Marie Claire UK Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Women in Sport 2026
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Spring Summer 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    • Digital Issues
    • Women Who Win
    1. Beauty

    As a Self-Confessed Materialist, I Declare These the Chicest, Most Beautiful Products You Could Ever Pull Out of Your Handbag

    9 bona fide conversation starters

    Nessa Humayun's avatar
    By Nessa Humayun
    Published 17 August 2025 In Features

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    Most chic make-up products
    (Image credit: Maggie Joyner)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    For me, a huge appeal of growing up was to become a woman who had a curated collection of beautiful products. It sounds niche, but 90s cinema was jam-packed with beauty-related tchotchkes; from Legally Blonde's Elle Woods' clam-shell mirror to the frosty, pink lipstick Jessica Lange applies in Cape Fear. Of course, quality and efficacy matter—but there's joy to be found pulling a beautiful compact out of your handbag, or a monogrammed hair brush, which will last you a lifetime. Ahead, only my most elevated daily essentials.

    1. Fara Homidi Essential Face Compact

    Fara Homidi , Essential Face Compact

    Fara Homidi
    Essential Face Compact
    £83 AT NICHE BEAUTY

    Fara Homidi's Essential Face Compact is a joy to behold—the lacquered lipstick-red case is an eye-catcher, and it closes with one of the most satisfying clicks I've heard in years. And it doesn't disappoint on formulation either, in fact, it's one of the most innovative cream-to-powder hybrids I've used; effortlessly sinking in to provide a skin-like finish, which you can enhance with the balmy—not shimmery—highlighter. I take it everywhere.

    2. Officine Universelle Buly Avocado Pulp Oil

    Officine Universelle Buly

    £20 AT OFFICINE UNIVERSELLE BULY

    I have long collected products from Officine Universelle Buly, partly for their packaging—in fact, I have waxed lyrical about everything from their hand cream and their body oils to their marble candles, but I find that their skin and haircare products rarely get enough airtime. And so, this multi-tasking Avocado Pulp Oil is a true all-rounder. It's great for fine lines and wrinkles, and promoting hair growth. Plus, I just love that olde worlde packaging.

    3. ISAMAYA Face Glaze Glass

    Isamaya Face Glaze Glass 19.5ml

    Isamaya Face Glaze Glass 19.5ml
    £33
    £33 AT CULT BEAUTY

    While ISAMAYA's Face Glaze Glass may look more form over function, what with its long, needle-like dispenser, it actually makes for an incredibly precise applicator. This is a crisp, clean highlighting balm, which stays on the skin for hours, plus it's packed with skincare ingredients, including a microbial gel, which resets and protects your skin, and brown algae extract, which adds nourishment.

    4. BYREDO Tinted Lip Care

    BYREDO, Tinted Lip Care

    BYREDO
    Tinted Lip Care
    £45
    £45 AT SELFRIDGES

    If I could, I'd have one of Byredo's tinted lip balms in each bag. As someone who loves mixing metals, this chrome and gold wavy case is just gorgeous, like a sculptural piece of art, and the product delivers too—it's a creamy tinted balm that doesn't dry out the lips, and has decent staying power. I love the shades Fantome Raptur 100—a warm, nude brown—and Cloud Busting 300—an easy carmine.

    You may like
    • Expensive beauty products, luxury beauty The Expensive Products That Are Actually Worth It, According to Beauty Editors Who’ve Tried Thousands
    • Beauty Digest The Beauty Digest: Max Mara Bottles an Icon, a £12.99 Skincare Revelation and an Ode to the Classic Massage
    • collage of beauty items on sale 18 Iconic Beauty Buys That Are Either on Sale, Have a Discount Code or Both

    5. Victoria Beckham Beauty Eye Wardrobe

    Eye Wardrobe

    Victoria Beckham Beauty
    Eye Wardrobe
    $47
    £71 AT VICTORIA BECKHAM BEAUTY

    Coming in a tortoiseshell, refillable shell, Victoria Beckham's Eye Wardrobes are all you need for a full look, and you can take them on the go; these gold-rimmed compacts slip easily into the teeniest of handbags. There's a colour-way for every occasion, too, from everyday browns to more bold and sultry combinations.

    6. Balm Dotcom Keychain

    Balm Dotcom Keychain

    Glossier
    Balm Dotcom Keychain
    £18
    SHOP NOW

    Now, this is just for fun, but it doesn't get cuter than the banana carabiner from Glossier, which you can add your favourite balm Dotcom to (I opted for the new, limited banana pudding version). I've slung it onto my keys, and it's a great way to keep chapped lips at bay—because when are you ever without your keys? Hurry, though, this drop won't be around for long.

