As it stands the Beauty Industry is largely unregulated meaning it is not required by law to register with any trade or professional bodies to practice and work within most areas of the industry. Unfortunately this means that almost anybody can purchase products and equipment and set up shop ready to offer services to clients who think they are receiving treatment from a qualified professional.

This can lead disastrous and often distressing results, especially in cases which call for more technical procedures. This is why it is always best for you to be aware if your Beauty Therapist is properly qualified for all of the services they are offering.

In order to help you feel safe and assured that your therapist has received the proper training, professional associations and websites such as ours exist to give you peace of mind. Beauty Therapists can choose to register with these professional associations which check qualifications and insurance of each potential member as well as requiring them to comply with a code of ethics. Beauty Resource carries out thorough checks to ensure that all professionals listed on our directory have receiving appropriate training and hold the appropriate insurance.

If you have had a bad hair or beauty experience and would like to help in making sure it doesn’t happen to others then then Optomen Television are making a non-broadcast pilot which hopes to spread awareness of the dangers of unregulated beauty therapy. To find out how to get involved read on:

HAVE YOU SUFFERED A DISASTROUS HAIR OR BEAUTY TREATMENT?

If you’re still carrying visible evidence of your shoddy treatment, then please e-mail beauty@optomen.com or call 020 3227 5946.

The slightly iridescent pink colour suits all complexions and is great if you need a new low maintenance everyday blusher which can carry you through from summer to winter.

As always with Clarins this product is suitable for even the most sensitive of skin tones and is not drying to the skin like other powder blushers can be.

Additionally this blush also doubles up as a lip colour, giving a lovely subtle sheen when applied lightly.

Clarins Limited Edition Instant Blush is priced at £16.50 and is available to purchase from the Clarins website.

This year the competition was tough, with hundreds of fantastic products on the market, but after weeks of putting the products through their paces and after much discussion and insider knowledges the judges finally made their decisions.

Although we are keen to try all of the final selection, the product which we felt stood out from the winners circle was Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Skin Therapy Oil (£9.99 150ml), which came joint first alongside steam cream, both taking away the crown for Best New Everyday Skincare Product.

Often people shy away from oils simply for the convenience factor. Its understandable that covering your body in oil post shower and walking around naked waiting for it to sink in may not sound like the most appealing or convenient beauty regime, however we can assure you that Palmer’s is rigmarole free!

This oil is a multipurpose product which can be used all over the body. Its preservative free and contains a number of ingredients which work miracles on the appearance of scars, stretch marks, dry, damaged skin, uneven skin tone, aging skin and fine lines and wrinkles.

If you do have any scars or stretch marks then Palmer’s is a great place to start. Try incorporating the oil into your everyday skincare regime, taking extra care over the effective areas and applying the oil in circular motions. Palmer’s is particularly good for younger scars and marks, although you will notice gradual fading of longer standing marks after a prolonged period of use. If your marks are from some time ago, perhaps from fluctuating weight or pregnancy etc then another option is Bio Oil (£14.99 125ml). Bio Oil is one of the UKs top selling scar and stretch mark products and for good reason as it has been clinically proven to reduce visibility of both.

If you’ve tried everything you can to banish the blemishes but nothing seems to be working then this could be just what you need.

Origins have ‘hit the spot’ quite literally with their new tingly blemish busting elixir. The product is fairly new to the market and has already picked up the U Magazine beauty award for ‘Best Blemish Buster’. Its now one of Origins best selling products and we can believe it.

The salicylic acid reduces the look of redness while the oregano and clove buds join forces to give you clear looking skin. Spot lotions and potions can often be very astringent and harsh on the skin, sometimes causing the dreaded flaky forehead. This blemish treatment is only harsh on spots and won’t cause sensitivity in other areas.

The idea is to cover the area in question with a thin layer. Start by using the product once a day and then gradually increase to 2 or 3 times daily if needed. If the peeling forehead and chin rear their heads then reduce frequency of application. You will also be elated to know that this product still works its magic underneath a full face of make-up.

You can purchase this product directly from the Origins website or you can pop into Boots and pick one up for £10.

Now Rodial have upped their game even further and have introduced the nutritional counterpart to the cult favourite formula, the tummy tuck stick. Thankfully it has little to do with sticks other than the shape of the sachet. The stick is to be poured into a glass of water, mixed throughly and …drunk once a day.

The dietary supplement was created to help digestion and reduce bloating, helping to flatten the tummy and waist through slimming natural ingredients.

The beneficial ingredients include Green clay which is rich in silica and minerals which help to reduce bloating.

Fennel Seeds which eliminate waste and gases, making the tummy appear flatter and finally pineapple and papaya are included for their enzymes which help spilt proteins and help the body to break down food faster.

Rodial Tummy Tuck sticks are £48 for a pack of 14 and are available here.

TV style guru and presenter Gok Wan has joined forces with Boots to create a new luxury yet affordable skin care range for women. The range includes a selection of scrubs, washes and body butters, all designed to provide pampering on a budget.

