CODE Beautiful Blog / Tips and tricks

Ok. Thinning lashes—not ideal. We hear it all the time from our customers; thin, short and sparse lashes are a massive concern for so many of you out there. The good news is, there are a number of steps you can take to combat the issue that don’t involve falsies or extensions. As is so often the case, a little understanding goes a long way. Let’s look at what causes thinning eye lashes and what you can do about it.

Why do Lashes Thin?

Lashes often thin as a result of the natural ageing process. As we get older, the skin loses its ability to retain moisture which in turn leads to hormonal imbalances. When this happens, follicle stimulation reduces, resulting in slower hair growth—including the eye lashes. Other contributing factors include; thyroid imbalances, eye infections, vitamin deficiencies and just general wear and tear due to poor cosmetic habits and rubbing your eyes. By identifying the underlying cause(s), it’s much easier to take the steps to protect and thicken your eye lashes and get them growing again.

What can I do?

1.) Eat well

Nourish your skin, hair and lashes from the inside out. Eating a diet rich in vitamins and minerals will help stimulate lash growth from the inside out. Food rich in iron and omegas will give your eye lashes (and hair) a boost. Also, vitamins B, C and H will do wonders to repair and protect your follicles.

2.) Sure Up your Makeup Habits

You’ve probably heard this before—but, do not sleep with your make up on! Invest in a gentle makeup remover that nourishes and moisturises the skin and gently cleanse your face morning and night, taking care never to pull or tug on your lashes. Speaking of tugging— take care when using eye lash curlers  or anything that might disrupt the follicles. Equally as important, make sure you replace your mascara every three-six months to avoid bacteria from building up in the bottle.

3.) Use a Lash Conditioner

In the same way that you condition your hair, your lashes can also benefit from being conditioned. This in turn will make them stronger and less likely to flake. CODE FFL (Forget Fake Lashes) is packed with conditioning ingredients to support the lash growth process. By wearing it every day, you will notice your lashes in better condition, and it will encourage the lash regeneration process. Within 4-6 weeks your lashes will be in much better condition.

Our very first product and still one of our bestsellers, CODE VLM is a true hero.  

We’re convinced that once you’ve tried it, you’ll be able to throw away all the mascaras you currently have in your makeup bag and just use this one, for any occasion, day and night, rain or shine.  

Sounds too good to be true? We’re here to help... we often get asked questions about our volumising, lengthening mascara because people just can’t believe how good it is, so we’ve popped answers to 5 of the most common questions we get asked below.   

What makes CODE VLM different... why is it the perfect mascara for all looks?  

It’s the combination of the brush and the formula, we spent a long time developing both of these things to make sure we had the perfect product.  

The brush is very sturdy and has different size bristles. The bristles are spaced out to get in between each and every lash to distribute the product where you need it at the base of the lash... we are always getting compliments from professional makeup artists about the brush!  

As well as the formula and brush, we also have a bit of a secret technique. Using the ‘Roots, Wriggle, Roll’ technique means you can get some serious length and curl to your lashes without ever needing to use curlers.  

Roots: Pop the brush on to your lashes as close to the root as you can. 
Wriggle: Give the brush a good wriggle back and forth, this will make sure even the tiniest of lashes are covered. 
Roll: Gently twist the brush from root to tip. 

Will CODE VLM irritate my eyes?  

Not at all. Even the most sensitive of eyes can use both CODE VLM and CODE FFL. In fact, our founder, Sarah has very sensitive, watery eyes herself so she knew how important it was to create a product that would be suitable for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers.  

One of the things we did to make sure CODE VLM doesn’t irritate your eyes is add a sealing agent into the formula to make sure your lashes and the teeny tiny fibres stay in place all day long meaning no irritation and no fall out... a win win.   

The formula feels really dry compared to other mascaras I have used, is it meant to be like this?  

Yes, definitely the formula is meant to look like this. Most ‘wet’ mascaras that you may have used in the past often have too much product on the brush which leads to clumps or your lashes dropping half way through the day... not a good look for anyone we must say.  

We spent a long time developing the wiper inside our mascara tube to make sure you get the perfect amount of product on the brush every time. This means no clumps, no smudges and no flakes. 🙌🏽🙌🏽 

Do you make CODE VLM in brown?  

No we don’t, but we have found that lots of people that previously used to use brown mascara (including our own family!), now wear CODE VLM as it is designed to get blacker the more you apply it.  

