above, which is a do-it-yourself facial peel, is my go-to product here when I need to look good in a jiffy. It reminds me of Ren Flash Rinse 1 Minute Facial, right, €40, as it’s a physical and chemical exfoliator that works in five minutes to leave my skin smooth and luminous. Glossybox.ie is an old favourite among Irish beauty junkies; and just recently Birchbox.co.uk became available to Irish customers as well, starting from €11.50. Both offer a mix of full-size and miniature products from skincare and beauty brands worldwide. For the Green queen, naturalskincare.ie contains gorgeously green and glam skincare products to feed and nourish the skin as well as pamper, from €19.50.