The Last Weekend Wrap-Up Of 2024!
Jingling all the way into the holidays, and a BIG thank you for being here.
Happy Saturday, happy holidays and happy nearly-Christmas!
How are you doing? I won’t ask if you’re “all ready?” now, as I haven’t not been on my hands and knees on Christmas Eve doing battle with a roll of sticky tape (and resolving to never to impulse-buy the cheap stuff at checkouts again because it DOESN’T STICK) since I was pregnant with our eldest, two decades ago.
So, it’s seat-of-our-pants-to-a-Christmas-playlist as usual here!
Most importantly, I hope you’re doing really well. More than simply being the last Weekend Wrap-Up of the year, this is a giant THANK YOU, so much, for being part of the MBE story.
Whether you’ve been here since the beginning, back in February—when I thought it would be fun to write a Substack about the kind of beauty, style and wellness stuff my girlfriends and I in our 40s and 50s + chat about—or if you’ve just found us (a HUGE welcome!), I’m so grateful. The MBE community is such a wonderful, kind, funny, caring and marvellous one. It’s the chats we all have in the comments here that make the newsletter what it is, and are my favourite thing about this space.
So, jingling all the way into the weekend with some midlife beauty news from the last week!
This year started with Donna Karan’s fashion comeback, with ads featuring OG 80s/90s, first-name-only Supermodels including Cindy, Christy, Linda, Amber and Shalom.
This week, the campaign made into the Top 12 Age-Inclusive Ads of 2024 by Roar Forward, the U.S.-based midlife membership and content platform (the first of its kind). Other campaigns which made the list include Estée Lauder’s #BecauseOfMyAge, featuring actress Daisy Fuentes, Dove for its Beauty Never Gets Old ad, and Jones Road for the No Fuss Beauty spot on TV (another win for —if you’ve just joined the MBE, Bobbi shared her holiday makeup hacks with us last week).
Charlotte Tilbury is going into the New Year with a new venture: the opening of the brand’s world-first Skin Spa in London.
Scheduled to open on 9 January, the spa will be part of the new, relocated flagship store in Covent Garden (I mentioned the other week how the existing James Street shop, a few doors down from Tiffany, routinely has queues winding down towards the piazza).
Triple the size, the new flagship will be located on the corner of James Street and the landmark Royal Opera House building. It will offer a range of facial treatments using Charlotte Tilbury products, along with interactive features such as the first Pillow Talk Bar “play table”.
Watch this space for a first peek in the new year!
The sweet smell of 2025 …
In more mocha-themed beauty news, world-leading Swiss perfume group DSM-Firmenich has created a fragrance inspired by Pantone’s Color the Year 2025.
The Mocha Mousse scent, created in partnership with Pantone, is designed to capture the warmth and richness of Pantone 17-1230 Mocha Mousse, with key notes of cocoa bean, salted peanut and vanilla bean.
It was created by Honorine Blanc, a master perfumer at DSM-Firmenich and the nose behind fragrances by Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Ralph Lauren.
"I wanted to capture this enveloping feeling in the fragrance. Like savoring rich Mocha Mousse, it creates an instant craving,” says Honorine. “It is a celebration of softness as a profound and captivating force."
Speaking of all things cosy and chocolate-y, Byrdie spotted Pamela Anderson’s dark chocolate-coloured nails at a Golden Globes nominees lunch this week.
But I love her fresh look in the just-released photos for Variety which she shared on Insta a few days ago.
(If you’re looking for chocolate-coloured nail inspo, head back to this edition of the MBE, where we covered options for all budgets.)
Sparkle for longer
A hot tip for making a festive home mani or pedi last longer: go for the glitter option.
Glittery polishes adhere to the nail more effectively, going the distance for longer without chips.
I can vouch for the extra longevity—I’ve got a sparkly red on my toes right now, as I needed to give my nails a break from back-to-back gel (more on this from the experts in the new year, because I know many of you want us to get into nail rejuvenating treatments—and I’m with you!). Five days in, they’re going strong without chips.
Think softly sparkly, fresher and more uniform finish—also easier to swipe on than chunky glitters.
Looking for some last minute party hair inspo?
When there’s no time to start over, a festive hair accessory can save the evening (it did for me last night, on a drizzly Friday get together with friends after a day out shopping with my daughter). Good old Accessorize and Oliver Bonas are both great bets at the moment (if you can face the frenzy!).
Just add them to a glam side part, quick up-do, high ponytail or barrette.
PLUS! There’s lots more holiday hair inspo to dive into in the MBE archives. ✨
Party tricks
Firstly, full disclosure: the festive scene below couldn’t be further from where I am right now.
That’s a wrap for 2024!
Sending love to you and all of yours, and wishing you wonderful holiday and a very Merry Christmas!
Thank you so much for being here, and for all your support of the MBE—by clicking the ❤️ Like button after posts, sharing, re-stacking and, above all, being part of the crew! There are too many friends made here to mention, but I am truly grateful for each and every one I’ve had the joy of meeting this year through this space.
The first edition of the MBE of 2025 will be on Tuesday 7 January—see you then! XO
Thank you so much for this gorgeous post and for all the amazing mid-life advice this past year, it's so lovely and totally inspirational to have suggestions geared to our age group. Wishing you a very happy New Year! xx💖
Merry Christmas, Jenni! You have created such a joyful space here- it's like a little biweekly gift! You are such a beautiful and generous soul- so grateful the Substack universe put us in each other's path! Sending much holiday love, and cheers to an amazing 2025!! 🥂❤️