BITS AND PIECES

The treats and tips to brighten up your week

MAKE-UP MAGIC

IF YOU can’t afford a whole bagful of fancy pants make-up, don’t worry. The trick is to buy one really hardworking product, which will lift the rest. Try a basic foundation and a lick of mascara, then go mad with Charlotte Tilbury’s Beach Stick Ibiza (€40, brownthomas.

com). It’s creamy and light-reflecting, can be used on both lips and cheeks, and it really does give you a fabulous summer glow. A must-have!

CHARITY COOK-OFF

IT’S ALWAYS great to go along to a charity event where you get to help others and learn something too. The Ultimate Dinner Party, a Miele Cookery Demonstration, will give you plenty of tips and tricks to become a dinner party doyenne — even if you can barely boil an egg. Tickets cost €25, and all proceeds go directly towards RESPECT, part of the Daughters of Charity Disability Support Services. The group helps improve the lives of people with intellectual disabilities. See respect.ie

JEWEL IN THE CROWN

NEXT time you’re online, have a peek at the jewellery eboutique, laurynrose.com. The pieces on it are gorgeous, affordable, and highly wearable — we particularly like this Amethyst Pear Drop ring for €65, but there are plenty of other rings, earrings and bracelets to choose from, too. The unique thing about LaurynRose is that it donates 10 per cent of the profit of every sale to Laura Lynn Children’s Hospice — not just as a one-off, but all year round.

BE A BEACH BABE

IF YOU’RE feeling all summery, then get yourself up to House Of Fraser’s Beach Boutique, which has just launched in Dublin’s Dundrum Town Centre. The range is full of lots of bright, colourful floral prints and stylish separates. Make sure to get your hands on the Biba Open Front Kaftan, €59, a brilliant cover-up for the beach and a sensibleyet-sexy addition to any summer wardrobe! See houseoffraser.ie for more styles.

A BEAUTIFUL TREAT

MAYBE it’s your birthday and it’s time to start dropping hints to your other half. Or maybe you’d just like to treat yourself. Eitherway, the Beauty at The Lodge at Ashford Castle — which uses the brilliant Dermalogica range — might be just what you need. The €225 package includes one night with breakfast, as well as a treatment and a three-course dinner. See thelodgeac.com