The models were the lovely Jenny and Alex at Boss, styling and art direction by the fabulous Hester Brodie at Industry People, photography by the ever awesome Kirstie McNulty.

The make-up and hair for this shoot was very loosely based around a young 40′s/50′s almost ‘The Notebook’ reference, but we wanted to keep it very youthful and very soft. Fresh dewy skin, keeping everything light, natural and not too made up. Luckily for me, both models had lovely skin already, which I cleansed and primed using a few products from the Gadi 21 Minerals range. This range has been a great new discovery for me and has been with me in my kit for a few months now, in particular their intensive moisturiser and their under eye cream which I’m currently using on almost every job. The creams are incredibly lightweight and sink into the skin very quickly and provide a really nice, firm and smoothe base for foundation to glide over. For this particular shoot, I used a little MAC Face and Body foundation which is very sheer, and lightly concealed any imperfections, resulting in a really natural, youthful finish. I used creme blushers for a soft glow and a little definition around the apples of the cheeks and slightly into the hairline, brows were brushed out and defined and various shades of lipstick were mixed with a little Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour cream to sheer it out and give it a more balmy effect.

And here’s a not-so-fantastic behind the scenes shot of Jenny, taken with the terrible camera on my phone.

I recently shot the mens fashion for His&Hers magazine, here’s the cover featuring the lovely George at Boss Model Management.

And here’s a preview of an editorial I shot recently for Vision magazine (March issue) with the incredibly talented and creative Ellen Rogers.

I have lots more editorials and campaigns coming out already this year, and so many new great product reccomendations, so I’ll update again soon.

The JOICO K-Pak range is one that I have been a long time devotee to. I first discovered it a few years ago on the reccomendation of my hairdresser (who’s salon actually doesn’t stock this so this was a genuine reccomendation, not a sales push) as a rescue remedy for my hair, which was at that point very tired, thin and over processed. I had literally abused my hair in every way you could imagine- at that point I had just finished almost a year of bleaching it white, dying it pink over the top of that alongside having individual bonded hair extensions (which I had continuously for a good few years without any breaks) and on top of that, I would straighten or wave with GHD’s most days…. So when the extensions were finally removed and I had decided to go for a kinder shade of almost black, I didn’t have all that much hair left to do it with! What I had was just below shoulder length, thin, still partially matted and very dry and breaking every time I brushed it. My hairdresser reccomended K-Pak intensive reconstruct conditioner which advises leaving on for 15 minutes as a treatment… and whilst it is fantastic for me now as a 15 minute treatment, when my hair was as damaged as it was, she told me to sleep in it, so I did. I saw the effects instantly and over the course of about 2 months worth of sleeping in the treatment once a week, the improvement was massive. I also had regular trims, used a tangle teazer only to brush, avoided back combing and hot styling where I could and put my bleach and extension days behind me, but I really credit the K-Pak intensive conditioning treatment for restoring my hair (a year and a half later my hair is almost half way down my back and has never been glossier or more healthy). The regular shampoo and conditioner from this range are fantastic also for your day to day shower, infact I have never used anything from the range that I didn’t think was fantastic and I can’t gush about JOICO enough. Whether your hair needs some serious rescuing like mine did or you’d just like to give it a little boost every few weeks, the K-Pak range is perfect.

Another mention for JOICO, this time with the Body Luxe collection. After a year’s worth of massive success with the K-Pak products, I decided to hunt down JOICO’s PR team and see if I could start crediting the brand in magazines etc (which I have of course done many times now!) and since then, they have sent me all sorts of fantastic new bits from the brand to try, and the JOICO Body Luxe thickening elixir and the Body Luxe root lifting volumising foam (mousse) were some of them. These have since become staples in my kit and I use them on nearly every job I do. These are pre-blowdry treatments, but even if I’m pressed for time I will dampen down the hair with some water spray, add the mousse at the roots and the elixir through the mid to ends and quickly rough dry out. Not only do these products add a brilliant amount of volume (especially if you have enough time for a proper blow dry with a big, round brush) but the hair also becomes much smoother and is given just a little bit more texture which makes further heat styling so much easier – I have actually found that after using the thickening elixir, curls from a wand or waves from a straightener just seem to ‘stick’ a bit more and stay in that little bit longer which makes my life so much easier on a long shoot where hair needs to stay perfect all day.

