Brows of Dreams - My pick of the best brow products

Yesterday was apparently National Brow Day which means two things:

One: marketing companies will declare a national day for literally anything (a quick scroll of the National Day Calendar Website tells me that October has National Days for (ironically enough) both Temperance & Vodka; handbags; online banking and chocolate-covered pretzels to name a few. Madness.)

And two: Brows are BIG business.

I knew both these things already, of course. The range and choice of brow products has exploded in the last ten years as perfectly precise brows suddenly became the focus of every teenagers makeup look (we’ve got Kylie Jenner to thank for that). Thankfully the trend for heavily drawn (or crayoned as I tend to describe the style), solid-looking brows has moved on to a more natural one. Big, boyish, full and feathery - now everyone wants their faces framed by Cara-like brows. Which is great news for those blessed with a profusion of hair, untouched by tweezers; not so great for anyone who overplucked trying to look like a 90s Kate Moss.

Before we even begin to talk about makeup though, the first bit of advice I will give you is to go to the salon for a tint and a shape. Everybody can benefit from at least a little tidy up: whether you’re naturally full or sparce, light or dark you’ll be amazed at the difference a clean, fresh brow will make. Once you have that shape mapped out it becomes so much easier to see what makeup products you need to apply and where you need to apply it for the best and most natural effect.

I meet a lot of women in my work as a makeup artist and not knowing where to begin when making up their eyebrows is the one of the number one problems I hear from them. That along with a general sense of being overwhelmed by choice. The old cliché that they frame your face is absolutely true: when you get them right it really is one of the most transformative things you can do. So here is my rundown of the best products to help you achieve that perfectly groomed look, no matter what unloved state your brows are in!

Rachel, barns & Yard

Best For A Foolproof Fuller Brow Look

Anastasia Beverley Hills Brow Wiz - the easiest pencil to use if all you want is a little more soft definition and to fill the odd gap. Just hard enough to stop you applying too darkly, soft enough that you get some impact. It has a fine nib at one end and a spoolie at the other so you can keep brushing through to soften your work. Huge shade range from super light Blonde all the way through to Ebony. At a push, I can use shade Taupe on almost everybody. The perfect pencil basically.

Best For Building Up An Overplucked Brow

Huda Beauty Bomb Brows Pencil - this pencil has the tiniest, finest nib on the market (it’s retractable drawing pencil thin) which allows you to draw the most delicate of lines. So it is PERFECT for anyone who has a lot of missing hairs or really needs to rebuild their shape with makeup. By creating tiny hair like strokes on the skin you end up with a soft, very natural looking effect. Even if your brows end up as 50% pencil they will never look heavy with Huda.

Best For Longwear/Waterproof Brows

Anastasia Beverley Hills DipBrow Pomade & Brush - I use this on pretty much every brow type in bridal makeup. There’s no other product like it for longevity. It was the original ‘crayon brow’ culprit honestly as girls would apply it in a solid block of brow, but it actually is incredibly versatile. I use the ABH brush with it and take the smallest amount on the back of my hand, dipping both edges of the brush in the product and then almost wipe all of it back off on my hand so that it applies very lightly. Used in this way it can build a bare brow back up to fullness, fill gaps by recreating hairs, softly redraw the arch, gently extend the tail. It’s great for those who want a stronger brow look but once you get the hang of it it’s also great for more natural girls who really need their makeup to stay put.

Best For A Filling For A Feathery/Laminated Look Brow

Iconic London Triple Precision Brow Definer This works in a similar way to the Huda pencil by creating really fine hair strokes, but this time it’s in a pen format. So that gives you more depth and definition to really achieve that on trend brushed up brow look. Good range of colours and has a pencil on the other end for filling the brows more generally too.

Best Gel For Natural Hold

Nudestix Brow Set Gel XL Brushing through with a clear brow gel holds those hairs in place so you don’t have that windswept mad professor look by the end of the day. This is the brow gel I constantly keep in my bridal kit. I’ve tried them all. Some of them have great hold but leave the hair feeling a bit crispy, others flake, others don’t seem to have any holding benefit at all. The Nudestix is perfect - holds like nothing else, keeps the hairs looking like hair (more unusual than you might think - lots leave them looking oddly lacquered) and feeling soft. It has the most delicate tint to it that just adds the gentlest touch of extra definition.

Best For Full On Feathery

ABH Brow Freeze & NYX Brow Glue in Clear are for you if you love that laminated look. For the uninitiated: brow lamination is like a reverse perm for the brows. Perm solution is applied and the hairs are brushed into place so that they remain brushed up and feathery for about 6 weeks. When done well it leaves the brows looking fuller and more youthful and modern, but you will have seen some overdone startled caterpillars walking around too I’m sure. These products temporarily give you the same effect (not the caterpillar one hopefully). They are also great for keeping the most unruly of brows more naturally in place where more traditional gels have failed. These things HOLD hairs where you put em. It’s called glue for a reason girls!

Best For Fluffy Brows With Hold

Iconic London Liquid Brow Silk is my personal everyday brow hold product of choice. It has a bit more substance than a traditional gel so appears to slightly thicken the hairs while holding them. It’s a white coloured thin pomade texture that dries clear. I brush it backwards and down through my brows from tail to head and to coat the hairs before brushing them up into place to get a soft fluffy, feathered look that stays all day. This is a regular repurchase for me.

Best Tinted Brow Gel

Hourglass Arch Brow Volumising Fibre Gel. Tinted gels are great for a quick fix. If you’ve got no time to faff a quick brush through with this gives the impression of extra fullness (tiny fibres coat the hairs to make them appear thicker) and more definition as any lighter hairs are grabbed by the tint and made visible where they were otherwise not. If your brows are generally a pretty good shape this might be all you need everyday. There are loads on the market ( and honestly lots cheaper) but the Hourglass ones are just flawless.

