It might be sweltering outside – how! – but we are very much in the heart of fall, and with September’s end comes a new monthly instalment of the dolled-up cousin to our flagship fashion bulletin What’s In Fashion. Every month, we’re here to deliver the go-tos and lowdowns and need-to-knows of the beauty industry, the concealers worth queueing for, the weird and wonderful trends taking over TikTok, sexy new scents, nifty beauty hacks and whatever new wellness witchery Gwyn and pals are getting up to. You get the vibe. Dive into October’s edition!
SKINCARE
It may well be light jacket weather, but the festive season is truly upon us, girlies. Believe it or not, it’s only 82 days until Christmas. That may mean dark nights and eyewatering heating bills (boo), but it also means we’re so close to our true favourite time of the year: beauty advent calendar time (yay)!. There’s a smorgasbord to choose from – truly, it does feel like there are more and more of these every year, so keep an eye out for yet more recommendations in November – but right now we’re loving the bang for your buck you get from Anthropologie’s offering. At £78, it claims to be worth over £300, and given the amount of full-size products in there, we’d believe it. No spoilers though, don’t go opening those doors early or there’ll be coal under the tree for us all. RL
If you have a skin tone darker than olive, then you’ll know too well that not all skincare products are created equal. Indeed, too often, the hot new primer, toner or BHA exfoliator that all the girlies are raging about just doesn’t mesh with melanated skin quite as well as it does with those of a fairer tint — a disappointment only compounded by the paltry offering of products designed for us darker queens! Well, now there’s salvation in the form of Melyon, a Swedish skincare brand designed with people of colour —and the skin conditions most commonly found among them — in mind. From hyperpigmentation-targeting milk cleansers to brightness-boosting night creams, the brand’s recently launched range is a must for the tough winter months ahead. MS
COSMETICS
There are few classier make-up items than a red lippy, and there are few classier make-up brands than Chanel! This taken into account, you can imagine the squeals of joy that rang through our office on hearing of the venerable maison’s new flagship lipstick offering: 31 Le Rouge. Figuring in 12 satin shades, the lipstick is a concrete embodiment of the spirit of the house — more specifically the spirit of its esteemed founder, and the residence she kept at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris. With colours including a pearly beige inspired by the satin evening dresses Coco Chanel used to create, a burnished red inspired by the couturière’s cherished coromandel screens in her apartment, and a deep garnet inspired by the lining of the brand’s iconic 2.55 handbag, it essentially offers of chromatographic history of the house. The cherry on top? The reinforced mirrored glass casing even nods to the emblematic Art Deco staircase at 31 Rue Cambon. Lipstick never looked this chic! MS
FRAGRANCE
So many perfumes are like, oh we’re going to transport you to sunnier climates, but it’s October now, and damn it we want some representation for the cool girls (both in terms of aesthetic and in terms of climate). To that end, on both fronts, Byredo’s new fragrance collaboration with Suzanne Kaufmann has us covered. Inspired by the calming atmosphere of the alpine mountains – Bregenzerwald in Austria, to be specific, and Suzanne’s actual home – expect notes of meadow foam, apricot kernel and fig. A walk in the forest practically! Even better, this is a fragrance oil rather than a spritz, so it’s kinder to your skin and full of antioxidants. Fresh air might do you good, but this will do you one better (probably). RL
SCIENCE/TECH
A clarion call for anyone looking to up their beauty game! Invest in an LED mask — now!! Yes, you will look a bit like an aesthete Hannibal Lecter, and yes, people will look at you a bit funny for using one in public, but you will be the one laughing when they see the flawless, radiant skin you’ve managed to cultivate by way of little other than the power of light. Probably. From our best options out there comes from BEAUTYPRO (need we say more?!), whose Photon LED Mask features 5 different LED settings tailored to refining pores, combatting acne, improving skin texture and so much more — and you get all that for less than £200! A steal, if you ask us. MS
WELLNESS
The wellness world has always been obsessed with sleep, but it feels like it’s become more of a concern in recent years as science has been telling us again and again how important it is to get our full, blue-light free, eight hours a night. From bullet journalling to white noise machines and begging your mates to smuggle you in melatonin every time they go to America on holiday, the land of nod is on our minds, probably because we’re all so knackered all the time. But rather than relying too much on sleep aids, the wellness-obsessed corners of the internet reckon they’ve cracked the code with a so-called “sleepy girl mocktail”. You may well have seen this all over TikTok already, but if not, it’s a wellness-slanted, alcohol free version of a nightcap. Consisting of pure tart cherry juice, magnesium powder and soda water, served up in your prettiest goblet, the concoction is supposed to make you sleep better, for longer. It’s a combination of the natural sleep hormone (yep, that’s melatonin!) prevalent in cherries being enhanced by the presence of magnesium, which supposedly helps our central nervous system relax and interacts with our neurotransmitters to induce calming effects. The soda water is just for vibes, presumably. The science on it, and the reviews, are mixed so far, but we’re willing to give it a go. Willingly engage with hormones and wellness chat on the internet just to increase our chances of getting a good night’s sleep? Imagine how tired we are. RL
TRENDS
In 2010 Lana Del Rey sang that her pussy tasted like pepsi cola and ushered in a decade-something long era of cherry coke becoming an online byword for being hot and cool. Her influence, honestly. So it’s inevitable, really, that TikTok, as Tumblr’s natural successor, has picked “cherry coke” make-up as its recent beauty micro trend. “Cherry cola” lipstick – self-explanatory even for the colourblind – has been popular on-and-off on the FYP for the past few months, but now we’re seeing the ascendancy of a full-face version. Think deep lip colour, winged eyeliner and a lot of rouged blush. Cherry coke looks are essentially a celebration of reds and browns, which is perfect for autumn. Lana Del Rey, of course, is forever. RL
HARDCORE
For as long as Botox has been invented, it feels like we’ve been addicted to Botox. From “baby botox” to “preventative botox” in the age of the internet more and more of us are injecting ourselves with more and more, younger and younger. And as beauty technology has advanced, rather than moving away from botox, we’re moving ever further to the needle. Just not the botox needle, per say. In the past month headlines have grown about “daxxifying” ourselves. Daxxify, a longer-lasting botox alternative, hit the market this year and already corners of the beauty industry are trying it out for size. Like botox, daxxify works as a neuromodulator which blocks or paralyses your facial muscles in order to hide or eliminate fine lines and wrinkles. Unlike botox though, it works faster and lasts longer (two days compared to 5-7 for noticing the effects, six months compared to three for shelf life). At the minute though, it’s only got FDA approval for that bit between your eyebrows, so we might have to wait a little while before botox-brows become er, daxx-brows? RL