There’s no doubt about it - Wellingtonian Lucy Revill is a busy girl. From her established blog The Residents and its humming Facebook and Instagram to her new project Soap For Society. We caught up with Lucy to chat all things beauty…
When it comes to skincare, what do you look for in products and do you have any favourites?
Skincare connects me to the present moment on any given day. For me, it’s about three things: ingredients, feel and scent. The basis of my skincare is Margaret Hema Skincare. Margaret is a 72 year old Wellington legend and still makes her oils by hand. I swear by the Facial Cleansing Oil: You can feel your skin drinking it in when it is applied and it is packed with avocado oil, certified organic camellia oil certified organic totarol. If not available, I also really like the Oskia Renaissance Cleansing Gel or Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Balm. Both have a great gentle scent and easily remove makeup. I prefer an oil or a balm to a gel or foaming cleanser.
I adore Advanced Night Repair. Hyaluronic Acid is amazing stuff. Their new Advanced Night Repair Supercharged Complex Synchronised Recovery is also wonderful. I use this, then the Aesop B Triple C Gel mixed with Margaret Hema Millennium oil for glowing skin. Do this, and I’m set for whatever the day might throw at me, whether it is an interview with Al Brown, a spontaneous Twenty-seven Names fashion shoot in Island Bay or a conference on financial markets policy at a law firm.
(Pictured: A shelfie featuring all of Lucy's favourite skincare)
Do you have an everyday makeup look – if so, what is it and what products do you use to create it?
I’m very inspired by Violette_Fr’s approach to makeup. I went crazy when she launched her makeup line in May this year and bought the whole collection online from Smith & Caughey’s.
After skincare, I apply a primer to my skin (I like the Mac Illuminator cream), a dash of Estee Lauder Double Wear Nude Water Fresh Foundation bounced in with a damp sponge (real skin should always show through), a pat of concealer under my eyes with my fingers, a pop of Tom Ford Bronzer, a whip of Bare Minerals or Bobbi Brown Mascara and a subtle, yet bold brow using the Curtis Collection Brow Pencil. Finished with the Poppy Sauvage Blush Palette, to add a healthy, natural flush to my cheeks - this is my typical fresh-faced Wellington woman look.
Tell us about your latest venture, 'Soap For Society’- what is it and what inspired you to do it?
As a blogger I often get sent makeup and bathroom products and end up with more items than I can reasonably use. We're living in an age of social media 'unboxing' and 'haul's' on social media, but forget that toiletries are actually expensive that mean choosing between food and tampons.
It occurred to me that there was a gap in how I thought about donating to charity. I'd often donate clothes and food, but rarely toiletries or shower gels. While this might not be something that affects physical health, being clean affects our mental health. When we don't like how we look, feel like we smell, have dirty hair or can't get our hands on basic bathroom items, like razors, deodorant or shampoo, it hurts our ability to be our best self and see ourselves as being equal in the eyes of others.
I found out about the UK Beauty Banks (started by Jo Jones and Guardian Beauty Writer Sali Hughes) this year, and I knew that this was something I felt passionately about getting Kiwis on board with. So I gathered a few key experts together to launch Soap For Society – a sister beauty bank (like a food bank, but with beauty and toiletries products).
Soap for Society is a drive from 10 days from 23 July – 30 July to raise products to help 1000 families and $1000 for Wellington City Mission. Although we are Wellington based, if you live in Auckland, you can take this chance to donate to Auckland City Mission because these charities need more products like this all year around and are frequently left short.
We are lucky enough to have Beauty Banks give us their endorsement and blessing, which is huge. While we are starting in Wellington, I'd love to make this a nationwide movement for change.
How can people get involved?
Right now, we need you to start stashing beauty products you can collect to donate:
Minis and products from planes and hotels are perfect. These are light and easy to transport for those who are homeless.
Thinks basics - shower gel, razors, shower products, facial wipes, deodorant and other essentials you can’t imagine living without.
Products must be unopened for health and safety reasons.
We can’t take nail-polish, perfume or remover because these are solvents.
Put everything into a box labelled ‘Soap For Society’ on each side and either drop off at one of our drop off points on our website or address to Wellington City Mission 19 Gordon Place, Newtown, 6021, Wellington.
Visit www.soapforsociety.org or @soapforsociety on Instagram to get in touch.
What inspired you to get into blogging?
I’ve always loved writing and would tell people I wanted to be a writer when I grew up when I was at school. Life intervened and I ended up studying Law, Art History and Italian.
After turning 26, I had a ‘Where am I going? crisis. At that time, in 2015, I simply couldn’t find anything that reflected my perspective on New Zealand life. I wanted to read about a woman in her twenties telling honest, intelligent stories. I quit being a lawyer, started a new career in policy and began my blog and social media channels, The Residents. I was convinced no one would want to read a blog just about me. So I started out interviewing one person a week who had an interesting or unusual life path living in Wellington, something I’d already been sort of doing while doubting my path as a lawyer. I was very inspired by The Selby books. I did this for a whole year, adding in more blog posts as I went on other topics of interest.
There are now almost 150 interviews with some of New Zealand’s most fascinating people on The Residents and I’ve published almost 500 blog posts. The scope of it has now evolved to also include regular millennial rants from me, city guides, life tips, food, beauty and fashion suggestions. It’s for the multi-passionate and multi-hyphenated woman with a busy life and career, just like me, always questioning and never taking herself too seriously. It’s allowed me to do so many amazing things and meet the most interesting people. I’m so happy that I can share a slice of life with.
Get in touch with Lucy...
