Celebrity beauty secrets

You might not be able to justify an 11-hour flight to LA to get Brad and Jen's hair colourist, or stretch to Jodie Kidd's favourite £90 pedicure, but that's no reason why you shouldn't benefit from their experts' advice at home. We tracked down the best beauty therapists in the world and asked them for their top tips.

The skin care expert

Therapist: Eve Lom, once a dancer in Czechoslovakia, is now known as the skincare queen.

Clients: Madonna, Cate Blanchett and Meg Ryan.

Eve says: A daily cleanse and exfoliation is really all skin needs. Only use moisturiser where you need it - for instance, around the eye area and on the neck. Adapt to the demands of your skin. If you wake up and have a dry patch, use a dry cloth to scrub it away rather than moisturiser which will need to be reapplied later on.

Use a cleanser that you can apply with your hands and massage into the skin. That way, you can work on pressure points and sinuses, and help increase lymphatic drainage of toxins from your skin at the same time.

A spot needs to reject dead cells before it can heal, which moisturising prevents. Bad skin should not get near a moisturiser.

The spa expert

Therapist: Claire Rayner, spa manager at the Mandarin Oriental, Hyde Park.

Clients: Jodie Kidd, Elle Macpherson and Elizabeth Hurley.

Claire says: Always start a session of body treatments with exfoliation to get rid of old skin cells, stimulate circulation and boost the lymphatic system.

Choose a natural product such as sea salt mixed with oil, which has fantastic healing properties. Spritz your body under the shower and then apply the scrub all over, using upward strokes towards the heart.

If it's in the evening, wash it off using warm water. If it's morning, use cool water to stimulate and tone.

The tanning expert

Therepist: Judy Naake brought self-tanning salon treatment St Tropez to the UK.

Clients: Victoria Beckham and Cat Deeley.

Judy says: Exfoliate the whole body then moisturise. Use a tan with a guide colour and apply it with tight-fitting latex gloves in front of a full-length mirror in good light to avoid patchiness. Start with your feet and work upwards. On the face, use a very diluted mix of tan and moisturiser around the hairline to avoid dying bleached or grey hair. Lastly, moisturise your hands: put a little tan on the backs and rub them together. Use moisturiser on a tissue to work a dilute tan mix onto your fingers. Rub a tissue over your palms, nails and toenails, and wipe a cotton bud over your eyebrows to avoid darker patches.

The Hair Colourist

Therapist: Lorri Goddard works from John Frieda's LA salon.

Clients: Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, Renee Zellweger and Meg Ryan.

Lorri says: To find the right colour, dig out old photos of yourself at the age of four or five, when your hair was lighter, or look at celebrities who have the same skin tone as you.

Make sure hair is clean. Use a barrier cream such as Vaseline around your hairline and over ears to prevent skin from staining. Then section hair into four pieces. Apply colour at the roots and comb downwards.

After you've finished, remove excess tint around the hairline with a damp towel. If you have stained your skin, use an old towel dipped in tint remover (from chemists) and cigarette ash dabbed on the skin.

The manicurist

Therapist: New York manicurist, Deborah Lippmann has her own range (www.lippmanncollection.com), including two special shades developed with Mariah Carey and Sarah Jessica Parker

Clients: Demi Moore, Britney Spears.

Deborah says: The best shape for your nails is one that reflects the shape of your cuticle. When you file your nails constantly flip your hands so you see them from all angles. Apply a cuticle remover and use an orange stick to push back the cuticle. Use a hand cream, then some varnish remover to strip any remaining oil. Apply a base coat before the main colour and build up in layers. Leave two minutes between each coat, and don't do anything for 20 minutes after the final coat.

The podiatrist

Therapist: French podiatrist Bastien Gonzalez's one-hour medical pedicure uses diamond dust to remove ridges and includes a foot-and-leg massage.

Clients: Top secret, but Madonna and Jodie Kidd are said to be fans.

Bastien says: Cut toenails straight across. Never cut down the sides of the nails as this can cause ingrown toenails. Be sparing with nail varnish as it doesn't let nails breathe and can cause fungal infections. If you put it on for a night out, remove it the next day. Use a chamois leather to polish nails. After a bath or shower, use a pumice stone or file on wet feet to remove hard skin. Then massage in an oil or foot cream to improve circulation.