In short I love an eyebrow! Without these products in my own makeup bag my own brows would be in a sorry state of sparse unevenness. Some can be a challenge to get right but when you do it can be face-changing. Perfecting a natural-looking, full and feathery brow is one of my favourite parts of makeup. I shared some of these in action on my bridal clients over on my Insta where I’m planning a series of brow videos. Grab yourself a magnifying mirror and get practising - it’s time to up your brow game!

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A post shared by Amy Laney - Natural Bridal Makeup Artist - Worcester (@amylaneymakeup)

My Bridal Makeup Must Haves

What’s In my Bridal Kit?

My Must-Have Products for Bridal Makeup

Full disclosure: I’m a makeup addict.

I’m not one of those hyper-disciplined MUAs who can stick to the same basic kit, only replacing products as they run out. No. I’m a magpie. I see it. I like it. I want it. I got it.

Well, not quite. But when I see a new product that I think will really enhance the kit, that fills a gap that isn’t perfectly served by any other product, I will try it. If it’s great - it ends up in the kit. If it’s not so great it stays on my dressing table.

But while there may be the odd newbie in the kit there are some products that I will buy time and time again for my bridal makeup clients. Absolute failsafes, that never let me down, always perform brilliantly and look beautiful on everybody. So I’m opening up my makeup kit to let you in on the secrets!

Complexion

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base Let’s start at the beginning. Skin prep is everything. And this cream is the final step for almost everybody who sits in my chair. It’s a moisturiser come primer that hydrates and smoothes and has the most incredible grapefruit oil scent. Cue cries of “mmm that smells amazing” every wedding morning!

Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray. Okay, so you might be confused as to why this isn’t the last on this list but spritzing all over with setting spray as the final step before makeup locks in your skincare and helps create a long lasting base. I mist it over layers of cream products too and then give everything a final misting once powdered and fully set. There are loads on the market but this is my favourite - sets without drying, has a superfine mist and smells delicious too.

Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation If I had to choose just one foundation that I could make work on any skin type, this would be it. It’s medium-full coverage, gives a beautiful flawless but skin-like finish, naturally radiant but can be made matte with the right prep and setting. It has a huge shade range too. I could never be without it.

A good concealer is key and my latest favourite is Hourglass Vanish. It’s a full coverage concealer with a natural finish, and it’s the best I’ve tried in a long time. A little goes a very long way and the tiniest dot is enough to brighten even the darkest undereye.

Laura Mercier Tranluscent Loose Setting Powder (Ultra Blur version) A good setting powder is the key to long-lasting makeup. Even those wanting a glowing, dewy finish need a touch of powder to lock product in and remove excess shine (glow looks healthy and beautiful, shine reads as oiliness). The newest Ultra Blur version is talc free and has overtaken the original as my favourite. Soft, natural and never cakey. The perfect powder.

Cheek

Nars Cream Bronzer - I always layer cream under powder products for longevity and to build natural depth. So I begin adding shape and structure back to the face with cream bronzer or contour. The Nars Cream Bronzers are THE BEST. A cream version of their OG Laguna powder bronzer it comes in four shades for all skin tones. It’s blendable, but not too dewy and the tones are just perfect for adding dimension without too much warmth.

I will then set that with a Powder Bronzer, usually in a slightly lighter shade. The best around are by Hourglass. Expensive, but once you’ve tried them, there’s no going back.

I love a liquid and cream blush and my faves are the Rare Soft Pinch liquids (I now have six of these super-pigmented beauties in the kit) and for cream I love RoseInc & Nudestix. Again, a first layer of cream or liquid blush really helps to create a long-lasting flush to the cheek.

The powder blushes that over the years have replaced all other brands in the kit are by Pat McGrath & Hourglass. They are luminous without being overly glowy, longwearing and come in the most beautiful range of shades. Hourglass Dim Infusion is the perfect peach and Pat McGrath Nymphette is a dreamy warm rose shade.

Dior Backstage highlighters - I don’t know a bridal artist who doesn’t have this highlighter quad in their kit. It’s perfection - four shades that cover all skin tones and they look incredible on the lids too.

EYES

My foolproof formula for a crease free lid is to begin with a cream shadow as a base for powders. Charlotte Tilbury des the prettiest shimmer shades that give subtle glow to the lids. I then build up on those with powder shadows.

I keep one or two Matte shadow palettes in my kit that covers all eye looks (Viseart Neutral Mattes is my current along with Too Faced Natural Nudes for more rosy/ mauve looks. The Mario Master Mattes palette is also great.

Tom Ford quads are now pretty much the only shimmer/ glitter/ satin eyeshadows I keep in the kit.The baked formulas are like nothing else you can buy. Glow without glare, expensive looking shine. They’re the best. They cost A FORTUNE but they’re worth every one of the many many pennies I spend on them.

Anastasia Beverly Hills is the queen of brows and if I only carried her Brow Wiz pencils and Brow Gel I could get by on any client. I also stock her brow freeze and pomades for clients who like a more feathery brow look.

Waterproof Mascara (Nudestix, Lancome and Maybelline) and Sweed No Lash Lash Individual Lashes. I love a fluttery, feathery lash and will always choose to build up a lash line with individuals over a strip lash. This gives a beautiful, tailored look. These Sweed lashes are heavenly.

LIPS

I could never be without the perfect ‘your lips but better’ shade of Charlotte Tilbury Pillowtalk Lip Pencil ( and the dreamy neutral nude Iconic Nude). They’re the perfect balance between waxy and blendable, comfortable to apply and wear and her lipsticks are always a favourite with brides too.

So there you have It. my ride or dies

All of these products are tried and tested and reliably see me and my brides through every single wedding. If they can hold up through a wedding day, they can hold up through anything!

But they’re not just for brides. These are some of my favourite products FULL STOP. If you’d like any shade advice drop a comment below.

*Contains affiliate links. Use code LFTFAMYLANEY at LookFantastic for up to 20% off

Your Bridal Trial - What can I Expect & How Do I Prepare?

