In About Face, xoNecole gets the 411 on IGers who give us #skincaregoals on a daily. Here they break down their beauty routines on the inside and out, as well as the highly coveted products that grace their shelves and their skin.
If you ask Micaéla Verrelien the secret to good skin that just won't quit, the creative would tell you that there is truth in less being more. After years of thinking that keeping up with a 10-step skincare routine was the move, the on-air camera host and content creator learned that her skin thrived on simplicity, derived from beauty lessons rooted in her motherland of Haiti. The roots of this were nurtured by seeing her own mother's approach to beauty and skincare at a young age. In particular, during her childhood, one of the most important beauty lessons she uncovered from her mother was the importance of a skincare-first approach to beauty.
"Growing up as a Caribbean woman, the biggest thing is kind of like how you look, and it's not a superficial thing where it's like you have to be your prettiest self and wear makeup because a lot of natural, my mom, specifically doesn't even wear makeup," she explains to xoNecole during our chat. "But skincare was always like so pivotal. So I would grow up seeing her take care of her skin every morning, every night. Like it was a religion, you know, making sure you wash your face. And it's funny because people say don't go to sleep with makeup on. You know, but even if you don't have makeup on, don't go to sleep with your day on."
Based on the inspiration she found in her roots, Micaéla's beauty evolution involved cultivating a routine that focused on the basics of a cleanser, serum, and moisturizer in that order. Whereas before, her skincare routine consisted of numerous steps and products she received from different brands that didn't necessarily cater to her oily skin type, nowadays, the recipe behind her glow is no more than four steps, and there is a hyperfocus on technique and application. When asked about the simplicity of her beauty routine, she responded, "I guess it's always been simple because before it was non-existent, and now it's existent. You want to be able to have a skincare routine that doesn't feel like a job or like work."
Courtesy of Micaéla Verrelien
"It's a part of the relaxation, just taking care of yourself. And if you have like a 10-step process, either you're forgetting things, you run out of one thing, or it just feels like an assignment. And I think skincare should feel like luxury. Like you're allowing yourself to be immersed in that luxury for that moment of time. It shouldn't feel like a task. And I think that's how I feel about it. And the simpler, the better, especially if it works," Micaéla added.
"I think skincare should feel like luxury. Like you're allowing yourself to be immersed in that luxury for that moment of time. It shouldn't feel like a task."
Feeling like luxury is a prevalent throughline in Micaéla's approach to her self-care. She ritualizes activities like taking herself to the movies and on solo dates, prioritizing routine massages, crossword puzzles, and meditation. This chapter of her life is about intentional indulging which is why she no longer deprives her oily skin of the moisture it craves. Having learned better, she does better.
"You need the moisturizers, you need the serums, and you need to drink more water, which is why the first thing I always do in the morning is drink more water. And I'll notice that my skin is less oily." She added, "Listen, I am looking like a glazed donut, like a whole brown glazed donut, when I go to sleep, I don't care. I'm like, my skin's going to glow in the morning. And you know what, it does, it glows."
Keep reading to learn more about some of the holy grail skincare products the creative keeps in rotation.
Micaéla Verrelien's A.M. Skincare Routine Must-Haves
Credit: Patrizia Messineo
Charlotte Tilbury Cryo-Recovery Lifting Face Mask
Charlotte Tilbury Cryo-Recovery Lifting Face Mask
Charlotte Tilbury
"It's like a rolling ball of ice. But imagine that, but on your face, just a flat ice mask on your face, and you can actually attach it so your face lifts up like that. And it also has acupuncture technology. It's a really cool thing. You look kind of crazy when you're wearing it. I definitely start off the morning routine with that."
Clinique Moisture Surge™ 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator
Clinique Moisture Surge™ 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator
Clinique
"Then I'll go into my skincare, and one of my favorite moisturizers right now, which I love, and I think I need it because I am someone that deals with oily skin, is the Clinique Moisture Surge. And I recommend the 100-hour one because that means, you know, when you add this 100-hour Moisture Surge, it's working and kicking off all the time. So when I wash my face, and then I add it again, it's just kind of like ongoing, always moisturized."
TULA Protect + Glow - Daily Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30
TULA Protect + Glow - Daily Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 30
TULA
"I love sunscreen. My favorite sunscreen is TULA. TULA has probably one of the best sunscreens. It's called Protect + Glow Sunscreen. And it's great, you know, if you're going on trips and you want to look very glowy, it kind of gives you a little bit of sparkle too. But that's my preferred sunscreen.