What we mean by this is if you just apply one coat lightly, it gives you the perfect alternative to brown. But if you prefer a darker shade, you can just keep topping it up until your desired look and it won’t clump. 

Something else that we’ve discovered from chatting to our customers, is that some really fair people use CODE FFL on its own as a mascara as it has a light brown colour!    

Is CODE VLM waterproof?  

It’s water-resistant rather than waterproof. This means that you can have a good cry or laugh and it doesn’t smudge... but we wouldn’t recommend diving in a pool 😉.  

We didn’t create a waterproof formula as this makes the formula very heavy and causes lashes to droop throughout the day, whereas with CODE VLM it’s a buildable formula so the lashes stay put all day and you can build for more volume to take you from day to night.  

Many of our customers (including our founder) have sensitive eyes and love using our mascara, along with bridal makeup artists all over the world!  

We hope you love CODE VLM as much as we do, don’t forget to let us know your thoughts and share your pics in the comments below. 😘 

I’ve always loved running from a very young age, I used to compete against different schools (and much bigger age groups), not that I’m competitive at all… honest 😉

 After quite a break, a few years ago, I got into running again and it felt gooood… I think it’s so good not only for your health and fitness but also for your wellbeing. 

So here are my top tips for running your first 10k…

1.  Buy a decent pair of trainers – don’t scrimp and buy cheap trainers, it’s so important to get a comfortable pair of running trainers that suit your feet!
2. Join a running club – I joined a local running club in Manchester - it was the best thing I did.  Such a welcoming and friendly group it gave me the motivation I needed to get out there and run.  It’s so easy to make excuses and not go ‘because it’s raining’ or ‘I’m working late’, I made the commitment to make sure I went come rain or shine - no excuses!  (I also find a little bit of competition, makes you want to run the best you can!) Lots of club start you off on a couch to 5k programme which is a great way to get into it!
3. Get the gear – you don’t want to be carrying your phone around whilst running, get an arm band or belt holder, listen to your fave music (when you’re not running with your buddies of course), although not necessary needed – I like to have a Fitbit watch too to monitor my progress and linked to MyFitnessPal to monitor exercise and food intake.
4. Plan – don’t just sign up to a 10k – get yourself prepared. Run with a club, join the couch to 5k – get yourself ready. Sign up to weekend Parkrun’s – they are great! 5k timed races.
5. Stay Hydrated – it’s important to drink lots of water
6. Don’t over do it! Make sure you listen to your body – if you need rest, rest!

I think the most difficult bit is getting yourself motivated (joining a club really helped me with this!) I ran the Great Manchester Run which I loved, such a buzzing atmosphere!

Good luck! 😘

Alex Waring, (@makeupbyalex), makeup artist, true professional, mum of two and simply all round lovely lady was kind enough to answer some of our questions about how she juggles life as a working mum and also shares some of her top tricks of the trade. 

So Alex, tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into makeup.

I’ve always been into drawing and being creative but I didn’t believe I could make a career out of it until a friend, who worked in music video production, encouraged me to pursue makeup. I started a degree in specialist makeup and that same friend put me in touch with a makeup artist to get some assisting experience, which led to so many amazing opportunities over the years. 

We love seeing what you’re up to on Instagram and who you’ve been working with lately, but with such a busy job, how do you manage your work/life balance and juggle motherhood with a demanding career?

As stressful as it can be working freelance, it does mean that I get to spend so much time with my children, even though I may need to stay away for a shoot here and there. I think whatever job you do, if you have children you’re always going to be crazy busy! 

We couldn’t agree more!! Do you have any tips for us tired mums? 

My biggest tip would be that no matter how exhausted you are, always follow a good skincare routine, morning and night. Your skin will thank you for it! 

Mascara was my best friend when I was at my most sleep deprived as it immediately made me look more awake so definitely have that at the ready along with a good concealer, cream brush, long-wear eyeliner and a smudged lip liner; that way you always have the perfect, quick daytime ‘I’m awake!’ look. 

CODE VLM is great for helping really open up your eyes and faking that wide awake look. 

Has your beauty routine changed since having children? 

Majorly!! I no longer have the luxury of time so I’ve had to alter my daytime makeup quite significantly and get used to having an audience when applying it. 

It sounds like you’ve got some budding assistants in the making! Is there anyone that has inspired you throughout your career?

