An Exclusive Interview with Wendy Rowe

Question 1

What do you define as healthy living?

Accepted Answer

For me, being healthy is all about being kind to yourself. That means including plenty of fresh, seasonal ingredients in your diet, especially lots of vegetables and eating meals that you have prepared yourself from scratch. It doesn’t have to be hard or time consuming to do this - I’ve included lots of my favourite, seasonal recipes in my book, Eat Beautiful and it’s all really simple and easy to follow. Another key part of being healthy, is working out regularly. It doesn’t matter what it is, but it’s really important to move the body to get the blood pumping and to sweat out toxins. I’m also a big believer in taking time to unwind, de-stress and relax the mind; meditation, a relaxing bath and taking the time each day for a proper skincare routine is a must. Make sure to use good quality skincare; look for things that are more natural and products that don't contain artificial fragrance and ingredients such as parabens. I think balance is also an important part of being healthy, and you should enjoy life. If you eat well, work out and look after yourself, you should allow yourself the odd treat now and then, being healthy isn’t about restriction.

Question 2

Tell us about “Eat Beautiful” – how important is this book to you?

Accepted Answer

Eat Beautiful is so important to me! It contains all of the things you need to know about how to achieve amazing skin in one place. Everything from recipes, beauty tips and natural remedies in the herbal pharmacy section as well as lots of gorgeous images. It contains everything that I’ve come to know over the years and its something that I refer to myself all the time when I need to remember things. It’s so nice to have all of this information written down to be able to share with people, I always love it when people tell me that it’s been helpful to them and benefited their ski

Question 3

How can healthy eating impact our skin?

Accepted Answer

If you eat lots of processed food that is full of additives, you will notice that your skin will become sluggish, dull, congested - and it won’t look its best. Eating meals prepared from scratch using fresh, seasonal ingredients will be healthier for you, and it’ll taste more delicious as well! Skin looks clearer and more glowing when you eat fresh ingredients and include plenty of green vegetables in your diet. The seasons naturally give you the ingredients that you need for each time of the year – things that grow in the summer months for instance, are naturally rich in water – things like courgette, cucumber, watermelon and they help to rehydrate the skin from the inside out which is what you need during summer. Things that are grown locally and that are in season tend to be organic and free from the preservatives and sprays that imported ingredients contain – for example, you know that things like strawberries will have had to travel a long way to the UK in December and so they will probably have been preserved. If produce is grown locally and its in season, then you know that it hasn’t had to travel far, it will be fresher and more nutritious, plus it’s usually less expensive too.

Question 4

Favourite beauty food snack?

Accepted Answer

Oily fish is great for the skin as it is so rich in omega oils and fatty acids. Its great for keeping the skin youthful and glowing and personally, I love the taste of it – my Sardines on Buckwheat Flatbreads recipe is one of my favourites! If you don’t like the taste of oily fish, which a lot of people tell me they don’t, then try including a supplement into your diet to ensure you get all of the collagen boosting benefits.

Question 5

Favourite skincare brand?

Accepted Answer

I am obsessed with amazing skincare and always take the time to get the skin in a great place before makeup application – both on myself and at work. I’d never dream of going to bed with makeup on, or applying makeup on unclean skin! One of the first skincare brands I ever bought anything from was Decléor – and I still love their products today. It was the Aromessence Neroli Night Balm that I first discovered from them, and that's a product that I still swear by for healing any irritation, dry patch, redness or spot – it’s amazing! I love that their Aromessences are 100% natural; they smell amazing and they really work. It’s important to use skincare that you know you can really trust, and at work, I have to be sure that nobody will ever react to anything I use – I just don’t have time for any flare ups, so I only use brands that I know will work even on the most sensitive skin type.

Question 6

Tell us about your skincare routine...

Accepted Answer

In the morning, I just wash my face with water, tone, moisturise and apply an eye cream, but in the evening, I spend more time and I use richer products to help repair and nourish over night. I cleanse using a cream cleanser, then I tone and moisturise with a richer cream and the evening is the time that I might apply a night balm or a mask depending on how my skin is feeling and the time of year. One thing I never forget is my body – it’s super important not to just stop with your face, so I always make time for my body, including my feet, which a lot of people forget. If I’m in a hurry in the morning, then I like to use Decléor’s 1000 Grain Exfoliator which you apply to dry skin before you get in the shower; it’s an oil based exfoliator so it never leaves your skin feeling dry. I also love their dry body oil after showering, as you can apply it onto damp skin and towel dry off any excess. It absorbs really quickly, which means you can get changed straight away, it’s really quick and easy in the mornings.

Question 7

How important is removing your makeup at the end of the day?

Accepted Answer

SO important! It’s something I always, always do – no matter how late it is; its so ageing and bad for the skin to sleep in it - I could never go to bed with my makeup on – it’d be awful! It’s the same as working out with makeup on for me, I just don’t understand why people would do that because when you work out, your pores open up and if you have makeup on then it will seep into the pores and clog them leading to congested, breakout prone skin.

Question 8

As a makeup artist, what’s the worst mistake you can make with cosmetics and your skin?

Accepted Answer

With your skin – the biggest mistake you can make is not keeping it clean enough, and by that I don’t mean stripping it so that it feels squeaky clean and “tight”. Use something like a micellar water first and an oil based eye makeup remover to get rid of all traces of your makeup and then take time to gently massage a cream cleanser into the skin and remove with water on cotton pad – that will really get the skin properly clean. With cosmetics, using a thick foundation all over the skin is one of the biggest mistakes I think you can make, it looks too heavy and it masks the skin, making it look flat. I like skin to look like skin, and even when people don’t think they have good skin, it’s so much more flattering to use something lighter as a base and just add a heavier concealer in places where it’s needed. It gives the illusion of much fresher, clearer skin and it’s much more youthful.

Question 9

Accepted Answer

In terms of makeup, I love Burberry’s Fresh Glow Fluid – it’s so different to anything else out there when it comes to glow. It’s water based and looks totally undetectable as makeup on the skin. It gives you the most amazing, luminous glow and I use it all the time on skin backstage – on the face, hands, neck and all over the body. Skincare wise, I love Decléor's Aurabsolu Mist for refreshing the skin and adding glow back in as the day wears on – it contains essential oils that work to revitalize the skin and give it a fresh, dewy glow – great with or without makeup.

Question 10

And finally…your number one beauty secret?

Accepted Answer

Make sure to have a fun and to have a laugh. It’s important to enjoy life and it really shows in your skin and the way you look if you are happy.

Sitting down with Wendy Rowe...

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