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There are not many things that we are able to control during quarantine but keeping our brows looking fabulous is definitely something we can do... When it comes to creating the perfect brow, Benefit Cosmetics have been leading the way for decades. They offer a huge range of brow products whether you want a defined natural brow, a textured brow or a full on Instagram brow, as well as the tools to tidy them. From gels, pencils and powders there are so many different products to create your wow brow and it can be difficult to know where to start. However, choosing your product can be determined by the brow result you want to achieve. Previously in British Bride magazine, I shared my love for the Benefit Cosmetics "Precisely, My Brow" eyebrow pencil which is great for creating natural hair strokes. However there is a new brow product on the block and its a goodie! You can now sculpt and define your own brows like a pro with the Benefit Brow Zings Pro Palette. This slim handbag size palette is perfect for brows-on-the-go and contains 4 long-wearing brow powders to fill in the brows and 3 waxes (2 highly pigmented and 1 clear) to define and sculpt the brow. There is also a dual-ended brush and a blending spoolie to help create the shape and precision of the brow. The palette is available in 2 shades - light to medium and medium to deep. I love this palette because it's really useful having the wax in there too, especially if you have unruly brows and need to give them a quick spruce up on the run. PS - plus if you're really stuck for space in your handbag and need to glam up your look in a hurry, you can use the brow powder to create a super quick smoky eye... win win! You're welcome.  Available from www.benefitcosmetics.com for £33.50
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So we are another week in to lockdown and I have been spending it testing lots of new beauty products. I found myself focussing on creating some gorgeous fresh, spring skin and using 3 products in particular I now have a go-to complexion look that I absolutely love! Using a nourishing moisturising oil and mineral makeup, this base feels so light so I don't even feel like I am wearing makeup, which is perfect for a minimal makeup wearer like myself. With most products, I like to try them out several times to feel confident in recommending these to my clients and readers and I have worn this base 3 days in a row - just because it has really freshened up my complexion and made me feel so much better whilst working from home. You can see how I used these products in this short video. If you could just skirt past the fact my roots are desperately in need of some TLC - I feel better knowing I am not alone in styling out the quarantine chic. Douvall's Organic Argan Oil Moisturiser - £25.00 for 50ml - www.douvalls.com  Douvall's cold pressed multi-tasking 100% pure eco-certified organic oil is non-greasy, super nourishing and age-defying, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles with regular use thanks to the Vitamin E, essential fatty acids and anti-oxidants. This can also be used to moisturise the body, dropped in the bath for some skin TLC, nourish cuticles to strengthen nails and applied as a hair treatment for dried/split ends. PUR 4 in 1 Mineral Tinted Moisturiser - £25.00 available from www.purcosmetics.co.uk  PUR 4 In 1 Mineral Tinted Moisturizer SPF20 is an all-purpose skin hydrator, primer, light coverage foundation and SPF protection for all skin types. I used this product as my base as I like a natural, dewy look but if you prefer a fuller coverage it can be used as a primer for a mineral foundation. Dr Hauschka Translucent Bronzing Tint - £29.50 available from www.drhauschka.co.uk  Dr Hauschka Translucent Bronzing Tint can be mixed with your moisturiser for a subtle warmth or added over the top of your base in same way you would apply a powder or cream bronzer. It will soften the appearance of blemishes and imperfections and it blends beautifully.  During the Covid-19 lockdown, many of us are making some crucial lifestyle decision… do we over indulge while working from home because normality is out of the window or jump aboard the trend for online workouts? Do we go makeup free because we are not leaving the house or do we still make the effort to get dressed and do our hair and makeup simply because it makes it feel better? Do we stop our hair removal methods because nobody will see your hairy legs during lockdown or carry on with our grooming regime to avoid coming out of quarantine looking like a yeti? It was the first time I had tried sugar wax of any type, having used traditional wax for twenty years on and off – instant wax strips at home and heated wax treatments in salons. I was curious to try sugar wax as I had heard it was less painful, and as I try to use as many cruelty-free products as possible, Sugar Coated was a good option. The kit contains a small pot of sugar wax, 2 application sticks, a stirrer and 15 re-usable, washable cloth strips. I used about a third of the pot to wax my legs to the knee, so I presume you could get 2-3 treatments from this kit.  It was very easy to get started – just 40 seconds was enough to heat the sugar wax in the microwave. The product has a subtle but lovely smell – like toffee apple. As this was the first time using this product I was a little apprehensive about testing my first strip, but I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to apply the wax. I struggled a little bit with how much product I should use and applying it at an equal consistency at first, but improved as I went on. Best of all, it was definitely less painful than using traditional wax. I am an experienced waxer and also appreciate that people have different pain thresholds, but I definitely found this the most pain free waxing method I have personally tried, especially on sensitive areas like round the ankle and the back of the knee.
