Earliest beauty memories

I vividly remember being about six years old and sitting up in bed, crying. I think I was upset because my parents were going out and I didn't want to be left with the babysitter- I was a bit of a clingy child! I remember my mum comforting me by retrieving a Clinique green-handled blusher brush from her make-up bag. She handed it to me and said I could keep it as my very own blusher brush. Et voila, the tears stopped and I was fine. This is perhaps where my love for make-up and beauty started; although the link made between new make-up and settling my emotions is probably slightly worrying!

After that initial blusher brush I began rooting through my mum's make-up bag on a regular basis, testing out her mascaras, lipsticks and blushers. When I was about nine I started writing my own 'magazine articles', along the lines of 'what's in my make-up bag' type features, listing every item in my mum's collection and explaining how to 'apply' it and why it suited her skin tone. I distinctly remember a shimmer beige Rimmel eyeshadow in a maroon plastic case, and a L'Oreal mascara in a grey tube. I should add that my addiction to magazines started around this time, and every issue of Shout had an in-depth look at the cover model's make-up bag, hence my sudden journalistic flair! 

There were certain products that always featured in Shout; Boots Natural Collection tinted moisturiser, Collection 2000 clear mascara and clear lipgloss, Superdrug's Secret Weapon roll-on body glitter and coloured hair mascara. At my 10th birthday party my friends and I dressed ourselves up, covered ourselves in body glitter and performed a medley of Spice Girls songs. Those were the days! My go-to brand as a pre-teen was always Collection 2000, with their eyeshadow trios encased in blue plastic and their range of clear, brown and black basic mascaras. I also loved their sweet scented lipgloss wands and had every colour, including the popular clear, tinted pink and tinted bronze ones. I remember carefully applying the three shades in the blue eyeshadow trio when I was about eleven, and my stepmum told me it wasn't appropriate and that I had to take it off before we left the house. Sad times! My first favourite mascara was from Collection 2000 and it was one designed to curl lashes. I remember looking in the mirror and thinking 'wow!' My eyes suddenly looked so different, so grown-up and big. I was hooked. 

I used to collect free make-up from all the teen magazines religiously. Shout always had the best freebies. I remember my second ever issue of Shout came with a free blusher brush, followed by a shimmery pink blusher and black kohl liner. I also remember a free Collection 2000 black mascara and pink frosted lipstick, various roll-on lipglosses and nail polishes. Mizz magazine also had good freebies, as did Bliss, Sugar and J17. Who remembers the plethora of nail sticker transfers free with magazines during the early noughties? I used to love those! 

The first time I decided to shop for a 'natural' make-up look was a bit of a disaster. I went straight to the Rimmel stand in Superdrug and purchased a brown eyeshadow, black mascara and dark brown lipstick. At eleven I looked ever so slightly ridiculous! This was the time of Britney's 'Baby One More Time' brown lipstick and liner combo; I thought I looked amazing. I remember being really bad at applying nail polish neatly, but luckily I had the peel-off variety which was very popular at the time. 

Even though I used to give myself make-overs constantly at home I was never allowed to wear much out until I was a teenager. I certainly wasn't allowed to shave my legs until I was in secondary school, and that was a battle. It seemed as if every issue of Shout had a feature on first-time shaving, and I was desperate to have a go even though I was, and still am, very fair and don't have particularly hairy legs! I was so determined that I compiled a folder full of articles, typed up a persuasive letter listing the reasons I should be allowed to shave and presented it to my parents. Which is sort of bizarre but I admire my childhood tenacity! Eventually my mum compromised and bought me a box of hair removal cream. I was delighted, until I applied it and was met with the now all too familiar stench of Veet, or Immac as it was known then. Why does it smell so bad?!

Once I hit secondary school there was no stopping my love for beauty. Every morning I'd visit the Woolworths next to the bus stop, which started stocking make-up during Year 7. I would spend my dinner money on beauty products while sneaking in a packed lunch from home! Again there was a lot of Collection 2000 involved, and a lot of cheap shampoo and conditioner. My friends would ask me each morning what I'd purchased and I'd proudly show off my goodies. The other brand I really liked when I was around this age was Miss Selfridge's make-up collection. Their nail polishes came in little glass bottles with metal caps like tiny milk bottles and they also sold small stacking tubs of body glitter and shimmer creams that you'd twist on of each other. Bring them back, I say! I hated Art lessons but I loved one project I did when I was fourteen. We had to design some sort of animal costume and bring in materials to dress-up in. I lugged in my Sabrina's Secrets vanity case and painted a face full of make-up on my partner. That was the best Art lesson EVER. 

Now I'm an adult and out of my teen years I'm still as obsessed as ever with all things beauty. My birthday and Christmas lists consist solely of make-up, skincare and haircare products and my fiance knows the way to my heart is via a Benefit store! I may have moved on from the days of clear mascara and cheap tinted moisturiser, and I may be able to treat myself to more expensive brands every so often, but I'm still a firm believer in the quality of High Street/Drugstore products and I love a good bargain. Collection 2000 is now simply Collection and I recently bought some of their fab new gel nail polishes; 17 is now Seventeen and I love their Mirror Shine lipsticks. Unfortunately Superdrug's Secret Weapon is no more, meaning the days of green hair mascara and hair glitter are long gone... perhaps that's a good thing! I've always loved beauty and I'm sure I always will. 

I'd love to hear your beauty memories, it's always fun to reminisce, so do share in the comments below :)