Fragrantly Beautiful

Beauty: Prime time

By Shereen Low13 August 2006

Cleansing, toning and moisturising just aren't enough any more. These days, experts are advising us to prepare our skins before applying make-up.

"A beautiful look begins with great-looking skin," renowned make-up artist Laura Mercier says.
"Before applying any colour, I always create a fresh canvas - a flawless finish."

Prepping is key, Mercier explains: "Making your skin look perfect is the first and most important thing you can do to achieve a truly great look. The key is to enhance your natural beauty."

Rumiko, founder of RMK cosmetic range, agrees: "Base make-up is not about covering up facial flaws. It's about complementing the beauty of your skin.

"Your skin is naturally beautiful and make-up should not overpower your face."

Primers and base creams will smooth skin and give a matte complexion, so make-up goes on evenly, while serums contain nutritional ingredients to feed skin before your moisturiser goes on.

These are ideal if you suffer from oily skin and find that your make-up wipes off soon after application.

Molton Brown Instant Matte Shine Control SPF15, £25, (above) and Spice Hydrating Oil Reducing Gel Cream SPF10, £21.50, combine sunscreen with oil-reducing cream, while Elemis Daily Shine Control, £35, Jose Eisenberg Active Mattifying Secret, £24.50 at Boots, and Crabtree & Evelyn's Oil Control Gel, £15, are lightweight and easily absorbed.

Bliss Instant Mattification Gel, £28, is a gel-to-powder formula that's brilliant on spots, stomping out shine and reducing large pores.

Overly oily complexions may prefer to use Dermalogica's Oil Control Lotion, £23.40, and Lush's Enzymion, £10.50, which dries up excess oil.

Laura Mercier's primers, £27 at Space NK (below) and department stores, have won worldwide acclaim for holding foundation in place. She has just introduced new oil-free versions for oily skins.

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base (left) filled with vitamins A, C and E, £32, and Dr Lewinn's Instant Beauty Radiance Booster with aloe vera, £25, will make skins feel good inside and out.

If you're looking for a simple, straightforward base, try Ruby & Millie Pre Base, £9 at Boots, Boots No7 Shine Free Make-Up, £9, or Shiseido Pre-Makeup Cream, £20.

Looking for extra benefits? Tesco's Skin Wisdom Instant Benefits Wrinkle Filler, £4.97, will disguise any troublesome lines for a flawless finish, while Clinique CX Protective Base SPF40, £35, can be used as a moisturiser by itself.

And Decleor Gel Prolagene, £21.50, helps to heal skin problems including scars, sunburn and other imperfections.

SENSATIONAL SERUMS
Serums are a godsend, as they will feed your skin and leave it feeling smooth.

Biotherm Source Therapie Superactiv, £25 (right), Clinique Turnaround Concentrate Visible Skin Renewer, £30, and ESPA Regenerating Skin Brightener, £35, are packed with ingredients to make skin brighter and more radiant.

There are also lots of serums for mature skins. Indulge with Simple Regeneration Plus Intensive Line Reducing Serum, £12.99, or Olay Regenerist Serum, £22.50, Aromatherapy Associates Renew Rose Intensive Skin Serum, £28, and Aveda Tourmaline Charged Radiance Fluid, £30.
Darphin Predermine Wrinkle Corrective Serum, £120, and Steven Victor MD's Miracle Serum, £110 from Harvey Nichols, are luxury buys.

LUSCIOUS LIPS
You may wonder why you need to apply something before lipgloss or lipstick, but doing so will make the colour last longer.

DuWop Neutral Lip Pencils SPF10, £14 from Space NK, come in six different shades, with varying undertones of pink, peach or brown.

Origins Underwear For Lips, £11, Simple's Lip Protector SPF20, £3.75, and pH Advantage's Lip Advantage, £30, plump, shape and minimise fine lines so that lippy goes on with a soft, shapely silhouette.

ENTICING EYES
An eye primer will even out tone and ensure eyeshadows go on without gloopiness or creasing.
Too Faced First and Second bases, £9, and BeneFit Lemon-Aid, £15.50, correct eyelid colour. They help brighten under-eye circles and hide discolouration to make eyes look fresher and younger.

Urban Decay Eye Primer Potion, £9.50, Origins Underwear For Lids, £11, and Ruby & Millie Eye Base, £10, are ultra-sheer and nude eye bases that glide on and disappear instantly.

Jelly Pong Pong Nude And Improved pencil, £12 (left), and GOSH Waterproof Eyeshadow in Sunrise, £5.99 from Superdrug, can be used as neutral eyeshadows, concealers and primers.

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posted by Cheryl Levesque @ 5:25 PM