Back to beauty school

Is your hair and make-up stuck in a rut? Revitalise your routine with expert lessons and insider hints

Hairstyling lesson

I've been in a tonsorial time warp, flattening and straightening my hair to within a cuticle of its life as if the Nineties had never ended. That's why I was keen to try one of the Style For Me sessions at Percy & Reed, to vary the look with modern techniques.

Hairstylist Adam Reed, who does Diane Kruger's hair, promises to be realistic about what customers can achieve at home. He decided that I needed to bring myself into this century with a bit of body and texture but nothing too tricky – to recreate myself. His tips were simple, but (hopefully) achievable. He advised me on how to apply styling cream under and through my hair, rather than just slathering a handful on top in a lava-like slick. He never blasts hairspray straight on; it goes onto the brush and is then buffed into hair. He explained that different brushes can smooth and shape the hair as you blow dry – although he admitted that coordinating two hands takes a while to perfect. His most simple tip of all was to sit down while drying, thus avoiding tiredness and trip-hazards. Genius. He demonstrated how I could get more volume at the crown and then pin it for a dishevelled up-do. He also created a bouncy, shiny yet tousled look and then showed me how to restyle it with a quick brush or rub with my hands. From serious to sexy and back again in seconds.

Siobhan Toman tried a Shu Uemura Style for Me session, available nationwide and at Percy & Reed, 157C Great Portland Street, London W1, 020 7637 4634, from £55

Make-up masterclass

My hair is naturally dark blonde, but I haven't revealed my true colours, so to speak, for around 13 years. My highlighted blonde hair became my trademark and I didn't realise how much colour mattered until I went brunette last month. Suddenly my usual dark eye make-up looked wrong, so I panicked, then booked a lesson with Lauren Hersheson. A make-up artist with an impressive CV of session work and catwalk shows, she told me where I was going wrong straight away. She advised me to get rid of my much-loved black liner and go for a softer kohl liner in brown, and softer brown shadow colours, which will make people notice my eyes rather than my make-up. What I enjoyed most, and the reason I would recommend anyone having a make-up lesson – hair change or not – was the explanation of how to apply the products. You are also given a personalised card with product recommendations and a diagram, and even taken round the beauty counter at Harvey Nichols afterwards for help with beauty buys. I'm usually a five-minute kind of girl in the mornings, but I have incorporated some of what I learnt into a new daily routine. I've toned down the bronzer, invested in good quality brushes, eye shadows and primer, and I'm reluctantly putting my black eyeliner down. At least until I'm blonde once again.

Gemma Hayward had a lesson with Lauren Hersheson, in-house make-up artist at Daniel Hersheson, Harvey Nichols, Knightsbridge, London SW1, 020 7201 8789, £150

Facial massage guide

After much comparing of different facials, I've come to the conclusion that it isn't lotions and potions which give that fresh glow; it's the massage. Excited by my empirical research, I attempted some haphazard DIY facial pummelling, before deciding this could do more harm than good. Enter Beata Aleksandrowicz (above) a massage specialist and strong believer in the power of facial massage to boost circulation, firm muscles and slow ageing. In one of her personalised tutorials she showed me a simple 10-minute facial massage routine which I could do once a week to tone and tighten my complexion.

She demonstrated movements which were ostensibly simple but needed just the right pressure, then corrected my technique as I copied her. The overall effect was noticeable: tighter skin and more defined contours around the jaw and cheekbones. I plan to go back for one or two further sessions, to learn some more fancy moves.

Carola Long had a 60-minute massage lesson with Beata Aleksandrowicz at Pure Massage, Fulham, 3-5 Vanston Place, London SW6. 020 7381 8100, £125

Tips from the top

The hair and make-up artists behind our shoots share their secrets with The Independent's stylist Gemma Hayward

Hair

Richard Scorer, hair stylist

My top three products

Boots' own-label mousse, the strongest they have in store. It gives the hair real guts and holds a style, but doesn't go white and powdery. Use loads and loads. Batiste dry shampoo freshens up your hair and creates texture and body. Kerastase Ciment Thermique is the best smoothing blow-dry product I have come across.

