One of these days I was talking to people how I became so obsessed with makeup, style and shoes so I started thinking and went back to my childhood, when I used to smash my aunt’s Ciane’s eyeshadow palettes (sorry auntie) and smear my aunt’s Tiana’s lipsticks on my face, while they weren’t around.

The technique was the same: wait until they were distracted chatting with family or going over their daily and go over their dressing tables and pounce, in the dark, getting hold of anything I could, quickly.

I was always asking my mum to dress me up, wearing sunglasses and posing for pictures from a very young age. At my mum’s house there are tons of albums, covering many years, with similar behaviour (some may say it continues to the day!)

After that, my next memories were in my very early teens. I wanted red hair. And of course, mum wouldn’t let a 12-year-old dye her hair. So my friend Paula and I bought some red crepe paper and wet it, scrunching it on our locks. That made for beautiful crimson hair with colour that would run down your face when you sweat – and I would look like and extra of a bad 90’s zombie movie. Oh the glamour!

A little bit later, I also wanted purple nails. At the time, you wouldn’t find all the colour of the rainbow just around the corner, in any chemist. So I got a BIC blue byro and broke the ink tube inside a lovely milky white colour my mum had, and created a dark, shiny purple shade, that stained my nails like hell – but let’s think of the positives!

I also remember being very resourceful with my clothes. I’d cut and customise – but mainly get my poor granny (an amazing seamstress) to execute my crazy visions. As I drove her mad with my requests and she started to get a bit fed up, I found a pro just around the corner who would suffer no less, but complain little, about my crazy demands (“a 60cm silver lamé dress with a 15 cm thigh slit? Are you serious?”).

Making things I saw in magazines and liked, but couldn’t find to buy was also a habit of mine – one day I saw some ankle cuffs on TV, to wear with stilettos. And I liked it. So I got a thick pair of tights and cut them, using as cuffs. I loved it! I saw full length lace gilets (!!!) I made my mum make for me, when no one else was wearing them.

There are plenty good (actually great) memories, but they come along with an equal amount of  bad and ugly ones… I remember very well how my aunties were furious at me for destroying their goodies (sorry again! Now I know how you felt) and that the boy I liked at school hated my purple nails… not to mention my mum’s face when she saw my red hair. I also remember people pointing at my creations, just for people to be wearing similar things in the following weeks! Possible the worst beauty memories were linked to my makeup in the late 90’s: white caked face, no blusher, tons of lipgloss and light eyeshadow covering the WHOLE lid. Yes. That. Moving on swiftly…

To the heels… well… they always fascinated me. I remember very vaguely wearing my mum’s and aunt’s (poor aunt Ciane, I say) heels and trotting around the house. I was loved dressing up, accessorising and posing (you would never tell, hahahahahahah) and asking my mum to take pictures of me! But I clearly I remember when I wore heels for the first time. I was 14 and borrowed one my mum’s boots (they were black leather, pointed toe, calf length and pin heels of about 7cm) to go a party. I was so happy and remember them crippling my feet, soaking my feet in salty warm water and asking a very good friend of mine to massage them, in front of my house, at the end of the night. But from that moment on, I never let go.

Looking back, I think all the signs were there and I was bound to become the person I have!

What about you? What is your earliest beauty memory?