So you really want something for your makeup bag for Christmas, but you don’t really trust your boyfriend to get it right.  Well, you can either direct him to this page, with massive hints, or simply print off the page and circle the stuff you want!  If I take the men in my family as average men (2 brothers, 1 father and a husband!), I doubt any of them would know where to start with buying... 

The products I’ve listed below are what I would pick from on a daily basis for creating a full make-up application.    Face Primer: I always use a primer and my favourites are Yves Saint Laurent Matt Touch which is ideal for oily skin, GOSH Velvet Touch which suits every skin type and especially de-hydrated skin, Clinique Redness Solutions and Jemma Kidd I-Rescue Bio-Complex Cover in Medium which... 

I’ve just splashed out on a couple of the Estee Lauder gift sets brought out for Christmas. I got the set of lip glosses Gloss to Go and the Lipstick Luxuries set. Both are very reasonably priced and have a good selection of colours. They’d also be good for anyone looking to build up a kit. And then there’s this one – The Makeup Artist Professional Colour Collection. I think... 

The pack “Gilty Pleasures” contains 3 shades: Midas (gold), Copper (brown) and Crimson (red). Colours first- now, I’m not a red kind of girl but this red is stunning- dark red with just a hint of purple. Just the thing to brighten up a dull outfit. The brown is a lovely warm shade which is more of a chocolate than a copper- it’s perfect for winter outfits. The gold is very pretty... 

I don’t do face shimmer.  I don’t like how it looks, I don’t like that it makes you look shiny and greasy.  I can’t bear a false deer-in-the-headlights look. I’d heard about Benefit’s ‘One Hot Minute’ a few times before I tried it, and kept reading that it was a healthy glow.  When I opened up the pot my heart sank, “great” I thought, “another... 

When I started looking at skincare as the basis of good, clean makeup, I was surprised at just how much I learned.  I’m not skincare trained, but I do know the basics, and understand that every skin is different and every skin needs different products in different combinations. I asked the question, is it possible to reteach a generation of women who’ve grown up using soap and water, and... 

An electric brush for the face and body, by the makers of the Sonicare toothbrush.  Clarisonic Plus Skincare System RRP £170 I was really excited to try this new product and have been using the brush daily for about 4 weeks now. I can honestly say that I have not had one spot on my face during this time! I am not usually prone to a huge amount of spots, but I always have at least one or two around... 

So, you have the makeup, you have the brushes, but where do you keep it all? All makeup artists work in different ways, out of different kits and like different things. For me, I like to be able to open a case or a drawer and see all the cosmetics at a glance, but I know that many of the MAF makeup artists prefer to work out of one large space, with clear pencil cases inside, housing perhaps all their...