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    7. Officine Universelle Buly Wild Boar Bristle Hairbrush

    Officine Universalle Buly

    Officine Universelle Buly
    Wild Boar Bristle Hairbrush
    £70 AT OFFICINE UNIVERSELLE BULY

    There's something so chic about a personalised hairbrush, and Officine Universelle Buly's range of hairbrushes and combs is amongst my favourites—for their price point and quality. Created in collaboration with French hairbrush designer, Fournival Altesse, which has six generations of know-how, this ergonomic brush, cut from stained beech wood, effortlessly detangles and smooths.

    8. Raaie Sun Milk Drops Tinted SPF 50

    Sun Milk Drops Tinted Spf50 45ml

    RAAIE
    Sun Milk Drops Tinted SPF 50
    £85
    £85 AT LIBERTY

    Raaie—a New Zealand-based brand, which has just launched in Liberty—melds high-performance skincare with sculptural design. And their Sun Milk Drops, which are tinted with SPF 50, use UV-resistant plants and actives to defend against UVA, UVB, pollution, blue light and infrared. It also applies seamlessly under make-up, with ingredients to smooth, brighten and prep the skin, without clogging pores.

    9. Diptyque Philosykos Refillable Solid Perfume

    Diptque

    Diptyque
    Philosykos Refillable Solid Perfume
    £56 AT SPACE NK

    Solid perfumes a a cheat-code to perfuming on the go—they're compact, practical, and there's no fear of leaks. Diptyque's offering comes in the form of enamelled and embossed cases, which feature a high concentration of the original perfume. For summer, I love Philosykos, which has grounding notes of fig leaves, fig tree sap, fig tree wood and black pepper.

    Nessa Humayun
    Nessa Humayun
    Social Links Navigation
    Beauty Editor

    Nessa Humayun is the Beauty Editor at Marie Claire UK. With over eight years of editorial experience across lifestyle sectors, Nessa was previously the Editorial Lead of HUNGER Magazine, and has bylines in British Vogue, Dazed, and Cosmopolitan. A self-confessed human guinea pig, Nessa covers everything from product must-haves to long-reads about the industry writ large. Her beauty ethos is all about using products that work hard, so you don't have to.

    Read more
    Expensive beauty products, luxury beauty
    Beauty The Expensive Products That Are Actually Worth It, According to Beauty Editors Who’ve Tried Thousands
    Beauty Digest
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Max Mara Bottles an Icon, a £12.99 Skincare Revelation and an Ode to the Classic Massage
     
     
    collage of beauty items on sale
    Beauty 18 Iconic Beauty Buys That Are Either on Sale, Have a Discount Code or Both
    New Beauty Products: The Beauty Digest
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Dyson Does Teeth, Fenty Rips Up the Rulebook (Again) and a Surprisingly Fragrant Week for Dogs
     
     
    Latest in Beauty
    The Beauty Digest: New Products to Know
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: A Foundation With Infinite Shades, Diptyque Does Bodycare, and the Exhibition Every Beauty Lover Should See
    Best products for frizzy hair in the rain
    Hair Autumn Rain Wreaks Havoc on My Frizz-Prone Hair—These Are the Products That Keep It Smooth Without Weighing It Down
     
     
    Erborian Triple Care BB Milk
    Skincare I Thought My Dull, Lifeless Skin Needed More Actives—This Milky Essence Was Actually the Solution
    Autumn Nail Trends 2026
    Nails From Fawn Print to Milky Matcha—These Are Autumn 2026’s Defining Nail Trends
     
     
    Latest in Features
    Michelle Obama Liffner bag
    Fashion Michelle Obama Just Wore the Sophisticated Bag Brand Every Fashion Insider is Obsessed With
    Poppy Wang
    Fashion 5 Experts Explain the Nuances of the ‘Mandarin Jacket’ Trend
     
     
    Erborian Triple Care BB Milk
    Skincare I Thought My Dull, Lifeless Skin Needed More Actives—This Milky Essence Was Actually the Solution
    Freelance Health Writer Ellie-Mae Hammond trying the science-backed art of visualising a better future: Her journals
    Wellbeing I Tried the Science-Backed Art of Imagining a Better Future—What Happened to My Motivation, Confidence and Goals
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.