Beauty Shop in China?

I read today that 81% of females wear makeup every day, 18% sometimes and 1% never. I am one of the 81 per cent but you may have read my previous blog on my obsession with facepaint.

• The average woman has 189 beauty products.
• We spend on average of $3,000 a year on makeup and beauty products.
• The Beauty business alone is worth 4 billion in Australia, 56 billion in the US.
• Seven out of ten of us don't have a clue what the ingredients are in the products we buy.

I started to wonder just how many products I have. As it turns out, I have stashes. I am a makeupaholic. I have it hidden all over the house - in the bathroom, bedroom, car and in handbags, makeup cases, the garage.......and maybe under my bed if I had to be perfectly honest.

How many females are there in China? Well I am sure I could accommodate them nicely. I am not your average woman it seems. I have more than enough products to set up my own Beauty Shop for millions of people.

I love the packaging and the free gifts but more importantly I love the products that really work. They are few and far between. I go through fads but I have a few products that I have used for many years. I am not loyal to particular brands either. That comes from having trained as a make-up artist. I got to see the products up close and personal. I use, and have tried, every brand there is.

These are the TOP TEN beauty products I would not be without (well, unless I died or there was a natural disaster).

1. Ultraceuticals Professional Sun block SPF30
I wear sun block every day, rain, hail or shine. It's probably, along with water, the best thing you can do for yourself. I have only one condition of purchase, it cannot be too greasy - which many of them are.

2. Clarins Radiance Plus Self Tanning Cream-Gel for the face.
Whenever I use this, I feel like I just got back from the Caribbean (by the way, I've never just gotten back from the Caribbean, but I can dream). Every time I wear it someone will comment on how healthy I look. This is a great product for people with deathly pale complexions as it's very natural looking.

3. YSL Touché Éclat
This product has bestseller written all over it - and for good reasons. Sold somewhere in the world every 20 seconds, I do not leave the house without this in my bag. Launched more than 10 years ago, the brush-tipped pen, which subtly covers dark circles and blemishes, is still the beauty industry's pièce de resistance. It really is magic wand!!!!! It disguises the heaviest bags under your eyes and is great as a base for eye shadow and making your lips look bigger too!

4. Clarins Beauty Flash Balm
Radiance-boosting products are all the rage now, but when this glow-getting cream launched 20 years ago, it was the first of its kind and caused an absolute stir. Still going strong, this flowery-smelling, peachy pink gel-cream gives skin a real, obvious, visible glow. A thin layer in the morning makes skin look moist again and diminishes face fatigue. I also use it as a face mask, layered on thick whilst soaking in the tub, and then wash it off with ice-cold water. On average, 1800 tubes are sold per day, throughout the world.

5. Christian Dior Diorshow Mascara Waterproof
This formula is for ultra-thick and long lashes, and includes a nice big brush. The more, the better! Maybelline mascaras – are also excellent.

6. BeneFit Dandelion Blusher
I put just a quick swipe of this subtly shimmering powder over cheekbones, brows and the bridge of the nose and it never looks out of place with, or without, a tan. Another great blush is Chanel’s Incognito.

7. Ella Bache Masque Soir de Fête
A skin beautifying “pick me up” mask that is ideal to use before a special occasion. Known as the “party mask”, it smooths skin features and leaves an instant glow. Perfect as a treatment before make-up application. It can be used on sensitive skin as chamomile and allantoin soothe the skin and reduce any redness or blotchiness.

8. Chanel Le Vernis Rouge Noir
Synonymous with ultimate coolness, thanks to Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction, this deep, dark and sultry shade of red has remained on beauty wish-lists ever since and has been copied a million times over. But if you've glanced down at fingers and toenails recently, you'll realise that everyone's caught on now, so it's no longer cool and cult. Chanel, being the glorious makeup makers that they are, make the best nail polish colours and Flamme Rose – a subtle, slightly peach, slightly pink, slightly nude shade – is also fantastic.

9. Chanel No 5 Perfume
One of the most famous perfumes in the world, this all-time classic was my very first perfume. I have others that I use but if I only had one choice this would be my selection. Every time I put it on it reminds me of places, people and events. It is really a classic.

10. Phillips Sonic Electric Toothbrush and floss
Electric toothbrushes are great whichever one you get. Your teeth and gums will love you for it and you will be doing something positive for your smile and your health. Don't forget the floss.

Finally my favourite website to shop for my makeup is http://www.strawberrynet.com/
I tend to avoid the stores and the sales people this way but its essential you know what you are looking for before you purchase the products.

Let me know what your favourite products are because maybe we could come up with a definitive list of the best products of all time.