Bridal Trial

WHAT CAN I EXPECT & HOW DO I PREPARE?

So…it’s six months or so before your wedding day and you’ve just had an invitation from me to book in for your bridal trial. It’s a new experience for most brides so often you have questions about what it will be like and how can you best prepare for it?

When’s the best time to have your bridal trial?

I always advise that the ideal time to hold your trial is 3-4 months before your wedding day so you should somewhere around 12-16 weeks ahead of the big day.There are a few reasons for this.

Firstly, there are SO many style decisions to be made around your wedding: your dress, the bridesmaids dresses, colour themes, flowers. All of these details can influence how we approach your bridal makeup. So waiting until all of those other details are in place as well as having a clear idea of the overall ‘feel’ of the day is really important so that your makeup styling is a perfect fit.

WHERE WILL MY BRIDAL TRIAL TAKE PLACE?

I hold all trials at my home studio in Great Witley, WR6. It’s a really lovely, bright and calm space with plenty of room for you to bring someone along for a second opinion!

HOW LONG WILL MY BRIDAL TRIAL TAKE?

I allow two hours for a bridal trial. It’s our first meeting so I really don’t want to rush it. We have lots of time to chat about the big day and it’s a time we can really get to know each other. We create your look with you sat in front of a big mirror so you can see every stage of the makeup and how it all comes together. Sometimes a look needs a bit of tweaking to feel ‘right’, sometimes we nail every element straight away. Allowing plenty of time to be sure that you leave feeling flawlessly you is key.

How do you decide on the makeup look?

I see the creation of your bridal look as a collaborative process. I tailor every makeup to suit your own personal style. That’s impossible to do without you being involved in the process.

Inspiration images are useful, of course and anything you can show me helps to piece together your style and taste (see my earlier blog for more ideas on where to find your inspiration images). But equally useful is for you to think about how makeup has made you feel in the past and how you want it to make you feel on the day. Do you want to feel romantic, elegant, polished, bohemian, natural…? Photos of you in makeup that has made you feel beautiful can be really helpful as well as your thoughts on makeup that has not made you feel your best.

We look at photos of your dress to establish the style of the makeup too - a more structured or unfussy gown lends itself to a more clean, polished makeup; a floaty, frothy number can make us head in a softer, more romantic direction. I’m guided by the colours of the bridesmaids dresses, the style and colours of the flowers in choosing your makeup tones. We even consider whether you’re being married in a church, or outside, in the morning or in the evening - the light can have a bearing on the makeup we choose too.

how should i prepare in the run up?

Firstly, get on top of your skincare months before the trial if you can. Good skincare is the first step to great makeup. And makeup looks and lasts better on a well-cared for, nourished, healthy skin. A series of facials is great if the budget allows (I rate the Hydrafacial) but you’ll see incredible results from the right consistent routine. (I have a blog post on bridal prep skincare here)

If you’re planning on having any treatments before the wedding day - brows, lashes, facial waxing, tan - have a test run ready for the trial. They can make a huge difference to the overall look so it’s important for you to get a true idea of everything as it will look on the day itself.

is there anything special i should do on the day of the trial?

You can come makeup free to save cleansing time if you like but also feel free to come wearing your ‘usual’ face of makeup (although avoid waterproof mascara if you can - five minutes of scrubbing with eye makeup remover is not the nicest way to start your trial!).

Wearing a top in a similar colour to your dress really helps to envisage how the makeup will look. And wearing a similar neckline ideally too (but if that’s not feasible, something with your neck and chest exposed is essential for true skin tone foundation matching).

If you’re thinking your hair will be up on the day, wear it up at the trial. And bringing along any accessories you plan to wear so you can see the whole look is really helpful too. We’ll take lots of photos for you to see how it all looks on camera.

HOW Long should i leave the makeup on for?

The trial is as much about checking how the makeup lasts as it is about designing the look. I want us to be sure you don’t have any reactions to products, that everything will sit on your skin comfortably for the whole wedding day and will look as good at the end of the night as it did when you walked down the aisle (with minimal touchups). If any issues come up from the trial then we can make a few changes or tweaks to improve things on the Big Day.

So please try and leave the makeup on for as long as possible. Even if that means your other half getting a sneak peek. Take lots of photos of yourself in different lighting and make a note of anything that doesn’t last as we would expect.

take Me out

Lastly, let’s give the makeup a good test and make sure you plan a lunch or a night out after the trial rather than an evening at home on the sofa! You can’t let that flawless face go to waste!

My Top Bridal Looks of 2022 - Part One

Demi, Barns & Yard, Malvern - April 30th 2022

I mean - will you just look at her?!!

Demi was just a dream bride

The first of my top bridal looks of last year is beautiful Demi. Modern, polished, romantic - just picture perfect.

Demi has been my beautician for the best part of a decade so when she asked me to be her makeup artist for her Barns & Yard wedding back in April 2022 I was over the moon.

a) because I adore her

b) because she knows her stuff so it was a real compliment to be chosen by her

and c) that face!!

As I saw Demi most months in the run up to the big day we had a lot of time to chat about her ideas for her perfect bridal makeup look. She knew that she wanted natural looking, velvety skin, to keep the eye matte, maybe have a smokey wing and she knew that she wanted to really define her features. So we were on the look out for inspiration for a while.

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A post shared by Hung Vanngo (@hungvanngo)

When I shared this work of the wonderful makeup artist Hung Vanngo on my Instagram stories I knew that it pulled all those elements that Demi wanted into one inspiration image. She agreed. It was the one!

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This is the look we created - perfected skin, nude glossy lips, matte neutral browns over the lids, a lifted soft smokey wing, layered individual lashes and lots of definition to the face.