Tip - I would recommend taking painkillers such as paracetamol about half an hour before waxing, as well as dusting the area to be waxed with talcum powder, as this helps. The sugar wax took all the hair away, leaving behind only a few missed hairs each time and I often find that normal wax strips don’t grip all the hair first time and the skin can become sore if you repeat on the same area. I was able to deal with these quickly by reapplying a tiny bit of extra wax, and removing any leftover hairs, without damaging my skin. The whole process, including washing the strips at the end, took only 35 minutes – and I think I would improve on time with practice if used regularly. I got a lovely, smooth and even result, with minimal pain and no mess. My only suggestion for improvement is that I would like to see a sachet of balm included in the kit, to apply at the end. I had leftover balm from a previous waxing kit that I was able to apply, and I can see that soothing products are available to buy from Sugar Coated. It would be a really nice touch to add a small sachet of a suitable moisturiser to the kit for convenience. But other than that, a fabulous product and one I will definitely use again in future. Sugar Coated sugar waxing formula is 100% recyclable and both the wax strips and applicators are recyclable and washable. On a final note, Sugar Coated are vegan friendly and cruelty-free and have donated 20 litres of sugar syrup to beekeepers in Northamptonshire since 2018 and the bees are using the sugar syrup as food during the winter months. Fab-bee-lous! Sugar Coated is available from www.feelunique.com and www.sugarcoatedhairremoval.com from £9.99  And what a glorious day it is too! Today, I went for a local run as I have been doing routinely during lock down to prevent my waistline from growing and to keep my mental health in a positive place and I am extremely grateful during this time to live in the midst of the beautiful northern coast and countryside. Less than 5 minutes walk from my house takes me straight to the North Yorkshire Moors and although I always appreciate my surroundings, now more than ever everything looks, feels and smells even more amazing. On today's run, the paths were empty, the sun was warm on my face and the smell of the greenery (is that the right word?) transported me back to a holiday in 1988, being sat on my dads shoulders, walking up the leafy road back towards the campsite we were staying on. A lovely memory and I love how smells can transport us back to a moment in time... So to celebrate World Earth Day I wanted to share an amazing initiative led by beauty brand InStyler, who design state of the art electronic hair products. Shockingly, electronic waste is one of the fastest growing wastage sectors in the world, with an estimated 50 million tonnes of e-waste generated globally in 2019. With more of us now needing to stay at home, there has been a decline in air pollution so choosing environmentally friendly products contributes to us all doing our bit and giving back to our beautiful planet. InStyler tools use less heat than traditional tools and offer a range of hair styling solutions from smoothing, curling and travel products so they are planet-friendly and there is something for all of your needs.
InStyler have created an amazing recycling scheme that allows you to recycle your working and non-working hair tools for free, regardless of the brand and where you bought them from. Once your tools are received, InStyler will email you a 35% OFF coupon to use towards your next InStyler.co.uk tool purchase!  CERASILK Styling Iron £99.99  GLOSSIE £79.99  TURBO Ionic Hair Dryer £89.99  MAX PRIME Revolving Styler £89.99 If this wasn't enough of a fabulous incentive to do something good for the planet, InStyler are also offering you the discount code ELOVE which will give you 30% purchases made during April and May - with free shipping.
Available from https://www.instyler.co.uk It is brilliant to see beauty brands doing their bit for the planet, not just on World Earth Day but every day. Together we can all make the ethical choices that will make our world a better place.  The amazing beauty brand DR PAWPAW have launched an initiative due to the demand on the NHS staff suffering with sore hands due to constant hand washing and cracked lips from masks. Dr PawPaw are giving away 2 free balms to all frontline workers (exc p&p). Since starting the initiative a few weeks ago, almost 30k tubes have been given away.  I have recommended Dr PawPaw previously to my clients and readers of @britishbridemag and it’s a fabulous product so this will really help our real-life heroes who are suffering with skin irritations. Dr PawPaw obviously want to reach as many front line workers are possible so they can benefit from this.
