Lucy Mecklenburgh’s £5.99 Hair Mask Cheat Is Her Parenting Saviour

From favourite foundations to hair heroes, Lucy Mecklenburgh reveals her beauty must-haves

Updated on18th September 2020 at 9.29am

Lucy Mecklenburgh knows a thing or two about make-up, skincare and haircare. Since finding fame on The Only Way Is Essex and departing after a few seasons Lucy Mecklenburgh's star has powered through on its upward trajectory. Her life now seems a world away from her stint on TOWIE. Whilst taking part in Bear Grylls' Celebrity Island Lucy met ex Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas and love blossomed. The pair have since become engaged and parents to baby Roman who was born in March. Now a new mum, Lucy's free time is minimal but there are a few beauty rituals that she sometimes manages to squeeze in to her day and here she tells Grazia's beauty editor Annie Vischer all about them and about her life as a parent.

On That Pregnancy Glow

'I mean I waited a long time for this pregnancy glow but it never seemed to appear! During the first trimester I just had my head down the toilet so there was definitely no glow. I think I was more grey! During the second trimester you start to feel more yourself again and you definitely embrace pregnancy, I probably looked my best during pregnancy at that point. As for my third trimester - absolutely horrendous. You start getting a bit more swollen and your hormones are all over the place. The second trimester glow is definitely a 'thing'. My skin was quite bad at the beginning but towards the end it got a bit better, when my hormones balanced out a bit more.'

On How Pregnancy Changed Her Hair

'My hair got super thick during pregnancy, ridiculously thick! Afterwards it became a lot drier. It’s so much drier now than it was before and I wondered whether it was to do with lockdown. I hadn’t had my hair cut for a long time. I get my hair cut and coloured every eight weeks normally so it was quite a long time for me to go. Claire Healey does my hair. I really missed that. That after-pregnancy period though definitely sucks the life out of your hair.'

Lucy has partered with Herbal Essences as their ambassador and notes that the collaboration is fitting. 'It’s actually a brand that I’ve loved for years. I always get the little bottles at the airport and the mini hair masks – my hair is always so dry on holiday. I think that’s why I started using the new range. The new Herbal Essences Bio Pure Aloe + Avocado Oil Hair + Scalp Mask, £5.99, has been my saviour during the last few months. My hair has been so dry so I use it once or twice a week. It's an excuse for Ryan to have Roman whilst I relax in the bath. I even pretend that it takes 20 minutes to work instead of 3 so I get longer in there!'

Many experience hair loss after giving birth, has Lucy? 'I haven’t experienced a massive amount of hair loss. Roman pulls my hair out when I’m breast feeding so I’m never sure whether that’s hair loss or Roman tugging it out. I definitely noticed afterwards my hair was super dry and it needed more attention so the hair masks were really important.'

On Her Favourite Baby Buys

'I love a range called Little Butterfly. I had an amazing massage at The Four Seasons in Hampshire and they gave me the rest of the products that they used during my pregnancy massage. I looked up the brand and they said that the oil was for both mother and baby so I got loads of their stuff. I use the bubble bath for Roman now that he’s a little bit older. It’s a good product for baby skin that has eczema or is sensitive. I use the oil on both him and me, so it’s nice to only have to buy one product. My skin I’ve noticed as well as my hair is a lot drier after having had a baby. I love Aveeno too, they do adult and baby ranges. At first when I had Roman I was using all my normal moisturisers and I didn’t know that, because babies have such sensitive skin, you have to adapt what you use. At first I couldn't work out why he was getting little rashes but it's because his skin was reacting to my body lotion. Aveeno is oat based and I bought some for Roman and some for me. The big tub of Aveeno I get from Amazon is my go-to moisturiser for my time as the mum of a new born. It doesn’t affect his skin.'

On Her Advice For New Mums

'Go with your gut. Mothers’ instinct is definitely a thing and I didn’t realise how strong it was until I had Roman. He had a few problems at the beginning and I kept being told that there was nothing wrong with him. I just knew that something was and I pushed for help and learned that he did actually have an allergy and he had a severe tongue tie. I just knew. You know as a mum what’s normal. Always follow your gut instinct. You know best and no one knows your baby better than you do.'