This month’s most regularly used lip “things” have been the new Tom Ford Lip Colour Shines. There’s something about Tom Ford – everything he touches just seems to appeal to me. I’ve said this before – Tom and I have very similar tastes. He should probably hire me as some kind of muse, or consultant, or just to “guard” his beauty cupboard – I could wear my coat with the huge deep pockets. Lip Colour Shine: sexy, sleek packaging (as always) and a lip colour with a rich, cushiony texture and a sheer but somehow incredibly punchy tint. I’ve been wearing Nubile (an apt description of myself, hohoho) which is a darkish, rosy neutral…

…and the lip colours shown in the main photograph are called Chastity and Frolic. Frolic is a marvellous easy-to-wear coral and I shall make sure that it goes into a video soon. Nubile has made it into my everyday “routine” simply because it’s so wearable and posh-looking. It’s a little darker than I’d usually go and so it makes me feel more grown-up, but I keep my eye makeup light and my base fresh and sheer and it all pans out OK in the end. What do you think?

Tom Ford’s Lip Colour Shines are £36 each – the same price as the more opaque lipsticks and very firmly at the priciest end of the cosmetics scale. If you wanted to buy into some Tom “Midas” Ford makeup then I’d go for the lipshine rather than the lipstick, only because (if you’re anything like me) you’ll use the shine on a more regular basis. There’s nothing worse than splashing out on a little self-treat lipstick only to find it two years later, used once, lid lost, half a dead fly stuck to the bullet. You could, of course, get a similar effect by sheering out the more opaque lipstick with a bit of balm – it’ll last a lot longer, too – but if you’re a no-faff, whip-out-an-impressive-piece-of-cosmeticry kind of lady then you’ll appreciate the all-in-one.

Find them at House of Fraser