PHOENIX’s Editorial Assistant Joy Starkey gives us the run-down of her beauty basics
I find that I spend an inordinate amount of time stood in Boots, erratically scrolling through various beauty blogs on my phone (with the internet working at snail’s pace) trying to find helpful beauty recommendations, while I silently scream “who on earth decided that the world needed 15,000 different brands of shampoo?!”
This is precisely the reason why we, at PHOENIX towers, decided to give you a shortlist of products that we actually use on a daily basis and which, well, do a pretty solid job. Scientific jargon and swishy hair shots not included.
As someone who cannot function before 10am and doesn’t (and will never) have an elaborate beauty routine, my picks are all about investing in good basics and easy maintenance.
Bed Head’s new Urban Anti-Dotes range is perfect for hair that decides to be oily at the roots and dry at the ends (i.e. mine) because you can mix-and-match their shampoos and conditioners. I use the re-boot scalp shampoo, which is great for getting rid of product residue, while the re-energize conditioner softens dyed, dry ends.
La Roche-Posay’s Effaclar Duo is by far my favourite skin-saviour, and was a God-send when my skin flared up a few months ago. The first time I used it I genuinely noticed a difference overnight – my skin looked a lot clearer and the angry redness gone. To top it all off, it doesn’t cost a bomb.
The final product worth mentioning is coconut oil. Now I know its been raved about on every possible beauty social media platform, but it has honestly been one of my favourite budget beauty buys of 2014. I use it as a hair mask, body moisturiser, weekly face treatment, and even as a healthier alternative to vegetable oil for frying food (yep, don’t knock it till you’ve tried it). But whatever you do, make sure you buy it from a supermarket rather than a fancy organic shop – it’ll be at least half the price.
Check out our essential edit below and tweet us with the products you can’t live without.