To claim the free balms please go to www.drpawpaw.com/frontline Thank you to everyone in the NHS for all of the work you are doing. We appreciate you ❤️ Please tag/repost/share with those you know on the frontline 🙏 By Gemma Rimmington Are you looking to give your smile a little makeover before a special event? White-Glo Bright Nights dissolving whitening strips are a no fuss/no mess way to brighten your smile without a hefty price tag. White Glo is a market leader in high quality oral care and it exports to over 30 countries, including the UK, EU, Asia, Russia and South Africa. Due to wearing a fixed brace on my teeth, I was unable to road test the strips myself (sad face) so I enlisted the help of one of our British Bride readers, Donna. Donna had tried a different brand of strip whitening years ago but was keen to give her teeth a pearly white makeover. After a few days of using one strip per day Donna saw an improvement to the appearance of the colour. She said "It wasn't until I saw the after photo I realised how much difference they made". There was also no pain or sensitivity which can happen with some professional dental teeth whitening systems.  These strips are a great quick fix to a brighter smile (one shade or more) ahead of your special occasion. White Glo Bright Nights Non-Peroxide Dissolving Film - £4.99 available from www.whiteglo.co.uk  Although I have always been familiar with the Burts Bees brand due to always having a lip balm in every handbag, drawer and coat pocket I have to confess until recently I had yet to try the makeup range. A few weeks ago I received a lovely parcel of Burts Bees makeup products to sample so I was keen to pull together one wearable look, perfect for the natural bride using only these products.  Before creating my look, I had prepped my skin by cleansing, moisturising and priming my eyelids (with non Burts Bees products) but my lips were moisturised with the Burts Bees All Weather lip balm pre makeup application and I used only 6 products to create the full bridal inspired look using only Burts Bees makeup. Check out this short tutorial showing you how I created this look. My aim is always to show real women, real skin and zero editing. Personally I love the dewy look. It is super pretty for brides and also very flattering for mature skin. I LOVED the results of my base. Although the foundation was probably heavier coverage than I am used to wearing it did feel really nice on my skin as it hydrates and nourishes but the cheek and lip stick was the winning product for me. Firstly being a multi-purpose product means it takes up less space in the makeup bag and perfect for travelling but also, it made my skin glow without the need for adding a highlighter. I had so many compliments on this look and mostly due to my glowing skin. Product List All-Weather Moisturising lip balm RRP £4.99 feelunique.com     Goodness Glows Liquid Makeup foundation in Soft Honey - RRP £14.99 lookfantastic.com  All Aglow Lip and Cheek Stain in Blush Bay - RRP - £12.99 lookfantastic.com  Lipstick in Blush Basin - RRP - £9.99 lookfantastic.com  Hey fellow isolators! As Beauty Editor for British Bride magazine, I am lucky enough to spend my time trying new beauty products so I can pick my favourites and tell you all about them! One of my new favourites is the AHA/BHA Peel Gel Mask by Lernberger Stafsing.  My skin has suffered lately due to a combination of the cold weather, central heating and working long hours. I have even been getting giant spots which is unusual for me as my skin is pretty consistent (sometimes a little dehydrated but not certainly not spot-prone). So I cleansed my skin as instructed and applied a thin layer of the gel mask on my face (avoiding my eye area). I actually applied this with a Planet Spa facial brush but using a brush is optional, not essential. The combination of Lactic, Glycolic, Salicylic and Malic acid starts exfoliating the skin surface and promises to improve fine lines, brighten complexion and dissolve impurities. This mask only requires 5-10 minutes on the skin (depending on your skin sensitivity). Once rinsed off, some blushing/mild burning sensation on the skin might occur. I had a few small patches of red blotchy areas but this settled very quickly. I loved the result! My skin looked bright, clean and polished. The recommended use is 1-2 times a week but I LOVE the idea of using this mask for a super quick skin polisher before a big event. Make sure you have a practice run before using it prior to a key event just to test your skin sensitivity.
Amazing product - £50 for 50ml available from Harvey Nichols.  Beautiful Anjana has the perfect skin tone for this fresh inspiration. This is the second look in this series inspired by the current cut crease phenomenon which is a fusion of modern glam and Asian bridal makeup. Anjana's base was prepped using Mac Strobe Cream and Mac Studio Fix foundation to get her golden skin glowing. This look was created to really make the eyes stand out as a feature. I used the new LA Girl Artistry palette (available from Beauty Bay - £15.00)   I created a dark crease in the socket and layered up on the gold shimmer on her eyelid. A soft brown was smoked underneath the eyes. The cats eye winged liner really elongated the eye shape. I used Maybelline's "Lasting Drama Gel" in intense black across the lid and in the waterline for added definition. False lashes finished off this glam eye look - I used one of my kit favourites - Eyelure "Enchanted - The Last Edit". Lashings of gorgeous nude gloss by Peaches and Cream in "Hunny" was the perfect final touch for the makeup application. Anjana's hair was prepped with Bumble and Bumble invisible oil taming the flyaways, then waved and set by taking big sections with the cloud nine iron. The whole hair was backcombed using Hair Shark and sprayed with Schwarzkopf Got2Be Styling Spray. A hair doughnut from Primark was cut up and made in to padding to fix to the top of the head to create extra height for the beehive. Each section was teased through and set with Bumble and Bumble Soft Texture Spray to create a glam, yet tousled look with a feather soft feel.  Photography - Amy Plumbridge
Makeup - Gemma Rimmington Hair Stylist - Laurie Scott Model - Anjana Varghese Agency - TTM Management |
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