Rule despiser that I am, I have never been a woman to make New Year’s resolutions. The transition from January to March can be quite traumatizing.
Twixmas, the blissful gap between Christmas and New Year, is a time when your thoughts turn towards how to improve your life.
Fitness? Fitness?
Teeth? My 50-year old teeth are a miracle! Dr Uchenna Okoye is my dentist and Kemi Atayi, my hygienist at londonsmiling.com are both the greatest in the country. However, I feel about dental hygiene the way I feel about periods and cooking these days: I’ve been doing it for so bloody long, surely I’m owed a break?
It would be great to remove some leg hair in January or February, as one can watch trash TV while doing it. Somewhere I have the said-to-be incredible Philips Lumea Advanced IPL Hair Removal Device (£300, boots.com). I’ll keep you posted.
Hannah Betts is a beauty columnist. She reveals her plans for the New Year (file photo)
A beauty type commended me on my lifelong cleansing habit the other day, informing me that’s why I have good skin. Given how much slap I’ve smothered myself in since the age of 11, I’ve never really considered this optional. However, you will see immediate results if the rest of the team isn’t as religious.
My personal preference is to try a full range of skincare products, and not just a few, which can feel amusingly old-broomish.
And I’ll carry on moisturising my hands, as I’ve been doing of late, because it really does make a difference.
Is it a coincidence that this newfound determination occurs with the release of Prai’s Ageless Night Hand Crème (£18, marksandspencer.com)? Reader, this isn’t.
If you’re not wearing proper, daily sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30 in winter, 50 in summer, then take a picture of your make-up-free face this January 1, apply the SPF strenuously every day for a year, then pose for another shot on January 1, 2023. It will surprise you.
I have made a big commitment to myself: To be semi-competent in styling my hair. At the moment, I have a success rate of about 50% when it is possible. It isn’t.
I have equipped myself with top-notch kit: a Dyson Supersonic dryer (£299.99), a Dyson Airwrap curling device (£449.99, both dyson.co.uk), and the volume-doubling GHD Rise Hot Brush (£135, ghdhair.com). I’m also going to be more adventurous with products, even if this means the odd day with a There’s Something About Mary-style quiff.
At 30 I stopped gnawing my nails. This decision was made nail-wise and it lasted until I quit drinking alcohol at 43. My Shellac is still my favorite thing to eat. Leighton Denny’s Nail Rebirth Intensive Nail Repair Capsules (£25, leightondenny.com) will make for a satisfying January project, a pot of 30 to see me through until the end of the month when I will have talons.
Hannah (pictured) said her top new habit of 2021 has been cultivating younger, more contemporary brows with Revitabrow Advanced Eyebrow Conditioner
My top new habit of 2021 has been cultivating younger, more contemporary brows with Revitabrow Advanced Eyebrow Conditioner (£99, revitalash.co.uk), full of growth-encouraging peptides, lipids, biotin and panthenol, then brushing them upwards with some sort of gel. This is an easy way to instantly de-age.
I’ve also been piling on Revitalash’s Advanced Eyelash Conditioner (£110). There’s a reason why one of these serums sells every 30 seconds across 70 countries: used nightly, it works, with 98 per cent of testers reporting more fabulous flutterers after six weeks. Because her eyelashes were brushing against her glasses, a friend was forced to discontinue using the serum.
We all wash our brushes with make-up every day, and it’s a great way to start the new year. (While you’re at it, throw away ancient slap, especially eye stuff and anything creamily petri-dish-like.) Beauty Hygiene Plus’s The Deep Cleanse Sponge & Brush Wash (now £8.99, feelunique.com) is clinically proven to destroy 99.9 per cent of bacteria. I will also be deploying Apprentice winner Tom Pellereau’s StylPro Make-up Brush Cleaner and Dryer (£29.99, boots.com), which professionals adore because it cleans and dries in seconds.
I don’t use sponges, but I will be giving my friend Stylpro Squeeze Beauty Sponge Cleaner (£39.99) because she uses them daily but never washes them. That noise was me collapsing.
Here’s to an even more beautiful 2022!
RACE TO IT!
This one-minute facial-in-a-bottle from Rihanna’s beauty brand is the ultimate New-Year prep. The Fenty Pre-Show Glow Instant Texturizing 10% AHA Treatment and Reusable Applicator provides a deep clean, which removes dead skin cells, reduces dark spots, evens out texture, for glowing, ready-for-camera skin.
fentyskin.com
Shop
MY ICON DU MONDAY
DUCHESS OF CABRIDGE
Duchess of Cambridge (pictured) is a fan of Swiss skincare line Karin Herzog, especially its Vita-A-Kombi 1 Anti-Ageing Cream
Kate’s Royal Carols piano performance confirmed that she has never looked more glowing as she heads towards 40 on January 9. She’s a fan of Swiss skincare line Karin Herzog, especially its Vita-A-Kombi 1 Anti-Ageing Cream (£67, karinherzog.com). However, the fresh gleam could be attributable to Trilogy Certified Organic Rosehip Oil (£15.32, feelunique.com), which she discovered while pregnant with Charlotte.
COSMETIC CRAVING
Launching on January 4 when we’ll all be craving help, Charlotte Tilbury’s Beautiful Skin Foundation is her solution for those seeking a low-key, medium‑coverage skincare/foundation hybrid.
It comes in 30 colors and has a stretch-and-glow formulation that creates a radiant finish.
Oil and rosewater supplant stress signs with luminosity. Polysaccharides bond to water to produce a plumpness.
The result: ‘bouncy’ beautiful skin that you can pretend was bestowed upon you by Mother Nature.
charlottetilbury.com
Shop
5 INDULGENT EESSENTIALS
If you fancy glitter eyes or lips for New Year’s Eve, this is your base for showgirl sparkle.
amazon.co.uk
Shop
The balm contains essential oils, and is 150g in size. It soothes every ill.
monushop.co.uk
Shop
It’s a black satin turban that I long for.
net-a-porter.com
Shop
One of these was a gift I received and is absolutely heaven.
bertioli.co.uk
Shop
Eight gorgeous, sheer shades to swipe on. You can wear it on your skin, or as a top coat.
jonesroadbeauty.com
Shop