My latest discoveries

Permanent blow drys really do work if you want to smooth out frizzy hair. Harrington's salons do a great one.

The most common mistakes

Many people wash their hair too much, which removes the oil and dries it out.

Not thinking about the long-term effects of colour, even though it's a chemical process that will change the structure of the hair.

Not allowing hair to cool down when blow drying. The cooling process sets the shape almost as much as the heat.

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Oliver de Almeida, Hair Stylist

My top three products

L'Oreal "fix design" tecni.art spray. Hair powder. Dior Homme Dermo System for grooming.

My latest discoveries

I love the Kiss My Face line.

Most common mistakes

When people don't know when to stop styling their hair. Often half-done in fact feels so much nicer.

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Claire Rothstein, hair stylist

My top three products

A strong hairdryer, strong-hold hairspray and a pair of GHD irons. I know technically these are electricals and not products, but everyone should have them.

My latest discoveries

Tasai Cream by Shu Uemura Art of Hair. Just stick it in the hair, then blow dry for a casual messy texture.

The most common mistakes

Applying hair-styling products from roots to ends, because it makes hair greasy. Always apply ends to roots.

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Make-up and skincare

Jo Frost, make-up artist and contributing beauty editor at Glass magazine, glassmagazine.com

My top three products

Shu Uemura eyelash curlers – the originals and still the best. They give a beautiful, natural curl to lashes, open up the eye and give a youthful lift. Armani's Sheer Bronzer in Brown Sand is the best bronzing blush on the market, giving a gorgeous skin-kissed glow with no trace of orange or pink, and suits all fair and medium complexions.

Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream is a key make-up artist's product. It's often used over eyes and skin for a sexy, wet-looking gloss, but it can also be used on chapped lips, dry patches of skin, cracked heels and sunburn.

My latest discoveries

I have become slightly obsessed with Givenchy Phenomen'Eyes High Precision Panoramic Mascara, as the spherical brush means you can apply mascara right in at the root. The formulation is fantastic and you get great pull along the individual lashes, resulting in longer, thicker lashes with fewer coats of mascara.

The most common mistakes

Wearing too much orange or muddy fake tan which often wears off in patches and is just so low-rent. It's my pet hate! Often women buy foundation that is way too dark for them, as that is the colour they want to be. The appeal with sun-kissed skin and real tans is that healthy glow, but thick make-up or fake-bake looks dull and lifeless as well as orange.

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Aly Hazlewood, make-up artist and blogger, thetruthaboutbeauty.wordpress.com

My top three products

Dermalogica Multivitamin Power Firm for the eyes and lips. Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk foundation, Lancome Oscillation mascara.

My latest discoveries

Guerlain's Cupidon lip pencil is brilliant. It highlights the Cupid's bow and makes the lips look instantly fuller.

The most common mistakes

Putting blusher too low on the cheeks; it's very ageing. And not combing mascara through, because then it looks all claggy.

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Claudine Henderson, make-up artist

My top three products

Fluid Line eyeliner in Black by Mac

Eye & Brow Prisme powder by Givenchy.

Homeoplasmine cream by Laboratoires Boiron. (multi-use cream for chapped lips, rashes, burns, irritations, cuticles etc).

My latest discoveries

Cream eye shadow by Shu Uemura in taupe. This is a great, long-lasting colour for all skin tones, with a hint of shimmer.

The most common mistakes

Using Touche Eclat as a concealer when actually it's a light reflector to be used after concealer or, if you have younger skin, after a little foundation. To put this in the correct area, put your chin down onto your chest, while looking up into a mirror.

You will see exactly where to apply as an indentation or blueish line will appear under the eye. Cover this line with Touche Eclat and you will look naturally concealed, to the eye as well as on film.