From the skin expert who Bridgerton's Phoebe Dynevor saw ahead of the BAFTAs to the facialists Meghan Markle and Lily Allen trusted for their weddings, here's how to try their routines at home
While we can’t all persuade the world’s top facialists to clear their diaries for us, we can recreate their red carpet treatments at home with these kits from the A-list's favourite experts. With the 2021 Oscars just around the corner (Monday 26 April UK time, to be exact), these are the facial kits to use to turn the biggest night in the awards calendar into an at-home pamper session.
Dr Maryam Zamani: MZ Skin The Ultimate Firming Collection Powerhouse Four-Step Facial, £270
Famous clients: Elle Macpherson, Arizona Muse, Gwyneth Paltrow
Facial aesthetics doctor and oculoplastic surgeon Dr Maryam Zamani is famed for her invisible tweakments and her high-strength age-perfecting skincare. Her award-winning two per cent encapsulated Retinol Skin Booster , £110 is one of the best retinols there is, paired with the prettiest packaging. We love the bottles almost as much as the punch-packing products.
The Ultimate Firming Collection Powerhouse Four-Step Facial , £270 is a lifting and toning routine for the morning. Start with a 20-minute Vitamin-Infused Facial Treatment sheet mask (the kit contains five) and roll over it with Tone and Lift Germanium Contouring Facial roller to help the mask penetrate as well as reduce puffiness and spark better circulation. Follow with the caffeine- loaded Depuff and Define Contouring Eye Rescue serum to improve skin tone and dark circles. Finish with MZ’s signature encapsulated day retinol Hydrate and Nourish Age Defence Retinol Day Moisturiser SPF 30.
With four full-size products, this morning miracle represents a saving of £69 if you bought them all separately.
Dr. Yannis Alexandrides: 111Skin Cryo De-Puffing Edit, £125
Famous clients: Margot Robbie and Priyanka Chopra
Dr Yannis’ 11Skin sheet masks are regularly seen cropping up on A-lister Instagrams, including Adwoa Aboah, Kris Jenner and Miley Cyrus (and those three are just this week!), but appointments in 111 Skin's outposts in Harrods, Harvey Nichols and at the Bulgari Spa in London are a little harder to come by without a celebrity budget. Luckily this kit is on hand to reduce puffiness and make skin look more lifted.
The kit includes the blue hydro-gel Sub-Zero De-Puffing Energy Facial Mask loved by celebs which is the first step in the routine. Leave it on for 20 minutes and follow with the under-eye Sub-Zero De-Puffing Eye Mask and finish with the Sub-Zero De-Puffing Eye Duo serum. Apply to the under eyes and massage in with the two Cryo Sculpting Tools (essentially big silver weighted spoons made from stainless steel), which slip over the skin once the serum is applied.
If you want to reap the rewards of cryotherapy without feeling freezing, this is the kit to add to your collection.
Dr Barbara Sturm: The Glow Kit, £160
Famous clients: Ashley Graham , Hailey Bieber and Millie Mackintosh
Dr Barbara Sturm was a busy woman in lockdown, hosting live Skin School sessions on YouTube with her famous clients, advising them on how best to care for their skin and busting skincare myths. The German doctor who is based in LA and also has a clinic in Dusseldorf is famed for her gentle approach to a luminous glow (you won’t find any retinol in her range) . This week she opened her first London clinic the Dr. Barbara Sturm London Boutique and Spa in Mayfair.
Dr Barbara Sturm The Glow Kit, £160 is a seven-step kit of minis and is a great way to sample some of Dr Sturm’s hero products. You’ll get a good five or six facials out of it as well as a beautiful velvet back to keep. Start with gentle foaming Cleanser, follow with the Facial Scrub, the 10-minute Face Mask (leave on for longer and rub off if you have more time). Rinse and massage in the Hyaluronic Serum, pat on the Face Cream, then the Anti-aging Primer and end with the dewy Glow Drops, which can be applied also over makeup.
