Why Ice Cubes Are Karen Blanchard’s Skincare Essential

…I choose tea over coffee, but I only drink tea a couple of times a week. I ice my face with an ice cube every morning and evening. I find it not only helps reduce the appearance of my pores, but it also helps products absorb better. I run the ice cube over my face for 30 seconds to one minute. I also target pimples with it and, after three consecutive days of rubbing an ice cube over it, [the spot] flattens out.

I love a natural look, which helps complement my fashion choices. I’ve always believed that beauty and fashion go hand-in-hand, but I keep my makeup fairly simple – I’m mostly concerned with my skin and keeping a good routine. I’ve also changed my lifestyle habits, including drinking tons of water and getting a good night’s rest. These are basic things, but they really do work. I sometimes dismiss them, but I see the difference when I don’t do them daily.

…and that is sugar. I’m not one of those people who can just eat anything (though I really love candy) and not break out, so I have to be careful about what I eat and what I put on my skin.

… and doing my best to stay out of the sun. From London to New York, whether I’m driving or in the passenger seat, I make sure my face is covered if the sunlight is shining through.

Now that we’re wearing masks, it’s too much for my skin to layer more products on. After I double-cleanse, I use the Drenching Serum by Acne Expert Skincare. It’s a Black-owned product line by Marie-Claire, who’s an aesthetician based on the West Coast. The serum has a lot of hyaluronic acid, so I’ll apply that before I put my mask on and get on the plane. I’ll usually layer on SPF as well, because I am exposed to light while up in the air and the lights within the plane. It’s a very simple routine.

…and that’s going to help with not drying my skin out so much, washing my hair and washing my face. The water in NYC where I live is hard, so this will make a big difference.

…because I don’t want to get lazy and fall asleep before I do it– my face will pay for it in the morning. If I’m wearing makeup, I always take it off and I never go to bed without doing that. Sometimes I’ll even start a bit earlier if my routine will be longer that night – If I’m putting on a brightening mask, for instance. I love using Sunday Riley’s Luna Sleeping Oil – I don’t know how it does it, but it makes a difference in less than a week; I’ve put so many people on to it. For my body, I just use Eucerin from the drugstore. I got a big bottle of the lotion for dry, itchy skin and I think I’ve gone through 20 bottles at this point in my life; I even bring it on vacation. My routine definitely relaxes me before I go to bed, and I try not to be on my phone as I’m winding down. I always put my phone on night-time mode and then I don’t pick it up and start engaging with it again until around 8am.

I love retinol and I see a difference when I use it regularly. When I’m not wearing makeup, my pores appear to be smaller, and I know that’s because they’re getting cleaned out more often because the retinol is helping. I always double cleanse with a cleanser and then a daily exfoliant. I do that morning and evening. I’m a big believer in vitamin C, and I’ve noticed that it helps with brightening and fading dark spots, too.

…because I often feel like I work all the time – even on the weekends. I never truly switch off because of the nature of my job, and I know that has an impact on me health-wise. I’m working to carve out more time, like I did over the holidays, when I switched off social media and relaxed. I read more books instead of Instagram posts and got away from the craziness.

…because I like being able to switch to different looks with wigs, based on my outfit. I have a lot of flexibility without damaging my own hair this way, which is great for me because my hair used to be chemically relaxed in the past. I grew the relaxer out and I also had color, so I’ve been growing that out as well. My hair has grown quite a lot and I know that’s because I don’t do anything harsh to it now.

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