- The Observer,
- Sunday November 4 2007
Most wanted
Soap & Glory
Clean of England Spa Body Wash, 500ml, £7, available Boots nationwide
If you like well-worded packaging, and cleverly concocted fragrances, this one's a real treat.
Cult product
Timothy Han
Wild Rose Body Cream, 250ml, £22, www.thenaturalstore.co.uk
Packed full of essential oils and nourishing ingredients, this smells and feels divine.
Gel cream eyeliners
MAC
Fluidline Eyeliner Gel in Macroviolet £10.50, www.maccosmetics.co.uk
Gorgeous shade of on-trend metallic purple. Love.
5 stars
Bobbi Brown
Long Wear Gel Eyeliner in Hunter Ink £13.50, 0870 034 2566
Sludgy olive green, long-lasting consistency.
4 stars
Clinique
Brush-On Cream Liner in 01 £12, 0870 034 2566
A hint of shimmer, comes with its own brush which is most convenient.
4 stars
ScreenFace
Luxe Cream Liner in Fresco £9.95, 020 7221 8289
Copper bronze, beautiful on brown eyes.
4 stars
Spot zappers
Zeno
Acne Clearing Device £129, 0845 070 8090
Most intriguing, and it works even if it does look like a mobile phone. Zaps spots by heating them up.
5 stars
Mario Badescu
Drying Lotion £15, 020 7235 5000
Satisfyingly old-fashioned, this paste dries out spots overnight.
4 stars
Burt's Bees
Herbal Blemish Stick, £9.99, 08456 049 049
Very pocket-friendly, stinks of tea-tree oil, effective.
4 stars
Aveda
Outer Peace Blemish Relief Pads £19, 0870 034 2380
Felt like a gentle 'get better' hug for spots, but I'd rather something a little more sadistically punitive.
2 stars
High powered cleansers
Alpha-H
Micro-Cleanse Exfoliant, 200ml,£39.95, 08456 049 049
Big granules, pleasant minty smell, skin looked smooth and felt soft.
5 stars
Philosophy
The Microdelivery Exfoliating Wash 8fl oz, £20, 0870 990 8452
This was great. It didn't strip or over-dry my skin and left it smooth.
4 stars
Natura Bissé
Facial Cleansing Gel + AHA 200ml, £25, 020 7 730 1234
I like this. It smelt pretty, removed make-up, and didn't dry out my skin.
4 stars
Murad
AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser 200ml, £23.50, 0800 035 2682
Smell not so great, but very good overall, skin texture improved.
3 stars
Eyebrow enhancers
Laura Mercier
Eyebrow Pencil in Soft Brunette £15, 0800 123 400
Very natural colour and easy to apply texture.
4 stars
Christian
Eyebrow Makeup Kit £19.95, 0845 230 1087
Scrappy instructions, and stencils don't stick to skin, but weirdly, they gave a very precise result.
4 stars
Shavata
Eyebrow Shapers, £12, 020 8993 8333
Daunting. Needs practice, but great if you're growing back brows.
4 stars
Talika
Eyebrow Extender in Dark Brown £19, www.talika.com
You comb on fake hairs to fill out thin eyebrows - but they don't stick where you want them to stick.
1 star
Metallic eyeshadows
Barry M
Dazzle Dust in DD11 £4.50, available in Superdrug
This is gorgeous. Gun-metal grey with a very slight mauve. Perfect for a smoky eye.
5 stars
Ruby & Millie
I-Metal in Mink, £9, 08450 708 090
Metallic taupe in a very easy to apply texture. Stunning.
5 stars
Becca
Jewel Dust in Mazikeen £16, 020 7225 2501
Very pretty metallic violet in ultra-fine texture. Apply carefully or you'll look bruised.
4 stars
Daniel Sandler
Eye Delight in Silver £9, 01923 845 370
Pretty pale metallic grey, use close to the lid for fantastic highlighter effect.
4 stars
Plummy lip gloss
Estée Lauder
High Gloss in Jewel 06 £13, 0870 034 2566
Dark plum with plenty of drama and mirror-like gloss finish. Wonderful.
5 stars
Laura Mercier
Lip Plumper in Wild Berry, £24, 0800 123 400
Incredibly flattering. Made lips look bigger instantly, although it does fizz a little when first applied.
5 stars
Versace
2000 Lights on Lips in V2065 £15, 01273 408 800
What it lacks in colour it makes up for with bling. Fun, sheer plum.
Nars
Gothica £17, 0870 837 7377
Very wearable plum, but a little sticky.
3 stars
Hair straighteners
Corioliss
C2 in Zebra, £119.99 www.corioliss.co.uk
Titanium plates give a great finish and are very light. A bit narrow though - mind your ears.
4 stars
GHD
IV, £119, www.ghdhair.com
Curved styler means you can curl or straighten easily. Not quite as light as they could be though.
Braun
Satin Hair, £69.99, widely available
Shiny finish. Easy to control, but a little clunky looking.
4 stars
Tresemme
SalonStraight Nano-Silver, £29.95, www.johnlewis.com
Good but not quite as brilliant as others, less smooth over the hair.
3 stars
