The #ITGTopShelfie interview series focuses on the beauty routines of Into The Gloss' lovely, accomplished, and loyal community of readers. Submit your own on Instagram—post your Top Shelfie (tag us @intothegloss!) and include the hashtag #ITGTopShelfie for a chance to be featured on ITG.
"My name is Lilith Hardie Lupica (@lilithruby) and I live in Sydney, Australia. I’m the Associate Editor of Vogue.com.au, which essentially means I'm writing anything fashion-, beauty-, lifestyle-, and celebrity-related related for Vogue Australia's website. Recently, I was given the opportunity to work on the Vogue Australia beauty pages alongside the Beauty Editor which has been a learning curve given that print and online are so different. Also, writing about beauty is a dream. Who knew you could get paid for it? [ed note: ...!]
Because my job means staring at a screen most of the day, I try to switch off when I get home—although I do like a good scroll through Instagram. I read a lot, mostly murder mysteries by Agatha Christie. Nothing too anxiety-inducing. I do attempt to keep busy with exercise but find it hard to keep myself motivated. I’d rather just sleep in. When I want to zone out, I do my own nails and actually take my time filing and painting them. I use Essie’s Good To Go Top Coat and I truly think Dior makes the best nail polishes. Big call, I know, but I've had my manicures last a long time with whatever formula they use.
When it comes to my beauty routine, my style is really fresh-faced. I have classic combination skin–oily T-zone and everything else dryish—so I'm careful about what products go where on my face and in what order. I've started applying a primer every day under my makeup, even if I don’t wear any, because I was finding by the end of the day product was pooling in small dry patches on my cheeks. So I use Mecca Cosmetica’s Soft Focus Smoothing Primer, and then I use Burberry Fresh Glow BB Cream in Medium over that. I actually bought my first foundation this year—Nars’ Sheer Glow Foundation in Fiji—but I've yet to try it properly because I don’t know where to start.
Often though I skip the base all together and move onto mascara, brows and, if I’m in the mood, a lip. For brows I like Surratt Beauty’s Expressioniste Brow Pomade. I have dark, bushy brows, and prefer just a clear gel, but nothing that leaves my browns crunchy–that’s the worst. Mascara is either YSL Babydoll in Black or something from Dolly Wink. I don’t dabble around in mascara—I only like what works well because for me it’s essential. I really, really love lipstick—especially a good pink. Nars’ Audacious Lipstick in Vera and Ilia’s Pink Moon are exactly what I’m talking about.
In order to support my beauty habit I watch a lot of Youtube vloggers. It’s not even all tutorials, but mostly hauls and unboxings. I don’t remember who I picked this tip up from, but a vlogger insisted after spraying your face with a setting spray–I use Urban Decay’s All Nighter–you grab yourself a powder highlighter and apply before the setting powder drys. It basically ensures your highlighter won’t budge and your cheekbones are unmissable. I use Charlotte Tilbury’s Filmstar Bronze and Glow for my highlight. It's solid gold.
When it comes to taking it all off, I use Bioderma and follow up with whatever eye cream I’m trying–right now it’s Philosophy’s Take A Deep Breath Oxygenating Eye Cream. I don’t cleanse as much as I should because I find a lot of face washes dry out my skin, but at the moment I have a huge tube of Fresh’s Soy Face Cleanser which I’m enjoying. Before I go to bed, I slather on as much oil on my face and neck as possible. Right now I’m using Rodin Olio Lusso and am about to finish it which makes me sad. I have trouble with a lot of serums because I hate that sticky feeling some can leave you with, but Paula’s Choice Resist Brightening Essence isn’t too bad. I use that sometimes under moisturizer.
I'll mask every other weekend, and Ren’s Glycolactic Radiance Renewal Mask is one of the best products out there. It takes away everything you didn’t know needed to go but it’s full-on so I only use it once every two or three weeks. Otherwise it’s a clay mask like Omorovicza’s Deep Cleansing Mask on my T-zone and Origins’ Drink Up 10 Minute Mask on my cheeks. Once that’s all done, I tone with a mist and apply more oil.
True story, although it may be hard to believe, but we’ve only had Sephora in Australia for two or three years—our big beauty store here is called Mecca. Australia is usually the last to receive what's great in the way of beauty, we’ve just done our own thing instead. And there are a ton of amazing brands here now that I'd recommend if you found yourself in the Southern Hemisphere. Like Go-to, a line started by an ex-beauty editor, Rationale which is a line beauty editors exclusively use, the Jojoba Company, Ocinium... The list goes on. I'm dying to go over to Korea though—I read everything about Korean skincare, and it's just fascinating."
—as told to ITG
