Laura Pollard rounds up the products most likely to help customers look radiant during this year’s party season

From desk to disco

With only a few weekends before Christmas, many social functions are crammed in mid-week, so here are our top tips for customers going from office to cocktail bar in a flash.

Palettes are a great way of meeting lots of needs at once. Clarins Essentials Palette contains 10 intense shades, ranging from pink to gold and grey to purple, in a variety of matt and shimmer finishes for a complete day-to-night transformation. Alternatively, Smashbox 3-in-1 Contouring Palette includes options for eye shadows, contouring colours, highlighters and eyebrow shades.

Sleek Makeup Precious Metals Highlighting Palette is a great multipurpose option. It can be used as an all-over bronzer and highlighter for a glowing complexion, or individual shades can be used in the corners of the eyes and on the brow bone for increased definition.

For individual shadows, the MAC Magic of the Night collection surpasses many others with its simply stunning colours that create eyes to die for. Night Thrill and Ascent of Glamour are especially great.

Party eyes demand a dramatic finish. We love Benefit They’re Real Lengthening Mascara, now available for a limited time with a Swarovski-encrusted lid to help spread some seasonal sparkle wherever it goes. Alternatively, new Rimmel 24hr Supercurler Mascara offers both volume and lash curling with just one brush for eyes that really wow.

If mascara doesn’t deliver enough flutter power for your customers’ tastes, recommend falsies. Make Up For Ever Lash Show are lightweight and flexible options that boast more than 50 lash designs, so there’s sure to be one to suit every preference.

To complete the look, suggest a slick of bright red lipstick, such as moisture-rich Clarins Joli Rouge, which is high in pigment and high in shine. Or for a more subtle look, your customers might like L’Oréal Color Riche Lipstick in Eva Pink.

Pre-party prep

Not all steps within a beauty regime are sparkly and glamorous, yet they’re essential to achieving chic and sleek results. So encourage customers to spend the night before prepping, plucking and preening.

First up, facial hair bleach – and what better than Jolen Creme Bleach? This number-one-selling hair bleach works in 10 minutes to lighten excess dark hair. It’s perfect for those pesky upper lip areas.

For emergency last-minute defuzzing elsewhere on the body, there are Wilkinson Sword Quattro razors. These sparkly disposables make a drab duty just a little bit more glamorous, as do their papaya and pearl-infused blades.

Next up, it’s time to prepare the skin, and MaskerAide Pre Party Prep Facial Mask is most apt. It brightens, primes and energises with a blend of argan oil, orange peel oil, super-fruits extract, rice extract and honey.

Fake tanning is another must. Celebrity-loved Xen-Tan Luminous Gold Gel contains gold flecks which sit on the skin to give a sensual shimmer. While the colour takes three hours to develop, the clear gel dries in seconds so users can get dressed immediately without the danger of colour transfering onto PJs or party frocks.

The time-saving Vita Liberata Self Tanning Night Moisture Mask is a two-in-one product that provides anti-ageing moisturisation and a gradual tan that builds overnight, so customers wake with a gorgeously glowing, sunkissed complexion.

Get nailed

Chipped nail varnish makes anyone look burnt out and bedraggled – a sin during the busy Christmas social scene, so it’s important to make sure nails always look pristine. This festive season, even the shaping of nails becomes a sparkly affair with Mad Beauty Glitter Nail Files. The only problem is choosing which of the I-want-them-all colours to go for.

Crabtree and Evelyn has added six new festive shades to its toxin-free nail polish range. Cinnamon is our favourite. And, for those who want more of a sparkle, Models Own GlitterGel is available in five glitter-infused hues, while Rosie Fortsecue’s Nailed London has four glitter-filled options that add a dash of drama. For complete glitter control, turn customers to the Nails Inc Snowglobe: give it a light shake for a subtle dusting of glitter, or shake it very well for heavier coverage.

For customers worried about damaging their nails with too much varnish, recommend Eve Snow Nail Detox and Repair Collection Lacquers. Containing marula oil and B complex, they nourish nails and provide long-lasting colour at the same time.

From dance floor to duvet

With such a busy social calendar at this time of year, it’s even more important to give skin an extra helping hand to stay looking healthy, even towards the end of the party season. Ultimately, if customers don’t look after their skin, it won’t matter how good their make-up is – they will lack radiance and vitality.

The first lesson of beauty school is: always remove make-up before bed. Dermalogica Precleanse, available in a solution or a convenient wipe format, will melt away make-up, including waterproof mascara, and leave skin ready to receive a second surfactant-based cleanse for a really deep clean.

The next post-party bedtime ritual is to treat skin to products that are bursting with restorative and hydrating properties. Suggest Elemis Pro Radiance Illuminating Flash Balm and Eye Balm, which can be used morning and night for improved radiance and moisturisation as well as sheen and luminosity. Likewise, Super Facialist Vitamin C Brighten Glow Boost Serum can be used before day and night cream to give skin some much-needed TLC. It provides powerful hydration and boasts a skin-lightening algae extract for improved vitality.

Those who feel in need of a strong coffee the morning after the night before can also give their skin a caffeine hit with Origins GinZing Energy Booster Moisturiser. Infused with panax ginseng and caffeine, it helps to awaken the senses, replenish lost hydration and restore the skin’s glow. If this doesn’t do the job, a stronger caffeine option is Glamglow Brightmud Eye Mask. One of Hollywood’s best-kept secrets, it contains a combination of six caffeine sources for wide-awake eyes. Plus, it works in just three minutes, so customers can go from puffy, dark circles to bright-eyes in no time at all.

Hair and body beautiful

It’s not just faces that need attention – to look their absolute best from top to toe, bodies need attention too. Champneys Mediterranean Bliss Shimmering Body Oil conditions the skin and leaves it with an attractive, subtle gold sheen. Alternatively, Decléor Aroma Nutrition Satin Softening Dry Oil will give pins a healthy sheen and much-needed moisture boost, while Dirty Works Shimmer Lotion nourishes skin, leaving it with a gorgeous glow and smelling divine. Alternatively, Fake Bake 5-Minute Mousse provides instant colour while a longer-lasting tan develops underneath.

But it’s not just skin that should shine – hair should be radiant too. When time is tight, Argan + 5-Oil Miracle Shine Spray is a moisture-infused mist which works to condition, control frizz and smooth flyaways so hair looks polished, sleek and shiny, while Percy & Reed The Perfect Blow Dry Makeover Spray gives salon-style results at home.

Treats for feet

High heels and dancing can leave feet tired, throbbing and swollen, so encourage customers not to neglect them. Scholl makes a range of products that can help to protect feet from uncomfortable shoes, as well as blister treatments for when things do go wrong. Compeed Soothing Blister Relief Plasters are great too. They act like a protective second skin and ease burning pain instantly with their aloe vera-rich formula.

Customers should remember to treat their feet with a rich, pampering moisturiser too. We like SenSpa Foot Therapy Cream, a non-greasy product containing sweet orange, lime and rosemary to help revive post-party feet. Or for a deeper foot debrief, suggest Elemis Treat Your Feet Foot cream. Containing shea butter and jojoba oil, it’s intensely nourishing and soothing.