Steph Shep Drops Her Skin-Care Routine

When it comes to her own skin care routine, Shepard obviously keeps the planet top of mind, and tries to put her money where her mouth is. She prioritizes sustainable and clean brands, as well as those that are female or AAPI founded. “I’ve realized being an influencer in the beauty space, the consumer dollar does have a really big impact,” she says. “So knowing that, I try and make really conscious decisions about where I’m shopping. That’s really important to me.” However, she does have a few staples that don’t fall into those categories, and she’s okay with that. “No one’s perfect, and I think that’s a part of my mission statement as an environmental advocate,” she says. “I’m not perfect. I’m not sitting here to be like, ‘I only subscribe to the cleanest things from the earth.’ It’s absolutely not the case. I’m in a transition phase, as is the world. But I try and make the best decisions that I can.”

Her routine itself has also been a personal journey, as she’s seen her skin go from intense hormonal breakouts in her early 20s, to a steadier place now. Though her Instagram may tell a different story, she still struggles with the occasional breakout here and there, plus rosacea, mostly triggered by her diet. Though she tries to keep it in check holistically, she’ll be the first to admit that’s not always the case. “I’m not going to sit here and be like, ‘Oh my God, my skin’s so good because I drink so much water’,” she says. “I suck at drinking water, but it is a holistic approach, for sure. I’ve gotten the hormonal breakouts to a good place. But now, it’s just maintaining healthy skin.”

So how exactly does she do it? Shepard spills all, below. 

My cleansers

For cleansers, I use a variation. My routine is ever evolving. Some days your skin’s really dry, sometimes the weather’s really dry, so I definitely tailor my skin care to whatever’s going on at the time.  I love the Shu Uemura cleansing oil, and the Biossance Elderberry Cleanser. I’ll use that one if I have a little bit more makeup on, because it really breaks through the makeup. Or the Koh Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water. I’ll switch between those three, depending on if I have makeup on or how my skin’s feeling. 

My mists

 After my cleanser, I’ll do some type of spray. I don’t really know exactly if there’s a difference, but it feels really good. I love the Tower 28 SOS Daily Rescue Facial Spray. I have the mini one and I keep it with me. During the day, I just spray a little bit on, it makes me feel refreshed. And I use the Josh Rosebrook Hydrating Accelerator facial mist, particularly before I put makeup on. Sometimes I’ll spray a little bit into the foundation that I’m putting on, just because it’s so hydrating and light, and sometimes you need that extra moisture to help the foundation sit. It’s so, so good. I spray my sponge, so it’s a little wet. If I have my foundation on already, I spray the sponge and then push it in.

My essence

And then I’ll do an essence, the SK-II facial essence, which I die for. I wish I could bathe in that. I’ll rotate between that one and the Then I Met You Giving Essence, which I really love.  I don’t know if that many people know about essences, but I love them. I do feel like they give a little something extra. The SK-II, I’ll probably butcher the story, but they discovered it because the workers in the sake fields had hands that were so young and they were like, “What’s going on in this? Let’s bottle it.” I think that’s so fucking genius. So I’m literally trying to bathe in it. 

My eye cream 

I don’t always do an eye cream, though I probably should, now that I’m at the age I’m at. I just started using the Summer Fridays one I use that with no makeup, because it does give you a little bit of smoothing. I just love Summer Fridays. But I also love the COSRX snail hydrogel eye patches. I’m a big fan of eye patches, they make me feel really good. So I’ll do those, but I’m not as good about the eye cream as I should be. 

My serums

I don’t use all of these all the time, every day. I love the Peach & Lily Glass Serum—I love that one. It makes my skin so perfect and hydrated, and gives me that glow that I want. Sometimes when I’m not wearing makeup, I’ll just do the Tatcha Dewy Serum.  It’s super light, and I’ll just throw it on and call it a day.

