THE SPECTRUM SISTERS Sophie & Hannah Pycroft share their out of lockdown essential beauty products

OUT OF LOCKDOWN ESSENTIAL BEAUTY PRODUCTS

Give yourself a little joy during these unprecedented times

Sophie and Hannah Pycroft are the sisters behind the incredibly successful Spectrum Collections, the fabulous makeup brush brand taking the world by storm. Launching their brand from their garage in Wales, Spectrum Collections has grown at an incredible rate, their brushes are loved by countless celebrities, and have been called the “World’s most Instagrammable.” In their exclusive column for Style of the City the sisters will be sharing their beauty and makeup advice as well as highlighting some of their must-have Spectrum Collections brushes.

i lovelies, thank you so much for picking up this issue of Style of the City. We’re grateful to have you back and reading our content once more, so firstly, we hope you are doing O.K. which is H the best we can all expect with the current global issues we face. This issue we are talking about gratitude and how important it is right now to take a minute and appreciate the truly wonderful things that have come out of something so frightful and life changing for us all. From those who have helped us fight the pandemic on the front line in our NHS, right through to those key workers who have worked tirelessly to keep our supermarket shelves stocked, and of course those warehouse workers who’ve been sending out all our online orders, every single one is a hero in our eyes. As well as those people we are grateful to, there have been a few products that have really gotten us through lockdown at the beginning and now that we’ve eased out,

we aren’t ready just yet to give up our favourites just yet. Here are a few things that have helped bring us a little joy during some dreary times, we thought we’d share with you.

First, loungewear. The new luxury in our opinion! The softer the better and of course with just the right amount of stretch! We’re not only wearing it around the house in the day, but it’s become a staple for workwear too, especially those rare items that you find you can dress up just as easily as dress down. We’ve been wearing Prevu Studio loungewear, a bit of an investment but we do love a quality piece, and the slim fit is more flattering if you’re wearing loungewear in public, as we are frequently! Second, we have had the luxury of an ‘extra hour’ a day, where we aren’t commuting as much and are not asked to be in meetings as frequently, which has really given us a bit more ‘me’ time, something we’ve struggled to enjoy before. So with that extra hour we’ve been indulging our skin and letting it breathe a lot on no makeup days. We think the first step in a good skin care session is a high quality cleanser, we love Obagi to strip makeup, but for a more gentle cleanse we’ve been enjoying the Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser, it doesn’t leave us feeling dry, and Third, we are makeup lovers at heart, and especially these days on a zoom call we need a pop of colour to lift our complexion, great skin is nothing without a little life! So we always have our Dark Matter vegan mascara on to lift our lashes and make us

look more awake. For a quick colour fix we opt for our ‘Nova’ vegan lipstick. It’s matte so we often mix it with a little lip balm, any will do, to keep lips hydrated. Because of the creamy matte formula we also apply a little to the apples of our cheeks for a fresh faced look. We get so many compliments on this shade, and it suits all skin tones. We’ll leave you with a little note just to say even in challenging times, we can all find something to be grateful for, even if it is just that extra bit of me time or simply being able to appreciate each other. Let’s not forget the sense of humanity we’ve all discovered during the pandemic, and continue to show a little gratitude for the smallest things. Love Sophie & Hannah

Follow the sisters:

@spectrumsophie @hpycroft

SIMON CONSTANTINOU We’ve Missed You

t feels so good to be back! We, at Simon Constantinou Hair & Beauty, just want to thank you for all your messages of support through this incredibly stressful time. We know that everyone has faced one of the most difficult and confusing times I of our lives. COVID19 is a scary, invisible threat, and we know many of you will have dealt directly with the results of this virus. Our reopening is proving to be a different experience to what you are used to - and you know us - we want to make your experience the absolute best! Whilst you are protected with screens and PPE and we cannot offer you a cup of tea or a hug, we know you understand that keeping everyone safe is of utmost importance. We are ready and overjoyed to be getting back to doing what we love. Thank you for embracing our safety protocols and social distancing measures whilst we all get used to

this new temporary normal. Our COVID19 safety protocol is available to view on our website: www.simonconstantinou.com/

reopening-our-hairdressers-after-covid19-lockdown/

The team have loved seeing all our clients – new and old – and creating miracle transformations with your lockdown locks! Hair colouring has been filling our diary - with beautiful Balayage and Foil Highlights being particularly popular. Also, having all that time to grow your hair, there’s been lots of opportunity for stunning restyle transformations. And our beautician, Monika, is overjoyed to be back and ready to pamper you.

As a thank you for supporting us through these strange times, we’d like to offer Style of the City readers 20% off Nail

Services until 30.11.20 (T&Cs apply). So, if you are ready for a bit of Constantinou pampering, call 02920461191 to book and quote STYLE OF THE CITY! And to reassure you of how safe your visit would be, have a read of our recent client testimonials:

“Thank you team Constantinou for making me feel like a million dollars… you all do an amazing job…it felt very safe in the salon today…brilliant effort” – Beverley

“So glad to be back at the salon post lockdown, with the usual friendly welcome from everyone and a super safe environment. Delighted with my hair colour and cut by the wonderful Karen. Thanks all for keeping me safe and feeling amazing” – Alison

“Thanks to everyone at Simon Constantinou’s. So good to see you all today. Impressed with how everyone followed COVID19 protocols. Felt super safe while still feeling pampered. Extra special thanks to Lynda … I feel like a new woman!” – Jane

“Thanks to the gorgeous Karen for doing such an amazing job on my hair, as always! Unsurprisingly, from the start, (waiting outside for my PPE and temperature check) to leaving the salon it was so professional and I felt completely safe with every possible precaution taken. Thank you so much!” – Sally

“So glad to be back in the chair being pampered by the amazing Chelsea, well done to all the team for making the salon safe for us all to be able to return... good to see you all stay safe.” – Antoinette “Dear Simon, I just wanted to thank you, and congratulate you on the lengths you went to keep your clients safe! I felt really safe yesterday and it was good to see you all!” – Anne O.Constantinou & Sons 99 Crwys Rd, Cardiff. CF24 4NF Tel: 02920461191

www.simonconstantinou.com

LOCKDOWN STORIES

Exchange Views Apartment

re-lockdown, Harry and Louisa Asprou, started a new venture in the self-serviced accommodation business. They had not started trading yet, but the ball was most certainly rolling. Harry used his day’s P off from work, and Louisa gave up her day

job to begin the process of starting their new business.

“Our story began on Monday 9th March, two weeks before lockdown. After three years of thought and planning, with the support of my husband, Harry and a massive inspirational push from our sons, I left my job to be able to give all my time and effort into our new venture. As I walked to the car on my last day of work, I felt both liberated and scared, little did we know what was about to crash upon this Earth! The day the Prime Minister announced lockdown was one of the scariest days of our lives. After borrowing money, investing our savings and not having an income was a moment we will never forget. The world is cautiously beginning to move again; however, the majority of our future bookings would have been around events which are all cancelled. Other possibilities would have been business trips. They too, have evolved as businesses are turning to keep staff working from home. With ‘staycations’ being the buzz word at the moment, we stand firm with passion and belief in our new venture and will work hard every day while facing the challenges of this

new normal we are all experiencing.” Contact Exchange Views via the website https://exchangeviews.co.uk/ and follow their Instagram @exchange_views_ apartment for updates which will be coming very soon!