Tinting talent

When it comes to summer hair, we all want to channel that cool beach-surf girl look. Free 'n' easy, salt-sprayed and don't-care wavy style - it's the only time you can officially ditch your dryer and straightening irons. And the colour should be just as free falling. But the combo of bleach and sun can leave dread(ed) locks - all fried and barmaid brassy. At my favourite salon, FOUR, their talented tinting team have worked on creating a new Duo Tint technique which adds up to masterminding an on-trend high lift platinum blonde. Minus the bleach. Genius. This technique doesn't hold the hair to ransom and there's absolutely no Bet Lynch tones to be seen. As for those who want to hair surf brunette style, their new Brown on Brown Lights give just the right amount of lift without a sunset red tone in sight, giving brunettes a hint of sun beach (not bleached) colour. And for those who want to off piste, check out their Bubblegum Pastels Collection. Shades are created using a mix of Crazy Colour in sundae shades of soft lemons, mint greens and soft peaches.Pretty girl hair is literally just a tinting brush away.

Although I wouldn't go all out for DIY colour, there is a trend to home dabble to keep root growth at bay and stretch out those salon sessions a little longer. The FOUR London Smudge Kit is an insider secret with beauty editors. The reason? A personal formula is made up to complement your hair shade and designed to maintain hair-line and parting once the roots start to creep back in. Perfect for those who travel a lot or just want to tap into their inner colourist.


FOUR London, 62 Conduit Street, London W1S 2GB
www.fourlondon.com  

Surf eyes are up

There are palettes and then there are Bobbi Brown palettes. The Limited Edition Surf & Sand Eye Palette is a summer wonder and has poolside chic written all over it. Perfect if you fancy experimenting with pastel tones that aren't too out there, these metallic, sea washed and beach bound pretty hues can be worn alone or layered on the lid. My personal favourites are the new Bikini Bronze, Surf Sparkle and Sea Foam Sparkle eye shadows. With 8 go-to colours, they're a breeze to apply and easy peasy to pack in the magnetic closing, sand linen wrapped fabric palette. No other eye shadows are required. It's as beach babe as make-up gets.

Bobbi Brown Surf & Sand Palette, £48. On counter July.

Cute and Chubby

LIPS

CHEEKS

Chubby. Not a word anyone likes to embrace willingly, accept when we're talking about Clinique's phenomenally successful Chubby sticks. 'Inspired' to the hilt by other brands, these easy-to-use make-up colouring crayons have fast become a gotta-have in every make-up bag since they launched.

New to the Chubby family this summer is their Chubby Stick Cheek Colour Balm - a sheer, creamy cheek colour that I dab and blend in minutes to create a soft rosy cheek. The effect is glowy rather than cakey or dry, colour lasts and they beat the heat too. For pouty, soft lips there's Chubby Stick Baby Tint Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm. These babies are super sheer and act as your personal make-up artist. Each balm works with your lip's natural chemistry whereby the same shades will appear different on every pair of lips. Now, who doesn't want to be seen as a little Chubby?

Chubby Stick Cheek Colour Balm comes in 4 shades and retail for £19.
Chubby Stick Baby Tint Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm comes in 4 shaes and retail for £17.
Both on counter from 1st August.

The all round luxury oil

I'm just back from Florida from a work assignment...I know, I know some girls get all the luck, and I made more room in my baggage for Stateside buys - have you seen the good exchange rate? by packing a beauty multi-tasker in the name of Carita's Fluide De Beaute 14.

This oil is the mother of all oils with an effective vitamin complex and platforms as the brand's hero product. I adore oils especially when in a hot climate. They rescue dehydrated anything in a heartbeat. But the good thing about this ultra-nourishing spray dry oil is that it takes care of face, body and hair. Zingy in fragrance, it helps tame the frizz on a humid head - it's ultra fine so there's no worry about lankiness, and I like to mix into a face mask or body lotion when applying to the skin. Alternatively, you just spritz solo. All this goodness in just one bottle adds up to more cool purchases in your case.

Carita Fluide De Beaute 14 costs £40.50 and available from www.feelunique.com