Have you ever wondered what the biggest names in beauty have rattling around in their handbags? Well, wonder no more, for 10 of the industry’s top beauty VIPS have allowed GRAZIA a peek inside their purses as they reveal the products they simply must have with them at all times.
Jo Malone
I always have a fragrance and a lip gloss. I love the Chanel Rouge Coco Gloss in any of the paler winter colours as well as the plum colour. The Chanel lipgloss formulas are definitely one of the best. My all-time favourite fragrance is Jo by Jo Loves.
I also always have a Smythson notebook with me. I love sitting with a cup of coffee and watching the world go by. I pour my thoughts and ideas out into the notepad to make sure I never forget anything.
HUDA KATTAN
I can’t live without our Easy Bake and Snatch Pressed Brightening and Setting Powder. Our OG Easy Bake Loose Powder is a cult fave. I used to carry a Baby Bake (a mini version of the powder) everywhere with me, but now we’ve finally launched a pressed version, it’s my must-have when I’m on the go. It’s made for ‘speed-baking,’ giving all the benefits of traditional baking but fast with the same filtered finish.
I’m really into ‘lip-cuffing,’ where you use lip liner to contour for pouty juicy lips. So, the second product I always carry is a Lip Contour 2.0. in case I need to touch up or make the lip look more defined.
CHANEL AYAN
I am obsessed with lipgloss. I always have Huda Beauty’s Silk Balm Honey Kiss Plumping Lip Balm in my bag, it’s my absolute fave. When filming the Real Housewives of Dubai, I have to wear a matte foundation, so pairing it with super glossy lips is a must. Huda’s is the shiniest of them all and it’s non-sticky. It’s packed with hyaluronic acid and manuka honey for hydration and healing chapped lips. I love honey. Once a week I mix it with brown sugar and lemon to exfoliate my face. The smell is addictive.
I just launched my makeup line AYAN BEAUTY, which I founded with my best friend, celebrity makeup artist Toni Malt. I am in love with my SHE’S THE MOMENT palette. I use it for everything…eyes, cheeks, eyebrows and lips. It’s a mix of the perfect shades of pressed pigments and eyeshadows. I love to use the shade Desert Goddess as my blush – it’s a burnt red which is the perfect colour for my skin tone. I use Camel Camel! to fill my eyebrows and sometimes I even dab a little Miss G.O.A.T on my lips followed by gloss as a lip tint.
Marianna Hewitt
I always have a Listerine spray in my purse. Because I’m always at events or speaking with so many people, I feel my most confident when my breath is fresh. Everyone laughs because they know I always have it with me! The Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm in Vanilla Beige and ONE/SIZE Beauty lip liner in shade Rent Due is my go-to lip combo. Even if I’m not wearing makeup, I feel really put together with these on my lips.
Celine sunglasses are my favourite. I’ve tried other brands but I end up wearing the same pair over and over again. The cat-eye shape and the materials make it so versatile to wear and I always have a pair in my bag.
DR BARBARA STURM
I carry my Hyaluronic Face Mist with me to refresh and replenish my skin throughout the day. It’s amazing for hydrating your skin whilst you’re in the sun. It’s formulated with effective hydrating ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, aloe vera and broccoli extract and provides every skin type with a burst of pure hydration, detoxification and revitalisation.
My lip balm is incredible for keeping lips hydrated, plump and nourished, but I also love to rub excess into my cuticles to keep them healthy. It’s the best formulation; it contains no mineral oils, fragrances or harsh ingredients, only plant-based oils, butter and beeswax that help protect lips against dehydration and make them look natural, glowy and beautiful.
If I’m somewhere warm, I also always carry my mini-sized Sun Drops SPF 50. They use chemical sunscreen filters to provide hybrid sun protection and skincare that feels super lightweight and provides skin with healing, moisture and anti-oxidative ingredients.
MONA KATTAN
I can’t live without my Kopari Coconut Lip Glossy, I always have it on me. It’s made with shea butter and coconut oil and it tastes like coconut and feels super smooth and hydrating on the lips. It’s a must-have!
I also never step out of the house without some KAYALI minis. My favourite one to carry is Vanilla|28. It layers beautifully and goes with everything. Vanilla reminds me of my childhood and the smell of birthday cake, it’s such a happy memory. I also love to have minis on hand to give out if I run into someone.
Eva Alexandridis
I always have my AMAN fragrance on hand to transport me to happy memories spent at one of their exotic resorts. My favourite is UMBR – its warm tones of orange blossom and rose also evoke a sensory escape to my childhood. Growing up in Bulgaria, we spent lots of time surrounded by the most beautiful rose fields. Today, the floral scent will always evoke a sense of grounding and belonging.
NARS makeup is a handbag essential for my regular on-the-go glam. I use the Afterglow Lip Balm which is a very hydrating makeup-skincare-hybrid and perfect for winter months in the city. I also use the Cheek Palette which I love because of its very natural array of shades. I find all of NARS’s products so easy to navigate and fuss-free, yet highly effective and provide long-lasting coverage.
My on-the-go makeup and skincare are always stored in my Celine travel bag, which is super sturdy yet stylish. My lucky gold pen is from Mont Blanc, and I’ve carried it everywhere with me for over 10 years. This pen signs every important contract and I like the thought of it bringing good fortune to me wherever I go.
LAUREN IRELAND
I love to have my Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel on hand because it feels like an instant beauty wake me up. I love the gel specifically because it holds my brows in place really well and it’s easy to apply on the go. The clear gel is my go-to in my bag, but I also love it in brown for when I want a more finished look. The gel can make my sleepy eyes look a little more alert, even with no other eye makeup on.
The Summer Fridays Jet Lag Mask is my everything cream! It can be used as a daily moisturiser, hand cream or under-eye cream – anywhere in need of extra hydration. I love keeping a mini tube in my bag every day because it serves as an instant pick-me-up. Just as its name implies, it was formulated to make you look less sleepy than you feel, which is why I love always having it with me. Pro tip: apply a layer on clean skin during long flights to help ease dryness. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid and niacinamide help soothe dry, stressed skin.
Toni Malt
Just last week I discovered my new favourite foundation – Surreal Skin by MAKEUP BY MARIO. My friends have been all over me with compliments about how glowy and young I look. As a celebrity makeup artist, flawless, hydrated-looking skin is super important to me and the base of any great makeup look. This foundation is medium coverage but buildable to full coverage, which is great for anyone with dark spots and melasma. It’s packed with long-lasting hydrating oils, perfect for dry and mature skin. Most importantly I love that it makes me feel confident and beautiful.
The other product I am obsessed with is TIT FOR TOOT in Shining Star by AYAN BEAUTY. Chanel Ayan and I launched AYAN BEAUTY just a few months ago this is one of my favourite products from our line. I wear it every day on my eyes. It’s the most magical diamond eyeshadow highlighter, a mix of the tiniest gold and silver pearls. I generally don’t wear eye makeup, so I put it on my eyelids by itself, but on Chanel, I add it on top of matte eyeshadows to transform them into diamond shine metallics. It’s pure magic!
Erim Kaur
One of my two essentials I carry in my handbag is a bag hook. It’s the best thing to hold onto your bag because no one wants to dump a good designer bag on the floor, especially when you have no room elsewhere. It’s so easy – just put it on the side of the table and you have your bag right beside you, and safe!
My second essential is my ByErim halal beard and hair brush. It’s super lightweight and comes in handy to comb your hair whenever you want to and not have it frizz up. It’s halal because the bristles are made of vegan nylon and not boar, which is usually derived from pig.
