Many of us have a formative beauty memory that involves sneaking into our mother’s bathroom cabinets and rifling through the contents. Through them, we discovered that beauty could be an uplifting confidence boost (think bold red lipstick and a spritz of Chanel No.5) as well as an act of well-deserved self-care. Now adults ourselves, there’s no doubt that we’ve been influenced by their beauty routines, from skincare to makeup. Just like we have mirrored certain physical and personality traits from our moms, we’ve carried over some of their everyday beauty habits too.
With Mother’s Day just around the corner, we invited R29 editors to share the beauty staples they have discovered by way of the most trustworthy word-of-mouth method around — their moms. Read ahead for a dose of beauty inspiration and cute mother-daughter stories, because moms always know best.
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“Considering I work in beauty, it’s not often that I discover products through my mom. A couple of years ago, though, she raided my overflowing stash and came away with Color Wow’s Money Mask — a hair mask packed with strand-strengthening proteins. Her hair is bleached and can feel very dry, but she couldn’t quite believe the transformation after one use. In her words, her hair was ‘like silk’.
“I style my hair with a heated brush (and I’m not always so diligent with the heat protectant spray) so it’s often in need of a pick me up. One evening, I used her mask in place of my conditioner and I was so impressed. It breathed life into my parched ends and gave my hair so much bounce. The shine was also unrivaled. Now, it’s a staple in my hair washing routine, too.” — Jacqueline Kilikita, Deputy Beauty Director
Shop Sephora
Color Wow X Chris Appleton Money Mask Hair Treatment, $, available at Sephora
“When I say I got it from my momma, I mean it. I now know why I have a lip product in every purse, from Aquaphor to lip tints and lip glosses. Some purses even have multiple lip products — my mother always instilled the importance of carrying one. My mother was never a makeup person, but the one thing that she always carries is the Clinique Chubby Stick, which is moisturizing and adds color without drying your lips out. It never lets me down, just like my mom.” — Becca Sax, Affiliate Coordinator
Shop Ulta
Clinique Chubby Stick Intense Moisturizing Lip Color Balm, $, available at Ulta
“I have so many fond childhood memories of hitting up the department store with my mom and working our way through all the prestige Asian skincare counters. Sulwhasoo was a brand she had a particularly high regard for: she savored all the samples she got from the Korean brand, and as years went on, the First Care Activating Serum took up the prime spot on her vanity. After sampling the serum for my Sulwhasoo review, I now completely understand her devotion.
“The star ingredient is ginseng, a prized herbal ingredient in Eastern medicine that nourishes the skin and restores its plumpness without weighing it down. The gel-like texture absorbs into my skin so quickly that I often use it in place of a toner in winter months, and the product smells so expensive and heavenly. I feel like a mini-me of my mom when I massage it onto my face, and fully plan on replenishing her supply as a luxury Mother’s Day gift next year.” — Venus Wong, Senior Writer
Shop Sephora
Sulwhasoo First Care Activating Serum, $, available at Sephora
“I’m sure she won’t mind me saying this, but my mom is skincare shy; she often goes to bed in her eyeliner! Still, she has the most amazing skin, and she puts it down to this lightweight skin tint. She receives compliments whenever she wears it, which prompted me to try this skin tint recently.
“It made my face gleam in all the right places, blurred red skin staining left behind by breakouts and felt so comfortable on. That’s thanks to the abundance of moisturizing ingredients including hyaluronic acid, shea butter and squalane. I fall back on it often, sometimes rotating between this and the Kosas BB Burst Tinted Gel Cream, depending on whether I want to dial up the glow or appear more matte.” — Jacqueline Kilikita, Deputy Beauty Director
Shop MAC Cosmetics
MAC Cosmetics Strobe Dewy Skin Tint, $, available at MAC Cosmetics
“My mom is a child of the Seventies through and through. While she’s never been a big perfume person, she’s always had a soft spot for heady, sweet, musky patchouli — either in the form of essential oil rubbed onto pulse points or dropped into baths, incense sticks burning away to cleanse the space, or Lush’s Karma fragrance.
“It’s a love that I’ve inherited and now, I always gravitate towards the scent. In fact, when I was a teenager, I stole a bottle of Karma from my mom’s vanity and though it’s probably long expired, I’ve always kept it with me, spritzing on my wrists to keep me grounded when I’m feeling anxious or spraying around new rooms when feeling homesick. Today, I’ve also discovered a new patchouli based perfume that I love: Sana Jardin Paris’ Celestial Patchouli, which is a lighter, sparkling scent better suited to everyday wear.” — Esther Newman, Affiliate Writer
Shop Bloomingdale’s
Sana Jardin Celestial Patchouli Eau de Parfum, $, available at Bloomingdale’s
“Truthfully, I’ve taught my mom more about beauty regimes and skincare routines ever since I started my shopping position at Refinery29. But one thing that my mom has always ingrained in me since I was a child is wearing sunscreen (and re-applying it a whole lot during hot summer days). While the actual SPF products I use have changed throughout the years, my mom has always taught me the importance of keeping my fair skin safe from the sun.
“I currently love applying sunscreen sticks from brands like Shiseido (my grandmother’s favorite skincare brand!), Live Tinted, and Beauty of Joseon onto my face during my AM skincare routine and throwing them in my bag to use throughout the day).” — Victoria Montalti, Associate Fashion Writer
Shop Sephora
Shiseido Clear Sunscreen Stick SPF 50, $, available at Sephora
“In my household there is one very important rule: when in doubt, soak it off. Feeling sad? Anxious? Angry? Confused? Physically in pain? Get yourself in a bathtub and let the hot water soothe your body and mind (as my mom says, “everything seems better after a long soak.”) In fact, as long as I can remember, she’s concocted her own magical potion of essential oils to aid the process — a rotating mixture depending on what you’re trying to cure (lavender for insomnia and anxiety; orange to boost your mood; frankincense if you’re sad; rose to ease period pains).
“Now, when I don’t have my mum’s oil cabinet to delve into, I turn to the restorative powers of Neal’s Yard Remedies — I swear by the Women’s Balance blend to put everything to right, if even only for an hour or two whilst in the bathroom.” — Esther Newman, Affiliate Writer
Shop Amazon
Neal’s Yard Remedies Balance Bath Salts, $, available at Amazon
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