Key Products:

Delilah Alibi Foundation

Dior Forever Concealer

Huda Tantour - Medium

Tom Ford Moonlight Highlighter

Hourglass Bronzer

Pat McGrath Divine Rose/ Desert Rose blush

Mario Master Mattes palette

By Terry Longwear Eye Pencil - Brown Secret

Sweed No Lash Lashes

Anastasia Brow Freeze

MAC Modesty Lipstick

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Just breathtakingly gorgeous…

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photos Imogen Eve Photography

venue Barns & Yard

dress Sophie Wynne Owen Bridal

hair Angelica Hair

Makeup Amy Laney Makeup

Link to HungVanngo YouTube

2022 - what a year!

The 2022 Wedding Season was officially the busiest ever - with an estimated 500,000 taking place in the UK alone. It’s little surprise given the two years we had previously - so many weddings were out on hold during the pandemic. My diary was certainly full of as many postponement dates as first dates in the last twelve months. 2022 was the year we all caught up - I had dozens of delayed dates finally going ahead - several with extra tiny bridal party members. Weddings may have paused during the pandemic but babies did not!

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My 2022 roundup

my busiest year ever!

2022 started with a New Year bout of Covid. But January was still a busy month packed full of enquiries from newly engaged brides and then cracking on with the first of the year’s trials.

I have had 65 brides in my bridal makeup chair this year and countless Bridesmaid makeups and Mothers of the Bride makeups too. I have visited some beautiful new venues for the first time. 2022 saw my first visit to lovely Brinsop Court in Herefordshire as a makeup artist. The light in the bridal suite is some of the best in the country for bridal prep.

I have visited new venues throughout the Midlands, Herefordshire (Wilde Lodge and Lower House Farm stand out) and I have visited The Cotswolds more than ever this year with brides at Yard Space in Old Gore, The Barn at Upcote & Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire. All absolutely gorgeous venues that I look forward to visiting again this year and next.

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My favourite venues

familiar faces & familiar spaces

2022 of course saw me return to some of my most visited and favourite venues. In Herefordshire I always love a Dewsall Court Wedding and I have happily returned to Homme House several times this year (another beautiful country house with absolutely perfect natural light for bridal makeup prep).

Malvern wedding venues that I am always happy to revisit are Stanbrook Abbey, Birtsmorton Court and beautiful Barns & Yard where I have spent many happy mornings this year.

And my most local venues have proved popular this year with me providing makeup for lots of brides at Curradine Barns (a five minute drive from me - the dream in the midst of a Summer of long crack of dawn drives!), and weddings at Crumplebury and probably my most visited venue of the year Bredenbury Court.

see some of my brides at these venues here

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Award Winning Makeup Artist

Highly Commended

Award Winning Makeup Artist

The year was topped off with me receiving a Highly Commended Award at The Wedding Industry Awards for West Midlands Makeup Artist 2023. Two thirds of my eligible brides took the time to vote for me which is incredible. A hugely exciting end to a hugely rewarding year.

Looking for a bridal makeup artist for your 2023 or 2024 wedding? Get in touch here

Finding Your Bridal Style - Preparing for your Bridal Makeup Trial

What should I do to prepare for my Bridal Trial?

Some brides have a very clear makeup style and have a strong vision in their minds of how they see their wedding day makeup and hair from the moment they have found their dream dress. Some stumble across an image somewhere and know immediately that they want that look recreated for their wedding day. Some brides, particularly the more natural kind struggle to articulate their vision and some struggle to find it at all. If you’re a low key girl who wears very little makeup day to day where do you go to search for your bridal makeup inspiration?

‘Well, Pinterest obviously’ you say. Umm, while I love a bit of Pinterest for home and fashion and makeup to an extent, have you searched ‘Bridal makeup’ on Pinterest lately?

Image search from Pinterest

First of all can we just quash the notion that there is a style of makeup called ‘Bridal Makeup’. Bridal makeup is whatever a particular bride wants her makeup to be in order for her to feel her most beautiful. Secondly, these are not natural makeup looks. And as beautifully applied as some of the makeup may well be, there is so much filtering and editing of these images that it doesn’t give you a clear indication of it. Thirdly, glamorous they undoubtedly are, but if you want a modern bridal look these are not going to help you.

Last week, I had a bridal trial with a really beautiful natural bride and she had done her pre-trial homework and taken to Pinterest so that she could have some images to show me. As she handed me her phone she said ‘none of these are really me - they’re all a bit heavy’ at which point I handed her phone back to her and picked up my own. I never want to create a look for a client that doesn’t feel like them - a look that they feel they should have because it is ‘bridal’. I would rather that you come to your trial with no images to show leaving us to work out what you want from talking about your likes and dislikes and looking through some of my past work and other images I may have saved over time .

I rarely look to Pinterest or even studio shoots for inspiration for bridal makeup looks. I follow the work of some of the best ‘celebrity’ makeup artists in the World and for me their behind the scenes and red carpet images are the ones I pin the most. So, my advice is: look to Hollywood for the best in beautiful, understated, expensive looking modern glamour.

Which celebrities are you often told you look like? Which actresses have similar colouring to yours? Who do you see on the red carpet or in interviews and always think ‘they look AMAZING’? Google their names plus ‘red carpet’ and you can find dozens of gorgeous, realistically photographed looks that are perfect for any event - your own wedding included. This particular bride has fair skin, dark hair and amazing full eyebrows - more than a touch of the Lily Collins about her. And so I pulled up her makeup artist Fiona Styles’ Instagram profile to find some of her recent looks. Every one of them she felt was what she was looking for - pared back, lightweight, beautifying modern makeup.

What do actresses need from their red carpet looks? They need it to make them feel beautiful and confident obviously; they need it to last all day and often into the night (ditto your wedding makeup); it needs to photograph beautifully from all angles and under all lighting states (there’s no controlling what direction that paparazzi lens is coming from and your Auntie Jean’s iPhone camera as you walk back down the aisle can be just as unpredictable!) and as well as that it needs to look beautiful and natural in real life too.

