The Bobbi Brown 10 step face

I know I've joked about the Bobbibots at the counter and the Tao of Bobbi, but I do have immense admiration and respect for Ms Brown. The Bobbi Brown line is often viewed as the absolute antithesis of the whole "make up is art" movement, and I think that's a bit unfair, because what Bobbi does is to render makeup easy and accessible for the average woman, and in my opinion that isn't something to be sniffed at.

The 10 step face is a very simple regime that takes you through all the steps to a polished, pretty face. No-one is going to be complimenting you on your skilful techniques or interesting use of colour, but it gets you out of the door looking human and polished in about 5-10 minutes. I've never had or seen a Vegas Showgirl makeover at a Bobbi Brown counter, and I saw a really interesting example where a mother in her early 40s and her teenage daughter both got a makeover with very similar colours used on them (they had almost identical colouring) and it looked pretty and appropriate on both of them.

The 10 steps are as follows:

1. Undereye concealer.
2. Foundation.
3. Powder and/or bronzer.
4. Define eyebrows - Bobbi recommends using a powder eyeshadow like Blonde or Mahogany.
5. 2 eyeshadows - a base shade from lash to brow, and a mid tone shade from lash to crease. I particularly like Shell and Bone as base shades, and Cement and Malted matte eyeshadows and Fawn shimmer wash as lid shades.
6. Eyeliner - I like the gel liners, particularly Sepia, and I also like Espresso eyeshadow.
7. Mascara.
8. Blush - I like Desert Rose for a natural blush on my pale (BB Warm Ivory) skin.
9. Lipstick - there are some lovely colours in the line, but they do make my (very dry) lips a bit dry.
10. Lipliner, and gloss if desired.

You don't have to do every step - my every day face is nearly always steps 1, 3, 4, 5 (but quite often I don't bother with a base shade and just use one shade on my lid and up to my crease), 7, 8 and 9. Of course, you don't need to use Bobbi Brown products to do the BB face - but she does do some very good neutrals, and her under eye concealer is one of the best for very dark circles (although you need a good eye cream with it.)

If you are interested in Bobbi Brown, it's worth keeping an eye out for the seasonal palettes (I particularly like the eye palettes) which are always well put together and sell out quickly. There are quite a few available on the Bobbi Brown website currently, and the Basics eye palette, with Navajo (base), Cement (matte), Heather Mauve (shimmer wash) and Mahogany (liner) would be a very good introduction to the eyeshadow line at £31.50 - you can see it here.