Best beauty decision you ever made

[Goostacean]

Lockdown is giving me plenty of time to think of what I could change in my beauty regime (which is currently very limited ).

Please inspire me: what was your revolutionary/ life-changing/ beauty-defining decision, product, new habit or whatever?

To start using glycolic acid

Philips Lumea

To join Mrs Gloss and the Goss, start watching makeup tutorials and but decent brushes (I'm no longer a member of Mrs Gloss but in its infancy I literally learnt so much from that group!)

To stop fighting my natural features. My hair is never going to be straight, so I leave it and do a CG regime, it's much better now.
I bought a Lumea, so no more epilating
Never gone in for Botox or fillers, and use oil to moisturise my skin at night, and always use an spf50 on my face in the morning.
Drink a lot of water, sleep - or at least have good sleep hygiene. Weight training and yoga, running and HIIT - essential for my physical and mental health

Stopped dyeing and went grey, suits my skin tone so much better.

Eyebrow and eyelash tint
Botox

Revitalash. Hot cloth cleansing. Retinol.

Novalash eyelash extensions - just make me feel “done” straight away.

Having my hair cut regularly and coloured with highlights - helped my hair look more natural as I’ve hit my mid forties

Fake tanning

Good skin care - using retinol, vitamin c, glycolic acid, moisturiser

Eating less carbs higher protein/good fats as I’ve gotten into mid forties perimenopausal

Please say more about the Philips Lumea - is it really worth it have been thinking about if for a while

To ditch Caroline Hirons's advice which pretty much ruined my skin when I bought into her regime of regularly swapping around expensive, over strong ingredients and going to see an actual dermatologist who put in place a routine that actually works for my skin, including prescription products.

Lash extensions are Great but after a year or so I started to react to the glue

Shellac nails are great but eventually I developed a fungal infection under them.

Botox is brilliant. No complaints whatsoever. Microblading is equally brilliant.

No alcohol

Lash extensions - best thing I’ve ever done. Like the pp I’ve been having them done for years. My nails/hair etc grow super quick so I have to have an infill every 10-14 days. Since lockdown I’d say it’s the only thing I’m really missing. That said, my natural lashes were surprisingly long underneath but I really miss the curl of extensions.

Botox - I’m 35 and I had it done for the first time before Christmas and again in March. My forehead lines weren’t that bad but it has freshened up my face and weirdly, stopped the annoying time of the month forehead random spots too.

Factor 50, every single day

Microbladed eyebrows, I was an extreme over plucker when younger and they never grew back properly.

Getting moles removed from my arms and chest.

La Roche posay effaclar duo for spots.

St tropez purity tan for not leaving tan all over bedding and clothes!

Aldi version of the benefit they’re real mascara (better than the benefit version)

I'm fair haired and tint my eyebrows at home. It makes a massive difference to my face. Takes 5 minutes and I only need to do it every 3 weeks.

Mastering the art of a good messy bun without looking like Miss Trunchbull.

I started getting my nails done regularly a few months ago. I love how polished it makes me feel. They're a state now and I will be straight down there as soon as the salon reopens.

I have moisturised every day with Nivea Soft since I was about 14, and dont have any forehead lines etc where most women my age have some. Aside from moisturiser I only use make up remover and water on my face, no washes or stripping products. I exfoliate every week or so but my skin has never looked better.

Stopped smoking

Started moisturising my face :/ terrible I didn't for the first 30 years....

Getting a sweat on, can't think of a nicer way to put that but when I do a really hard work out and sweat and go bright red my face looks and feels so much nicer for a day or two. Sauna especially helps

Got a style analysis by styledbysusie so now wear clothes/hair bands/earrings and most importantly lipstick that is colour matched. Was a luxury that I spent a while putting off and saving for but saved me heaps in not buying stuff that doesn't suit me

Putting lip balm on before bed or just for being round the house has really helped too, I don't wait till they are cracked and torn to bits so they always feel more plump now

Yy to roaccutane and spf 50.

Those of you getting eyelash extensions, how much are you spending and how long do they last? :)

I got them once before and they did look amazing but they cost £60 and lasted like 3 weeks!

Stuff I am doing as I've been so down on my looks are:

Focusing on growing out my hair - am getting to bra strap length now so that's at least one thing going well

Finding a good fake tan - haven't tried a tanning water yet so that will be interesting

Consistently using my new skincare routine - seeing definite improvements there

Cutting out sugar and drinking loads of water - for both weight loss and skincare

Also want to go back to getting my brows threaded after lockdown as I suck at plucking them.

Finally, planning to get my hair done at a salon for my birthday in October (provided they are open ) I've been messing with my own hair colour since I was a teenager so getting it done professionally should make a difference.

P.s. wear your damn spf, most skin aging is photo aging!!

People who have seen a dermatologist- did you get GP referral or go private? Did you have specific skin concerns or just wanted more general advice?

Spending £2,000 at the orthodontist having my teeth straightened. I look so much more polished now and it has done wonders for my confidence. Also, I’ve been wearing City Block spf 40 on my face everyday for the past 15 years. I’m 40 now and have hardly any wrinkles.

And purchasing a Philips Lumea. Goodbye hairy legs!

Thanks so much for all the replies so far! I’ve been inspired and this afternoon placed a large order for Clinique SPF, moisturisers, toner, a fancy cleanser, and more Shellac colours (I bought a home kit which is great- cost me about £50 in total, and now another £20 for new polishes, instead of £35 each time in a salon).

I’m going to buy a properly whitening toothpaste. Would love to get my teeth straightened and got a quote but tbh, the expense aside, I couldn’t face yet more discomfort and restrictions after 2 pregnancies in 2 years... Maybe in the future.

I’m also upping my water intake and trying to watch what I eat a bit more although I’m not overweight.

Microblading seems a bit hit and miss for blondes, from the photos and reviews online.... Bit nervous of that one. I’ll definitely give eyelash extensions a go once lockdown lifts though!

One of mine is also an, ahem, feminine wax. Obviously not on show to the general public(!), but I feel so much cleaner and I think that gives me a confidence that shows. I will not be trying that at home, however.

To those that have done microblading, does this help in giving them more shape? I get them threaded usually, they're a bit sparse - but more so I never feel like they have the proper shape.

Lottapianos I was referred by my Gp so I could be put on Roaccutane. Mine was NHS.

Any tips on dealing with my massive pores also welcome! 😳

@onemouseplace - can I ask which prescription products you have been advised to use? I have really sensitive skin and eczema so am quite interested.

@citygirl1961 Sure - I don’t have eczema so don’t know about that, but I do have quite sensitive skin and I’ve been advised to use either La Roche Posay or the Avene Tolerance range, plus I use Vit C and prescription Azelaic Acid and Tretinoin. Plus SPF every day! All introduced separately and gradually building up dosages/ frequency.