Brown Girl

Dear Chatterattis, it is time to embrace bronzer.

A lot of you will instantly say OompaLoompa and a lot of you (tut tut) will say why would I want to look darker??

Bronzer will not make you darker. If applied correctly it will not make you look like you’re wearing war paint either. Apply in a Number Three over your face, i.e. across your forehead, under your cheeks and finish across your jawline. Use the biggest brush you can get to avoid stripes and never ever use the wee brush that may come with the powder. You will still need your usual blusher on the apples of cheeks.

My skin colour is described fair for an Asian (not so fair that I look Italian, I am definitely brown) but my undertones are yellow and that is not a good look.

I have started to experiment with bronzer and I do not look darker, I look healthy. And, quite frankly, I will not be dictated to about what level of colour is deemed beautiful by a backward culture in South Asia when I live in London. Give me a break.

Loadsa Money!!

If money is not an issue you need Estee Lauder’s Aerin Pretty Bronze Illuminating Powder (about £35).

So subtle, this just kisses the edge of your face to make you glow. Level 2 for Asians skin and darker, Level 1 for white.

Hmm, can I try something a little cheaper?

What, You Don’t Use Face Oil?!

If you don’t use face oil then please be under 30 and have oily skin.

I used to think face oils were as useful as snake oil. I am, however, now sold on this nighttime beauty product and wish wish wish someone had told me about it earlier. Pour or drop some on to your hands/fingertips (don’t be

Banish the Brassiness

Whether you have 90s streaky highlights or are more en vogue with ombre, nothing looks better than a hint of blonde in one’s hair to set off in this rare British heat wave.

However, there’s nothing worse

Beauty With Austerity

Doom and gloom on the 24 hour news channels can only mean one thing: let’s go comfort shopping!  Lipsticks are generally the preferred recession purchase for women, however, The Guardian have a wonderful article on hero products under £10 that is well worth a read and so I decided to tell you about some of my own faves…cheap smiles all round!

Being a geek pays: if you buy cheaper brands go for the ones that have rich parents

Love in a Lipstick

New lipstick shades are out now for this season and here I pick some of my favourites, all tried and tested on…the chubby cheeks of my nieces!

Peach Passion by YSL in enough gold casing to make you feel like a millionaire.

Bugsy’s Beauty Tip

The latest beauty product I am recommending is a carrot!

Research released by a British research team found