Tiwa Savage is one of Afrobeats' biggest stars and with such a hectic schedule and being a mom, she managed to take time out of her day to share her skin care routine with fans. Check out her Beauty Secrets with Vogue below:
Tiwa Savage's Skin Care Routine
Vogue/YouTube
The “Somebody’s Son” singer is a big fan of Dr. Barbara Sturm products and revealed that she uses their cleanser, toner, sunscreen, and spot treatment. She also shared that she uses a face cream that was made special for her. “Dr. Barbara takes my blood and she takes the plasma from my blood to make this face cream,” she revealed. “Only for me. Only for Tiwa.”
Vogue/YouTube
When she applies the face cream, she likes to mix it with Dr. Barbara Sturm Sun Drops SPF 50 as protection from the sun. “That’s another misconception with girls my complexion thinking they don’t need to protect their skin from the sun but it is so important. And honestly, when I go out or even when I’m at home, I use it every day,” she said.
The MTV EMA winner’s skin care routine is drastically different than when she was younger. She explained that she would only use black soap and cocoa butter but it wasn’t until the COVID-19 lockdown that she started researching ways to take better care of her skin. She also fell victim to skin bleaching due to the lack of representation she saw as a young girl.
“When I was younger, I moved from Nigeria to the UK, and at that time to be honest there really wasn’t a lot of girls my complexion being represented in the beauty space,” she explained. “I actually tried to bleach my skin. So I was using these products to make you lighter and I remember my mom coming in my room one day and she saw these products and she was so disappointed and just trying to affirm how beautiful my skin was and it was such an emotional time for her.”
Makeup
Vogue/YouTube
When it comes to putting on her face, she said that she doesn’t use foundation, which is something she learned from supermodel Naomi Campbell.
“I spend more time on skin care than I do makeup. For like a couple of years now, I’ve actually stopped using foundation even when I’m performing on stage,” she said. “Even for photo shoots, videos, nothing and this was something that Naomi Campbell told me. She doesn’t use foundation or hardly uses foundation.”
She added, “I was like if it works for Naomi Campbell it’s definitely gonna work for me ‘cause she’s stunning.”
Vogue/YouTube
But she uses a variety of other makeup products and methods. For her eyebrows, she likes to use Huda Beauty Bomb Brows Microshade Pencil and concealer to shape the brow.
“I don’t like anyone doing my eyebrows so even if I have a makeup artist, I still do my eyebrows myself,” she claimed.
Vogue/YouTube
The next step is baking with Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder followed by contouring the nose with MAC Cosmetics Studio Fix Sculpt and Shape Contour Palette.
The 42-year-old mom of one also dished on her exciting lipstick collaboration with MAC.
“When this opportunity came up with MAC, I didn’t want to go for what I normally go for so I wanted to do red,” she explained. “I always admired when I see women with red lips. It’s sexy. It’s just bold. It’s confident and I wanted to create a red color that would make me feel like that.
Vogue/YouTube
She applied her lipstick but not without using MAC Cosmetics Lip Pencil in Nightmoth first. Before closing out the video the “Koo Koo Fun” singer encouraged everyone to take time and get to know their skin inside out.
“Nobody else knows your face better than you,” she said. “If you invest the time, in skin care, makeup, I promise you it might seem overwhelming but you’ll get the hang of it.”
Tiwa Savage’s Day-to-Night Beauty Look | Beauty Secrets | Vogue
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In a xoNecoleexclusive, the iconic actress opens up about embracing this season of her life, new projects, and overall being a “bad motherfucker.” Gabrielle reveals that she was 37 years old when she was diagnosed with perimenopause and is still going through it at 51 years old. Mayo Clinic says perimenopause “refers to the time during which your body makes the natural transition to menopause, marking the end of the reproductive years.”
“I haven't crossed over the next phase just yet, but I think part of it is when you hear any form of menopause, you automatically think of your mother or grandmother. It feels like an old-person thing, but for me, I was 37 and like not understanding what that really meant for me. And I don't think we focus so much on the word menopause without understanding that perimenopause is just the time before menopause,” she tells us.
