The beauty industry is valued at £9.3 billion, but how much time, effort and money does the average woman spend on her body admin? On a mission to destroy the illusion that us ladies spend our precious free time fussing over facials and following fads, we’re asking a cross-section of people how much time they really dedicate to their beauty routine. Do they follow a nine-step Korean pro-gramme or are they actually applying their make-up on the bus to work? Let the veil of mystery be lifted once and for all.
Laura always thought she was low-maintenance, especially as she barely wears any make-up. However over the course of the week she discovered just how much it costs to keep her body admin ticking along. Luckily, thanks to her job, beauty treatments are sometimes comped and most of the products she uses are acquired at discount, but the gym classes and massages, the trips to Harley Street and the spritzes of Byredo really does add-up.
6.15 am: First alarm goes off. I like to set it early so I have the luxury of ‘tricking’ myself into thinking I can have a lie-in. I like plenty of time to get ready in the morning, to ease myself into the day.
6.30 am: Get up. Light Cire Trudon Madeleine candle (£70) and put on Radio 4. My morning starts with a tonne of supplements I was prescribed by the Mayr Clinic earlier this year. When I am being good (like today) I also have a hot water and lemon, but this is swiftly followed by a lot of coffee which I am sure is counterintuitive. On average I probably have three coffees with oat milk before I leave the house.
7.15 am: Shower. I wash with Dermol Shower Emollient (£4.39). I alternate between Klorane Nettle shampoo (£8), Oribe Bright Blonde (£41) and Onira Organics Delicate Shampoo for Sensitive Scalps (£28). I also use Davines OI Conditioner (£17.20). I am constantly told I shouldn’t wash my hair every day but I figure I have enough low-level anxiety about other things (and have done enough actually bad stuff to my body) to worry about washing my hair every day, so I just keep doing it.
7.25 am: Apply an oil, at the moment I am using Uma Absolute Anti-Aging Face Oil (£135).
7.30 am: Apply my moisturiser. I have super sensitive skin and eczema so use a very unsexy but couldn’t-live-without no nonsense emollient: Cetraben (£11.88). Next I apply my makeup. There are a few products I couldn’t live without: Benefit Lemon Aid (£17.50) an eyelid primer which you dab on to reduce redness; tinted moisturizer (I hate cakey foundations), I love Laura Mercier’s (£34) and Avene Tinted Mineral Fluid (£17.50); and Bobbi Brown Corrector in Bisque (£19.50) which is much more effective than a straightforward concealer for dark circles as the pinkish pigment neutralizes blue tones. I also use Benefit’s They’re Real! Mascara (£21.50) and a bit of Glossier Boy Brow (£12.65, I used to be teased about my big, dark eyebrows at school – it was definitely the era of the pencil brow – but my mum always told me I’d regret it if I went tweezer mad. Mums know best).
I am a creature of habit when it comes to my makeup but recently I’ve been trying to break away from the heavy black eyeliner I tend to favour. I think no-makeup makeup looks super chic but I tend to go overboard with the black eyeliner and eyeshadow as a security blanket. Instead at the moment I’ve been using Pat McGrath Lab’s Ultra Glide pencil in BLK Coffee (£21) that my friend Gretel recommended to me. I love it, it goes on really smoothly, and the brown is softer than black. I am trying to do that fine line on the eyelid thing, but I am not blessed with a steady hand, so I am relying heavily on DHC Olive Oil Swabs (£13.50for pack of 100) – cotton buds treated in olive oil that tidy all my mistakes.
7.45 am: Use Megababe Rosy Pits (£14.20)– the deodorant that had a waitlist of 13,000 people – which the founder Katie Sturino kindly gave me to try and brush my hair. I couldn’t live without my Tangle Teezer (£12) – my hair looks like a birds nest without it.
8.30 am: The last thing I do before I leave the flat is brush my teeth and spritz my fragrance. I use Marvis Strong Mint (£7.92) or Blanx whitening toothpaste (£5). I am a bit of a tart when it comes to perfume but I always favour quite masculine scents, I love the Loewe men’s fragrance, Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling (£100) and Byredo’s Mr Marvellous and Sunday Cologne. Today it’s a spritz of Sunday Cologne (£160).
8.40 am: Leave the house and walk to work.
7 pm: Monday nights are my ‘permission-to-do-nothing nights’ so it’s dinner at home and a hot bath. I use Epsom salts and Le Labo Santal 33 Bath and Body Oil (£44). I light a Byredo candle, Tree House (£54). I am obsessed with Byredo products – as much for how they look as how they smell. Timeless but cool, I think the Swedish brand is pretty perfect.