These multiple layers of hydration leave you with a healthier-looking revitalised skin.
Lisa Franklin: Clear Skin Ritual, £216
Famous clients: Lisa Snowdown, Lucy Watson and Jodie Kidd
Lisa Franklin operates out of a gorgeous, serene pink and white clinic in Knightsbridge – you feel your troubles melt away as soon as you step through the doors. To get the Lisa Franklin facial experience at home she has five different ‘skin ritual’ sets including one for glowing skin, calming skin, renewing skin, and one for men’s skin but with the increase in maskne, the Clear Skin Ritual is the one to go for to manage acne, blemishes and allergy-prone skin, for a purified, calm and clear complexion that makes you feel like you’re in the sanctuary of Lisa’s crisp clinic.
The kit, which is to be used at the end of the day, comprises a simple four-step routine of Phyto Gel Wash to remove excess sebum and pollutants, the Refining Exfoliator which uses alpha hydroxy acids to promote cell turnover, the Clinic Privé No. 2 Serum to reduce redness and heal lesions and the Night Renew Treatment that uses slow-release retinol to reduces the appearance of fine lines with zero irritation.
You might expect a facial to have a few more steps, but these four products prove it's quality over quantity. It’s a simple regime that feels more like an indulgent night time routine than an ultra-decadent facial, but it works to clear congested skin and is a notable saving is made on buying the products full price
Sarah Chapman: The Dryness & Dehydration Fix
, £162
Famous clients: Victoria Beckham, Meghan Markle, Jourdan Dunn and Gigi Hadid
Sarah Chapman was tasked with getting Meghan Markle picture-perfect ahead of both her engagement announcement and wedding day, plus has long-been Victoria Beckham’s go-to facialist. Her three new Skinesis Skin Solutions Kits, which launched earlier this year, are all winners: The Sensitivity Fix , £171, for reactive, red skin, the Tired-Eye Fix , £106, for addressing dark circles and this kit, to tackle dry, tight and uncomfortable skin.
The Dryness & Dehydration Fix, £162 is three full-sized products inside a smart silver zip case. Start with one of the four 3D Moisture Infusion sheet masks, follow with the Intense Hydrating Booster serum and finish with the Morning Facial serum-oil which can be used over or under moisturiser. Each step is as nourishing as the next and can be used in sequence or individually for a touch of clinic care every day.
The kit saves you more than £35 and using the Morning Facial each AM is a gorgeous way to start the day even when you’ve finished the sheet masks.
Ada Ooi: 001 Skin The Red Carpet Self Care Kit, £165
Famous clients: Lily Allen, Ellie Goulding and Rooney Mara
Lily Allen drafted in Ada ahead of her wedding to give her her pre-wedding facial, which no doubt combined Ada’s famed combination of gua sha and facial massage.
001 Skin The Red Carpet Self Care Kit, £220 is a crash course in gua sha , including two gua sha tools (MicroSculptor no. 1 The Pick for working out forehead creases and MicroSculptor no. 3 The Three Slopes, a traditional gua sha tool) and the CryroPress frozen roller which drains toxins for clearer skin.
The tools are designed to recreate Ada’s magic hands, promoting micro-circulation and encouraging lymphatic drainage, resulting in a lifted and sculpted face, glowing from within. The kit is essentially two facials in one; either use the gua sha tools in combination with the VA Repair and Reglow TCM-Warming Concentrate oil OR the VF Detox & Balance TCM-Cooling Concentrate oil (you pick which of the formulas you want upon ordering) for facial massage, or utilise the roller with the Alpha-Glow Flash Facial Serum-Primer-Mask to make the formula sink in deeper.
Worth £313, this kit really feels like it’s working hard. You can spend a good hour following Ada’s Youtube demos.
