Legs Eleven
Ah, summer days. How gloriously sun-drenched. How carefree. Carefree, that is, unless you have 'leg issues'. From late September through till mid-spring, of course, anyone who feels theirs are less-than-show-offable can retreat into opaque tights, and nobody's any the wiser. But come shorter hemlines and days when even 10 deniers are unbearable, there is literally no hiding place.
Whatever shape or size yours come in, there are ways to make every pair of legs that bit lovelier. And however pale they are, there are not only self-tanners but leg tints which get rid of that 'pastry' look faster than you can say 'fake it'. To get the most out of any of them, however, you first want to give legs some TLC cocooning the skin so it's velvety and smooth. Legs don't naturally have too many sebaceous glands, so they get more papery (the skin can even 'craze' and crack), as we age.
It's actually vital to keep the skin of the lower legs supple and resilient, because in old age, the skin here can take forever to heal, if damaged. An ounce of prevention, now, pays huge dividends in our dotage. Make this an excuse to indulge in a body cream that's as rich, fragrant and sensual as you like. And if flaky shins are a problem, Kathy Phillips has devised the ultimate solution: This Works range: Skin Deep Dry Skin Leg Oil, £32.80, packed with seven pure, cold-pressed plant oils including evening primrose, macadamia and coconut oil. It's rich, it's unctuous and it's miraculous, frankly. Other terrific, rich choices which will nourish leg skin and pamper it to silky smoothness include Yes to Carrots Deliciously Rich Body Butter, £8.99 for 250ml (at www.victoriahealth.com), Dr Organic 100% Organic Aloe Vera Body Butter, £8.99 for 200 ml (my current absolute fave), and REN Frankincense Vitamin A/C/E Revitalising Body Cream, £28 for 200ml.
Now, one woman we all remember as having gorgeous legs was the late Princess of Wales. Forget genetics, here (giraffe-long legs were in her DNA), but remember that shiny-shin trick Diana was so fond of? She was definitely onto something: as make-up artist Pat McGrath notes, 'Applying sheen to legs creates an illusion that they are longer and leaner.' So, for that optical illusion, slick on a stripe of Michael Kors Leg Shine, £22, or massage in Champneys Oriental Body Glistening Oil, £8 for 100ml, a 'dry' oil (so it sinks in almost immediately, leaving little shimmery particles of real gold on your skin shin whatever).
What you don't want, of course, is shimmering gold clinging to Geldoffian stubble. Oh, no way. Home waxing, hair removal and razors have all improved exponentially. (Quite simply, I cannot imagine life before my Gillette Venus, which is just brilliant for a quick whizz.) Hair removal creams used to rank among the vilest-smelling gunks ever to be slathered on the human body, but no longer: while you wouldn't want to dab any of these behind your ears, hair removal creams work faster and smell rather prettier than their early incarnations. Veet Bladeless Razor Kit with Aloe Vera, £6.84, for instance, is infused with moisturising ingredients and cleverly comes with a razor-shaped spatula of plastic, which is used to whisk away the gunk once it's worked its hair-dissolving magic.
But the real advances are in salon treatments, which offer a far longer-term and even permanent method of hair removal. Sure, they seem more expensive. As one friend observes, having recently had her legs lasered, 'At over £2,000, six laser treatments the recommended programme worked out equivalent to about eight years of regular waxing. If only those lasers had been around when I was 20 and had my first leg wax, it would have saved me a fortune about £6,000 I reckon and that's not even factoring in the time-is-money aspect.' So: they're touch-me soft and smooth. Now as for giving legs some colour, you have two options: the temporary tints and the self-tanners. Testers for Beauty Bible Beauty Steals (see footnote) particularly rated Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs,
£9.95 for 75ml and Vie Pin Perfection, £11.50 for 150ml. Or you may want to try Air Stocking Premier Silk, £24.95: a silk and micro-fine powder that spritzes onto legs delivering a flawless, airbrushed finish and stocking-like sheen (at www.makeupbits.co.uk).
On the self-tan front, these have impressed our Beauty Bible testers Clarins Delectable Self-Tanning Mousse SPF15, £20 for 125ml, Green People Self-Tan Lotion, £16.30 for 200ml, and Marks & Spencer Self-Tan Lotion for Face and Body, £7.50 for 200ml, all give can't-tell-it-from-real results. (Though I would always super-moisturise skin beforehand, as fake tan does tend to 'cling' to dry patches, creating that tell-tale oranginess.) Legs need to feel as good as they look, of course. For every woman whose legs seem able to adjust easily to demanding situations pregnancy, long periods standing, long-haul travel there is another whose legs struggle to recover. Well, just as natural, reviving botanicals can work wonders for tired tootsies, they can perform near-miracles on aching legs, too. If all you want to do is flop on the sofa and put your heavy legs up after a hot summer's day, reach for a circulation-boosting product like Declιor Circulagel Refreshing Toning Gel, £28 for 150ml, or Thalgo Frigimince Spray, £26.50 for 150ml, with its instant 'ice' effect, thanks to camphor and menthol. (When it comes to cheese making, wine-growing and leg-reviving, it's hard to beat the French, frankly.)
For instant leg relief, meanwhile, try this trick from ex-Vogue Beauty Director and yoga guru Kathy Phillips: 'One of the first exercises I do after a long day is to lie on my back and just put my legs in the air so simple and so therapeutic.' If you prefer, jiggle your backside near to the wall and rest them against that, at a 90-degree angle to your body. Stay put for at least 5 minutes, preferably longer. And of course, take time to admire your smooth, tanned, touch-me soft legs, while you're at it
Beauty Bible Beauty Steals by Josephine Fairley and Sarah Stacey is available as an App for the iPhone, priced at £2.99 from iTunes.
