Model and influencer Olivia Culpo, with 2.5 million followers on Instagram and more than 235,000 on Twitter, has some simple advice for those wanting to follow in her fashionable footsteps.
“I think for young people who are trying to make it big on social media the idea is to be consistent and also to be confident in what you’re putting out there,” she told Gulf News tabloid! over the phone from the USA in February. “[Success is] not going to happen overnight and you can’t let that mentality deter you from trying harder.”
Culpo is no stranger to hard work and has been steadily building her career as a fashion icon since winning the Miss Universe pageant in 2012. The jet-setter is currently in Paris for fashion week, and just recently was in Dubai to announce the line-up for Beauty Pop, a three-day event taking place at Dubai Design District from April 19-21.
We caught up with her to get her take on beauty, which includes advice on pillows.
What are your top beauty tips?
My number one beauty tip is to definitely drink a lot of water. I feel like that’s the easiest way to always make your skin look great and also for you to feel hydrated throughout the day and maintain energy. Another tip is to get plenty of sleep, which I know can be kind of hard.
I also think a great tip, which I never realised, is finding the right pillow for when you sleep and finding a position where you don’t wrinkle your face. In America, the third cause of ageing is actually where you sleep. That’s one of the way you can get wrinkles.
No way! I didn’t know that.
I never realised that. Actually [skincare expert] Nurse Jamie told me that… I was kind of shocked by that.
So what do you have to use to prevent it?
She has a pillow that is designed for preventing wrinkles. But it’s also just trying to remember to sleep on your back if you can. Silk pillows are really good because they’re softer.
What are your favourite beauty products?
Some of the brands that I religiously use would be SK-II. I really love their beauty [essence], I love their face spray also. I also always travel with their sheet masks. And they are a little bit of a splurge, but they’re so worth it. Another brand that I love is La Mer. Their eye cream is my favourite. And then Dr Barbara Sturm has the most unbelievable face creams in my opinion.
What are some misconceptions people have about Instagram influencers?
I think there can be a lot of misconceptions on what you see on Instagram just based on the fact that they’re typically photos and short videos. Obviously, people are a lot [deeper] than that. One of the things that I found is the most difficult thing to relay on Instagram can be that we all struggle with the same things... And sometimes it’s difficult to understand that because a lot of the time what people are posting are the highlights of their day, or the highlights of their career, or the highlights of their week. It can be really hard to understand that we really are all so much more alike that we think.
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What is Beauty Pop?
The three-day event will feature beauty and lifestyle products and brands, as well as celebrity meet-and-greets, masterclasses and panel discussions with industry experts.
Famous faces
YouTube stars Camilla Coelho, Desi Perkins and Marianna Hewitt will be part of panels at the event, in addition to aestheticians Crystal Koro and Nurse Jamie, and Dubai-based beauty moguls Huda and Mona Kattan. Celebrity hair dressers Tracey Cunningham and Jen Atkin will also be offering their expert opinions on all things tresses.
Masterclasses
Celebrity make-up artists Mary Phillips and Bassam Fattouh will be hosting a masterclass each, sharing the techniques that they have used on stars such as Jennifer Lopez, the Kardashians, Chrissy Teigen and Elissa. Additionally, a Mane Addicts hair masterclass will be taught by Jen Atkin and Justine Marjan.
Ticket prices are yet to be announced.