Gabrielle Union
Photo by Brian Thomas
"But you can experience a lot of the same things during that period that people talk about, that they experienced during menopause. So you could get a hot flash, you could get the weight gain, the hair loss, depression, anxiety, like all of it, mental health challenges, all of that can come, you know, at any stage of the menopausal journey and like for me, I've been in perimenopause like 13, 14 years. When you know, most doctors are like, ‘Oh, but it's usually about ten years, and I'm like, ‘Uhh, I’m still going (laughs).’”
Conversations about perimenopause, fibroids, and all the things that are associated with women’s bodies have often been considered taboo and thus not discussed publicly. However, times are changing, and thanks to the Gabrielle’s and the Tia Mowry’s, more women are having an authentic discourse about women’s health. These open discussions lead to the creation of more safe spaces and support for one another.
“I want to be in community with folks. I don't ever want to feel like I'm on an island about anything. So, if I can help create community where we are lacking, I want to be a part of that,” she says. “So, it's like there's no harm in talking about it. You know what I mean? Like, I was a bad motherfucker before perimenopause. I’m a bad motherfucker now, and I'll be a bad motherfucker after menopause. Know what I’m saying? None of that has to change. How I’m a bad motherfucker, I welcome that part of the change. I'm just getting better and stronger and more intelligent, more wise, more patient, more compassionate, more empathetic. All of that is very, very welcomed, and none of it should be scary.”
The Being Mary Jane star hasn’t been shy about her stance on therapy. If you don’t know, here’s a hint: she’s all for it, and she encourages others to try it as well. She likens therapy to dating by suggesting that you keep looking for the right therapist to match your needs. Two other essential keys to her growth are radical transparency and radical acceptance (though she admits she is still working on the latter).
"I was a bad motherfucker before perimenopause. I’m a bad motherfucker now, and I'll be a bad motherfucker after menopause. Know what I’m saying? None of that has to change. How I’m a bad motherfucker, I welcome that part of the change."
Gabrielle Union and Kaavia Union-Wade
Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images
“I hope that a.) you recognize that you're not alone. Seek out help and know that it's okay to be honest about what the hell is happening in your life. That's the only way that you know you can get help, and that's also the only other way that people know that you are in need if there's something going on,” she says, “because we have all these big, very wild, high expectations of people, but if they don't know what they're actually dealing with, they're always going to be failing, and you will always be disappointed. So how about just tell the truth, be transparent, and let people know where you are. So they can be of service, they can be compassionate.”
Gabrielle’s transparency is what makes her so relatable, and has so many people root for her. Whether through her TV and film projects, her memoirs, or her social media, the actress has a knack for making you feel like she’s your homegirl. Scrolling through her Instagram, you see the special moments with her family, exciting new business ventures, and jaw-dropping fashion moments. Throughout her life and career, we’ve seen her evolve in a multitude of ways. From producing films to starting a haircare line to marriage and motherhood, her journey is a story of courage and triumph. And right now, in this season, she’s asking, “What’s next?”
“This is a season of discovery and change. In a billion ways,” says the NAACP Image Award winner. “The notion of like, ‘Oh, so and so changed. They got brand new.’ I want you to be brand new. I want me to be brand new. I want us to be always constantly growing, evolving. Having more clarity, moving with different purpose, like, and all of that is for me very, very welcomed."
"I want you to be brand new. I want me to be brand new. I want us to be always constantly growing, evolving. Having more clarity, moving with different purpose, like, and all of that is for me very, very welcomed."
She continues, “So I'm just trying to figure out what's next. You know what I mean? I'm jumping into what's next. I'm excited going into what's next and new. I'm just sort of embracing all of what life has to offer.”
Look out for Gabrielle in the upcoming indie film Riff Raff, which is a crime comedy starring her and Jennifer Coolidge, and she will also produce The Idea of You, which stars Anne Hathaway.
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