1 / 10
The summer is over, our holidays are done and we've very much got that back-to-school feeling here at Gloss HQ... But what is helping step into the new season?
From long lasting lipsticks to gentle cleansers and from hard water detox treatments to bespoke skincare ranges, these are the products we just can't get enough of at the moment.
Click through the gallery to find out what made the cut this fortnight...
2 / 10
Why we love it: A hydrating reviver for tired skin.
Review: “Adding an extra step of hydration into my skincare routine is something I’m always looking for. If a product can hydrate and improve the texture without weighing it down then I’m hooked in an instant. That's definitely the case here. This water-gel hydrator cools and soothes while plumping and firming - and this all happens in an instant. The product works to deliver oxygen to the epidermis to encourage cell respiration and detox, giving the skin an instant Botox-like effect. (I haven’t had Botox, so I'm imagining!). But I really do notice the difference in the look and texture of my skin and as the gel it sinks in quickly, it allows me to add even more hydration on top to really give my skin the moisture boost it needs now the weather’s getting a little cooler.”
Reviewer: Lorna Patrick, Marketing Assistant
3 / 10
Why we love it: A perfect balance of basil and neroli that is fresh, fun and uplifting to take us into the autumn months.
Review: “Jo Malone can never really put a foot wrong in my book and the latest scent, 'Basil and Neroli' is probably my favourite yet and 'addicted' doesn't even cut it! Designed around 'London at it's most fashionably young and fun,' it is created as quintessentially British - fun, playful and full of adventure, and will suit just about anyone. Without being heavy, it is a modern, fresh and sophisticated burst of green - a herby basil with a hint of fresh flora. The white musk allows it to settle into a soft, earthy and slightly powdery scent. Light, easy to wear and long-lasting, it is the perfect fragrance for a pick-me-up as we head into the darker, autumn months. Excuse me while I immediately go and buy the candle, the bath oil, and body cream…”
Reviewer: Sarah McGinnis, Art Editor
4 / 10
Buy online and in store at Selfridges from 26th September - 9th October
Why we love it: A scientific approach to ageing that’s personal to you.
Review: “Bespoke beauty is a growing business and there’s no clearer sign that it’s about to be big news than the arrival of Geneu’s pop-up store in London’s Selfridges at the end of this month. As someone with sensitive, reactive skin, finding anti-ageing products that work is tricky but Geneu could be about to change that with their DNA-based skincare.
With a quick swab of the inside of your cheeks and a short lifestyle questionnaire, the brand prescribes two bespoke anti-ageing serums; one to address your natural antioxidant levels and another to boost collagen. My results showed that while my antioxidant protection enzyme is fairly active, my collagen is breaking down fast (OK, maybe it’s time to ditch the sugar) and so my serums target this while also improving barrier function and hydrating the skin. Not knowing a full ingredients' list can seem alarming, but while the formulae are unique to each person, they’re all vegan and free from MI (methylisothiazolinone) and mineral oil. It’s too early to tell how my skin will change with the serums, but with a 12-week study by Geneu finding that 81 per cent noticed an improvement, my expectations are high. Watch this space!”
Reviewer: Judy Johnson, Online Editor
5 / 10
Why we love it: A matte lipstick that does not budge.
Review: "Lipsticks are great, but it’s hard to find one that lasts and when you drink as many drinks as I do in a day (plus nibble at the top of my pen lids, chew my finger nails and endlessly fill my mouth with food), then that challenge becomes even greater.
"Luckily for me, Stila has mastered the long-wear lipstick with its Stay All Day MATTE’ificent lipstick and after an intense morning of bagel eating, tea drinking, water glugging and sushi eating, the lipstick still wore strong - and not just in colour, but in coverage as well. I am tempted to say that with this, Stila has created the masonary paint of the lipstick world, but one that is much softer, more conditioning and in a much prettier choice of colours. In fact, there are 12 different pink shades to choose from. I opted for Étoile; a pastel electric pink, which I loved wearing with black eyeliner and a monochrome outfit. A great stand-out product for the autumn."
Reviewer: Gemma Painter, Digital Marketing Manager
6 / 10
Why we love it: Deep clean with a light touch.
Review: "There are just few things I ask for in a good cleansing milk and those include - a deep clean that smells good and doesn’t leave my skin so tight it feels like it shrank in the wash! To that end, I’m quite picky when it comes to this particular part of my skin regime and tend to stick to the simplest brands, with the fewest ingredients, to limit the opportunities for my sensitive skin to go into shrinkage shock!
