Do you find your hair grips and slides slip out of your hair, especially when it's clean? Spritz them with hairspray before you put them in.

If you're a contact lens wearer and your mascara's running dry, it's OK to use a few drops of the sterile lens solution to thin it. But nobody should keep a mascara for more than three months before replacing it.

Getting foundation on a white shirt is an occupational hazard, if you get dressed before doing your make-up. There's not much you can do to remove it immediately but before putting it in the wash, squirt a dollop of shaving cream on the spot to pre-treat it.

Have you set out to eat healthily, in 2018? Some wisdom from Dr. Antonella Tosti, dermatologist and expert in hair disorders. 'I see women who are drinking too many raw juices, not realising that certain vitamins can cause hair loss.' (Vitamin A, found in carrots, isn't good for hair.) She adds: 'Hair needs protein for healthy growth, so it's not uncommon for someone who becomes vegan to experience slower hair growth, if they're not supplementing with the nutrients meat provides.' (The answer could be as simple as an iron supplement.)

Traditionally, the best way to apply concealer is to dab it on with a tiny brush. But concealer pencils can be a revelation – speedier and just as precise. Look for one with a creamy texture (if it’s too dry it won’t blend), and dot it on blemishes, dark circles and broken capillaries. (These pencils are great for getting at tricky areas like the sides of the nose.) Our favourite? Delilah Farewell Cream Concealer.

We love finding space for little ‘psychological lifts’ during each day. A splash of Cologne, a reapplication of blusher in the afternoon, a swipe of lipstick at the end of the working day. Fact: if you feel pretty, you look pretty.

Try to change how you think about your features. We share Bobbi Brown’s philosophy that every woman has positive features and it’s better to focus on playing those up than trying to disguise/conceal things we’re less-than-happy with. As she puts it: ‘If your eyes are not your best feature, play up your lips. Don’t try to fix them.’

Suffering from dry, flaky lips? Us, too. Dampen lips when you’re having a bath or shower and gently buff away with a flannel. Pat dry immediately you’ve finished washing and slick on a rich balm immediately.

We’re always looking for time-saving strategies – so we’re big fans of the Treatwell app, which now covers the whole of the UK and lets you ‘order in’ beauty services.

This quiet time of year is a perfect moment to follow some advice from US make-up pr Glenn Marziali. 'Take a Sunday afternoon to find out what makes you feel pretty. Go through magazines, cut out pictures of eyes, lips, cheeks that look like yours – or shades of make-up that you love – and see what the make-up artist did to the models. Then try it on yourself.' (You could also use a Pinterest board for this, of course.)

If you're anything like us, you're still having a bit of a New Year's purge. On the make-up front, be sure to throw out any foundation that's dried out or polish that's thickened. Don't be tempted to reconstitute products past their prime.

You can use a colour meant for eyes – such as tan or taupe – on cheeks (for contouring). But don't use blush on your lids. The pigments in blushes are different from those in eyeshadow, may not have been screened for eye safety – and might cause an allergic reaction.

Don’t play ‘join the dots’ with your foundation, applying a dot here and a dot there and then connecting them when you blend. Focus on applying to one area, and then move on – starting with the area where you feel you need the greatest coverage, and moving on to ‘less important’ zones. (We swear by Cailyn O! Wow Brush for streak-free application.)

Keep a bottle of facial oil by your bed. While you’re reading or relaxing before nodding off, apply a few drops to your fingers and give yourself a facial massage – two minutes is great, five minutes is better. Your skin will appreciate the nourishment – and the ‘boost’ will be visible when you look in the mirror tomorrow morning…

Upping your fitness levels, in the New Year? Be sure to mix it up. Personal trainer Jamie Baird, a.k.a. The Fitness Coach (who's been based at The Sanderson Hotel for 10 years) recommends that you shouldn't stick to the same gym class or jogging path. 'When your body does something repetitively, it becomes more efficient,' he explains. 'That means it burns fewer calories. 'Changing workouts keeps your body burning maximum energy.'  

Shopping for a new foundation? Honestly, this is the No.1 purchase that you should NOT rush. If you're shopping at a counter, ask the consultant to make your face up with the product – and walk around wearing it that day. The pH of skin can sometimes alter a foundation's tone, on the skin.

Make-up artist Wendy Rowe suggests applying mascara before any other make-up, so you can see every lash and wipe away any smudges.

Consider vitamin D supplements between November and March, when the British sun isn’t strong enough for our skins to manufacture vitamin D.

Hair looking a little too smooth for your liking? Smoosh a dab of hand cream between your palms and skim through hair to add non-greasy texture to short hair.

Looking for a new red lipstick for New Year’s Eve? Great advice from make-up artist Mary Wiles: ‘If you have a warm skintone with a yellow undertone, look for a warm lip colour – orange-y reds and berries. Some warmer tones can make teeth look yellow, though, so check it in natural light. If you are  more of a cool tone, reds and berries with a blue or pink undertone will be super-flattering. If you have the very deepest skin tones, go bright. And if in doubt, look at a celebrity with a similar skintone and see what they experiment with.’