Here are just a few examples of the amazing, inspiring looks I have recently saved. Compare them to that Pinterest search. I know hands down which ones I would rather be wearing. And while you’re at it, why not head over to Instagram and follow the incredible artists who created them: Lisa Eldridge, George Eisdell, Hung Vanngo, Pati Dubroff, Fiona Stiles and Alex Babsky. You’ll find square after square of gorgeous, wearable makeup.

Are you looking for natural, modern bridal makeup in Worcester, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshire, The Cotswolds and beyond? Get in touch here

How to Get that Bridal Glow...

“As if you were on fire from within. The moon lives in the lining of your skin.”

Pablo Neruda

When we picture a bride on her wedding day, most of us envisage a naturally radiant, perfected skin that isn’t layered in makeup. “You’re glowing” people say and it’s not about highlighter - it’s about love and happiness radiating out of you. That and beautiful skin. The truth is that makeup sits, lasts and looks better on well-cared for skin. That means skin that is nourished, hydrated, free from flaky patches. Skin that is dry, congested or unbalanced is not a good canvas for makeup.

There are lots of things you can do to ensure your skin is at it’s very best for your wedding day: Eat healthily, avoiding refined sugar (the main culprit for breakouts) and incorporating lots of fruit and veg; drink lots of water every day; take a vitamin C supplement (Vit C stimulates collagen production which is essential for skin, hair and nails). On top of this inside-out approach, it’s definitely worth upping your skin care routine in the months before the big day. Here are some things you should be introducing if you aren’t taking these steps already...

• Assess your skin type and issues. Really get to know your skin. I’m constantly amazed at how many people will answer ‘I don’t know’ to the question of whether their skin is dry or oily! If you get shiny throughout the day, then your skin type is not dry. If that oiliness is mostly in the forehead, nose and chin are (the t-zone), but your cheeks and ather areas are more normal-dry; you have a combination skin. If the shine covers the cheeks too, then you truly have an oily complexion. Equally, if your skin feels tight even after moisturising, or you have flakiness and dry patches then your skin is dry. None of the above and lucky you have a normal skin type!

• Make sure you are cleansing and moisturising TWICE a day. Every day…

•  Choose a cleanser that doesn’t leave your skin feeling tight, even if you’re prone to oiliness. Non-foaming gel or light cream textured cleansers are perfect for a morning cleanse with a cream, oil or balm cleanser for evening (always removed with a warm flannel or muslin cloth) and to remove makeup. If you have been wearing SPF or makeup then I recommend double cleansing here too - the first removes makeup, the second deep-cleanses the skin itself.

• If you aren’t already using an eye cream, now is a good time to start. It doesn’t have to be full of exciting active ingredients - its main purpose is to hydrate. Choose one that has a texture you will enjoy using and that works for your skin type - light, gel textures for those prone to oiliness and richer textures for those with drier skin.

• Almost every one I have in my chair shows some signs of skin dehydration.  I would urge you to add in a hydrating serum containing hyaluronic acid and/or Vitamin C if you don’t use one already. Hyaluronic Acid’s key skincare attribute is that it can hold over 1,000 times it’s weight in water, making it an excellent hydrator and able to plump out fine lines and Vitamin C is the best skin brightening ingredient around. Apply your serum to clean skin BEFORE your moisturiser.

• Choose a moisturiser to address your skin type - light and oil free for oilier complexions, rich and creamy for drier skin types. Most days, my serums give my skin enough hydration combined with my SPF that I can skip this step and go straight to my sun protection but some mornings and some skins will need an extra layer of hydration in the morning and always every evening.

•  APPLY SPF EVERYDAY!! Yep - everyday. Even in the UK. It is the single most effective step against ageing you can take. This should be your last step in the morning before applying your makeup. You may feel it is moisturising enough to follow directly from your serums and you can skip the moisturiser step. But NEVER EVER skip the SPF!!

ADDITIONS:

Get yourself a liquid exfoliating toner. Begin by using twice a week in the evening after cleansing, increasing use to every other day or even daily as you build up your tolerance to the acids in the ingredients. Once you are confident of no irritation this can be moved to your morning routine if you prefer to make the most of the immediate glow. These products are brilliant at removing dry, flaky skin, keeping spots at bay, reducing blackheads and pore size, refining the skin texture as well as brightening any uneven skin tone. Salycilic acid is great for enlarged pores and breakouts, Lactic and Mandelic for pigmentation and brightening, Glycolic a good all rounder (though some very sensitive skins struggle to tolerate it).

Consider using a facial oil at night time in place of or on top of your usual moisturiser. Oils penetrate the skin to work at a deeper level and are wonderful for dehydrated skin and even for rebalancing oily or congested skin. In my experience, nothing transforms skin faster than the right facial oil.

Have a quality face mask session once or twice a week. And if you can stretch the budget to include a series of professional facials in the run up - even better. A good facialist will give you a tailored skincare prescription to get your skin in the best possible condition for your big day.

Your DAYTIME ROUTINE should run as follows:

Light cleanse, Eye Cream, Vitamin C or Hyaluronic Acid serum, Moisturiser, SPF

Your EVENING ROUTINE should go like this:

Double Cleanse, Exfoliating Toner, Eye Cream, Serum or Facial Oil (followed by a blanket of your moisturiser if you need an extra layer of hydration).

There are so many fantastic products available from super affordable brands like The Ordinary, all the way up to very expensive brands. I can’t claim to have tried EVERYTHING but out of the products I have used I rate the following very highly. Most are mid-price range and all are GORGEOUS!