The affordable range comes in sophisticated and girly pink, purple and turquoise packaging with luxury gold writing. Boots always produce great products and these are no exception. All of the products have a sexy, spicy scent which is perfect for the winter party season and they all do their job very well indeed. We particularly like the shimmer body balm which is great when applied before a night out for some extra sparkle and glamour.

The gift sets are great and some even include retro looking shower caps and date cards! Its all very girly very glam and very Gok which is just what gift sets and pampering should be all about!

In Gok’s own words “I feel passionate about my girls and believe you deserve to feel fabulous. Whether you’re having a night of well deserved indulgence or a pmpering weekend away this collection of treatments is designed to lavish some love on your beautiful bod!”

What’s more, the Gok Hey Gorgeous gift set is currently the Boot’s better than half price offer of the week. It includes eight fabulous products from the range and is £18 instead of £40 for one week only. Snap yours up alongside some other great offers from the Boots website. Happy pampering ladies.

These products aren’t your usual run of the mill eye shadows and eye-liners but intend to give you that shimmering allure of the bloodsuckers we all seem to be obsessed with. The range includes a range of Shimmering Body Scents, with names such as Bella and Forbidden Fruit and they claim to awaken your senses. We also like the Twilight Luna First Light Body Glow which promises to give your body an otherworldly glow. This range is all about pale and shimmering skin and dark and alluring lips. The range starts at £9 for eye shadow and reaches up to £26 for the Luna Body Glow and the full range is available from ASOS.

For everyone who would like to spend a second in Bella’s shoes, this is probably the closest you’ll get. So get ordering now!

This is one of the top super foods and is bursting with antioxidants which are great for your body when eaten but also when added to skin creams. It is a great ingredient for rejuvenating the upper layers of the skin by promoting cell growth and elasticity. Holland and Barrett have a number of excellent pomegranite skin products and supplements or for a more luxury alternative you could try the Pomegranate Balancing Moisturiser from Korres for an extra boost.

White tea
White tea comes from the youngest, freshest buds of the tea plant. It contains active and strong antioxidents making this the perfect detox drink.

Olive
Olive extract is a powerful moisturisers. Its soothing texture adds a creamy butter like texture to soaps, cleansers and creams.

Seaweed
Kelp is taken from seaweed, which is naturally rich in vitamins and minerals and has a high iodine content. It prevents skin from sagging, acts as an antiseptic and can be used to diminish scarring. Apparently Sea Kelp supplements promote hair growth and is also the active ingredient in Crème De La Mer products.

Having a delightful collection of make up is all very well but only if we have something swanky to put it all in. If like many women you have had the same mascara stained make up bag since secondary school then it sounds like you need to invest. Let’s not forget how much wear and tear a make up bag sees. Eye-liner smudges, crumbling eye shadows, leaking lip glosses, surely our make up bags need to be just as sturdy as our handbags?

So here are three of our luxury favourites:

Lulu Guinness Icon Print Vanity Case is pricey at £50 but you are getting a lot of bag for your money. It is also pretty sturdy and will last you a lot longer than a £5 jobby from the chemists. It is also worth noting that it is completely beautiful, it is dusty pink with typical Lulu prints including dainty hearts and vintage keys and it comes with a mirror of the same design.

Holistic Silk Make Up Bag With Lavender £24 is the ultimate luxury. It not only has a waterproof faux leather metallic lining but it is also lavender scented with contrast tassel detail. It is the perfect size to pop in your handbag and will look far more glamorous peeping out of the corner than your scruffy old make up bag. Gently squeeze where you feel the lavender to rejuvenate the aromatic therapeutic fragrance.

Juicy Couture Quilted Barrel Cosmetic Bag £41 has all over text embroidery of the much loved logo. This make up bag comes in two sizes and two colours. We like the smaller version in pink. If your going to splurge on a make up bag you might as well get it noticed!

Considering that our feet carry around our entire weight and hardly ever get a rest, we probably don’t take as good care of them as we should.

We need to pay extra care and attention to our tootsies throughout the winter because they can often become cracked and sore if we don’t look after them properly. There is a number of excellent foot pampering products out there but a particular favourite is Boot’s Gorgeous Feet. In preparation for Christmas Boot’s have compiled a lovely little gift set (£8) to give our hardworking feet a good overhaul.

The set includes a soothing foot soak, a foot scrub and a deeply intensive moisturiser all of which you use in succession. All of these products are available separately but it works out cheaper to buy all three together and this really is a great little kit.

Start out with the foot soak, just adding a small amount to a bowl of warm water and bathe your feet for 10 minutes. This will soak, soften and cleanse your feet and will prepare them for the next step, which is the gentle scrub. Ideally use this everyday to start with to smooth problem and hard skin areas. After this you can use it on a weekly basis to prevent the hard skin build up and maintain smooth healthy skin. The deeply intensive moisturiser is the last step and you should apply this to clean feet before bed and then let it soak in overnight.

Boot’s Gorgeous Feet Pamper Trio is proced at £8 and is available online or instore.