I’m inspired all the time by so many different artists for different reasons. I’ve always been a massive fan of Pat McGrath and more recently I’m obsessed with James Molloy’s Instagram posts with his insanely perfect eyeliner application. My first very makeup idol was Kevin Aucoin. 

There’s no doubt about it that the beauty industry is such a fun and crazy world to be a part of, what have been your best and worst times of your career to date? 

The best times in my career would be when I first started working on music videos, I had so much fun and got to work with such amazing people. I think the worst times in my career used to be whenever I was quiet and waiting for the next job to come in, I’m now kept super busy with a 4 year old and 10 month old so I wouldn’t even notice a quiet period!! 

We’ve got so much respect for you and you already know we’re big fans of your work, what can we expect to see from you in 2019? 

Hopefully lots of beautiful editorial collaborations and some fun commercial jobs and, if you follow my Instagram page, the odd family pic thrown in too these days! ;) 

Thank you so much for your time Alex! xx

You know how you look back at photos of yourself from a few years ago and you instantly recoil at your make-up? Those skinny brows! That under-eye concealer that was two shades too light! That fake-tan that veers slightly too close to orange? Nowadays we have Instagram filters to blur away what we don’t like, but that’s no excuse for a make-up faux pas that could be totally unavoidable. And in an era of contouring, highlighting, fake lashes and fake lips, there is a hell of a lot that can go wrong. We’ve all done it – this isn’t about feeling bad about your make-up mistakes – but here are a few tips to avoid repeating the most common ones of 2017, as we make our way in to the New Year….

The one that looks ok in photos.. but not so ok in real life…

Let’s face it – contouring has been around for a couple of years now, but shows no signs of going anywhere – so we need to tackle this one. Contouring works really well in theory – defining your features, giving bone structure a more angular appearance and ‘reducing’ the size of any features you aren’t happy with -but in reality, or at least away from Instagram, contouring doesn’t translate so well. Too much definition can highlight lines, too much shading can make the skin appear dirty, and not enough blending just leaves you looking ridiculous. If you’re going to stay on the contouring wagon – and let’s face it, there are plenty that are – just remember to stick to these golden rules: it’s worth investing in a contour palette that has a variety of shades, so you can keep as close to your natural skin colour as possible; play around with formulas until you find the one that works best for your skin type – whether that’s cream, powder or a mixture of the two; and finally, blend, blend, blend.

The one that ruins your lashes

False lashes – we have a love-hate relationship with the things. While we adore the fat fluttery lashes they give us, fiddling around with glue and the inevitable lash fall out (seriously, how do you pull them off WITHOUT ripping out your own lashes?) puts us off. Give lashes a break from falsies and allow them to grow back to full strength, without forgoing the lash envy they create. CODE FFL Forget Fake Lashes £18 gives enough of a pre-mascara boost – enhancing short sparse ones and coating lashes with volumising and thickening ingredients – that you will genuinely forget you aren’t wearing falsies.

The one that doesn’t make the most of what you have

Wearing the wrong mascara is a bit like wearing the wrong sized bra – you won’t realise how wrong it is until you discover the alternative and then you’ll never look back. There’s a good mascara out there for everyone – and it’s such a personal thing that what works on your best friend won’t necessarily work on you – so make 2018 the year you find your one. You need to first figure out what you want from your mascara – do you have thin delicate lashes that need to gain some weight? Are your lashes full of volume but short and stubby, in desperate need of length? Are your lashes long but straight and in need of a little curl to give a wide-eye look? All of the above?? CODE VLM Volumising Lengthening Mascara £19.95 can be built up gradually, and adds length, volume, separation and curl, while nourishing lashes with vitamins and waxes that encourage natural lash growth.

The one that looks dated (even if it is back on-trend)

The Moschino S/S’18 show was all about a return to the 90’s: so we can expect the Spice brown lip liner/pale concealer lips combo to be making a return too. While this may look cute on the catwalk, in reality it looks unflattering and dated, plus it won’t help you achieve that plumped effect pout that you’ve been lusting after. Stay away from dark brown lip liners and instead stick to CODE SSL Soft Smooth Lip Liner £18 - which is the perfect nude shade - and you’ll create the perfect amount of volume and natural definition, without any telltale dark lines.

The perfect nude lip has become a bit of a beauty phenomenon in its own right. In recent years the nude lip, like the red lip before it, has become a go-to look that, done right, has the power to transform your face, update your look and make you look can’t-put-my-finger-on-why better. Now the nude lip got a – sort of – royal seal of approval, as the signature look of Prince Harry’s gorgeous new fiancé, Meghan Markle.