Cleansers:

Morning/ Second Cleanse:

Kate Somerville Goat Milk Cleanser

Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel

Laneige Water Bank Gentle Gel Cleanser

Pixi Glow Mud Cleanser (excellent for more congested types)

Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Pore Perfecting Cleansing Gel

Any of the Cerave Line of cleansers - a great budget friendly option

Evening/ First Cleanse:

Estee Lauder Advanced Night Cleansing Balm

Drunk Elephant Slaai Makeup Melting Butter Cleanser

Bioderma Sensible Micellar Cleansing Oil

Caudalie Makeup Removing Cleansing Oil 

Emma Hardie Moringa Cleansing Balm (good for first and second cleanse)

Elemis Pro Collagen Cleansing Balm

The Inkey List Oat Cleansing Balm

Serums:

Merit Great Skin Instant Glow Serum - I use this on most clients to prep the skin. And it’s on my bathroom sink too as my ‘topper’ serum over a more active Vitamin C or Antioxidant One. Gorgeous, silky skin, perfectly prepped for makeup awaits!

BioEffect EGF Serum - when you’re happy to blow the budget, this one is an incredible all rounder. Adds moisture, elasticity, improves firmness and fine lines. Actually worth the extortionate price tag.

Caudalie Vinosource Thirst Quenching Serum

Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum

La RochePosay Hyalu B5 Serum

Medik8 Hydra8 B5 & C Tetra Serums

Vichy Mineral 89 Serum

Murad Vita-C Glycolic Serum

Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum 

La Roche Posay Pure Vitamin C10 Serum

Moisturisers:

Tatcha Water Cream - oil free but full of hydration. My go to for oily/ combination skin.

Tatcha Dewy Skin Cream - my favourite for a normal/ drier skin. Does exactly what it says - gives plump, dewy, juicy skin.

Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturiser - Great for dry or mature skins or I love this one myself in the colder months when everything feels a bit tight.

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Face Base - this is what I use on almost everyone on a wedding morning. The perfect base for makeup, it primes while it moisturises to give a smooth finish. Smells INCREDIBLE!

Embryolisse Lait Creme Concentre - many a makeup artists prep moisturiser of choice. This is always in my kit

Facial SPF:

Coco & Eve Daily Water Gel SPF50

Paula’s Choice Resist Youth Extending SPF50 Daily Hydrating Fluid

UltraViolette Supreme Screen SPF50 Hydrating Skinscreen

Tatcha The Silk Screen

La Roche Posay Anthelios UVAir

Exfoliating Toners:

Medik8 Press & Glow Toner (PHAs - gentle intro to acid toner. Great for radiance and texture refining with minimal irritation)

Pixi Glow Tonic (Glycolic only)

REN Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic (Lactic)

First Aid Beauty Facial Radiance Pads (Lactic and Glycolic - for general clarity and refining)

Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel (the gold standard - 5 different acids - also available in an Extra Strong version for the hardcore amongst us!)

Alpha H Liquid Gold (Glycolic only - the original and still great)

Paula’s Choice Skin Perfecting 2% BHA Liquid Exfoliant (Salycilic - for breakout prone, oily skin and enlarged pores)

Facial Oils:

Herbivore Orchid Youth Preserving Facial Oil

Herbivore Lapis Balancing Facial Oil

Caudalie VinActiv Overnight Detox Oil

Sunday Riley C.E.O Glow Vitamin C Oil

Sunday Riley Luna Facial Oil (contains retinol)

Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil

Eye Creams:

Biossance Squalane and peptide Eye Gel

Clinique all about eyes (available in light and rich versions)

Caudalie Resveratrol Lift Firming Eye Gel Cream

Caudalie Premier Cru The Eye Cream

 Kiehl’s Creamy Eye Treatment with avocado

Medik8 Advanced Night Eye

Kora Organics Noni Radiant Eye Oil

Emergency Blemish Treatment:

Kate Somerville Eradikate Blemish Treatment - THE most effective spot treatment I have ever used. i am never without a bottle. Apply it at the first sign of a pimple and it will either bring it to a head more quickly or stop it in its tracks. Speeds up the healing without any crustiness or scarring. It is magic. I really recommend any bride has this in her armoury.

Lip Treatment:

Laneige Lip Sleeping Masks - The absolute best balms on the market anywhere. Not just for bedtime. Keep one on your desk, in the car and by your bedside and use it all day long. This is what I use on every client in skin prep and is without fail the one product every client asks me about. Available in every flavour you can think of….

If you follow all of this advice as early as possible (although even as close as a month away from your wedding day is not too late) I promise you will see results. You will need less makeup, and you will look flawlessly lit from within. Wedding picture perfect x

(For up to 20% discount at LookFantastic enter discount code LFTFAMYLANEY at checkout).

(For 15% off your first spend over £25 at Cult Beauty use this link: https://share.cultbeauty.co.uk/x/9zGDbT

Updated 7th August 2025

SAVING FACE - My Current Skincare Loves

New Skincare Favourites

God, I get so excited about new skincare! When a delivery arrives with some new cleanser or serum or moisturiser I just want to get up to the bathroom straight away and cleanse my face so I can use them all. Even if that means immediately reapplying a full face of makeup!!

Like most of us, I’ve had a bit more time than usual to linger over my skincare routine lately. Being a totally promiscuous skincare junkie I have a very generously stocked bathroom cabinet full of products that I dip in and out of depending on what I feel my skin needs that day. There are always some old faithfuls in there that I can’t imagine ever being without but mostly I love trying out new things so most of the products I’m using currently have only been in my rotation for the last few months or so. Two of them are repurchases (my favourite facial oil and face mask) but the others are new to me and I’m loving them. So…here’s my recommendations based on what I keep reaching for every day…

Elemis Pro Collagen Rose Cleansing Balm is my new favourite evening cleanser. It’s a rich, rose scented, oily balm - it smells DIVINE and completely removes all makeup including mascara. I always use a warm damp flannel to remove my evening cleanser but this one also emulsifies well with water if a wash cloth isn’t your thing.

Milk Makeup Vegan Milk Moisturiser: my latest purchase and God this stuff is beautiful! I have been feeling like my skin needed something really nurturing and moisture infusing and this...is...it. It has the most perfect rich texture that sinks in quickly whilst leaving the skin feeling plump and hydrated and I am absolutely loving it.