I was pleasantly surprised, therefore, to discover the Gentle Cleansing Milk by original marine beauty brand, Thalgo. It clears skin of impurities as well as face and eye makeup in one gentle swoop. While I profess to understand very few of the ingredients in the formula, I can vouch for their results - deep clean, check, smells good, check and kind to skin, check! What’s not to like?"
Reviewer: Gemma Bellman, Managing Director
7 / 10
Why we love it: High performance organic lipstick – good enough to eat.
Review: "Every time I read one of those ‘women eat 500 tubes of lipstick in their lifetime’ stats, I resolve to buy organic. And even more so lately having tried some of the hugely popular new liquid lipsticks and noticing a worrying chemical smell. So for Organic Beauty Week this week I’ve picked an anytime pinky nude by Kirsten Kjaer Weis, long-time makeup artist whose high profile fashion and celebrity clients in the US kept asking her where to find professional quality organic makeup that also looked stylish in your handbag. Stumped, she decided to make her own in 2010. This month, her five-shade lipstick collection launches on Net A Porter and elsewhere.
"It tastes a bit like sophisticated sherbet and manages to be matte and creamy at the same time with good pigment power. The warmth of the lips seems to activate the colour. The weighted metal packaging is reassuringly heavy and has that satisfying Mercedes car door 'clunk' when you close it. You only need buy the packaging once – everything in the range is refillable. Truly a ‘choose better, buy less’ option.
"It is pricey, for sure, but the refill comes in at a reasonable £27 from alyaka.com and to know that I’m only ingesting ingredients such as shea butter, jojoba and rosehip oil instead of heaven knows what, is peace of mind worth investing in."
Reviewer: Victoria Woodhall, Deputy Editor
8 / 10
Available to book in for at John Frieda Salons
Why we love it: A valuable add-on to your haircut for helping subtract the drying side-effects of too much hard water.
Review: “After my summer holiday, my head was left destressed, but my hair, frazzled. So when I received information about the new Californian Cleanse hair treatments at John Frieda Salons, I couldn’t book in soon enough. Designed to help put right the wrongs of haircare past, including too much colour, changes in water and too much chlorinated water, the ‘cleansers’ have been specifically formulated to address a range of concerns and to boost hair’s health and gloss in the process as well.
"The Hard Water Hair Detox sounded like my perfect match. Even before my holiday, my hair was looking drier - an attribute noticeably absent when I’ve used soft water in the past - and my colour, brassy. Combined with the effects of sun, sea and sand on holiday, a good hair day had become hard to come by. Effectively cleansing my hair of build-up, without leaving it feeling stripped, it left it noticeably shinier, stronger and more manageable, to help extend my summer feel good factor to my hair.”
Reviewer: Ayesha Muttucumaru, Senior Features Writer
9 / 10
Why we love it: This very classy range is vegan, eco-friendly and virtuous, but that doesn’t mean that you compromise on gloss or volume. Far from it…
Review: “Created by too-cool-for-school hair experts (and Gielly Green salon co-founders) Fred Gielly and Shai Greenberg, the Gielly Green haircare line is adored by many a beauty insider, offering a holistic approach to hair and scalp health that feels bang on for the current time, what with wellness being such a buzzword.
Unlike other green pretenders on the market, however, the Gielly Green range has truly followed through in terms of wholesome credentials, with vegan products made up of up to 95 per cent natural ingredients and a record of achieving or exceeding industry, cosmetic, ethical, environmental, pharmaceutical and medicinal standards. An A* for formulation and philosophy then, and distinction in terms of results too; think nourishing active oils to repair, dead sea minerals to reinvigorate the scalp and evocative natural fragrances that take you to a far more exotic place that your shower cabinet.”
Reviewer: Anna Hunter, Senior Features Writer
10 / 10
Why we love it: Creates a very natural, smooth looking Gisele-like tan.
Review: "Anyone that knows me knows that I’m a fearless self tanner. Without it, my skin has a rather attractive white/ blue tinge to it, and even in winter months I use gradual tanners just to take my pallid edge off. Last week I was lucky enough to be invited for a full body self tan using new tanning range Tan-Luxe with VIP glow-giver, Jules Von Hep. The results were nothing short of amazing. Tan-Luxe is the ultimate anti-Towie self tanner - from the uber chic glass packaging to the very real colour of bronze. But the best thing of all is that you can control how dark or light you want to go. Just add a couple of Body and Face Illuminating Self Tan drops to your favourite moisturiser and add more if you want a deeper shade. Judging by the many comments I had the school gates about my tanned legs, this stuff is going to fly."
Reviewer: Susannah Taylor, Editor-in-Chief
