Confidence Building Make Up with Beautii

So, I’m nearing the end of month two on my Nothing New year and I’m discovering a lot about my old See-Now-Buy-Now behaviour. Firstly, I’ve had to curtail those ‘I’ve got ten minutes to spare so lets pop into COS ‘ moments, but that’s not hard, and having seen Annette Bening in 20th Century Women, above, I had to stop myself sourcing gold brocade pyjamas (it’s a fabulous film, go see it) like the ones she wears.

I’ve also done lots of thinking about why I buy. Empowerment is right up there. New clothes have power, they can make you feel great and you can use them as a tool to instill confidence when you’re needing a boost. There are of course many other ways to feel empowered, but when you need to look good, perhaps you’re giving a presentation, going for an interview or have to host an evening function straight from the office, a new dress/jacket/pair of tights can help. So what to do when you need a boost but have enough clothes?

Coincidentally, I got an email last week, introducing me to Beautii, a ‘we’ll-come-to-you’ beauty service. It offers to blow dry your hair, paint your nails or give your make-up a make over at your desk/conference location/kitchen sink, where ever you need the boost. Prices are not scary and I had a girls lunch planned, so set Beautii the task of coming to do a ‘no make up make up’  to make me look like me, only better.

Lauren Wright, above, one of Beautii’s regular make up artists, turned up the next morning at 9.00am with her make up suitcase and set up home next to my desk. She was efficient, tidy and super-nice, we spent an hour on my make up, although Lauren can do a full make over in ten minutes if needed (with no chatting, which we did a lot of).

Not only will she make you over, she imparts knowledge as she goes, it’s more like a tutorial – although only if you want it, I LOVE an expert so kept asking questions. If you prefer, you can use your own make up and Lauren will tell you how to better use what you’ve got and suggest where to fill in the gaps. Similarly, and very relevant for us, she’ll help you adapt your own make up rituals if you’ve been stuck in a rut for a while.

I am not a great make up wearer, I love a good foundation and lipstick, but that’s enough for me, and Lauren took note. She used a Shimmering Skin base from Becca, then Mac Studio Face and Body foundation, which she blended to suit my skin using two colours (it stayed on all day). With eyes, she nudged me towards a lovely Tom Ford Nude Dip Quad compact with excellent neutrals, for no-colour eye shades and a great new lipstick crayon in Golden Arrow from Lipstick Queen (I loved this so much I went out and bought it).

Unlike a make over you might get in a department store, there’s no product to buy, Beautii isn’t selling you stuff, it’s offering a fantastic experience and/or efficient service. So it really is all about you. A make up session costs £65.00 (£80.00 for party make up), £45.00 for a blow dry and from £35.00 for a manicure (£45.00 for a shellac one). It uses the best make up professionals – founder Jodi Hayes has been in the industry all her life and knows her stuff – and if Lauren was anything to go by, they are a joy to work with.

So how did it turn out? I hate having my photo taken, but since it’s just you guys….here I am. My girlfriends – in between swigs of wine and the usual constant stream of gossip, scandal and intrigue – gave it the thumbs up. I really loved my eyebrows, which are none existent IRL.

So if you’re needing an empowering boost, or fancy learning new tricks, or have some important event coming up, I would recommend checking out Beautii, I’ll certainly use it again. It’s not available everywhere  -check the website for details.

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