Like its rouge predecessor, the perfect nude lipstick needs very little else to go with it and should make your teeth look whiter, your skintone brighter an your eyes pop.  With all that in mind it’s worth remembering this: just like with a red lippie– finding the perfect nude lip is a bit of holy grail of beauty. So, while Meghan has found the one (lippie we mean…) finding your own may take a bit of work. But we promise, the payoff (flattered complexion, brighter face…) is worth the graft.  So, what qualifies as a nude lip? Let’s face it, with our different skintones, naked means something different to each of us. It can be a real jungle out there in the world of flesh-toned lippies. So let us steer you in the right direction and help you find the perfect nude lip for you. We like many were searching for the perfect nude so searched high and low and came up with two products we think are the perfect shade for all skin tones...👏🏻

CODE SSL Soft Smooth Lip Liner £18

Never underestimate the power of a good lip liner, and this one is pretty unique... a lip liner and plumper all in one elegant, self-sharpening device.

CODE SSL is the perfect universal Soft Nude Blush shade which looks gorgeous on everyone. Non-feathering, CODE SSL prevents your lip gloss or lipstick from bleeding for an effortless look you can trust. Clever self-sharpening technology means you simply twist the lid till it clicks and you have the perfect tip to glide onto your lips. (We like to also create some vertical lines on the lips to give a stronger base - so you can use it as a lip liner and a lipstick... two in one!)

CODE LIP Lip Intense Plumper £20

CODE LIP is the lip plumping treatment you’ve been waiting for – full of the best lip-plumping ingredients – the more often you apply it, the better the results. Plus it gives you an instant boost in plumpness and moisture. Use CODE LIP on its own or let it dry and wear under your favourite lipstick or gloss.

The magic ingredient in CODE LIP is Hilurlip, containing a blend of lip treats such as Hyaluronic acid, Tripeptide-1, and Dimethicone. This exclusive combination helps to redefine the natural contours of the lips and create a more youthful, sculpted look.

CODE LIP comes in a beautiful soft nude rose colour to suit all skin tones.

Beauty sleep starting to become a thing of the past? Why is it that when the nights start to get longer, the amount of sleep we’re getting actually, conversely, starts to reduce? The clocks might have gone back this weekend but let’s face it, the extra hour in bed didn’t touch the sides- we’re getting gradually less sleep each week, thanks to our inability to turn down invitations to all those bonfire night parties/ post-work prosecco/ pre-Christmas drinks (yes, even in November. We like to start early.)....

Halloween is often the first event to kick off party season (yay!) and a great excuse to play about with our makeup. Whatever you’re going as, dramatic eyes can really complete the look (think feline fabulous or sultry vampire) and can give us the confidence to work the room at that unmissable Halloween party. While going for fake lashes can seem like the most obvious choice it might not be the best one, falsies can leave us looking a bit scary, and not in the way we want to.

Remember when Halloween was just for kids? Oh how we’ve moved on from the days when the 31st October was just a day when we’d go for a spot of after-school trick or treating, dressed in a bin liner and a mask we’d bought at the newsagents. Now, thanks to Hollywood’s love of Halloween, the end of October is one long party, an excuse to dress up, go crazy with our make-up and then Instagram the hell out of it. Figure out which Halloween tribe you fit into...

How old is your mascara – and be honest? We’re ALL guilty of clinging on to our make-up for longer than we should. Let’s face it, who wants to throw out their favourite mascara if they can scrape out a few more weeks of use? But, how old is too old? 

We are currently in the height of summer and the hottest month of the year, August, and whether we are spending it on holiday, at a festival or just chilling at a garden party we want to look our best. It’s not too late to make sure you summer makeup is on point, here’s how to do it!

So far 2016 has definitely been a year of inspiration and innovation for both beauty and fitness. More than ever we are spurred on by Insta stars, Olympians and bloggers as social media allows us sneak peaks of BTS action and super accessible tips and tricks. With all this exposure to women world wide girl-bossing their way through tough workouts and hectic schedules, there's also the matter of the rest of us having internal meltdown's because that level of productivity and endless energy (all the while looking oh so fresh faced) just isn't quite as achievable as the press says it is. So, less of the unrealistic schedules and unattainable goals, here's my take on how to keep your confidence high and endorphins' buzzing in the most stylish way.