The #ITGTopShelfie interview series focuses on the beauty routines of Into The Gloss’ lovely, accomplished, and loyal community of readers. Submit your own on Instagram—post your Top Shelfie (tag us @intothegloss!) and include the hashtag #ITGTopShelfie for a chance to be featured on ITG.
“Hiiiiiiiiiiiii! My name is Rom (@rombokob). I live in LA, but I’m originally from New York. I’m a producer/director at CNE, which basically means I make fun videos for Condé Nast brands. I also moonlight as a comedian, and co-host a monthly show at a Chinese restaurant called Genghis Cohen. It’s very chic and the show is very funny. Plus, you can eat lo mein while you laugh. You should totally come…
My outlook on beauty, makeup, and life in general can be summed up by Kim Kardashian West’s 2015 Spanish Vogue editorial—flawlessly bare-faced and lounging around the Beverly Hills Hotel. I have it printed out on my desk, alongside a cutout of Karen Walker’s face and MDNA Skin’s The Rose Mist. Icons only.
My skin is pretty chill, which I like to attribute to all the lotions and potions I use, but I can’t discredit my genes. My parents are in their early 50s, and people often mistake my mom for my sister or wife, which she loves. I do not. Because my skin is so agreeable, I like to try new things all the time. I have a graveyard drawer full of products I didn’t like or just no longer use. Anyone who comes over can help themselves to it, but please don’t show up unannounced.
I’m always in a rush in the morning, but I take the time to double cleanse. I’ll start with two pumps of DHC’s oil cleanser massaged into my skin, followed by Avène’s Cleanance Cleansing Gel. This is my favorite cleanser. It’s gentle yet thorough.
After I shower and wash my hair, body, and face, I use Sulwhasoo’s First Care Activating Serum. It helps balance my skin, and boosts the efficiency of everything I use after it. I follow that up with Moon Juice’s Plumping Jelly Serum, which is a hyaluronic (took me four tries to spell this correctly) acid serum. ‘Plumping’ is a trigger word for me. Meaning, it triggers me to buy whatever it’s written on. All I want is juicy, plump, dewy skin. I’ll mix a few shakes of The Nue Co.’s vitamin C powder in with the serum for added antioxidant power.
I use the Hanacure Multi-Peptide Nano Emulsion and Tatcha’s Dewy Skin Moisturizer interchangeably during the day, depending on my mood. The Hanacure one is a little lighter, but I love that I can wear the Tatcha moisturizer alone on days I’m feeling lazy but still want to look supple and radiant.
During the day I mix in a tiny drop of of Drunk Elephant D-Bronzi into whichever moisturizer I’m wearing. Some days I’ll use a few drops of La Mer’s oil or Dior’s Capture Youth Glow Booster too, for an added glow. Then, I use two drops of Dr. Barbra Strum’s Glow Drops for even more—all together now!—glow. It says to use a dropperful but she’s expensive so I use, like, two drops. Of course, I wear SPF every day. I’ll either use the ELTA sunscreen or this Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer in Almond. I have to be careful with anything tinted, because if it gets in my facial hair it will cake up and look horrible. The cherry on top of it all, the pièce de résistance, is Future Dew. It’s the icing on my glowing face cake.
At night I usually follow the oil cleanser with a gentler face wash, like Biologique Recherche Lait U. I love that it’s a cream, and I can feel it breaking down any dirt left on my face. Then I’ll exfoliate with P50 to keep my skin even and smooth. It really is worth all the hype. Someone recently gave me SK-II’s RNA Power Radical New Age Cream, which is so luxurious. I’ve been using it at night and my skin loves it. Once I finish it, I’ll probably go back to using Biologique Recherche Creme Placenta. My boyfriend says it smells like dog food, but I love it so much. The moisturizer, not the smell.
I follow moisturizer with an oil. I have naturally oily skin, which I hated for a long time until my mom told me that people with oily skin are less likely to get wrinkles. Now, warming a few drops of oil in my hands and pressing into my skin at night is literally the best part of my day. The oil that started it all for me was Josie Maran’s Argan oil. I’m always rotating between a few of my favorites: Pai’s Rosehip Oil, Vintner’s Daughter, Kypris Beauty Elixir II Balancing Flowers, and Supernal (a new one I just finished and absolutely loved). I’m using Ayond right now, and it’s fantastic. I love how oils smell, and I love how nourished and happy my skin feels in the morning. Most oils say to use three to five drops, but I use like 10. I like to go to sleep looking like a freshly glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut. Some nights I’ll add a few drops of Sunday Riley’s Luna oil as well. I keep a tube of Weleda Skin Food on my nightstand and will sometimes press a tiny bit all over my face right before bed to seal everything in and keep my lips moisturized.
On Sundays, I triple mask. I start with a clean, toned face and apply Biologique Recherche’s Masque Vivant. More than any mask I’ve used, this one really balances my skin and shrinks my pores. I follow that with Skinfood Rice Mask. I normally wouldn’t touch a physical exfoliator with with a 10-foot spoolie, but this is the exception. It’s not hard core, but there’s definitely some grit to it. I keep it in the fridge next to Avène’s Soothing Moisture mask, which I use last and sometimes sleep in. It’s very calming and moisturizing.
I’ve dabbled in wearing makeup here and there, but always ended up looking like a potato with a beard. Then Mariah Carey did my makeup (I swear) and I really like how that turned out, so now I try and emulate what Mimi did when I feel like doing my face. She really nailed the no makeup makeup look, with a subtle berry lip. I keep the sponge she used in a display box.
Most days, the extent of my makeup is a swipe of clear mascara on my eyebrows. Maybe a little powder. Milk Makeup setting powder is my favorite. It leaves a very natural finish.
If I’m going out with friends, or need to zhuzh it up for the back row at Genghis Cohen, I’ll do a light beat. I use Chanel’s Les Beiges Water-Fresh Tint in Medium. This was a game-changer for me. It feels like a serum, and never looks caked on. I’ve never used anything like it. It comes with this cute little kabuki brush, but I usually just use my fingers. Brushes overwhelm me. Sometimes I’ll also use the MAKE Universal Stick on my eyelids. It adds a subtle warm-pink touch of color.
For highlighter I use Chanel’s Baume Essentiel in Transparent with my finger. It’s the best highlighter I’ve ever used. It has a balmy, wet finish, which I prefer over a pearly finish. I’ll top it off with Anastasia Beverly Hills Dewy Set setting spray. It makes everything melt together and smells like what I imagine Britney Spears smells like (vanilla). I’ll use it even if I just have moisturizer on.
My hair is naturally very curly and frizzy. Without any product, I look like I’ve just been electrocuted. My curls looks best when I use Kevin Murphy’s Smooth Again and Oribe’s Airstyle Flexible Finish Cream, comb it straight back, let it air dry, and then shake it out a few hours later. This stretches them out and gives my hair some movement.
I used to be a serial fragrance monogamist, though not any more. Sometimes I will wear KKW Fragrance Crystal Gardenia, which starts off very strong, but settles nicely. Right now I’m in an open throuple with Hermès Twilly and Santa Maria Novella’s Jasmine scent, which has replaced Tom Ford’s Jasmin Rogue on my shelf. Bury me in jasmine.”
—as told to ITG
Photos via the author.