Dr Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Pore Refining Cleansing Gel has been my go-to morning cleanser for a few m months now. Refreshing and refining without tightening, it’s the perfect morning wash off cleanser or light second cleanse for anyone with combination skin. I really do see a difference in my skin texture when using it. 

Biossance Squalane + Phyto Retinol Serum is another new addition and so far so good. It contains bakuchiol - a plant derived retinol alternative that helps reduce lines and wrinkles but unlike retinol is safe to use morning and night. It’s creamier in texture than most serums I’ve used before so is super nourishing. It contains 100% plant derived Squalane to deliver and retain essential moisture, niacinamide to restore the skin barrier and fight water loss plus Hyaluronic acid too so is a great extra step for upping your hydration levels. Again, I’m loving this.

Kate Somerville + Retinol Vitamin C Moisturiser applied every other night is really helping to keep my lines and wrinkles at bay, pores refined and pigmentation marks lightened. It’s firming, brightening and nourishing and frankly bloody brilliant. It’s pretty strong stuff if you’re not used to retinoids so start slow but it’s by far my favourite retinol of all I’ve tried so far.

Herbivore Orchid Facial Oil is what I reach for when I want my skin to feel indulged. On a no-makeup day I sometimes use it in place of moisturiser, or under makeup if I’m going for glow. In the evening I’ll layer it over serum and moisturiser or retinol as an extra comforting blanket of moisture. It contains squalane again which locks in moisture and helps prevent hyperpigmentation as well as Omegas 3 & 6 and essential minerals. The addition of elasticity boosting jasmine oil smells INCREDIBLE and the tiny amount needed means a bottle lasts for aeons. This will always be on my bathroom shelf.

Nestled at the back there is the classic acid toner/ liquid exfoliant Biologique Recherche Lotion P50 (I have the PIGM version - to target pigmentation issues). Swept over cleansed skin every other night (alternating with your retinol nights) this sweeps away dead skin cells, and regenerates and refines the skin. All Lotions P50 contain a potent combination of AHA, BHA and PHA exfoliants: lactic acid, malic acid, citric acid, salicylic acid and gluconolactone, to act as a chemical exfoliator. As its name indicates, the Lotions P50 gently renew the skin over 50 days – ‘P’ stands for peeling and ‘50’ stands for 50 days – which represents about two epidermal cycles, for a gentle yet effective exfoliating process. There are many impersonators on the market, but this Parisian Spa original is the absolute best (with a price tag to match, I’m afraid!)

My Sunday mask routine might sometimes involve something a little stronger (like Caudalie’s Glycolic Mask or The Ordinary AHA 30% Peeling Solution which are both brilliant for a quick intensive brightening effect) but it always rounds off with the rose and almond scented Charlotte Tilbury Goddess Skin Clay Mask. It’s a pore-refining and moisturising 10 minute quick fix and I couldn’t be without it for my weekly deep cleanse.

You’ll find most of these items on Cult Beauty’s website. (For 15% off your first spend over £25 follow this link: https://share.cultbeauty.co.uk/x/9zGDbT)

Covid-19 update

Well, 2020 is going well so far isn’t it?! With your wedding on the way, you may well be feeling rather anxious about what the next few months will bring in the midst of the current health crisis. I’ll level with you - I am too.

My hygiene practices are already very stringent - clean hands and extra sanitiser at all times, equipment and products cleaned and disinfected regularly - so I’m very confident that I have things under control from my end. But I am going to have to work extra hard to keep myself, my clients and my family safe. With that in mind I thought it might be a good time to remind people of my regular contraindications for makeup application.

Clients are required to inform me if they are suffering from any of the following. I am without exception unable to apply ANY makeup treatment or skin contact on anyone with any of these conditions:

Impetigo

Conjunctivitis

Stye or other Eye Infection

Scabies

Ringworm

Coldsore (Herpes Simplex)

Acne Vulgaris (severe infected)

 This is standard practise and I have always been prepared to refuse treatment of someone in that situation. It’s imperative in keeping my kit and equipment sanitised, my clients healthy and my reputation intact. In order to continue to do that during the current Covid-19 outbreak I shall be extending this to include anyone who is displaying cold and flu symptoms or has done so in the last 14 days.

The new government guidelines are advising people to isolate for seven days if they are showing any signs of fever, persistent cough or shortness of breath. Other countries have gone further, and so to ensure all of my clients and my family are protected I will be too.

My work is in EXTREMELY close contact with people and it is impossible to avoid touching during a makeup application. They may take a little longer as I pause for extra hand washing and sanitising. My trials take place in my own home (or occasionally someone else’s) and so please don’t be offended when I ask you to wash your hands on arrival. I am also now asking that if you have ANY cold or flu like symptoms or have been in close contact with anyone displaying those symptoms that you do not attend your trial as scheduled. We can reorganise for a date after fourteen days and I will ensure we get another booked in as soon as possible.

I know there are worrying times ahead for everyone. We have to take care of each other and I assure you all that I am doing everything I can to take care of you.

Thanks for listening and thanks in advance for your understanding.

Amy

MY Mother's Day

My Mum Wendy (heavily pregnant with me) and my older brother Matthew

It was the Mother's day Assembly at my daughters school this morning and it was beautiful. I was certainly not the only Mum dabbing away tears as the little beauties sang their hearts out, blew kisses and recited poetry to their Mums and Grandmas. But for me it was bittersweet as it fell on what is an emotional day for me anyway, a day when my own beloved Mum is already foremost in my thoughts.

Six years ago today my beautiful Mum died very suddenly. Six years. In many ways it seems like longer and yet it also feels like yesterday. My grief has changed over the years. I miss her deeply and constantly but those moments of intense sadness have become rarer. The pangs of longing for her to be here to touch, hug, kiss, seek help from, cry to, laugh with, eat and drink with are now sporadic but are no less overwhelming when they do hit. And they do so at unpredictable moments.

