Pretty eyeshadows and soft skin are on beauty assistant Medina’s wanted list
MY YEAR-ROUND SKIN GOAL IS FOR IT TO BE AS SOFT AS POSSIBLE. Post-shower, I’ll massage Nuture Nourishing Skin Treatment Oil [10], £8.99, into damp skin. This allows the product to spread evenly and quickly, and leaves skin extra silky. For hands and feet, Peacći Skin ticks all the right boxes: affordable, effective and visually pleasing. The Peach Manipedi Scrub [2], £9, eradicates dry patches, while its Vanilla Manipedi Mask [7], £15, works best when feet are cocooned in socks overnight.
IF YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE CHIP-FREE, PERFECT NAILS AT HOME, Manucurist Green Flash Nomad Full Kit [12], £69, is the stuff of dreams. Polish is cured with LED light (instead of the UV lamps used in many nail bars), stays impeccable for up to 10 days and comes off with an acetone-free remover. The whole DIY process takes no more than 30 minutes.
THERE’S SOMETHING ROMANTIC ABOUT A FRAGRANCE THAT SITS GENTLY ON THE SKIN, revealing itself only to those in your orbit. James Perfume Oil by niche LA brand By Rosie Jane [8], £30.77 at After Beauty, is exactly this: a cosy blend of fig and gardenia that’s distinct only to those who come close.
THANKS TO A PRESCRIPTION RETINOID, MY ACNE-PRONE SKIN IS FINALLY IN A GOOD PLACE. I now stick to a consistent routine to maintain the clarity and improve leftover scarring. Function of Beauty [5], from £19, a customisable Nyc-based brand founded by a group of MIT engineers and cosmetic scientists, helps to streamline my regime with products featuring brightening azelaic acid, barrier-strengthening niacinamide and salicylic acid, to prevent new breakouts. Darling Glowy
Face Cream SPF50+ [6], £37, is excellent under make-up and imbues skin with natural radiance.
MORE SHEER THAN TRADITIONAL FOUNDATION, Urban Decay Stay Naked Hydromaniac Tinted Glow Hydrator [13], £29, quickly blurs away redness and pigmentation, while Saie Glowy Super Gel [1], £22, lends an ethereal gleam to cheekbones. A pinch of e.l.f. Cosmetics Putty Blush in Bahamas [3], £6, buffed into the higher parts of my cheeks enhances the golden undertones in my warm complexion. For a low-key stain, I dab on Truest [9], £22, a mauvey-rose lipstick from eco-conscious brand Highr Collective, with my fingertips.
MOST DAYS, I LIKE MY MAKE-UP TO BE DECORATIVE AND JOYFUL, so in come the colourful eyeshadows. The trick is to choose a colour you love and apply in light layers, or as a flick of liner. I’ve been enjoying the sorbet shades of Milk Color Chalks [14], £14 each, applied gently with fingers, punctuated with a coat of L’oréal Paris Air Volume Mega Mascara Waterproof [11], £10.99, and feathery brows – nothing beats Collection Colour Lash Mascara Clear [4], £1.99, which goes on without dreaded residue or crustiness. Brands such as Revolution and 3INA are also great for experimenting without blowing your budget.
Darling Glowy Face Cream SPF50+ is excellent under make-up