10 pm: Before bed I apply Sarah Chapman Overnight Facial (£49) and also use La Prairie Cellular Eye Cream Platinum Rare (£318) as I have become fanatical about waging war on my dark circles and am a sucker for fancy skincare. I also use my Cetraben again and apply Margaret Dabbs Intensive Foot Lotion (£25), as my feet get really gnarly if I don’t.
6.30 am: Get up and go straight for the coffee.
7.15 am: This morning I am seeing my trainer Delle (£50 per hour, www.dellept.com), who comes to my apartment once or twice a week. I know it can seem indulgent to have a trainer, but Delle is worth every penny – I wouldn’t exercise anywhere near as effectively without her. We do a mix of squats, core work, crunches, a little cardio – and she always slightly tweaks the routine so I don’t get bored. But more than that, working out with her is such a positive start to the day. She’s so warm and open, I feel completely at ease (well, as much as you can mid-plank). I would pay Delle to come over anyway, it’s part workout-part therapy. I can get very anxious in the mornings but seeing her always puts me at ease. Beside, I literally have to roll out of bed and work out – there is no excuse not to exercise.
8.15 am: Delle leaves and I hop in the shower.
8.30 am: Speedy makeup job, brush hair, deodorant, teeth.
8.45 am: Leave the house. I am an XXL bag kind of girl but a bad back is at least trying to make me downsize. So it’s out with toting around my complete makeup bag and in with a few essentials: Crème de la Mer lip balm (£52), that Bobbi Brown corrector, Glossier’s Balm Dotcom (£9.50) and travel sized Byredo Gypsy Water (£50 for 7.5ml) for a spritz. I have also taken to carrying Charlotte Tilbury’s Instant Look in A Palette (£49), which is perfect for amping up your makeup for a last-minute meeting or date (not that I have any of those).
6.45 pm: Regret not packing full makeup bag as meeting friends for dinner and feeling tired and ‘meh’ looking. Luckily I have a red lipstick at the bottom of my bag – Lipstick Queen Eden (£22). I interviewed Lipstick Queen founder Poppy King years ago and she recommended it to me as a red that suits all skin tones. It’s got a slightly sheer quality which makes it less daunting to me than matte styles which I love the look of but never, ever stay on my lips for more than 5 minutes. This is my 10-second quick fix when I want to give the impression of making an effort.
10.30 pm: Get in. Super tired so quickly use Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water (£10.80), splash my face and apply Kate Somerville Wrinkle Warrior 2-in-1 Moisturiser and Serum (£80).
7 am: Vitamins and water. Being good.
7.15 am: Until…. coffee, coffee, coffee.
8 am: My usual makeup routine. I think I am quite high/low when it comes to my approach to skin, hair, beauty. I love the low-maintenance look epitomized by the mythical ‘French woman’, but I realise it actually takes quite a lot of maintenance to actually pull that off. I think I’m pretty high/low in the products I use as well: expensive skincare but some super-market shelf products as well – I tend to shave my legs, but go for expensive bikini waxes. And I do love treatments. I am definitely someone who likes to chant, be pummeled, counseled and wrapped in mud.
6.30 pm: Make a discreet visit to see Dr Michael Prager in Marylebone. A cosmetic doctor, this man is a miracle worker. I go to see him for Botox (which he is legendary for), because I have frown lines that I hate as they make me look tired and bitchy. I had never considered Botox until around a year ago for fear it would give me that frozen look but what Dr Prager does is incredible: effective but, crucially, subtle. He has an exceptionally light touch. I lose the lines I hate but not expression or movement. After I saw him last time people kept telling me how well I looked, minimizing those lines really opens up my face. You don’t look artificially frozen, just well rested, more serene, lighter somehow. It is the single biggest confidence booster beauty treatment I have ever had (he also offers other treatments like a rather wonderful sounding VenusConcept Tight Tummy Treatment which uses Multi-Polar Radio Frequency and Pulsed Electro Magnetic Fields to reduce pockets around the abdomen). Dr Prager’s philosophy is to focus on the face as a whole rather than isolate the area you want to ‘treat’, so I don’t just get injections in those lines but along my brow and at the top of my eyelids which is way less scary than it sounds. The whole thing takes less than 10 minutes.
7.45 pm: Meet my sister for dinner, luckily the face swelling has died down in time.
10 pm: Get home and light my Cire Trudon Spiritus Sancti candle (£70) which smells like altar candles.