There are many things that remind me of her. Almost every time I eat an incredibly delicious meal I wish she was here to share it with, I travel to wonderful places and regret that I was never able to take her there, every time I or my children achieve something that makes me proud I long to be able to tell her and revel in her warm glow, I want her to see every new haircut and tell me that I look beautiful. She was loving and glorious. And she has left a vast hole in an otherwise full and joyful life.

Small things can make you feel close to a lost loved one. I have a recipe notebook of hers and the sight of her familiar handwriting, the taste of her familiar food and the sense of nearness I get from knowing we have that shared experience of preparing the same meal is hugely comforting to me. And my sisters have some of her old makeup - not to use, but to keep knowing that she used it. 

She was a beauty, my Mum. Wendy Ann Hodgson. Born in 1951 she rocked the sixties miniskirt as a teenager and used to iron her blonde wavy hair between greaseproof paper to get poker straight lengths. She really cared about how she looked just like I do. She had a small makeup collection but I remember it well. I would sit on her bed and chat to her as she was getting ready and the sight and smell of certain products throw me straight back to her dressing table. She used Chanel foundation (which as a teenager I would occasionally pinch), and loved an old style Lancome lipstick (before they changed it to the fancy new clunk-click case) and their smells are so evocative for me still.

I am so grateful that she was a loyal perfume user. Because of this there are fragrances that will forever remind me of her and will forever give me comfort. The passing scent of a woman wearing Clarins Eau Dynamisante, Samsara by Guerlain (she used to wear WAY too much of this - slightly overpowering!), Chanel No.5 and the long discontinued Gianni Versace turns my head instantly. They are HER fragrances and for that fleeting second I can breathe her in. For that fleeting second she is with me still. 

Breathe your own Mums in this Sunday if you are lucky enough to have them. And hold on to them. Happy Mothers Day xx

Wendy Ann Hodgson 04.08.1951 - 09.03.2012

On Feeling Beautiful...

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I am constantly telling my little girl how beautiful she is. I do it without thinking. And I think it's so important that she feels that she is beautiful, but I do sometimes worry about it. So much so that I find myself consciously adding on extra compliments to the endless chimes of "gosh, you're pretty" for fear of her growing up thinking that it's all she has to offer the world.
I compliment her whenever she does anything of note - when she reads well, learns a new skill, tries hard at something, makes me laugh, shares her sweets...

It is sort of ridiculous how much it means to us women to be told that we are beautiful. After all, our beauty or lack of it isn't our own achievement, but an accident of genetics - something for our parents to be proud of, not us. And yet, let a little girl grow up without feeling that she is beautiful and you raise a woman full of insecurities in all areas of her life. 

Of course beauty is not the most important quality in a woman any more - thank goodness. And we must let our little girls feel as though they can do anything, be anyone they want to be. In the book, The Help, the main character, Aibileen has a phrase that she repeats with the little girls she looks after - "I am kind, I am smart, I am important". Add "I am beautiful" to that and I think you've got the perfect mantra for raising a happy, healthy, confident young woman. "You are beautiful, you are kind, you are smart, you are important."

So tell your daughter that she looks pretty today. Do it often. Then tell her that she can rule the world.

In Your Face Cancer - My Take on The 'nomakeupselfie'

This post first appeared on my previous blog, The Wren's Nest on Friday, 21 March 2014

So, I did it. You probably did it. And as a direct result Cancer Research UK has raised over £2 million so far. I have read, seen and heard a lot of people criticising the campaign - suggesting it is flippant, saying that the last thing a woman with cancer cares about is her appearance so what has going without make-up got to do with supporting women suffering from cancer? There have been words like 'narcissism' thrown about, that the women posting these pictures are 'missing the point'. I think they're wrong. And here's why.

The subject of women's cancers is an especially emotive and complex one. Cancers of the uterus, cervix, ovaries and breast are destroying parts of the body that are meant to give and sustain new life - the very essence of what it is to be female. I think there is a reason why breast cancer charities are some of the most high-profile in this country that goes beyond the statistics showing it is the most common cancer in the UK with 55,000 diagnosed every year. It is because the female breast has forever been held up as the ultimate symbol of femininity. Just look at the Venus di Milo, Barbara Windsor in the Carry On films, Marilyn Monroe, every buxom wench in every period drama ever made, Kelly Brook even. Women's feelings of attractiveness,  of their sense of self, their sense of feeling womanly, are hugely bound up in their relationship with their breasts. And we really do have a relationship with them - some of us even give them names. Ask any woman who has gone from a voluptuously bosomed young childless woman to flat-chested post pregnancy and breastfeeding and they will tell you they hanker after those boobies of yore. That they could cope with the stretch marks if only they still had big boobs. I know. I'm one of them.

So, when a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer it can feel like a particular kind of betrayal by their body. A part of their body that is intrinsically part of their being a woman.

And then comes the surgery when at best they may lose a part of it, at worst they may lose a breast. Or both. And, as grateful as they are for being alive, it is incredibly difficult to feel womanly without them.

And then there is the chemotherapy and the radiotherapy that leave you looking and feeling exhausted, that result in weight loss and very often hair loss. And again, as grateful as you are for being alive you have lost another intrinsic part of your femininity.

If you are fortunate enough to make it into remission, the tamoxifen prescription often results in early onset menopause, and again, as grateful as you are to be alive...

A woman who undergoes treatment for breast cancer has to cope with feeling terribly ill, feeling incredibly scared and with feeling unfeminine, with feeling less like a woman. Through these silly little photographs, we are saying that we respect their grace and dignity, that we are prepared to step out of our safe, comfortable lives and put our naked faces in the public domain. That we want to try and understand, in the smallest of ways, for the briefest of moments how it feels to face the world without a part of our perceived womanliness. By stripping ourselves of the face paint, the smoke and mirrors artifice of our beauty and femininity, we are attempting to show our solidarity. To stand shoulder to shoulder with our sisters. Surely this is the true meaning of womanhood.