"And then after the sunscreen, I'll add like a dime size of moisturizer. I add more sunscreen than moisturizer. And I don't necessarily add serums on my day-to-day because I have oily skin. I'm looking for moisture in my skin, which is why I use a moisturizer."
Peter Thomas Roth 24K Gold Pure Luxury Lift & Firm Hydra-Gel Eye Patches
Peter Thomas Roth 24K Gold Pure Luxury Lift & Firm Hydra-Gel Eye Patches
Peter Thomas Roth
"I love these under-eye masks. So I never used to use under-eye masks, but now I'm like obsessed with them. I don't know if you heard of the brand Peter Thomas Roth. They're such a great brand. So, if I'm doing makeup or if I'm not doing makeup, I always add that in the morning. I've been doing that a lot lately."
Micaéla Verrelien's P.M. Skincare Routine Must-Haves
Credit: Patrizia Messineo
Clinique Moisture Surge™ 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator
Clinique Moisture Surge™ 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator
Clinique
"There's so many different moisturizers, but my preferred one is the 100-Hours. So I'm adding a dime size in the morning, and I'm adding a little bit more [at night]. I would say within two fingers of that Moisture Surge for my skin."
OSEA Hyaluronic Sea Serum
OSEA Hyaluronic Sea Serum
OSEA
"I love serums right now. And one of my favorite ones is from a brand called OSEA. I love them a lot."
OSEA Undaria Algae Body Oil
OSEA Undaria Algae Body Oil
OSEA
"I also love adding their body oil to my body. So that's something that I use at night as well. During the day, it's not that I don't hydrate my full body, but at night, because while we're sleeping, that's the best time for your body to kind of 'reboot' itself. So I'm adding the same brand OSEA. I add their body oil, like everywhere."
For more of Micaéla, follow her Instagram @micaelaverrelien.
Featured illustration by Qori B.
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To help you better understand why this was such a mental awakening for me, I first need to give a bit of my backstory. I’m in my late thirties. I’m an attorneyand a journalist. I own a home and have traveled the world extensively. Essentially, I’ve done everything in life I set out to do. However, when it comes to dating, I struggle. Not because there is anything wrong with me per se, but because my career and “lifestyle” often create problems in my romantic relationships.
View from my hotel room
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I’ve been told everything from, ‘I can’t continue to date you because you seem to choose your career over wanting to settle down and have kids’ by a man after only the second date to ‘Maybe if you just sat down somewhere for a while, I’d actually wife you’ by someone who has honestly never proven themselves to be the settle down type. And these are only a handful of the things I’ve been told over the years.
It’s been frustrating, to say the least, and there have even been seasons where I purposely dimmed my light in hopes that my career wouldn’t push away potential suitors. I know what you’re thinking, “Girl, why would you even consider that? If they’re for you, it won’t matter what you do.” Hey, don’t judge me, but also, I one hundred percent agree.
My hotel bathroom
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That’s why this recent moment in Switzerland was right on time. When I first walked into the hotel to check in, I was blown away by the surrounding beauty. It was a five-star property with one of the world’s most famous thermal bathhouses. Yet, it was something about seeing that 90% of the hotel’s guests were couples, that forced me to sit back for a bit of introspection—while soaking in the thermal spa, of course.
As I went through the mental conversation, there was a battle of sorts. On one hand, I knew that being able to partake in experiences like the one I was having at that moment was important to me. I knew that, at times I actually love being able to dabble in the finer things—after all, I’ve worked hard to be able to afford them. On the other hand, and sadly, I knew that sometimes being a single Black woman that publicly showcases her “luxurious” habits can intimidate men and even scare them off from pursuing you under the guise of them feeling like they “can’t do anything for you, because you have everything.”
My hotel room
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So, what is a girl to do?
Do I minimize/hide the life and experiences that I have? Do I play down the hard work I’ve put in to get where I am professionally? Or, do I risk being single in exchange for being able to have said life, without backlash?
Luckily, the joy that I felt while being at this property won. There was something about taking a full day to simply pamper myself at the bathhouse and in my in-room steam shower and soaker tub, indulging in cuisine from a 2-star Michelin restaurant and doing all of this while surrounded by an amazing group of Black women that reminded me—this is certainly the life I was meant to live and that I deserve. Even if it means that right now, I’ll just have to provide it for myself until the right partner comes along. And honestly, I’m okay with that.
Restaurant at 7132 hotel
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