This week’s Inside My Beauty Bag comes from Clare, the founder of The Life Lately. I’ve been following Clare for a few years now and like me, she recently became a mum. It’s always lovely when you follow people on Instagram that are going through the same things as you, and I’ve found her posts on teething, sleepless nights and returning to work so comforting. She also does a feature each week called ‘Reasons To Be Cheerful which I absolutely love. It’s always nice (even when you’ve had a hard week) to practise gratitude.
Anyway, I was thrilled when Clare agreed to share her skin and makeup essentials with me and it makes for a lovely weekend read. You can read more of Clare’s musings on her blog or Instagram account. Enjoy!
“I’ve always been a bit of a skincare junkie. I guess working in beauty for years does that to you! I luckily have pretty well-behaved skin that is generally clear, but since becoming a mum I need extra hydration and to take extra care of my XXL eye bags. Eva is now 10-months old and we’re starting to get to grips with this whole parenting thing”.
“My morning skincare routine begins in the shower where I use a Fresh cleanser with my Foreo, I use the Foreo to massage in the cleanser for around 30 seconds to wake up my skin. I then use micellar water to cleanse any remaining bits of make up/baby food from my face, I’ve started using reusable cotton pads a couple of months ago and they’ve been great so far. I then use La Roche Posay eye cream followed by a Cetaphil moisturiser, it’s SPF 50 which is so good for this time of year and lets me skip a step of sun cream! I use a jade roller to massage my face after this step too which I find helps massage in the product as well as relaxing the muscles in my face which is 100% necessary these days, I have wrinkles appearing all over the shop”.
“I try to keep my night time routine the same every day, but if Eva’s bed time goes pear shaped, then I do it in approx 12 seconds flat and pass out. But if it all goes to plan then I start by taking my make-up off with micellar water, then use a Jurlique oil cleanser and warm water to cleanse. I nicked a couple of Eva’s Cheeky Wipes (reusable wipes) to use for this step and they work a treat. I then use the same La Roche Posay eye cream as in my morning routine and massage in a Bobbi Brown face oil with my jade roller. I finish with La Roche Posay moisturiser and a bit of Glossier balmdotcom on my lips, I just got their new mango one and it smells amazing. I also slather my hands in hand cream before I go to sleep”
“Putting make up on is when I have a bit of ‘me time’ in the morning, it’s usually during Eva’s nap so I have a bit of precious time to myself. It just makes me feel a bit more like me. After I’ve done my skincare routine, I use the Smashbox Primeriser, then start with my base. I use the Glossier Stretch Concealer (I used to use Medium but now I’ve switched to G9 in the new shade range) on my mega eye bags. I use the Bobbi Brown foundation stick in Warm Sand on my nose and forehead and a little bit of Bobbi Brown Weightless Foundation”.
“I blend it with a beauty blender until I look almost like a human. I’m really into cream products at the moment, I love how they blend in and they’re a buildable colour. I use the Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge in Powder Pink on the apples of my cheeks (can you tell I quite like Bobbi Brown yet). I set everything with pressed powder and my base is sorted”.
“I usually keep my eyes pretty simple with a NYX cream eyeshadow as a base, then a quick flick of Benefit Roller Liner in Brown and Bobbi Brown Smokey Eye mascara. If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll add a bit of black eyeshadow too. My eyebrows are naturally really dark so I don’t do too much with them, I use the Bobbi Brown eyebrow pencil and Glossier Boy Brow to keep them in place. I can do this in about 3 minutes now if Eva’s stirring but most of the time I take my time and enjoy it!”
