My Desert Island Beauty Products

I got thinking today about ‘desert island’ products (blame the current sub-zero snap in the UK, but I'm dreaming of warmer climes), and what I really couldn't live without from the vast arsenal of products that it takes to get me out of the door in the morning.

Narrowing it down is surprisingly tough! I change my moods and my favourites so often, a product has to be really special to make it into my hall of fame. And yet there are a few products I think I should have shares in, because I always go on to other people about how special they are!

So here are my top five desert island products:

-Tangle Teezer compact styler - This tool has done more to transform my locks than any shampoo, deep conditioner or styling product I've tried (and there have been many!). My hair is highlighted and over-straightened, so it can be dry and prone to breakage. So my haircare routine is all about adding moisture and repairing - and this brush is the perfect tool. The specially-cut teeth ensure you can use it to comb through your hair when damp without any breakage, and as someone who sheds a lot of hair, there is noticeably less when I'm using my Tangle Teezer. Plus, it's great for backcombing without shredding those strands, and really makes your hair shiny.

I love it so much, when I lost my original one, after two days of trying and failing to get on with my Denman brush, I went straight out to buy a new one. If you haven't tried it, it's in a whole other league of styling products - and the single best thing you can go for damaged hair. So go get one!

- Benefit Browzings kit - My make-up bag is never without this product, even when pretty much everything else changes. My brows are sparse and my face never looks quite right without infilling them. Pencils and other products look too fake and 'drawn-on' (never a good look), but this soft pigmented wax and powder combination give a gorgeous, soft but long-lasting finish. I can't believe I didn't fill in my brows for years - its the single most defining thing you can do you your face. I now have a horror of not being able to do my brows, but this kit is so handy and compact, it can travel everywhere. The little brushes - one angled, one for blending- and the mini tweezers that come with it are pretty rubbish, but useful if you're on the go- otherwise apply with the proper hard-angled brush and watch perfect brows materialise!

-Garnier Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream - I was desperate to try a BB Cream back when they were still an Asian product only heard of on these shores by posts from beauty bloggers, so as soon as Mac and Garnier were the first brands to launch them over here, I rushed straight out and got one. I've never looked back. It's not a replacement for foundation in my case (my skin needs a little more coverage), but it is perfect as a quick fix, for first thing in the morning or lazy weekends when I'm popping to the shops or the gym. I also used it exclusively during my honeymoon in Thailand, when I knew normal foundation would be too heavy and slide off in the humid conditions - on it's own during the day, and with mineral powder at night. It gives a lovely, luminized, naturally clear-skinned look while also hydrating and caring for the skin really well. I'm intrigued to read that some people use it as a primer and want to know more about that, as I've never tried using it that way. It's become a dresser drawer essential that I wouldn't want to be without!

-Maybelline Volum’Express One by One mascara - I do bang on about this mascara at times, but nothing currently available in the drugstores can beat it, to me. I am obsessed with volume and multiplying my lashes, as it makes such a difference to how I look and feel. I've tried long term lash extensions and didn't get on with them, so I need a mascara for everyday that does what this one does. It gives gorgeous, volumizsed separation that looks like naturally perfect lashes, and doesn't flake away halfway through the day. I so nearly didn't try it. I'd bought the regular Volum-Express (in the yellow tube) and written it off as the worst mascara I'd ever bought - it was the only one I'd ever thrown in the bin after a few uses. But the risk to try the One By One version paid off and I'm officially obsessed with it. I can always be tempted by a flashy new product - and I'll admit the new Telescopic mascara from L'Oreal (finally, a mascara advertised WITHOUT fake lashes - that alone is intriguing me to try it) is looking good, but Maybelline will always have my heart with this one when it comes to make my lashes fluttersome.

-Garnier Body Intensive 7 Day Moisturiser (Calming Honey) - Again, I know this must be a desert island product because I panic if I run out. I even went out searching the shops of Edinburgh on my hen weekend to find some, because I was so annoyed I'd left it at home! This lotion really does what it claims to do (a rare thing in the beauty world) and really does leave my skin supernaturally silky for days after application. I'm not sure about seven days, purely because I have never been that long without using it, but based on two- three days between use, I agree. I sometimes alternate it with Johnson's Holiday Skin if I need a bit of a glow, but I always come running back. In fact, if they launched a version with a bit of self-tanner in, I'd never buy anything but! I love the silky feeling and warm honey scent far more than pricier cream, so this little green bottle will always have a place on my bathroom shelf and I recommend anyone to try some.

What are the desert island products you can't live without?