2020, it’s been a ride. In a year that took so much from us, we have to count our blessings for one thing: Google.
From ‘fun things to do at home‘ and ‘where to buy a face mask‘, to ‘the best jigsaw puzzles‘ and ‘who the hell is Carole Baskin’, we turned to the search tool to satiate our most burning quandaries.
With our trusty beauty salons shut for the vast majority of the year, we had to rely on ourselves and good old Google for maintaining our beauty regime during the pandemic. So what exactly was the world Googling when it came to beauty in 2020? Google has shared the results of its 2020 Year in Search, revealing everything from the people and topics to events and TV shows that captured the world’s attention through the lens of Google Search.
GLAMOUR has been granted exclusive access to the key beauty questions and terms that the world was asking – and we’ve taken it upon ourselves to answer them for you. You’re welcome.
The best hair clippers
Most men are accustomed to monthly trims so the lockdown period proved a true test. While some men were happily emulating Hey Arnold / Edward Scissorhands, others are desperate to trim their ends – with several looking to their partners to step up and perform.
It’s little wonder that men hailed trimmers and hair clippers ‘like gold dust’ as they continuously sold out online. Luckily we’ve done the hard work for you and trawled the ‘net to source the best hair clippers to buy. Once armed with your tools of choice, read our Fashion Editor’s definitive guide (with step-by-step pictures) to cutting men’s hair at home.
How to cut your own hair
Obviously we know that cutting our hair at home is not ideal. But we also know that desperate times call for desperate measures, and that there were a fair few of us emerging from lockdown with a wonky fringe. Oops. Thankfully hairdressers are open again now but just in case of a second national lockdown in the New Year, we went to the top hairdressers to ask them their advice for avoiding hair-cutting disasters at home in our definitive guide to cutting your hair at home.
The best acrylic / gel nail kit
Of course, we love our gel nails and our manicurists dearly. But for those who couldn’t get to their salon during lockdown – or now look at salon trips as an occasional treat and need something else to tide them over, at-home gel nail kits may be the solution, when chip-prone regular polish doesn’t cut it. It seems people were keen to find out which ones were the best.
Luckily, DIY nails have come a long way since 90s gems and nail stickers (though we’ll take a pack of those, too), and it’s now pretty easy to achieve premium, pro(ish)-quality results from your lounge. There’s an entire roster of easy-to-use DIY gel nail kits to help keep your nails in tip-top condition and bring the glossy finish of gel formulas straight to your home. And if you work out the cost-per-manicure, they’re *seriously* affordable. These are our favourite at-home gel mani kits.
How to cut mens hair
Whilst ‘the best hair clippers’ was the most-Googled beauty question among confident folk, ‘how to cut mens hair’ wasn’t far behind. According to top salon Larry King’s super colourist and all-round hair hero, Harriet Muldoon, the most important tip to heed when it comes to cutting your man’s hair is that ‘less is more’. “You can always take more off. Also make sure to do it in front of a mirror to use as a guide, and pull the hair our with your fingers each side simultaneously to ensure it’s even.”
In light of this burgeoning national fear, our Fashion Editor decided to take one for the team – or, rather, her boyfriend did – and trial the at-home isolation cut in order for you to learn from her mistakes. Here is her ultimate, no bullsh*t guide to cutting your man’s hair.
Skincare
As well as giving us plenty of time to bake banana bread and complete jigsaws, lockdown allowed us time to focus on our skincare regime. I don’t know about you but I certainly saw it as a daily act of self-care. Pre-lockdown, I’d arrive home half-baked after a boozy dinner in Soho and swipe a micellar water-soaked cotton pad across my face before falling into bed. Now, however, I really take the time to meticulously apply serums, hyaluronic acids and masks. Hey, I even tried a bloody LED mask. Who am I? If you’re looking for a definitive guide to the best skincare of all time, our beauty editors have shared just that.