My exfoliants

I don’t use retinol, I think my skin’s too sensitive for that. I don’t really do an exfoliator. I mean, if anything, I would do a P50 on occasion, or I would do a Sunday Riley Good Genes overnight. Those would be the only two. I do fuck with the Sunday Riley Good Genes. It’s really good. If your face is feeling a type a way, you put it on, the next morning, it’s smooth. I don’t know what they have going on in there, but it’s really good. That one I use as a mask, so if I’m feeling congested or if I traveled or if my skin’s just needs a refresh, I’ll use that. Only when I need it.

My moisturizers

One I use just at night, it’s almost a deep moisturizing treatment for my face, is the Josh Rosebrook Vital Balm Cream. It just feels like it super-hydrates my face, and I just tend to lean on the dry side, probably because I’m not drinking enough water. I like that one and I like the Biologique Recherche Vernix Crème. I also like the Sunday Riley vitamin C cream. I just did the vitamin C today. I switch it up depending on how I’m feeling.

My oils

I’m not big into face oils. I was for a second, and then after a long period of time, I was like maybe this isn’t working for me. But if I’m having a particularly dry day and I know I’m going to wear makeup, I’ll use the Makanai face oil. But I am big on oils on body and on chest. The Le Prunier oil, I like that one all over my chest. I feel like people neglect from the neck to the nipple, and you can’t forget that space.

My SPF

I will do the Josh Rosebrook sunscreen, which I think is one of the most clean on the market. He makes super clean products. My makeup artist, Pircilla Pae, she just introduced me to all of the Josh Rosebrook line, and she said it’s the cleanest she’s found. Or, I’ll do the EltaMD, for body. It’s just a classic. It’s good for rosacea and stuff.

My masks 

I love the Karuna coconut masks. Karuna has a sustainable ethos, they use Japanese cotton, so it’s biodegradable and super hydrating.  I like to wear that one on the plane. I just started using the Dewytree Cica 100 Mask, which is made from the cica tree—they noticed in Asia, when tigers were injured or wounded, they would roll in the cica grass, and it would help to heal them. So they basically put that in the base. My skin was so dry the other day, and I put that mask on and I noticed immediately that my skin was more hydrated. It’s super healing. Also. I love the Glow Recipe watermelon mask, it’s a fun one.

My spot treatment 

I love the Starface Hydro-Star patches for zit stickers. Starface—which is co-founded by Julie Schott, who also co-founded Plus—is so brilliant. We all want to Instagram with the star on our face. It’s cute, it’s fun. 

My lip balm

 I love the lip balm from the new Chanel No. 1 line. I love that Chanel just came out with this eco-friendly, clean skincare line. How dope is that? Going back to when we were talking about being smart consumer and seeing the small brands starting with the clean ingredients and sustainability actions, and then you see the shift. You see the legacy brands that are seeing the consumers buy it, and its like “Oh, they’re loving… We need to get on board and reformulate.” That’s the power we have as beauty lovers to really change the market.

My body care

Obviously, Plus body wash. Plus, all day! I’m using Waves right now, that’s the scent that I’m on. Sometimes I’ll just cover my whole body in Bio Oil, and just put long pajamas on and sleep in it. There’s also an iS Clinical body spray, like a serum spray. We don’t think about putting serums on our body. After I use my Plus body wash, I will spray myself with this spray. I don’t do this every time I get out of the shower, sometimes you have more time than others. But I’ll spray, and then I’ll do the oil, and then I’ll do the Avène body lotion. It’s the best body lotion, I’m obsessed.

My tools

I have this mister, it’s from ReFa. You put a carbon tank in it and then you mist it on. I just started using a steamer, because I heard that this makeup artist that I love always uses steamers for skin prep. So I put my little Vanity Planet steamer, it’s this cute little droplet that has little suction cups at the bottom, I stuck it on my counter right next to my sink, so when I get out of the shower or when I wash my face in the morning, I steam my face and it just feels so nice. And I just sit there, it’s so easy, it turns on in literally two seconds.

Then I’ll do my little ReFa mister, because it pushes the product into your pores. And then, if I’m really luxuriating, I’ll do my Celluma Pro LED panel. I was determined to get one. I love it. It’s so hard for me to close my eyes for 30 minutes, but you need to meditate while you’re under your Celluma.