Beauty Secrets
Having healthy skin and hair is such an important part of my job. Providing a good base for the hair and makeup artists, reducing the amount of retouching required for the photographers in the campaigns, and having a healthy glow really adds to the quality of my work and helps me to keep booking consistent work.
In addition to exercising regularly and keeping a balanced, nutrient-rich diet, I have a few little beauty rituals to make sure my skin and hair are always in good condition. Everyone has their off days with stress, pollution and hormones, but keeping on top of the maintenance makes it easy so that no drastic measures are needed down the line. Some of my favorite brands are ones that I have worked with for a long time now. I'm somewhat of a product junkie and like to try new things, but here are some of my faves that I keep coming back to again and again:
In the interest of keeping things real, I haven't retouched any of these pictures.
The Staples: These little gems from Cactus Skin Care come with me everywhere!! I love the super gentle Lemon Myrtle Cleanser and Light Balancing Creme in the morning when I wake up, and the cleanser again and slightly richer Nature's Anti-Oxidant Creme in the evening. Once a week I use the White Clay Mask to draw out any impurities.
In The Shower:
Coffee based scrubs like Frank Body are great for buffing away dead skin and leaving it feeling silky soft and invigorated. They also smell delicious!
I usually use them 1-2 times a week on the evenings I'm going to self-tan, so that the base is super smooth and won't collect extra product. Just make sure you combine it with a gentle face cleanser if you're going to use it on your face, and clean your shower well afterwards so avoid coffee stains.
I also love the Perfect Potion Zest Body Polish (below) and the Frank Body Balm (above) for extra rough patches like knees and elbows. The Wash Me All Over Hand & Body Wash from Eleven Australia smells great and is super gentle.
I'm having a bit of a coconut obsession at the moment, and this Eco Coco shampoo & conditioner set from Stefan Hair Care smells delicious!!
The Bliss Fabulous Foaming Face Wash combined with my Clarisonic Mia brush is a fave for getting off stubborn makeup in the shower.
Out of the Shower:
A faux-glow is the ONLY safe way to tan. I tend to be out in the sun a lot and wear sunscreen every day (thanks Mum and Dad for instilling that one into me!), but I love a healthy, beachy glow as a confidence boost and for how it looks in photos. Continuing with my coconut-scent obsession, I LOVE the Bondi Sands range. 1-2 times a week (depending on what shoots I have coming up) I'll use the Self Tanning Foam in dark, wait about 10 mins, and then put on loose fitting pajamas and sleep in it. When I wake up in the morning I rinse it off and it's the perfect, even colour. Most days when before I do my hair and makeup, I use the Everyday Gradual Tanning Milk and the Everyday Face Gradual Tanning Lotion. You just let it dry for a couple of minutes before getting dressed and it won't transfer onto your clothes.
I also buy large quantities of Coconut Oil from my supermarket or Costco and use it not only in my cooking, but often I'll also use it as a body mask - just slather yourself in it and let it sink in, put on some PJs and sleep in it overnight. It'll keep your skin, and also self tan, smooth and even.
For the Mane:
I am a big advocate of regular trims, but I am totally guilty of not having cut my hair in a few months now (oops). I haven't coloured it in a long time, as you can see by my roots, but I felt that it needed a break. It gets put through so much with all the styling for shoots, so I just let the sun work it's magic for the natural highlights and try to protect it from the heat styling as much as possible.
As a hair mask once a week, I use the same coconut oil as in my cooking and on my body (separate and decant it into smaller bottles first). I towel dry my hair after shower, warm up the coconut oil so that it's liquid, pour it all over my hair and put it in a bun or braid. I put a towel over my pillow and sleep with it in, then the next morning, wash and condition as usual. It keeps my hair silky soft.
As well as their fab-smelling Hand and Body Wash - two of these Eleven Australia products have worked their way in with my usual post-shower Moroccan Oil application. I mix the Moroccan Oil with a couple of pumps of the Miracle Hair Treatment and let it dry naturally. Only once it's completely dry do I style it, but if I'm not working, I try to leave it. The Give Me Hold Flexible Hairspray is a great purse-size and is lightweight enough not to leave it crunchy.
From the Inside-Out:
Genetics play a role in how your hair, skin and nails will be, but I also strongly believe in nourishing from the inside-out with lots of colorful, natural foods, and also tea. Berries and tea are antioxidant-rich and help to keep your skin clear and your hair glossy. My favorite, relaxing way to kickstart my day or wind it down, is with a cup of Tea With Me's Skin Elixir. All of its ingredients are specifically blended to help you glow and it has certainly helped my skin in the last few weeks that I have been using it.
If you have any more questions about Healthy or Beauty - feel free to shoot me an email using the Contact form!
