Beauty Detail
The Skin Care Gadget Kristin Cavallari Uses To “Exercise” Her Face
The star reveals her go-to beauty products and skin care routine.
In Bustle’s Beauty Detail, we dive into the beauty bags of our favorite talents for intel on the rituals that keep them glowing and the MVPs (most valuable products) they can't live without. Here, Kristin Cavallari tells Bustle about her outlook on beauty, her best makeup tips, and the out-there skin care device she swears by.
Listening to Kristin Cavallari talk about her beauty routine and self-care rituals is entirely different from listening to her quips on The Hills and Laguna Beach — the reality shows that jumpstarted her now-burgeoning career. For example: “I definitely think that beauty comes from within. When you’re happy and you’re comfortable in your own skin, that really radiates through,” she tells Bustle over Zoom.
That’s all to say Cavallari, 34, isn’t the antagonistic character you may remember from TV. Instead, the reality star-slash-entrepreneur, designer, and author is warm and easy to chat with. One particular point of interest? Skin care — especially now as Cavallari’s fashion and jewelry brand, Uncommon James, has grown to encompass Uncommon Beauty, a line of skin-nourishing essentials meant to streamline your routine.
“Skin care has always been really important to me as someone who’s always been prone to breakouts,” she says. “My biggest goal is to not get Botox or fillers — I don’t know what I’ll be saying when I’m 54, but that is my goal. And I think taking care of your skin, starting at an early age, is so important.” That’s why Uncommon Beauty features products centered on hydrating your complexion with gentle ingredients — think glycerin, fruit extracts, and peptides.
When it comes to makeup, Cavallari gravitates toward looks she feels comfortable with. “I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older, similar to my style, is to just stick to what you know and what looks good on you,” she tells Bustle. “Wearing makeup should just enhance your natural beauty rather than make you look like a completely different person.”
Her go-to look, for one, doesn’t involve foundation. “I actually hate face makeup,” she says. “When I’m going to the farmer’s market or running around with my kids, I don’t have any makeup on except for a little bit of mascara and I fill in my brows.”
As far as her self-care practices, Cavallari turns to exercise to reset her mind and body. “Working out consistently helps me get stress out,” she tells Bustle. Her favorite way to sweat is via circuit training, in which she’ll get her cardio fix by working with weights. “I try to keep the pace up so that at least my heart rate is up,” she says. “But I don’t do a lot of cardio.” She also makes time for journaling every day: “I use a gratitude journal, which I’ve found can either set the tone for the day or shift your mentality at night. Putting everything into perspective helps.”
Read on for the beauty products she keeps in her arsenal.
Her Favorite Serum
“In the morning, the only two products I use are the Pineapple Nectar and the Daily Water Cream [by Uncommon Beauty]. I don’t even wash my face — I just splash it with water and apply these. I’ve had friends say, ‘Did you just get a facial?’ and it’s truly from these two products. They’re just so incredibly hydrating and almost like, plump up your face.”
Her Go-To Eyeshadow Palette
“I just got this eyeshadow palette. I have a light brown caramel eye color and this is a ton of just... honey is the best way to describe it, but caramels and browns. These look the best on me. It’s perfect for every day, or you can smoke it up and amp it up for going to dinner. It’s the perfect nude palette.”
Her MVP Eyeliner
“This smudges perfectly and lasts all day — it’s my favorite eyeliner. I’ll put a line on the top, then I’ll go on the inside waterline on the top. I love that for a little extra definition, and it actually smudges to the bottom without looking like a harsh line, so I do that if I’m just going to the office. It’s a good hack I picked up from a makeup artist.”
Her Skin Care Gadget
“This thing is great because it’s a little electric current machine — it’s my secret. You put gel on your face, crank this thing up, and you can use gloves to rub on your face. It also has probes, or you can use pads and put them on your face so you can be hands-free. I do it for 10 or 20 minutes. Your face is a muscle and we need to work it out the same way we would any other muscle. That’s why I don’t do the whole Botox route, because this is the opposite of that — it’s working the muscle instead of freezing it. I’ve noticed a huge difference. It’s a cool thing to do right before a photoshoot or big event, because it really tightens everything up.”
Her Must-Have Bath Product
“I do like doing Epsom salt [baths] for the magnesium, especially after a workout. There’s a charcoal one from goop that I like. It turns the whole bath black, though, so you definitely have to scrub that thing after. But I give two of my three kids a bath still almost every night so that almost ruins [baths] for me.”
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