The Beauty Diary by Beck Sullivan: Nine colourful and fun products to put you in a good mood, starring Rihanna’s fave $30 lip gloss

LET’S face it. Wherever Rihanna goes, we blindly follow. She’s got an awesome cheap product that legit looks good on absolutely everyone.

BEING a woman in the world at the moment is exhausting.

On some days, just finding the energy to get out of bed is a battle.

We have a depressing news cycle telling us all the different ways men are screwing us over and a government full of old white blokes who keep making decisions that only benefit themselves.

Even when we try to catch a break by indulging in delicious around-the-clock royal tour coverage, there’s some prick on Twitter ready to lecture us about all the important stories more worthy of our attention.

So when the crushing weight of anxiety about our depressing world becomes unbearable, I turn to makeup.

Now is not the time for those neutral taupe tones the lady at the Bobbi Brown counter said suited my skin tone. I’m talking loads of bright, sparkly products with lots of glitter in fun gold packaging.

There’s something awesome about indulging in delightful beauty products when you’re in a bit of a slump. It’s hard to be in a bad mood when you’re wearing glitter.

Feeling tired? Time for some blinding highlight. Stressful week at work? Better pack on that shimmery eyeshadow.

While it might sound silly to some, the simple act of calmly painting my face in the morning is a soothing self-care ritual. It makes me feel good and a little more like myself.

If you’ve had a tough week, month or decade, here are nine fun products guaranteed to make you smile and put you in a good mood

Missed last week’s column? Read about the $46 setting spray that changed my life

Welcome to News.com.au's weekly beauty column The Beauty Diary.

HOURGLASS SCATTERED LIGHT GLITTER EYESHADOW

Nothing like glitter eyeshadow to cheer you up.

Price: $46

Available from: Mecca Cosmetica and Mecca Maxima

This is a beautiful luxe glitter eyeshadow that is surprisingly easy to apply. Just pack it onto your finger and sweep across your eyelid.

It comes in five flattering shades, but the gold is particularly beautiful.

You’ll need a fluffy crease or blending brush to blend out the edges.

To avoid fallout — the term for those annoying loose bits of eyeshadow and glitter that fall down onto your skin — try doing your eye first and then putting your base on afterwards.

FENTY BEAUTY KILLAWATT FREESTYLE HIGHLIGHTER IN TROPHY WIFE

I lovvvveeee Trophy Wife. You will too.

Price: $50

Available from: Sephora

Rihanna’s entire beauty line Fenty Beauty is all about having fun.

Some of her best products are her highlighters. They come in a range of different shades and are all amazing, but the queen of the pack is Trophy Wife.

It’s a stunning bright gold shade that can be used as an eyeshadow, a highlighter or body glitter. Honestly, I just want to slather it all over my face.

Trophy Wife looks particularly awesome on women with darker skin but it can work on anyone.

MECCA COSMETICA ENLIGHTENED LIT FROM WITHIN POWDER

This highlighter just makes me happy.

Price: $48

Available from: Mecca Cosmetica and Mecca Maxima

Mecca’s in-house range of skincare and makeup products consistently deliver. This is the pressed powder version of the balm highlighter I’ve raved about previously and I’m obsessed.

It’s a more natural-looking highlight if you don’t want to go full cray, but it still has great pay-off and the packaging is beautiful.

FENTY BEAUTY GLOSS BOMB UNIVERSAL LIP LUMINISER

Wearing lip gloss makes me feel like a thot and I love it.

Price: $30

Available from: Sephora

When Rihanna first launched Fenty Beauty she only released one lip product in one shade. Gloss Bomb is a lip gloss in a universal colour that is legit flattering on everyone.

One swipe across the lips and you feel like a bougie queen.

It now comes in a second glittery shade called Diamond Milk if you really want to ham up that glitter lip look.

SEPHORA COLLECTION COLOURFUL BLUSH

Blush instantly brightens up your face.

Price: $21

Available from: Sephora

Blush is an instant mood-lifter. It makes you look healthy and awake, plus it’s usually pretty cheap and lasts for ages.

Some beauty purists argue your blush shouldn’t have any shimmer in it. I say do whatever you want.

This blush is super cheap and comes in heaps of different matte and shimmer shades.

I personally love the peachy-coral colour “Heated” because it’s less girly than a straight pink, plus it always manages to make me look fresher than I’m actually feeling.

AESOP BODY CLEANSER

You know you've hit peak bougie when you slather your body in Aesop.

Price: $27 for 220mL or $49 for 500mL

Available from: Aesop stores and online, Adore Beauty

Nothing is more satisfying than coming home and slathering this all over your naked body after a long day of having annoying people telling you what to do.

Sure, your boss sucks and owes you 97 hours of overtime.

But the smug feeling you get seeing that little Aesop bottle in your shower at night somehow makes things a little bit more bearable.

AVENE HYDRANCE OPTIMALE SERUM

How good is it when you find a skincare product you love from Chemist Warehouse?

Price: $60

Available from: Priceline, Chemist Warehouse

Sometimes when you’re feeling low you just want a quick fix. A Band-Aid solution.

Now we’ve all had our weak moments where we’ve texted emotionally unavailable men whose numbers our friends told us to delete. But next time you get the urge, stay strong and go to Priceline and Chemist Warehouse instead.

Get lost in those overcrowded aisles and buy a great new skincare product.

This serum isn’t super cheap, but it’s more affordable than pretty much all of the fancy serums at Sephora and Mecca — and it works.

It’s super hydrating and can be used in lieu of a moisturiser in summer or if you’re particularly oily.

CLARISONIC MIA CLEANSING BRUSH

I promise this thing is worth every cent.

Price: $219. The replacement brush heads are $35 each or $59 for a pack of two

Available from: Mecca Maxima

People always assume my Clarisonic is a sex toy. It’s obviously not, but it does buzz quite loudly and bring me immense pleasure.

I describe the Clarisonic as a giant electric toothbrush. You use it in the shower for a very thorough deep cleanse and light exfoliation.

I use it with the classic Cetaphil cleanser when my skin feels congested or in summer when I’m sweating, wearing lots of sunscreen and spending time in salt water/chlorine.

You buzz it around your face for a minute — it automatically turns off when it needs to — and are left with super soft, clean skin.

It’s great for people prone to breakouts or for teenagers with congested skin wanting a good deep cleanse.

DOUBLE ENDED BLEMISH EXTRACTOR

I'm obsessed with my facial extractor, don't @ me.

Price: Varied

Available from: Sephora Collection, Tweezerman, Amazon.

OK, so I actually can’t remember where I got my facial extractor from, but I think it was Mecca or Sephora. Basically it’s a metal stick with a hole at each end.

Every dermatologist and facialist in Australia is probably going to be mad at me for suggesting you have a professional extractor for home use, but I’m obsessed with mine and you need to know about them.

Purging your face full of gunk feels like a small victory after a tough day.

You should only ever extract blackheads or squeeze pimples when you’ve just got out of the shower so your skin is soft, hot and those bad boys can pop right out.

I use this on my chin and my nose for this tiny little bumps that aren’t quite pimples but are still really annoying and make your skin look congested.

You’ll physically see all that disgustingness come out of your face. It’s totally satisfying.

— This column is not sponsored and this is not advertorial content. Every review is independent, honest and ad-free.

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