8 am: get up later than usual as didn’t sleep very well. Just have time to hop in the shower, apply some oil, have a quick coffee and brush my teeth. For my makeup today I only put on some tinted moisturiser, I am going on a shoot later today though so happy to keep my face bare until I get there.
2 pm: I ask the makeup artist to give me a smoky eye. She does an amazing job, it looks sexy but not too much. I wish I could replicate it at home, but my take tends to be more panda than Bardot. A slick of bronzer, a bit of tonged hair, and I get the look I always want: me, but better.
7 pm: Supposed to go straight home but I love my make-up so much I decide to go and see a friend for a drink. You’ve got to take those confident moments where you can!
10.30 pm: I’m feeling a bit run down at the moment and want to fake the appearance of wellness even if I’m not feeling on top of my A-game, so mix a couple of drops of Dr Sebagh’s Self-Tanning Drops (£35) in with my Cetraben. I’m quite basic in that I think I look, and definitely instantly feel, better with a bit of a tan. In the summer I use the Garnier Summer Body (£4.99) on my legs – but I’m not going to lie, now we’re in autumn my limbs won’t be receiving any attention! I definitely hit hibernation mode from the neck down.
6.45 am: Coffee, shower, makeup.
9 am: Go to see my therapist (£120). I don’t think there’s much point in looking after your body and neglecting to look after your mind. Emotional health is just as important as physical health.
7.30 pm: Head out to a friend’s birthday dinner. I want to make an effort so decide to do my comfort blanket smoky eyes with Mac’s Smolder pencil (£15), and Sisley’s Phyto 4 Ombres (£59). Does it look as good as the professional’s? Nowhere near. Do I feel sassier for a night out? 100%. Messy but ready! I also use a touch of the Victoria Beckham’s Illuminating Crème (£72) on my cheekbones. I am absolutely terrible at doing anything with my hair (I really only started brushing it when I was politely asked – told? – to start doing so during my first job) but it needs a bit of effort to look effortless, so I use a bit of Hair by Sam McKnight Cool Girl Barely There Texture Mist (£25).
8 am: Get up, put my gym kit straight on and head straight for a run on Hampstead Heath.
9 am: Shower.
9.30 am: Running late to meet a friend for coffee so don’t have time for make-up. Just a bit of tinted moisturiser, corrector and mascara.
11 am: Feeling super achey so see if there is a walk-in appointment at a spa in Belsize Park. Get a quick half and hour deep tissue. Bliss. I absolutely love getting a massage, and spent way too much money on Urban Massage for a while. App convenience culture has wreaked havoc with my bank balance.
12 am: Pop back to my flat for a quick spruce up as meeting a friend for lunch. Quickly do my Pat McGrath eyeliner and more mascara. A spritz of Byredo Sunday Cologne.
1 pm: I see a friend for lunch who says how well I look (thanks, Dr Prager! Our little secret…).
4 pm: My nails are looking awful. I had Shellac recently but I only really like it for a couple of days and then I get Shellac-claustrophobia. Pop in to get a mani and pedi at a no-frills salon in Maida Vale (Clifton Road). I’ve always been a red nails girl but recently I’ve shifted to more natural shades. I love Essie’s Mademoiselle and Sugar Daddy (plus, they’re so pale you can’t see the inevitable chipping).
8.30 pm: Get home from going to see A Star Is Born and crying my eyes out so time for a little TLC courtesy of a face mask (111SKIN Brightening Facial - £85 for a pack of five) and, yep, a bath.
7 am: Am in need of a cleanse day so start the day with drinking salts which flush out your system. Best used when you can stay home for at least a couple of hours, as your don’t want the effect to catch you short when you’re out and about(!!). I also love colonics and will get them once or twice a year at the Hale Clinic.
12 pm: Do a Pilates class at Pilates HQ in Angel. It’s on the reformer machine and leaves you feeling elongated. I like it because it feels effective but the studio is warm. That I feel comfortable about where I work out is really important to me. Aggressive or showoff places just don’t do it for me (I can’t tell you how many classes I have ambitiously booked at 6 am over the years only to chicken out).
1 pm: After the class I quickly apply some Megababe and dab on a bit of lip balm and mascara and head off to meet some friends.
8 pm: Get out from a day out with friends. Pour myself a bath with Epsom salts and the Le Labo oil. Light a candle and listen to some Fresh Air podcasts in the bath.
9.30 pm: Decide to have a super early night. Have only just realised in the past few months how anxious I get when I don’t have enough sleep. Turns out I really do need my eight hours (and plenty of water) – my mum was right. Having an early night is one of the kindest things I can do for myself, and perfect prep for the week ahead.