From avoiding ingrown hairs to Emma Watson’s furry friend and where to go for a vegan beauty product treat – our bubbly beauty guru has the lowdown on it all.
Triona’s trends
It’s time to talk about hair. But not the hair on your head – your hair down there! Khloe Khardashian has come out lately with a list of eight products she uses for her ‘down-there’ situation, which not only includes wipes and moisturiser, but Ben Wa balls, to strengthen and tighten her va-jay-jay – “like Pilates for your cha-cha”.
But back to the hair. Khloe likes to use a product between shaving or waxing sessions, such as Lycon’s Ingrown-X-It Solution, above, €21.50, brazillia.ie, to exfoliate, calm the skin and prevent ingrown hairs.
This product has a cult following, and men go wild for it as well, btw. For their own hair – obviously!
Meanwhile, one of Emma Watson’s beauty essentials is Fur Oil, below, $44, see furyou.com, products created for pubic hair.
The actress says, “I’ll use that anywhere from the ends of my hair to my eyebrows to my pubic hair. It’s an amazing all-purpose product.”
Finally, I read an interview with actress Shailene Woodley discussing the importance of Vitamin D for your, eh, v! She said it was a herbalist who turned her on to this, and that it helped yeast infections and other genital issues. “If you’re feeling depleted, go in the sun for an hour and see how much energy you get. Or, if you live in a place that has heavy winters, when the sun finally comes out, spread your legs and get some sunshine.”
Triona’s trick
Coconut oil is so 2015! It’s all about castor oil right now.
Get with the cool castor gang and use it on hair, nails, brows, skin and, wait for it – you can also use it if you have a stye in your eye. Simply make a paste of castor oil and turmeric. Apply the mixture, with clean hands, up to three times daily until the stye is gone. #you’rewelcome
#Makeup confidence
“Confidence is silent, insecurities are loud” as the saying goes. When my confidence crumbles away, I start to doubt myself and that makes me look to others to tell me how great I am. “Please, please, please like me!”
I know when I’m feeling old and fat, my inner thoughts are so negative that the only way to shut them up is by showing off; then that makes me cringe at myself. What am I like?
Somebody who knows all about confidence is make-up entrepreneur Trish McEvoy, whom I met recently in London when she launched her book, The Makeup of a Confident Woman, left, €25. Unlike other beauty books, it teaches you the power of make-up to unleash your #MakeupConfidence and how doing so will release endorphins that cascade benefits throughout your life. Basically the book teaches you that if you look at yourself and feel better, that’s empowering.
Skinfull affairs
Vegan Alert!
If, like Ellen Page, above, you’re vegan and also a beauty junkie, then you need to know about Skinfull Affairs on Exchequer Street in Dublin. It’s a very chic, salon and store which is full of conscientious products that do not contain any animal products or by-products, and have not been tested on animals.
Check out the manicures using Ella+Mila, a cruelty-free vegan polish. FYI, a lot of nail polish use fish scales to get that shimmery look, and shellac – which is a coating or glaze that may be found in hairspray, shampoos, perfume, mascara and lipstick – is derived from a resin secreted by the lac bug.
Also available are threading, henna tattooing, and skincare. Skinfull Affairs, 34 Exchequer St, D2, tel: (01) 616-9933, or see skinfullaffairs.ie
Triona’s most wanted
Every year, on our anniversary, Will puts up a post on my Facebook page. Want a peek?
“‘Do you know what I mean?’ – a phrase most commonly used when one of the conversing parties definitely does not know what is meant. Now go a step further.
‘Do I know what I mean?’ This phrase bounced around my head regularly for years and years. I wasn’t getting the feedback that I needed to know if my cognitive skill set was any value. Then something extraordinary happened. I met someone who said, ‘I know exactly what you’re saying!’ There was nothing ‘mean’ here. She is actually ‘anti-mean’.
Her understanding and generosity is on a level I’ve never witnessed, and her thirst for life is unparalleled.
Happy sixth anniversary, Triona – I think everyone knows what I mean.”
Will is the most wonderful, caring man, and to bring it all back to beauty, YSL Beauty Volupte Tint-In-Balm, €33, not only cares for your lips like Will cares for me, (are you rolling your eyes in the back of your head yet?), it also looks really pretty. It’s available in 12 shades, including, No 1 Dream Me Nude, my favourite, and it really lasts.
I could make another reference to Will there, but I’ll spare you. For once!
Cult product
I bought my first ghd in 2002 for £100. The choice was was either straighteners or a second-hand car, I remember! It was black in colour and lasted 10 years. My new ghd platinum Tropic Sky styler, above, €225, from the spring/summer 2017 ghd wanderlust collection, features limited-edition vivid patterns. This brightly hued collection, which is available from tomorrow, utilises decoration technology from the luxury automobile industry and is va-va-vroom!
*This piece first appeared in the Sunday Independent Life Magazine on April 2nd 2017*