The best ever beauty buys — chosen by YOU

Last month, we asked you to name your favourite products. Now, 10,000 votes later, we reveal our first beauty award winners . . .

The budget mascara that beats designer brands. The serum that offers the results of a luxury rival at a fraction of the price. And the £300 hairdryer that — believe it or not — really is worth saving up for.

In an effort to find the all-time musthaves for your make-up bag, this year we launched the first-ever Inspire Beauty Awards — and today, I’m proud to reveal our inaugural winners.

As a beauty columnist for the Mail for more than ten years, I and my fellow judges — model Marie helvin, make-up guru Mary Greenwell and celebrity dermatologist Dr Sam Bunting — worked hard to whittle down our best buys for the shortlist, ranging from cult classics to some of this year’s biggest launches.

But it was you who made the final choice and, if your favourite wasn’t there, you let us know. Over the past few weeks, more than 10,000 individual votes were cast across the 16 categories by post and online, providing fascinating insights into what’s happening in beauty where it matters most: inside your bathroom cabinets and on your dressing tables.

Your choices reveal the trends that are changing the face of beauty — the rise of

supermarket skincare and makeup, the boom in ‘beauty while you sleep’ products and the proliferation of hightech gadgets.

But, most importantly, our winners demonstrate the enduring appeal of products that will — regardless of price tag or packaging — deliver results.

When you find something you like, you’re loyal, often buying several items from a brand.

‘Clinique products have been a lifesaver, fabulous!’ wrote one reader on her voting slip, nominating the brand in the foundation, concealer, blusher, cleanser, night and day creams and serum categories.

In fact, Clinique saw its products nominated in nine categories. Clearly, you love the department store stalwarts, with Clarins and estee Lauder also appearing multiple times.

So, To the winners. I was delighted so many of you agree with me that estee Lauder Double Wear StayInPlace Makeup (£32.50, counters nationwide) deserves to be our winning foundation.

Its consistency is ideal for mature skin in particular, as it’s not too drying, while the finish is neither matte nor glowy. You can trust this product to give you amazing coverage.

Your nominations in this category showed that tinted moisturiser is also hugely popular as a base, ranging from the pricier Laura Mercier, to cheaper options by Nivea and Garnier.

If, as you age, you have dark spots or pigmentation, your base will likely need to be backed up by a concealer. You chose Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage (£27, John Lewis) as our winner here — this thick, almost solid cream is great for dark shadows.

Some of you love to use Yves Saint Laurent Touche eclat (£25.50, Boots) as a concealer, even though it’s designed to be an illuminator to brighten skin.

But I agree that this can be an effective concealer under the eyes: I use this pen every day for that purpose, but never for blemishes, as its brightening effect would only draw attention to them.

In the mascara category, Maybelline Lash Sensational (£8.99, Boots) pipped its expensive rivals to the post. over time, our eyelashes get sparser, so we’re looking for a mascara that both thickens and lengthens — and this one does. You’re not so keen on waterproof formulas, which can be hard to remove.

The winning lipstick is Bobbi Brown Luxe Lip Colour (£27, bobbibrown.co.uk), which offers vibrant colour.

I love the fact that it’s so moisturising — as we age, we don’t want anything too drying, especially in winter when lips can get parched.

Understandably, you tend to prefer a glossy look to a matte finish, which can make lips look flaky. Bobbi Brown also won the

blusher category with Pot rouge (£22, bobbibrown.

co.uk), a creamy pot of colour that looks as good on cheeks as it does on lips.

This winner typified a wider trend revealed by your voting patterns: you love multipurpose products. Many of you prefer to use lipstick as a blush, and its appeal is clear — unlike a powder blush, a creamy formula won’t sit in fine lines.

The winning eye shadow is surely a future standard: the Urban Decay Naked Palette (£39.50, urbandecay.co.uk).

The neutral shades of the original ‘classic’ palette are universally flattering. However, many of you prefer to buy separate shadows, rather than a palette, so that you can be certain every colour you own suits you.

Skincare did hold some surprises. Liz earle Cleanse & Polish (£16 for a starter kit,

lizearle.com) is your winning cleanser, launched more than 20 years ago. It’s easy to use and suits most skin types.

Crucially, the way in which it’s applied — you massage on the cream, then wipe it off with a warm, damp cloth — makes cleansing a relaxing experience.

Less predictably, your own product picks showed that the newer micellar waters, containing tiny, bubblelike molecules called micelles that lift away grime, are increasingly popular. But favourites such as Ponds Cold Cream Cleanser (£3.25, Boots) still hold a place in your hearts — one fan noted her ‘great skin at 80 [is] very reasonable to maintain!’

And you like a bargain: Wright’s Traditional Soap (80p, Tesco) made it into this category — known for its oldfashioned coal tar scent, its been going strong since 1860. Weleda Skin food (£10.95,

weleda.co.uk) is the winning night cream, pointing to your enthusiasm for a multitasking marvel.

Packed with plant extracts, this moisturiser can be used as a day or night cream, while