Next up is Illamasqua’s newest foundation, Skin Base. It’s not often that a new foundation makes its way into my kit as every make-up artist has their long time favourites and I’m no exception, but after hearing rave reviews from friends and colleagues of mine when this first launched, I had to check this one out and I’m really glad I did. I had one shade sent over to me in with some other products after an editorial I credited and literally asked their PR for “the most universal shade” as not having seen them in the flesh, I had no idea how they ordered their shades. The shade they sent me was No. 06 and I have since been blown away by how universal the colour actually is. This product is creamy, highly pigmented (to the point where I rarely have to conceal after use) but is versatile enough in that it can be buffed out to be as sheer as I want it to be, and it still looks like ‘skin’ (I’m not a fan of very visible foundation). It’s quite matte compared to a lot of the other foundations I have in my kit so doesn’t need much, if any powdering. It also photographs beautifully and also looks beautiful in HD which means I have gone on to use it on all sorts of jobs- from magazine editorials and catalogues and advertising right through to TV commercials. I have of course gone on to get many other shades and this is a permenant in my kit now.

I have to admit, when the new Topshop make-up range launched and I was sent samples to try, I wasn’t sure what to expect as to be honest I’m not a massive high street make-up fan as most of the products out there in the main high street stores (whilst they’re great for every day wear) just don’t perform for me on set in terms of longevity or in front of the camera. The Topshop cream blushers completely surpassed any expectations I had and I absolutely love them. I use them on nearly every job. They are creamy, well pigmented, easy to blend and of course, look beautiful on camera. They are very buildable, whether you want to add a natural warm, glowy flush to the cheeks or make a statement with some of their bolder colours.Their colour range is fantastic, and personal favourites of mine are Head Over Heels (a gorgeous coral shade – looks slightly scary in the pan but goes on beautifully and is my go-to colour for a peachy glow) and Pinch (an incredibly densely pigmented statement bright pink).

ArtDeco waterproof lip liners are another new addition to my kit this year. They are creamy, packed with pigment and really long lasting. They are perfect for a really precise, longwearing precision statement lip, or even as a sturdy base for a longer wearing nude shade. A particular favourite of mine is No. 17 which is a perfect nude/pink shade which is just ever so slightly darker than my natural lip tone. I like this one so much that I’ve doubled up and have one for myself as well as one in my kit – models and celebs alike love having that bit more definition even with the nude shades.

If you’re even only the slightest bit into beauty, you will have heard the buzz about Tom Ford lipsticks. They launched earlier this year with a small selection of shades (maybe 10-15?) and industry insiders went wild for them. These lipsticks are absolutely, hands down, the best lipsticks I have ever used. The texture is amazing, they are so creamy, so intensely pigmented, completely bleed-proof and amazingly long wearing. I wear the shade Pink Dusk (a nude with a little dusky pink) almost every day, and use other shades in my kit all the time as this lipstick really, really lasts. It might seem a little pricey for “just a lipstick” (as my boyfriend would say!) but it lasts forever (I have had at least 6 months out of mine and I wear it literally, every day) Since the launch of the first shades, Tom Ford has gone on to launch an entire make-up line including everything from foundation to eye shadow palettes, as well as many more shades of his famous lipstick, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the rest of it.

Chanel Illusion D’Ombre eyeshadows are another cult product launched earlier this year, and the hype is entirely true. If you’ve tried the famous Chanel bronzing make-up base (essentially a cross between a cream and a powder bronzer) the consistency of these isn’t far off that. They are intensely pigmented, super shimmery and so so blendable. These are perfect for a novice who wants to create an easy smokey eye. Add to that that they’re also very longwearing and again, photograph beautifully and you wont be surprised that these have become another staple in my kit. My personal favourite is the shade Emerveille, which is a peachy/champagne colour that can be used as a wash of dewy peach or built up and intensified.

There are many more, but these are my personal favourites from this year that I think will work for everybody from a novice to a seasoned pro.

Here is my most recent cover of His&Hers magazine, check out the full editorial in my fashion gallery – make-up and hair by yours truly!