Anne Sémonin becomes a Liberty belle

Once upon a time, long, long ago, we two Beauty Bible-ettes enjoyed a world-class facial from Anne Sémonin at their Rue des Petits-Champs salon in Paris – and we rather fell in love. Now, the skincare brand that was once a teensy Best Kept Secret has gone global – and the good news for beauty-hounds is there’ll soon be an outpost in London, with a counter opening at the end of March at lovely Liberty (currently our v. v. favourite department store). The philosophy: everything is ‘sur mesure’ (or made-to-measure) so that products can be customised to create the perfect regime. At the heart of the range are the fab facial oils, which (thanks to nifty packaging design) can even be dropped into a toner to ‘personalise’ it (as demo-ed here by Anne Sémonin’s Jennifer Cox. Note stonking engagement ring.) There’ll even be a petite cabine just off the Liberty where you can experience mini-treatments. You may spot us emerging. (Separately!)

Do you want to know a Secret...?

Beauty Bible this week caught up with our old friend and now-so-famous make-up pro Laura Mercier over tea (she is the only make-up artist we know whose passion for patisserie rivals our own), on a rare visit to London. (Laura’s now based mostly in Paris and Provence, having given up the jet-setting.) Regular Beauty Bible readers will know: when steering women to make-up counters, we unfailingly recommend Laura Mercier’s in-store make-up consultants - where soon there’ll be even more to swoon over. A Beauty Bible Blog exclusive: this autumn, Laura revealed she will launch ‘Palette Bonne Mine’, a trio of creamy consistencies which make for quick, foolproof results when blended into skin with fingers. (She’s a big fan of fingers, believing that nothing rivals them for a seamless finish.) ‘Bonne Mine’ translates as ‘healthy glow’ – so the palette will feature a soft, creamy blusher, bronzer and highlighter to deliver just that. Oh – and watch this space: Laura also let slip that Secret Camouflage – her most iconic product, and one of the best concealers ever created – is also being subtly reformulated, to blend even more easily into the skin. And while we wait excitedly for those launches, this summer we’re planning to shield our complexions from damage with fab new Laura Mercier Daily Face Shield SPF40: a weightless, sheer, sinks-in-fast formulation which we’re confident will keep us un-sun-damaged, and which works as a brilliant primer, packing an impressively high SPF punch (and comes in a handbag-friendly mini-tube). Zut alors, Laura - so much news! And à bientôt, we hope.

The (Centre)point of makeovers...

... is to make women feel fabulous. We know from years of beauty experience that a great hairdo and fabulous make-up do wonders for a woman's self-esteem. And so for the past 10 years, Jo (together with Sharron Lowe, a beauty industry 'success coach', and a very active committee) have been putting on Make A Difference Makeovers for Centrepoint's young homeless women. The gorgeous girls pictured here are among the 14 who were glammed up by award-winning hairdresser Errol Douglas (pictured here) and his team alongside with a trio of Maybelline make-up artists, at L'Oréal's fabulous Academy. And tonight, the Centrepoint girls will be back for the second part of the programme that we run - the all-important 'mind makeover', where they learn how to work on self-confidence and self-esteem from within. We are thrilled to be able to do this, tapping into the beauty industry's generosity - and big thanks to L'Oréal and the gang from last night...

Why not join our Make A Difference Makeover fan page on Facebook? And to support Centrepoint's fantastic work, visit www.centrepoint.org.uk.

The new ice age

Having sniffed our way through a dozen or so summer scents in the pipeline from Coty we can confidently predict that the fragrance world is about to come over all cool and fruitsome. Lots of lush notes like watermelon, citrus, raspberry, pineapple etc. feature in some very pretty scents indeed, and there's an 'ice' theme going on, too. We especially liked Davidoff Cool Water Ice Fresh, with a twist of mint (alongside sweeter notes of orris and waterlily), and the Marc Jacobs Splash Patisserie Collection, which has Apple, Pomegranate and Biscotti options. (Actually, the Biscotti is fabulous: sweet without being sickly. And the Apple's crisp and wearable, too; we are consistently impressed with the wearability of Marc Jacobs' fragrances and suspect what this reflects is a Control Freak At Work. No bad thing, if you're going to put your name on a perfume - but alas, not always the case.) Last but not least, for men, we were extremely taken with the David Beckham offering: David Beckham Instant Ice, which has black pepper, geranium, rosemary, birch leaves and sandalwood - and which gives us the excuse to put a picture of him on our blog. They'll all start to hit the fragrance counters as the temperature rises. (Ours already has - only to be expected when getting that close to Mr. Beckham, even in cardboard form.)

The other Jessica manicure

Who’s London’s rising nail star? Jessica Hoffman, that’s who. Only she’d rather be known as Jess, to avoid confusion with the Hollywood-based doyenne of nail care. Usually based at John Frieda’s salon on Aldford Street (where we both ‘talent-spotted’ her ourselves way, way back), Beauty Bible also came face-to-face (or rather, mano a mano) with Jess at a Sally Hansen launch yesterday. First, news about the products she demo-ed which you’ll want to know about: Miracle Nail Thickener (a revolutionary product which instantly protects thin nails – like Jo’s – while reinforcing them), and Nail Shine Miracle, another true innovation which is said to be a 10-day top coat. (We’ll report back, but after 24 hours nails are certainly super-glossyy). And while being buffed, we also asked Jess for her best-ever manicure tip – which you can read below.

Shine on, Jess.

Beauty Bible blogtip: ‘To ensure polish adheres and lasts, there mustn’t be a speck of moisture or oil on nails before application. So dry hands thoroughly, use a nail polish remover to swipe nails – and wait a full 30 minutes after the rest of your manicure BEFORE applying hand cream.’

John Frieda, 4 Aldford Street, London W1K 2AE/020-7491 0840; NB Jessica can only see clients who are also having a hair appointment.

Donna Carin’

The beauty industry focuses so much on Pink Ribbon month that it’s good to see other causes getting a look-in on the beauty philanthropy front. So: it might seem like a teensy gesture, but over lunch at Maze Beauty Bible discovered that Donna Karan is sourcing the vanilla for her pretty new pureDKNY fragrance (which launches imminently, on 3rd February) from vanilla bean farmers in Uganda (most are women) - and is working in tandem with CARE, the leading huminatarian organisation which fights global poverty. The reality is that small gestures all add up, in time – and one high-profile act like this inspires others to follow. (Note: the packaging’s more ‘eco’ than most of the industry’s, too.) At Beauty Bible, we’ve always supported the idea of beauty giving back – so here’s to Donna…

The secret of French (natural) beauty?

Pictured here: Simon Ford, ex-Neal’s Yard Remedies, whose new crusade is to introduce the French botanical skincare brand Melvita to the UK. (Which he proceeded to do in Jo’s greenhouse, pictured here…!) Look out for flagship stores opening in London later this year, showcasing a huge range of products (and a web shop that opens just three days from now). We're on tenterhooks waiting for the opinions of our testers for The Green Beauty Bible about the brand – which was first to be Ecocert-certified organic in France (and whose parent company is lovely L'Occitane) – but meanwhile we’re rather impressed by the eye make-up remover (there are soooooo few decent natural options around) and gently cleansing Micellar Water, in particular. (And what’s with the name? 'Mel’ is from honey, ‘vita’ means life. Voilà!)

www.melvita.co.uk