Bonjour! Phoebe Watt here — Miss FQ’s associate editor. Is my outfit a bit theme-y today? Whatevs. I’m on deadline for the October issue of Miss FQ so anything that helps me to feel tres bon is key.
Not that deadline is super horrif or anything — I actually live for the adrenaline and I know we’ve got this. But when you’re trying to get 116 pages of magazine out the door, last minute disasters and long hours are inevitable, and it helps to know that even if I’m having an internal meltdown, I look super cute (which for me means super Parisian).
On that note, a high-performing foundation is a MUST on weeks like these. Today I’m trialling L’Oréal Paris’ True Match Mineral Powder, which has been reformulated with active ingredients zinc and kaolin to help keep skin clear and manage shine throughout the day, without clogging pores. Let’s see how it fares as I get through my to-do list, shall we?
9:00AM: I’ve arrived at work, read my emails, printed and filed the story I finished writing from home last night, checked in with our art director and sub-editor to establish a plan of attack for the day, and now it’s time for coffee. I head upstairs to the Bauer hub for a Nespresso where I’m suddenly inspired by another Paris — Paris Hilton — who once advised, “Never pass a mirror without looking in it.” On shine-control watch, I’m making my mantra for the day “never pass a reflective surface without taking a selfie in it.” So far, so good on both counts.
10:30AM: There are PDFs of page layouts piling up on my desk for me to read and sign off, but the other aspects of my job don’t stop while I’m on deadline. This morning it’s a very exciting new season preview at H&M’s Britomart showroom that has me ducking out of the office for 45 minutes. The range being shown is the brand’s annual designer collaboration which, this year, is with British fashion house Erdem. It’s Blair Waldorf AF (my favourite aesthetic) and I want everything, including this boucle jacket which has a pencil skirt to match. I take a snap for my records (the collection is out in November, FYI), and am pleased to see my makeup is still looking flawless, if I do say so myself.
11:30AM: Back at work I’m greeted by a beautiful sight — our October cover printed out in hi-res and ready for approval. I scan my eyes over it one last time (okay, 10 last times!) to check that there are no spelling mistakes, it has the right date on it, and there’s nothing funny happening with the image. 100% confident that everything looks as it should, I put my signature on it and our art director sends the file into the abyss. It’s always a slightly scary moment but my makeup is doing an amazing job of masking my stress!
1:00PM: After ticking off that very important box I need a moment of zen, so I pop downstairs to City Works Depot’s Studio Red Yoga for a lunchtime hot yoga class. If anything was going to put my makeup to the test this would’ve been it, but the 40 degree heat was no match for my L’Oreal Paris True Match Mineral Powder, which as this post-workout selfie proves, performed exceptionally well. Me? Not so much. Yoga is not exactly my calling, although I could’ve shavasana’d all afternoon. No such luck though, as I now have to hot-foot it to the Bauer photo studio to get a photo taken for my associate editor’s letter page.
2:00PM: At the range-viewing this morning I picked out one of my favourite pieces to wear for my photo, so I quickly change into that, brush my hair, and put on a red lip for some extra associate editor fierceness. I go to touch up the rest of my makeup but am pleasantly surprised to find that all I need to combat my ever-so-slightly too dewy post-yoga glow is a dusting of L’Oréal Paris True Match Mattifying Powder. Okay, I’m ready for my close up!
4:00PM: I don’t love having my photo taken (much more familiar with my selfie angles!) but knowing my makeup was on point made the shoot pretty painless. When the Bauer photographer uploads the raw files to our shared drive, I select two favourites and send through my retouching notes, which include making my hair more its IRL colour (it photographed much redder for some reason) and removing the flyaways from my shirt. Normally I’d ask for my skin to be given the once-over (don’t tell me you wouldn’t!) but this mineral powder is actually giving me such good coverage that I don’t feel the need. How do you like that?
6:00PM: After pinging off some last minute emails (fact-checking, chasing imagery, requesting prices), I like to sit at my desk and take advantage of the peace and quiet to read all the day’s layouts, red pen in hand. If I catch any errors I make the changes on my computer and put the layout back on the sub-editor’s desk for a final read in the morning. When I’ve made it through the pile, I tidy my desk so that my future-self will thank me, and head off…
8:00PM: …via the bathroom, obvi, to assess my skin situ one last time. Sorry but this selfie don’t lie — I’m sold. And, sidenote: how poppin’ is my L’Oréal Paris True Match Highlight!
9:00PM: Okay so this is the face of a girl who thought she’d just won a $500 fuel voucher via McDonalds Monopoly (I don’t even have a car FYI), and immediately put it on her Instagram story only to have to take it down after receiving a text to say read the fine print. Yeah, turns out you need three of those ‘winning’ tickets. Face palm. But hey, at least my makeup still looks good! And now it’s time to take it off and hit the hay. Bon nuit!
This article is brought to you by L’Oréal Paris True Match Mineral Powder, $34.99, available in five shades + a translucent finishing powder.
