There's rather a buzz around foundation at the moment. Sales soared earlier this year by 15 per cent according to L'Oréal, and a new kind is causing a bit of a stir – mineral foundation.

Unlike conventional, liquid foundation, mineral make-up is a powder, made from finely ground minerals. The way it's put on is also different. You do it with a brush using a circular, buffing motion, a bit like polishing a table, and it has its advantages.

''I've never liked foundation, but this is so light, it doesn't feel like I'm wearing it,'' says one recently converted fan, who has also found it works with her rosacea-prone skin. It is also easier to put on tidily.

Jane Iredale Purepressed Base, £33.50 (020 8450 7111; www.powderpuff.net). A pressed version applied with a puff, so useful for contact-lens wearers, as no chance of powder getting into eyes. ''It doesn’t bring me out in spots and my skin doesn’t feel clogged because it’s so light,” says rosacea sufferer Jane Thornhill.