I’ve always liked autumn. As I get older, I like it even more: soft, mellow light; clothes with coverage; exciting new shoe possibilities – it all has so much more potential than summer, with its flip-flops and flimsy fabrics. Best of all is that back-to-school feeling. You know: new uniform, new socks, new school bag and, most important of all, new pencil case – complete with the latest stationery accessories.
Now, of course, I’m a grown-up. But the new pencil case thing lingers on – only now it’s make-up, not Hello Kitty stickers I’m obsessed with. By the end of summer my glamorous St Tropez-style gold make-up bag looks as tired and worn as last season’s wedgies; all my sheer lipglosses are distinctly lacklustre; the writing has come off my tube of Laura Mercier tinted moisturiser (although the stuff inside is as effective as ever) and something purplish and sticky keeps getting stuck underneath my nails every time I delve for the tweezers.
All of which gives me the perfect excuse to start afresh. First, the bag. It has to be robust, not too big, not too small, and practical. For £75, Armani Cosmetics has just the thing: chic black leather that curls neatly around a mesh zip-up bag. The flap bit has space for brushes; the mesh bit enables you to find what you’re looking for in a flash. When it’s all done up it looks like an elegant clutch bag, and could easily double as one. If you want something a little less safe but with a certain cachet, £115 will buy you Smythson’s new make-up case in vibrant peacock-blue mock-croc, their new fashion colour for 2007. It’s beautiful, but it has one small downside: it will clash with Laura Mercier’s dinky new mock-croc red brush case (£24), about the same size as a credit-card holder and containing a lip-brush, a blusher brush and an eyeshadow brush.
Now for the stuff inside. Bobbi Brown Delectable Chocolate eye palette (£38) has a shade of brown for every day of the week, ranging from Milky Bar to 70 per cent cocoa – and the pigments are so fine they would work with almost any skin colour. For brilliant coverage and really good staying power, her Long-wear Cream Shadows (£16) come in pretty, easy colours and need nothing more sophisticated than a quick dab with a finger to apply. Equally covetable, albeit rather more extravagantly priced, is Armani Eye Couture Palette (£45), a lavish two-tiered affair with four eyeshadows, two brow colours and that all-important mirror.
To accompany the mini brushes, Laura Mercier has brought out a series of “micro mini” palettes, pocket-sized compacts containing three lip or eye shades (£22). Get one of each, and you won’t need much else in your spanking-new pencil case (sorry, make-up bag). Except, of course, some mascara. Prescriptives Lash Envy (£16) gives you really good, non-clumpy Audrey Hepburn lashes – and unlike so many volume-boosting formulas, you can still comfortably see out.
Advertisement
As for lips, well, I know it’s terribly unfashionable, but I’m not quite ready to ditch the shine. My current favourite, and one of the few things that will be making the transition from the old bag, is Dior Lip Beautifier (£15.50), a glossy plumper with amazing staying power. It works well on its own, or you can use it to fix or revive your favourite lip colour.