What does beauty mean to you?
“So many things have been written about beauty. It is hugely powerful. People have killed for beauty, people whose names are still remembered for their beauty, like Helen of Troy, the face that launched a thousand ships. Was it beauty to us, though? Ordinary people who’ve all got working lives and don’t live in such glamour? I think beauty must come from the inside but it can be helped from the outside. So, start off every day determined to be adorable to everyone you meet, loving everything you see – you’re allowed to hate it later, but love it first of all – and use reliable skincare products. They should be things you know are going to work. If you found something you know and love, trust it. ‘Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried, grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel.’ There you go – that’s Hamlet and that means stick with the things you love, they won’t let you down.”
How has your approach to your own beauty routine changed over the years?
“I was a model in the 60s, when it was standard to wear three layers of false eyelashes, draw on freckles – almost like painted dolls and the textures were thicker. Now, make-up is much subtler, much lighter. Funnily enough, I prefer heavier make-up. I much prefer painting on my face. People say, ‘You don’t need to put on all that make-up’, to which I say: ‘Yes I do, because I love it!’. And I love to see that fashions which go in and out, come back into style again. For example, false nails are back in fashion and this time, with little pictures on them. Adorable.”
What does your skincare routine look like today?
“It’s fairly basic. Again, I use the things that I know and trust, which I have to say: Lancôme is a brand that I’ve been using for more years than I can count, because I can trust it. I love it, I love the feel of it, I love what it does. The new Rénergie Collagen+ Lift-Xtend Cream is extraordinary.”
