self-care

A.P.C is coming for your bathroom shelf



APC Beauty

Does the world need another beauty brand? Clearly not. And yet. I’m wholly seduced by the idea of A.P.C Self-Care. The signature orange blossom fragrance always transports me to trying on boots in their store near the Tuileries in Paris circa 2010 – so quintessentially ‘garconne style‘ – so the notion that this scent underscores the products, gives me a good feeling. It’s all about the sensorials for me.

The line is miniscule – just six products; a cologne (£65), shower gel (£40), body lotion (£45), hand soap (£40), hand cream (£20) and lip balm (£15). (more…)

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Taking a moment



Bruce Weber
When did self-care become a dirty word? The concept originated in the late 60s by radical feminists wanting to empower women by teaching them to get to know their anatomies. But in recent years, ‘self-care’ has come to encompass the Goopification of beauty, aka a capitalist catch-all that couches healthy habits and ancestral rituals in spa language and posh packaging. My take on self-care is somewhere in the middle. Nice-to-have products (that don’t have to be expensive) and free DIY practices to maintain health and wellbeing rather than ‘optimising’. (more…)

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Pre-order my new book: Face Values



DROP EVERYTHING, it’s a major news day today!

I’m finally able to talk about my second book, Face Values: The New Beauty Rituals and Skincare Secrets, which will be appearing in warehouses any day now and in shops on September 16th.

Face Values: The New Beauty Rituals and Skincare Secrets is not your average beauty how-to book. It’s beauty through a lifestyle lens, a show-and-tell of identity stories, beauty philosophies, wellbeing rituals and relatable skincare revelations from a truly wonderful global line-up of contributors. (more…)

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Suddenly I want to smell like a coconut again



Maya Njie Tropica fragrance

Well this is awkward. After a lifetime a year in relative isolation during which my longest journey away from home has been the decidedly unexotic Hastings pier, I find myself craving tropical coconut-laced smells.

That’s maybe not so surprising though. As with the power of touch and what’s known as ‘skin hunger’, the pandemic has not only literally stolen the sense of smell from some unlucky individuals, it has also heightened the link between scent and nostalgia.

“Fragrance can control your mood,” says perfumer and founder of her eponymous brand, Maya Njie. “If you’re feeling low and you need a boost, put fragrance on and it will elevate you.” (more…)

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