Looking for brilliant products that don’t break the bank? Our beauty editor selects the best for skin, body and hair

At the drawing board stage of this year’s bargain special, I genuinely worried I wouldn’t find enough products at a low enough price to celebrate. Having formulated my own products (which naturally, I excluded from consideration), I know how expensive the entire supply chain has become since Brexit and Covid.

Unlike with the creation of luxury products, the formulation of beauty bargains is a precarious process. Every single spray mechanism, lid and millilitre of ingredient increases the bottom line and jeopardises commercial viability. Which is why I’m even more impressed when a bargain brand launches something brilliant that can hold its own against the limitless budgets of the luxury sector.

Despite criticism for the use of potentially harmful chemicals, companies are still selling the products around the world

It was just before Christmas, and eight-year-old Gloria Moraa sat holding a mirror as her aunt painted her curls with chemicals that would straighten every strand. “All the young girls would get matching hairstyles for the holidays, and relaxers were fashionable back then,’’ says Moraa, now 28, who lives in Nairobi, Kenya.

She no longer straightens her hair because she thought it was starting to thin. But over the years, Moraa used almost every relaxer on the market , with one goal: making her coily hair silky. The ingredients didn’t matter.

Life’s too short for complicated routines and crowded makeup cabinets. Choose a hardworking product and do more with less

Creating the best beauty routine is all about picking the right products – and to streamline that process your best options are multi-use products. These two-in-ones have become a staple in the beauty world with cult favourites like Jones Road and Glossier Cloud Paint now viral sensations. The great thing about them is how effortlessly they can slip into your routines. Want a summer glow without foundation? A CC base will give you subtle highlights and coverage with just one blend. Or there is the simplicity of a multi-stick: some give your cheeks, lips and eyes a unified colour, while others work as a highlight and contour duo. The combinations are endless. And the best thing about these hardworking multitaskers is that you tend to spend less – one purchase works more for your money.

1. Saie Glowy Super Gel £22, cultbeauty.co.uk
2. Ilia Multi-stick £36, sephora.co.uk
3. Ambient Lightening Palette £66, hourglasscosmetics.co.uk
4. Coast Cloud Paint £22, glossier.com
5. Highlight Stick £44, westman-atelier.com
6. The Multi £33, narscosmetics.co.uk
7. Blush and Highlight Duo £40, bobbibrown.co.uk
8. Lip and Cheek Balm £38, chanel.com
9. Flush Balm £32, meritbeauty.com
10. Lip and Cheek Stick £34, jonesroadbeauty.com

They occur naturally in the body, and are triggers for proteins such as elastin and collagen. But peptides aren’t enough on their own

My heart gladdens when an established and evidenced skincare ingredient catches fire in an industry full of dubious claims and silly, marketing-driven trends. In a world of oxygen-boosts, diamond dust and Boswelox, be more peptide and you will finally get your moment.

Peptides are everywhere and it’s high time, since they are endlessly supportive of good-looking skin. Peptides are short or long chains of amino acids, occur naturally in the body, and are commonly referred to as “the building blocks of skin”. But it’s maybe more helpful to think of them as triggers for proteins such as elastin and collagen.

She’s the ex-hairdresser who turned Bowie into Ziggy Stardust, then set off around the world in his entourage. Ronson relives those wild days – and recalls seeing a darker side of David

One Saturday morning early in the summer of 1971, Suzi Ronson was busy at work at the Evelyn Paget hair salon on Beckenham High Street when a couple walked past pushing a pram. The woman was wearing black jeans and a furry jacket, the man was in a flowing gold midi dress. “Everybody rushed out to have a look,” recalls Ronson, who then went by her maiden name Fussey. “Everyone was like nudging, poking each other, asking, ‘Who’s that?’ Then someone whispered, ‘It’s David Bowie.’”

Ronson had vaguely heard of Bowie: the success of his Space Oddity single had made him a local celebrity and the singer’s mother was a client. But she recalls: “He was in an arty clique, not my world.” However Ronson would end up becoming part of Bowie’s world, the only working woman in his touring party – as her new memoir Me and Mr Jones relates.

Got a beauty dilemma? Our expert is here to offer advice. This week, an anonymous reader asks for assistance choosing a look that lasts

There are so many lipsticks to choose from now, which is fun but can be overwhelming. The longest-wearing formulation is liquid, which forms a sort of seal on the lips, but many people find them drying. The next best thing is a matt lipstick bullet, offering staying power without parched lips.

Start with picking a colour you love. You told me your outfit and colourings: a cream dress suits bright red. If you’re new to red lipstick, I’d recommend a brown-ish red such as Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution in Walk of No Shame . Or try something with a hint of orange, such as Chilli, a warm, brick red, or Lady Danger, a vivid coral, from Mac’s reformulated Macximal Silky Matte range .

Medical botox is growing and for some, it can drastically improve quality of life

What does someone who gets Botox look like? Taut, rich, fake, “done”? Anyone who pigeonholes such people is at least a decade behind the times and unaware of how toxin injections may be helping their friends, colleagues and neighbours with a number of non-beauty-related complaints, from excessive sweating to teeth grinding.

I suffer from neither, but Dr Joanna Christou of the Cosmetic Skin Clinic in London treats these and many other complaints in the same way she softens my frown lines.

Got a niggling beauty question? Our expert is on hand. This week, Alice is concerned that her sweet tooth will cause skincare problems

One of the joys of being a beauty journalist is the unsolicited advice. A skin expert once glanced at my face and said, “You eat loads of sugar, don’t you?” To be fair, I was fuelled entirely on caffeine and cookies at the time, but the fact that it was obvious from looking at my skin was not welcome news.

It’s called glycation, and occurs when sugar molecules attach to fats and proteins, causing a loss of elasticity in the skin, lines and dark spots. Sugar fiends also tend to have crosshatched lines in places such as the upper lip, from deceased collagen.

Why leave your beauty regime to the professionals when you can do it yourself

As the worlds of beauty and tech collide, care regimes are expanding to include treatments previously only available via a professional. Hi-tech at-home gadgets include an A-list-approved device that lifts and tightens skin, an LED light mask that lives up to the hype and tackles a laundry list of skin issues, a spendy laser hair removal tool that is girl-maths-approved (think of all the £ you’ll save on salon appointments), a nifty eye tool that depuffs and brightens, and a clever brush that connects to your phone via an app to give you a customised deep cleanse.

1. Light Salon Boost LED face mask £395, thelight-salon.com
2. Foreo Luna 3 Plus facial cleansing and massage brush £269, lookfantastic.com
3. Theragun Theraface Pro £375, therabody.com
4. Omnilux Eye Brightener £96.80, omniluxled.com
5. Philips Lumea IPL 9900 hair-removal device £539.39, philips.co.uk