Try this summer body-smoother from the famous Canyon Ranch. Put two peeled/pitted avocados, two egg yolks, two generous tablespoons of honey and the juice of one lemon in a large bowl. Stir till it becomes a paste, then refrigerate. Take the container to the shower and after you've exfoliated, apply the treatment all over – good for face, chest, arms and legs. Wait a few minutes and rinse off, for super-soft skin at a fraction of the price of a flight to California...
Hate to say it, but unless those hotel amenities are by a well-known brand – we’re always thrilled to encounter ESPA and This Works, for instance – we advise giving them a miss. We often find that the body washes and shampoos have unacceptably high levels of detergent, leaving itchy and dry.
If you’re going for a bikini waxing, don’t ever feel embarrassed. Therapists are essentially unshockable; they’ve seen it all (and removed it all!) (But you can still tip generously…
Holiday still to come? Book a hair trim before you go; the ends (which are oldest) are most prone to damage.
Having trouble removing festival glitter? (Oh, even we’ve been known…!) Vaseline seems to do the trick, we find.
If you have vertical ridges in your nails, buff them nightly very, very lightly and then apply a nourishing oil. Cosmetically, a ridge-filling base coat will fix the problem.
Skin dry and itchy? Try a D-I-Y sugar bath. (No, really.) It’s an old Chinese remedy for dehydrated skin: buy some sugar cane slices (from a Chinese supermarket or grocery), half-fill the bathtub with water and put a couple of slides of sugar in the water, leaving them to melt. Then top up the bath – and enjoy.
We sometimes think fine-toothed combs should be banned (except – literally – for nit-picking). The wider apart the teeth are, the better it is for curly hair, certainly – your comb becomes your fingers. Wide-toothed combs are best for long, straight hair, too.
Do you have a make-up ‘wardrobe’. Our make-up friend Ruby Hammer once told us that she believes we should (just as more and more of us have a fragrance wardrobe). ‘Try to build up a collection of different textures,’ she advises. ‘Ideally, have a liquid base, a foundation stick, tinted moisturiser and a compact make-up. Then experiment. Make-up is not an exact science and one product is not going to work for the rest of your life.’ And, she adds, ‘If you have good skin, discipline yourself to use less. If your skin needs cover, only cover the bits that need it – forehead, chin or nose.’
One of the worst feelings in a spa is feeling claustrophobic. Some treatments – herbal or mud wraps, for instance – are worse than others, for that feeling of being confined. Jo finds that keeping her arms outside the wrap really works. You can always ask the therapist to loosen the area around your chest and feet, too. Alternatively, focus on a pleasant memory if you start to panic – and if the treatment room has music, let it distract you.
Here’s a quick way of determining if you have a ‘warm’ or a ‘cool’ skintone. You’ll need a pink rose (a blue-pink rather than a yellow-pink), and a peach. Look in the mirror. First of all, hold the peach next to your chin. Then the rose. Which ‘lifts’ your skintone? If it’s the peach, you’re ‘warm’. If it’s the rose, you’re ‘cool’. (A very small number of people are flattered by both warm and cool tones, though – Jo’s one of them.)
Don’t put your sunscreen in the fridge. It tends to separate once exposed to extreme heat and cold. (Aftersun’s fine, though.) If you’re on the beach, keep it covered with a towel.
Fruits make wonderful summer face masks. Try grapes for cooling, soothing and nourishing. Peach is great for soothing irritated skin. Berries are softening and astringent. Mash them with a fork (or Nutribullet them), then push through a strainer to remove as much liquid as possible so the mask isn’t runny. Apply the mash to your skin, lie down and relax for 10 minutes. (Wear a headband so your hairline doesn’t get all fruity – or apply the mask in the bath.)
Do you wake up every night in the middle of the night for a pee…? Take it as a sign to stop drinking after the early evening. Drink water or herbal tea in late afternoon and early evening, so you don’t have to wake up for a bathroom break.
We’ve all got our pins out, right now. But if yours are looking dull, flat and even flaky or crêpe-y, replenish with almond, wheatgerm or vitamin E oils, which are particularly compatible with the skin. (Shins, in particular, have no oil glands of their own.)
Still wondering whether to bother with a primer? According to SUQQU UK spokesperson, make-up artist Morag Ross, you should definitely add one into your make-up regime. ‘The right base ensures you use less foundation on top, which prevents caking and gives that “lit from within” glow,’ she says. For Beauty Bible’s top primer recommendations, check out our Beauty Bible Award-winners here.
Why do we so often get sick after flying? You might think it’s the air inside the plane – but multiple filters mean that’s changed much more regularly than you might think. Instead, it’s often the surfaces on a plane that carry bacteria and viruses – so make like a germophobe and swipe a disinfectant wipe over your table and armrests before eating or touching your face, wash your hands – or use a hand sanitizer featuring at least 60% alcohol.
Skin dry and itchy? Try a D-I-Y sugar bath. (No, really.) It’s an old Chinese remedy for dehydrated skin: buy some sugar cane slices (from a Chinese supermarket or grocery), half-fill the bathtub with water and put a couple of slides of sugar in the water, leaving them to melt. Then top up the bath – and enjoy.
New mum? Feeling less-than-glam? Bobbi Brown recommends smooshing a few products into an empty palette for a quick make-up fix: concealer, cream foundation, cream blush, lip balm, matte lipstick and a glossier option. Slip it into your bag and you've always got a mini-kit handy – while still leaving room for nappies and bottles etc...
Get yourself out there into some green space. (When we're in London, we head to our amazing parks.) Exposure to nature 'has been shown to improve our health, boost the immune system, reduce the stress hormone cortisol and enhance mental wellness,' writes Dr. Rupert Sheldrake in his new book Science and Spiritual Practices.