There are only 3 more days to go until Christmas!! Between getting presents, food and decorating, you might not have had much time for self-care. Fear not, we’re here to help! We’ve put together our favourite fuss-free holiday beauty tips so that you can look and feel fabulous throughout the festive season.
Our Top Holiday Beauty Tips
The Face
This time of year can be quite hard on your face. The harsh winter conditions (unless you’re lucky enough to live somewhere warm) and stress can dry out skin or lead to blemishes and breakouts. To ensure that your face is glowing and enhance the effect of any makeup you have on there are a few little tricks.
Firstly, use this time to exfoliate and buff away dead skin cells in order to resurface your skin. Use an enzyme exfoliator like glo-therapeutics Pumpkin Enzyme Scrub which is gentle enough to use on a daily basis during the holiday period. Your skin will feel smoother and look brighter. Follow up with multi-masking. As its, the holiday season, try out multi-masking on a daily basis to nourish and hydrate your skin. We love using Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Skin Clay Mask to purify pores and nourish the skin. Follow up with an intensely hydrating mask like Charlotte Tilbury Revolutionary Instant Magic Facial Dry Sheet Mask. This will leave skin looking impeccably smooth, bright and moisturised. This mask is super easy to use and you can walk around with it on whilst getting ready or do last minute chores! It’s also reusable. This combination of exfoliating and multi-masking will make your skin look and feel insanely gorgeous and provides the perfect base for makeup.
In terms of moisturiser, you should use the holiday season as an opportunity to really work on your skin. Use a hydrating day moisturiser like Bobbi Brown Hydrating Face Cream which has hyaluronic acid and caffeine. It hydrates and nourishes skin whilst lifting and firming. This cream also provides a fantastic base for make-up. For the eyes, opt for a lightweight formula like Bobbi Brown Hydrating Eye Cream which is long-lasting and hydrates as well as balances the skin. It again provides an excellent base if you’re wearing makeup (especially concealer). Don’t neglect your lips. Include them in the exfoliating and masking step as well.
When it comes to makeup (tomorrow we will start posting about Christmas makeup looks), planning ahead will make life super simple. Give your skin a little pampering by applying your face masks followed before you apply your makeup. The same with your eyes. Apply a couple of eye masks like DHC Revitalizing Moisture Strips which will reduce any dark circles, puffiness or swelling before you apply your makeup. Another option is to apply a cold pack tour face and eyes if you’re feeling especially puffy. If you don’t have one already, use a hydrating foundation like Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation SPF15 or if you’re keen to give yourself a break then use your usual priming moisturiser. You can even mix a bit of your foundation with your moisturiser to make your own personalised tinted moisturiser for a more sheer coverage.
To make life easier, choose a single eye palette with some seasonal colours (read glittery and sparkly) and mix as well as match the colours for the duration. This is great with Bobbi Brown Caviar & Rubies Eye Shadow Palette, Huda Beauty Desert Dusk Eyeshadow Palette or Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Palette (The Dolce Vita). If you’re a little more on the go than that, pick up a couple of Charlotte Tilbury’s Colour Chameleon eye crayons for a single day and night smokey eye option. Select a single eyeliner in dark brown or black (Kohl or gel), your favourite mascara, blush, and highlighter. In terms of lips, a lipstick and lip gloss can be used to make at least 3-4 different looks depending on how you layer them. Go for a nude or coral colour if you want a subtle look or if you have dramatic eyes. If you’re keen on a vamp sophisticated look go for a deep red lipstick and a sheer pink lip gloss. During the day you can mix the lipstick and lipgloss for a gorgeous strawberry/raspberry tint and at night use the lipstick alone.
The Hair
Again, for those of us unfortunate enough to live in cold places, Winter can terrorise hair. Take advantage of the holiday period to really nourish and hydrate your hair. Wash with a scalp cleansing shampoo then follow with a hair conditioning mask such as Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Winter Remedy. After finishing apply a leave-in conditioner like Aussie 3 Miracle Oil Reconstructor which can be applied to wet hair and dry hair for conditioning in between washes. If you’re styling hair use something like Living Proof Restore Perfecting Spray which conditions, detangles and protects hair. To give you time, if you’re hair is fine or prone to greasiness use a dry hair shampoo for in between washes. If you have very dry hair then use an overnight leave-in hair mask and silk wrap to condition your hair whilst you sleep.
The Body
Ok it’s no secret that when the weather is cold, tights, trousers and layers make it easy to forget the skin on your body. Well, let Christmas be about redressing this neglect. Use a good scrub like Grounded Skin Brightening Grapefruit Scrub on a daily basis then wash with a hydrating lotion like Aveeno Positively Nourishing Hydrating Body Wash. Moisturise your body with a resurfacing and moisturising cream like Nip+Fab Glycolic Fix Body Cream for smoother and brighter skin. Following these steps on a daily basis will ensure that your skin is soft, smooth and has a super sexy glow through out the holiday season.
