The Five Products Our Beauty Director Used In Lockdown To The Last Drop
Lockdown has not been kind to my appearance. And I’m not the only one who feels that – a new survey by non-surgical cosmetic treatments marketplace Glowday has found that almost half of 25- to 34-year-olds feel that the time spent in lockdown has aged them.
It is, in part, due to increased levels of stress, but also, so many of us have been spending hours on end at our laptops or working late into the evenings. And we want to do something about it.
The same survey found that more of us are now considering injectables, and a number of aesthetic doctors have told me that the demand for brightening, skin-revitalising treatments has increased dramatically compared to pre-Covid times. Even celebrities were feeling it, apparently: mid-lockdown I spoke to super-facialist Joanna Czech, who counts Kate Winslet, Jennifer Aniston and Anna Wintour among her regulars, and is in such demand that her diary is booked until November 2021.
She has been seeing all of her clients for ‘virtual’ facials over Zoom, and although the advice is tailor-made, she has a simple principle for everyone: a short but consistent skincare routine every day. ‘To counteract the effects of lockdown skin, I insist all my clients do a proper skincare routine, especially at night, that consists of a bit of facial massage and using a good hyaluronic-acid product,’ says Joanna, who uses the Capture Totale Creme by Dior, which is rich in the ingredient.
Joanna says the best way for your skin to reap the benefits of such creams is to tap and gently ‘push’ the product into the skin, especially around fine lines – and to use hyaluronic acid from the ‘nipples up’, to make sure you are treating the neck and décolletage too. The idea is to stimulate your skin through massage, which will have a positive effect on your face over time. So rather than doing the bare minimum all week and then spending an hour on your skincare and face masks on one evening, you can futureproof your skin by having a consistent routine every day.
Joanna tells me that Jennifer Aniston takes the same approach to working out. ‘Jennifer gets up an hour early every day to do whatever exercise she can, whether it’s some sit-ups or a walk. She believes in the cumulative effect, too.’ So it’s the little things, done daily, that can have an impact. I can’t promise that I’ll be getting up early (see working late, above), but I can stick to a consistent beauty routine.
