THE BEAUTY INFLUENCER
This month’s best beauty buys
MOST WANTED
Make-up artist Lisa Eldridge knows more about her subject than anyone I know. No surprise, then, that when she launches a new product, it’s sprinkled with stardust – and sells out fast. Her latest is Elevated Glow Highlighter, £27, laced with hydrating skincare ingredients. Noting that highlighter is often applied on areas where there are pores, fine lines or pigmentation, Eldridge added biopolymers that work like a mesh on the skin to tighten it and create a seamless shine. Her Enlivening Blush £24, a cream/serum, hits the sweet spot between matte and dewy for the prettiest flush, while Gloss Embrace, £18 (back after selling out in 45 minutes at Christmas) is a lip oil with a buttery feel that comes in 10 perfectly curated shades. Be quick!
SOMETHING TO SMILE ABOUT
Trending now: smart oral care as integral to our beauty routines, thanks in part to all the time we’ve spent checking out our teeth on video calls. Like skincare, it’s treading a more considered, sustainable path. Case in point, Dr Uchenna Okoye’s My Smile Whitening Toothpaste, £17.99. It uses fine silica to remove stains, leaves out potentially irritating preservatives and SLSS, and comes in a recyclable tube. The design speaks to Dr Okoye’s Nigerian heritage. ‘A print is always involved in special occasions in Nigeria,’ she explains. ‘And the one I chose for my packaging is called plaque-plaque. Truly.’ Expect complexion-lifting, whiter teeth in days.
FRAGRANT FUTURE
I adore perfume oils for the way they sit on the skin, gently unfurling with less waft than spray-on scents. These, from the Kiehl’s Heritage Collection (celebrating the brand’s 170th birthday), take inspiration from the so-called fortune drawing potions fashionable in the 1920s. A perfume that promises to be Love Luring, Fortune Seeking or, my favourite, Jinx Removing (a grounding, incense-like blend that includes sandalwood and vetiver)? I’m spellbound.