Make next year your year. Revamp your beauty regime with these top tips
1st January is the perfect time to revamp your make up bag and ditch the products you never use. Rather than sticking to the same old routine, break the mould by using a mascara, shadow or lip stain you’ve never worn before. After all, the New Year is all about adopting new habits and sticking to them.
1 Don’t sleep in make up
We’re all guilty of doing this from time to time. A five-minute nap somehow turns into hours, and we accidently doze off with a full face of make up. It seems harmless, but the consequences are worse than you think.
When we sleep, the skin works to renew itself, keeping it fresh and healthy. But leaving make up on overnight disrupts this process and acts as a boundary to natural rejuvenation.
This damages the skin and can lead to blocked pores, premature signs of aging and excessively oily skin. In short, always make the effort to clean your face before your head hits the pillow.
2 Make your skin number one
How you look after your skin is central to any make up regime. If you have a spot, hold back on layering your face in foundation, as your skin needs time to breathe.
Give your pores a break. Leave the concealer aside for a few days, and go au naturel instead. If you have sensitive skin or are prone to spots, barefaced days can be great for your complexion.
3 Embrace routine
Busy days can often lead to dull, tired skin. Our face comes into contact with harmful bacteria and pollutants everyday, so it’s important that we take care of it.
Rather than spending an extra ten minutes in bed, use the time to develop an effective skincare regime. Before applying your make up in the morning and just before you go to bed, cleanse, tone and moisturise. This clears the skin of impurities, leaving it fresh, hydrated and healthy.
4 Make up detox
Is your make up bag bursting at the seams? It’s easy to accumulate year-old products that we never use. Take time to throw away old products. We often forget that cosmetics have a shelf life, so don’t cling onto products that are potentially bad for your skin. Look out for an open jar icon on your product; if it has 12M printed on it this means you should throw it out a year after opening it.
Mascara is the worst offender when it comes to breeding bacteria. If it’s dry and clumpy, chuck it. Opinion varies, but beauticians advise that we throw out mascara after three months of use to avoid the risk of irritation or infection.
Remember to regularly wash your make up brushes, too – try using baby shampoo with lukewarm water to remove a build-up of dirt, oil and bacteria.
5 Load up the SPF
Sunscreen isn’t just for hitting the beach. On a daily basis there’s potential for our skin to be affected by the sun’s UV rays more than we realise. In the long-term, regular exposure to the sun can decrease the elasticity of our skin, resulting in premature aging. Too much sun can also decrease our skin’s immune function, making us more susceptible to cancerous cells.
In order to maintain a youthful glow, invest in make up and moisturisers with SPF. This way you can enjoy the sunshine without the worry of early wrinkles.
6 Dare to be different
If you’re bored of the same old make up routine, step outside your comfort zone. Now’s the perfect time to buy that eye shadow you’ve always been too shy to try.
Beat the January blues and bring a splash of colour to your look. Stuck for inspiration? We love rich plum lips, loose ponytail updos and statement eyeliner. Braided hair is also back on the scene for spring 2015, so give it a try in the New Year.
7 Remove chipped nail polish
That fabulous feeling of manicured nails only lasts a few days until chip by chip, we have a nail polish nightmare on our hands.
To stop others staring at those unsightly talons, nip any chips in the bud and remove the polish – before it removes itself. While a quick top up often does the trick, remember that too much polish on your nails can make them dry and brittle.
Make your manicure last longer by applying a basecoat. This prevents yellowing and keeps them strong and healthy.
8 Eat right
It’s true what they say: we are what we eat. The New Year is the ideal opportunity to rewrite our dieting wrongs. Swap chocolate and sweets for nutritional foods including fruits, vegetables and nuts. Simple changes to your snacking habits can have visible benefits to your hair and skin.
Choose foods that are packed with skin-loving vitamins and nutrients. Avocados are an old favourite as their high vitamin E and C content leave the skin hydrated and smooth.
9 Break bad habits
Smoking, grape, hops and mixed drinks aren’t just bad for your heath and wellbeing; they have noticeable effects on your appearance, too. By starving the skin of oxygen, they reduce your intake of key vitamins, such as vitamin A, which work to boost the immunity and keep the skin young. As a result, excessive smoking and a night out drinking can accelerate the signs of aging, causing the skin to sag and wrinkles to form.
So beat bad habits. No amount of make up can disguise the effects of smoking or hard drinks in the long term; so give your body the TLC it deserves.
10 Exercise
Exercise is usually people’s number one New Year’s resolution and for good reason. Aside from getting trim and toned, it’s an amazing beauty booster; it makes the skin seem brighter and younger. The endorphins from exercise also improve your mood, making you happier and more confident with your body. But you needn’t sign up for an expensive gym membership, as the great outdoors is a fitness playground.