Dr Tiina Meder: Meder Beauty Science; DIY Facial Hydra Fill Kit, £350
Famous fans: Carey Mulligan, influencer Hannah Bronfman, 90s’ supermodel Patricia Hartmann
The Estonian cardiologist-turned-dermatologist has been in the biz for decades and was one of the first to champion microbiome friendly high-performance skincare . She’s the creator of 12 original facial massage techniques one of which was named the ‘World’s Best Massage Technique’. Dr Sophie Shotter has likened her Myo-Fix Concentrate as the nearest thing to botulinum toxin for forehead lines. Actress Carey Mulligan is reportedly a fan of the Hydra Fill, saying "your face looks completely different after about 20 minutes."
This kit, which GTG's Victoria Woodhall tests below, includes single-dose sachets of products (a cleanser, a mask, an antioxidant serum, an active concentrate, a sheet mask and a cream) which you leave on for between one and 25 minutes. It's pricey but there's enough for five very thorough glow-getting facials.
The formulas include tranexamic acid for brightening and hyaluronic acid for hydration. Warming the mask in a bowl of hot water for a couple of minutes before you apply it, as Dr. Meder suggests, is a nice relaxing touch.
Annee De Mamiel: Discover de Mamiel Kit, £115
Famous client: Melissa Hemsley
Facial acupuncturist Annee has a list of celeb clients as long as your arm but is notoriously discreet (although she did collaborate with cook Melissa Hemsley recently on a Winter Skin facial edit). Annee really does have magic hands and her botanical blends are sensory heaven.
This set includes seven of De Mamiel's best-loved products in portable sizes housed in a zip-up bag, ready to be popped in your suitcase for mini breaks. It includes all you need for a relaxing skin ritual including the Restorative Cleansing Balm, the Pure Calm Cleansing Dew to remove makeup, Dewy Facial Mist which is a serum in a mist, the antioxidant Intense Nurture Antioxidant Elixier, her famous uplifting and anti-microbial Altitude Oil (great for flights and hay fever ) and Exhale Daily Hydrating Nectar a moisturiser that boosts hydration. The kit also includes De Mamiel's Salvation Body Oil to restore suppleness to dry skin.
For an introduction to the most stress-busting skincare brand we know, you can't go wrong with this set.
Lord Gavin Macleod Valentine: Intraceuticals Rejuvenate 3-Step Layering Kit, £249
Celebrity clients: Olivia Colman, Kristin Stewart Allison Janney, Julianne Moore
We’re always first in the queue when Lord Gavin, Intraceuticals' Director of Services (yes, he really is a Lord) comes to town to deliver his ultimate glow-getting Intraceuticals Oxygen Facial (almost as good as his celebrity anecdotes). You’ll normally find him in LA where, A-listers line up for their Intraceuticals red-carpet prep .
Intraceuticals Rejuvenate 3-Step Layering Kit, £249 is a feast of multi-weight hyaluronic acids and vitamins A, C and E. It’s what A-listers use to keep their glow between oxygen facials. Start with the Rejuvenate Daily Serum, follow with the Rejuvenate Hydration Gel then onto the Rejuvenate Moisture Binding Cream. Fine lines will really plump out – a good pick for everyone, especially if you have mature or dehydrated skin.
Shane Cooper The Hero Set, £300
Celebrity clients: Maya Jama, Laura Whitmore, Phoebe Dynevor, Lily Allen
Ahead of the BAFTAs, Shane Cooper tended to the skin of Bridgerton star Phoebe Dynevor and is regularly called upon by celebrities for his oxygen facials in his South Kensington Clinic. While he’s busy looking after the faces of Britain’s most-loved TV stars, we can get a slice of the action with the Hero Set which includes a full-sized bottle of Shane’s vitamin E infused Oxygenation Mask which hydrates the skin and is an at-home version of his oxygenating facials. Follow this with the Hyaluronic Boosting Serum and the Collagen Firming Cream for a plumped, glowing complexion.
Buying the products as a kit saves £45
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