beauty

Zoë Foster Blake on the one hack that changed her skin.

If there's one guest I always enjoy chatting with on You Beauty podcast, it's Harry Styles. Oh! Also, Zoë Foster Blake. I love chatting with Zoë Foster Blake. (Taylor Swift, however — hard nut to crack).

Joining me on a recent episode of The Formula, the author and beauty mogul let us have a sniff around her skincare cabinet and ask her all the nosy details — like exactly what she uses in her routine and why her kittens are so cute.

It was here, just after her big 10th birthday bash for Go-To Skincare, when she dropped one fat sack of skincare wisdom that I just had to share with you. Because it's something she says has transformed her skin for good.

Curious? Intrigued? Want more on the kittens?

Watch: The Project: Zoë Foster Blake talks about her role on The Wrong Girl. Post continues below.


Video via Mamamia

When asked to tell us about her main skin concerns, she told me "I feel like I'm getting a bit of a big head."

And yes please, do go on...

Zoe explained that when she went for a facial before her Go-To party, her beauty therapist assumed she must have had laser for her pigmentation. 

"She said, 'At the end of summer, you usually come in with a lot of pigmentation but you don't have any?'. I was like, 'I know why! I have nailed my skincare and I finally have what it really needs.'," Zoe explains. 

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"It's all come down to 'skin cycling'. I know everyone's talking about cycling and it's not new, but I hadn't really done it and now I'm devout."

Listen: Wanna get the full episode in your ears? Click below.


If you're new to skin cycling and don't really know what we're talking about, the good news is that it has nothing to do with lycra.

Created by Dr Whitney Bowe, the skin cycling routine (popularised on TikTok — just look up the hashtag!) is all about switching up your routine. 

In short, the method works to simplify and streamline your routine, alternating between using active ingredients (think, vitamin A, AHAs, etc) and giving your complexion a rest on other days.

For example, you can cycle through during the week with exfoliation on one evening, vitamin A/retinol application on the next evening, and two recovery evenings before repeating the process again.

As Zoë told me, "So, one night is the Go-To Glow Exfoliator which is my AHA glycolic acid, and the next night is my vitamin A. And the next one is my glycolic and the next one is my vitamin A."

"It's not rocket science, although it might sound confusing to someone who's not aware of it. Then, of course, I use vitamin C in the morning. Again they're heavy hitters, they're old school, everyone knows them they're proven, but when you use them in the correct way (and of course using a lot of SPF) I really have seen tremendous, amazing results."

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*Immediately starts skin cycling*.

On the topic of other fabulous tips from everyone's bestie, Zoë also reminded us that after using serums — particularly hyaluronic acid — to "put a lid on it."

"I think there's a lot of people who are disappointed and disenchanted with their hyaluronic acids because they feel like they might even be drying their skin. The first step is to dampen the skin. The second step is to not leave it hanging, put something on it."

So, whenever you apply your serums, make sure you lock it all in with a moisturiser. Yes, even if you have oily skin. Silly billy.

"I've seen my husband cleanse and stop and it kills me," added Zoë. "Because you should always take out you put back in!"

While we're at it on the remembering-to-moisturise thing, Zoë also encouraged us not to overcomplicate our skincare — saying oftentimes, a simple routine is best. Particularly in the morning.

"Honestly, you could just cleanse, rinse, vitamin C and SPF. You could do two steps in the morning," she said.

We love simple!

"I don't think morning is the time to be over-complicating things, particularly if you've got children. You need to get out the door and you've got to get to work and all of those things."

Hear, hear.

Are you a fan of skin cycling? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.

Feature image: Mamamia/You Beauty.

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