Old Habits Die Hard

Style – 4 February 2014

Old habits die hard, and beauty routines are no exception. We asked our make up artist Sophia Pafitis for some fresh ideas for 2014.

By all means, if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it. There’s nothing wrong with knowing what looks good and which products work for you, but a little refresh could be just the pick me up you need to bolster your confidence for the year ahead.

Here are some common problems and some advice to get you the best solution.

You only leave the house with a full face of make-up, how can you scale down?

The fear of feeling ‘exposed’ is the main reason we do this, but it’s called War Paint for a reason! However there is a solution for every time budget, the more time you have the more make-up you can apply. But make sure it is done strategically.

10 minutes: Try only a BB cream, cream blush, mascara, brow pencil and gloss.

20 minutes: Add eye shadow and liner to the mix.

40 minutes: You’ve got time for contouring – read my article Masters of Illusion article here.

You’ve had the same hairstyle for a year, how can you experiment with something else?

A great skill to have is knowing how to blow-dry your hair. Mastering your own blow-dry allows you to play with a variety of styles – straight with body and bounce, curls, root lift, volume – it’s endless. Book in with the hairdresser that gave you your most memorable blow-dry and ask them for a lesson. Tools are as crucial as technique, so watch what they’re using.

For a totally risk free change, move your part for a different look with the same length. For a restyle, introduce layers to add instant movement and texture to your hair.

As we age, seasons change and so does our skin tone and our hair colour should follow. Face line foils are great to soften the face. Two shades lighter than your existing colour is enough to create a difference without going to drastic measures.

Your go-to ‘signature look’ could do with a shake up

When it comes to our staple look, most often we’re a ‘lip’, ‘hair’ or ‘eye’ person. Whether it’s a bold red lip, a sexy, smoky eye or Kate Moss worthy bed hair, an easy way to mix things up is to swap the focus to a different feature.

If you’re new to lipstick, dip your toe in the water with the NARS Lip Pencil Collection, or for something a little longer lasting the Rouge Terribly range available at Mecca Cosmetica (I like No. 304, Cherry Cherry) or Tom Ford’s Cherry Lush.

If you’re after salon-fresh volume, blow-dry with a barrel brush, curl the lengths of the hair and finish with Kevin Murphy’s volumising Powder Puff to add texture.

If eye shadow palettes still have you a little scared, have a lesson from the experts and a custom made palette created for you at any Bobbi Brown or M.A.C pro store.

The lip colours in your make up bag are variations of the one shade

Bright lip colours (especially red) scare many women. If the only lipsticks you’ve experimented with were the freebies from a ‘Gift With Purchase’, it’s time to bring in the experts. Colour make up houses will offer the best range: think YSL, Mecca Cosmetica, M.A.C. Bobbi Brown and Laura Mercier.

If you’re conscious of trying a bold lip in fear of looking too ‘dressy’, keep your outfit to basics like denim with a white tee. A statement lip can finish an outfit like no other accessory.