Sarah Loves... Early Summer 2023
Photo: © Jo Fairley
David Austin Roses and Aromatherapy Associates Rose Bath and Shower Oil
My life really is a bowl of roses at the moment as my garden springs into ravishing bloom, thanks to David Austin Roses. (I can never resist buying the next one… it’s a very benign addiction though.) And come the evening, I wallow in a bath scented with my old favourite fragrant bath oil, which reminds me of Aromatherapy Associates founder Geraldine Howard, a dear friend and inspired creator of aromatherapy products. Rose essential oil is known to lift spirits and help you feel positive and this truly makes me feel happy plus this luscious bath oil really is skin conditioning.
Aromatherapy Associates Rose Bath & Shower Oil/£55 for 55ml - buy here
Cosmetics à la Carte Future Flawless Concealers
I’m forever grateful for good concealers – often all I wear for dodgy patches over tinted moisturiser (currently Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Natural Skin Perfector) – so thanks be for CALC’s new 16-shade range of creamy, creaseless options which offer medium to full coverage. If you possibly can get into the charming boutique in Chelsea, London, I do recommend going there so one of the super-knowledgeable consultants (thank you Basia) can pinpoint the best shade. I actually needed two: Sand for the brown pigmentation on my forehead and ‘thing’ under my left eye (remnants of a skin tag which can never be removed as too near the eye) and Melba for the brown blob on my left temple. It’s a case of… there they were, gone!
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer Natural Skin Perfector/£40 for 50ml – buy here
Cosmetics a la Carte Future Flawless Concealers/£38 for 3.5g – buy here
Cosmetics à la Carte Lustre Lipstick
And while I was sitting in front of a mirror at the CALC Chelsea boutique, the charming consultant Basia offered to find me a new lipstick shade. Which, because she is pretty clever about these things, turns out to be well pretty perfect. The shade Raspberry Ripple is, just as she said, ‘flattering but not obvious’. So it subtly enhances my face rather than going ‘wham bam splat! Look I’m wearing LIPPY!’ It’s described on the website as ‘cool pink’ which might make you think it has some blue in it but, to me, it’s rosy brown neutral – should suit all skin tones. But as I say best option is to visit.
ANSWR Exfoliating Hair Removal Drop
When this ‘home salon beauty brand’ offered me the product above to try, I couldn’t quite imagine what it was. ‘Drop’, in case you wonder, seems to refer to the shape of the tool, which fits snugly into your hand. I tried it on my legs, which don't have many hairs left (one real benefit of age) but those that do grow as long as ever. It’s always bugged me having to have my legs waxed for so few, which is why this simple gizmo is truly a boon. So, it feels like the finest pumice – the brand calls it a ‘glass surface’ explaining that it uses friction to remover hair from skin surface along with dead skin cells. Rub it round and round, gently please, and abraca-flipping-dabra! no hairs and yes, baby soft skin. Because you’re only doing the surface, the hairs do grow back more quickly than with waxing but frankly, since it takes a couple of minutes to dispatch them, that’s so not a problem. Genius.
Emma Coleman Retinol Overnight Serum
I’ve been a fan of facialist and aesthetician Emma Coleman for yonks, so when I found this, as I was turning out my beauty shelves, I decided to give a go. I’ve always been a bit of a wuss about retinol (a vitamin A derivative) but this is super-gentle, designed to be used every other night and, provided you do use at night and slap on an SPF50 during the day (retinol increases sun sensitivity), it should be fine even for touchy, sensitive, dry skin like mine. And the results are noticeable; skin that’s brighter, rosier and a bit plumper. Somehow more awake-looking, even a bit younger. Oh, and my two brown patches are definitely lighter.
Emma Coleman Retinol Overnight Serum/£39.50 for 30ml - buy here