In my life, I’ve inhabited many different worlds. I’ve been through phases of dressing like a goth, a hippy and a really girly girl. As a student, I read economics and philosophy, then worked for a PR company where everyone dressed in suits. Then, after reading an article that said you should follow your passion according to which part of the newspaper you read first, I pivoted into a career in food with an apprenticeship at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen restaurant. I’ve worked hot shifts in busy kitchens, and now I spend my time testing recipes, going on food photoshoots and writing about cooking, alongside looking after my two-year-old son at home. But through it all, I’ve kept a very consistent look. I’ve always admired women who reinvent themselves dramatically, but that’s just never been my way. Happily, I’ve always been content in my own skin and I put that down to my mum.
Looking back on myself as a little girl, I was so pretty and sweet but I didn’t always feel it. I wore glasses, which I hated, so I ditched them for contact lenses as soon as I could. However, at quite a young age I realised that despite what I looked like, my value came from my inside not my outside. That discovery was thanks to Mum. She really instilled in my sister, Laura, and me that makeup was there for us to use if we wanted it, but that it wasn’t something we should put on for anyone beyond ourselves. As a teenager I would play around with pink pearlescent lipsticks and questionable eyeshadows and it was always a fun part of dressing up – it never felt essential. As a proud feminist, Mum has only ever dressed for herself, and is naturally very beautiful. She has the most vibrant, glowing skin and has never worn a scrap of foundation. I carry her belief inside me, which is that I’m worth more than what I put on my face.
Following my apprenticeship, I worked in restaurant kitchens in London and around the world. I’d swapped the corporate world of heels and power suits for a predominantly male environment. I’d still wear makeup in the kitchen but not too much – opening an oven door, for instance, can melt off your mascara. I’d wear chef’s whites, made for men, with my hair scraped back. The chef’s outfit was defeminising and sometimes that was useful, especially on the occasions where I’d have to bring out my inner alpha female. But I also wanted to feel like a woman – and to feel like myself – and a little makeup helped me mark myself out from the boys, even if it was just a lick of mascara, some blusher and a dot of concealer.
When I left the kitchens to work for Jamie Oliver on his food team, helping him to write recipes, make his TV shows and make his food look good in pictures, I was introduced to a whole new world of photoshoots, lights and cameras.
And, thanks to my work, I’ve had my eyes opened to the fact that there’s more than just one makeup setting – it doesn’t have to always be a natural base and a flick of eyeliner.
This was brought home to me in the run up to my wedding, two years ago. John and I married in a beautiful church on an island in north Wales. It was an idyllic setting but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to get a makeup artist to take the trip, so my dear friend Ceri bought me a three-hour makeup lesson in London with an amazing woman called Sasha, so that I could do my own on the day. It was fantastic and so much better than watching a YouTube tutorial. Obviously I don’t often recreate the look I wore on my wedding day (although it was very natural), but thanks to that lesson, I have a few different “faces” that I can bring out, depending on the occasion. And while I’m often happy to embrace the day bare-faced, I do have a go-to look that suits me most days. Having never been a morning person – and now with my son Dylan, two, to look after – I can do the whole thing in seven minutes: light foundation, cream concealer, bronzer, peachy blusher, eyelash curlers, mascara and a smear of lip balm. I’ve done it on the tube and in the back of a taxi.
There’s a definite synergy that connects the way I look and the ethos behind my style of cooking. My recipes are full of fresh, vibrant, earthy flavours and that’s reflected in how I present myself. I like clothes made from natural fabrics that feel good on my skin in colours that reflect nature – my love of things that come from the earth pervades every aspect of my life. With the food I make, I try to put joy at the centre of every plate, and that’s how I approach getting ready in the morning. Those seven minutes are probably the only time I spend on myself during the whole day. It’s a ritual that helps me to feel bright and ready to face the day.
Photography: Brian Daly and Louisa Parry
