For Queen of Chelsea Sophie Hermann, this past year has been a busy one. In between filming season 20 and season 21 of Made In Chelsea, the reality star made her debut on Celebs Go Dating: The Mansion. ‘The Duchess’ (as nicknamed by her fellow celebs) joined the likes of Coronation Street actress Kimberly Hart-Simpson, ex-Strictly contestant Karim Zeroual and Geordie Shore’s Chloe Ferry. ‘It was intense,’ says Sophie, ‘I basically jumped from the Celebs Mansion to the Made In Chelsea house with a week’s break in between.’
Winning the hearts of the nation, Sophie is loved for her sassiness, dry humour and tendency to always speak her truth (especially on blind dates). Always impeccably dressed with glow-y make-up to boot, we caught up with The Duchess to talk all things beauty. Here, we dive into Sophie’s very extensive skincare routine (yes, triple cleansing is a thing) and the make-up must-haves she couldn’t be without.
On Her Skincare Routine
‘I don’t double cleanse, I triple cleanse,’ she laughs. ‘I’ll use the Dr Barbara Sturm Cleanser, £45, first – it’s really lovely and gentle. Next, I’ll apply Clinique’s Take The Day Off Cleanser, £19, which is good for anyone with sensitive skin, before washing my face again and applying Dr Barbara Sturm’s toner, £45.’
It’s amazing, it gives you that snatched, high ponytail, Bella Hadid, fox-eye look."
Next step? Serums. Sophie admits she has a penchant for serums and loves to layer at least three. ‘I cannot imagine life without Dr Barbara Sturm skincare, I love her so much as a person and since she introduced me to her range three years ago, I cannot go a single day without applying her skincare serums.’ Her top tip? ‘Start with the clear ones first, before layering the milky textures on top.’ Sophie goes in with the Dr Barbara Sturm Hyaluronic Serum, £235, then the Super Anti-Ageing Serum, £270, before applying the Lifting Serum, £235, on top for daytime. ‘It’s [the Lifting Serum] amazing, it gives you that snatched, high ponytail, Bella Hadid, fox-eye look.’
After the serums comes the creams. ‘I’ll use an eye cream and then a moisturiser or a face mask. Oh, and to finish it all off I’ll mist the Tom Ford Hyaluronic Energising Mist, £60, all over - so you know, it’s really just the essentials,’ she laughs.
On Her Number One Skincare Rule
‘Hydration, hydration, hydration,’ says Sophie. ‘I’ve always had very dry, sensitive skin that’s prone to eczema so hydration is key for me. I’ll drink three litres of water a day as well as the Skinaid Collagen Drink, from £115.50, which has made a huge difference to my skin.’
On Her Lockdown Beauty Secret
‘Something that everyone needs to try in Lockdown is the M2 Beaute Lash Serum, £125. My sister who lives in Singapore introduced me to the brand, because everyone is obsessed with it over there. It’s amazing, my lashes have grown so long – I actually had to cut one down.’
On Her Everyday Go-To Beauty Look
‘Basically this,’ Sophie says while leaning into her camera on Zoom. From the other side of the screen, I’d describe it as natural yet radiant with a soft rosy eye and a nude lip. ‘I’ll start with the Charlotte Tilbury Youth Glow Primer, £39, and then I’ll mix her Hollywood Flawless Filter, £34, with the Dior Backstage Face & Body Foundation, £29.50.’ After years of doing her own make-up for Made In Chelsea, Sophie knows exactly what products work for her.
For bronzer and blush, Sophie calls upon The Hollywood Contour Duo, £51, and the Beauty Light Wand in Pinkgasm, £29, from Charlotte Tilbury. ‘I used to be all about powder, but now I love to work with a liquid base and these products from Charlotte are so easy to use.’ To get that ‘healthy German glow’, Sophie applies the blusher onto the apples of her cheeks; ‘If I want to go more ‘80s I Tonya, I’ll take it up to my temples and blend it in with my eyeshadow. I then take a little brush and use the Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Finish Powder, £35, under my eyes to set my concealer, around my nose and down my forehead.’
‘The party isn’t over yet, next I’ll use the Dior Backstage Eyeshadow Palette 3, £39, or the Tom Ford Eye Colour Quad in Desert Fox, £69, to create a soft, pink eye.’
On Concealing Dark Circles
‘I have severe dark circles all around my eyes - honestly if I took my make-up off now, you'd see,' says Sophie who confesses she's tried everything from treatments to injectables. 'It’s because the skin is so thin here, the blood shines through. Charlotte actually introduced me to the Magic Vanish in Deep, £24, which is this burnt orange stain that you apply under concealer to colour correct dark circles. It balances out the purple. After pressing that in, I’ll use two concealers, the Nars Creamy Concealer in Ginger, £24 – it’s the best, every supermodel in the world uses this concealer, before dotting on the Chanel no 20 Beige Concealer, £28.’
On Her Go-To Lip
‘I like to do the ‘90s supermodel look, so I’ll use the classic MAC Lip Liner in Spice, £15.50. First, I’ll apply lip balm – let it sink in during my make-up routine and then at the end I’ll contour my lips with the liner, taking it down from the corners and smudging it in.’
On Her Favourite High-Street Beauty Products
‘I believe that cheap mascara is the best. I use the Maybelline Falsies Mascara, £8.99 – it’s literally the best one. From my experience, all of the luxury mascaras smudge.’
On Her Brushed Up Brows
‘The first day after brow lamination I look like Count Olaf from A Series Of Unfortunate Events but I love it so much. Once lamination wears off, I use the Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow, £19, and Soap Brows, £15, which I bought after seeing Nikki Make-up use it on Instagram.'
On Her Signature Fragrance
‘Thanks to Brexit my go-to fragrance that used to cost £90 is now £400. It’s the Ligne St. Barth Vanille West Indies and it’s really difficult to get here in the UK but you can order it online,’ says Sophie. The scent? ‘It’s pure vanilla – I normally hate a sweet smell, but this is a-mazing.’
‘The fragrance reminds me of the novel and film Perfume, where the protagonist creates a scent from all of the women he’s killed and at the end he pours it over himself and everyone starts eating him. Whenever I wear Vanille, people genuinely ask “did you just make cupcakes?” it’s like I work in the most delicious bakery.’
When she can’t get her hands on Vanille, Sophie opts for Tom Ford's Vanille Fatale, £174. ‘It doesn’t have quite the same effect, but it’s still got the vanilla in it.’
On Self-Care And Exercise
Like most of us, Sophie's exercise routine now involves online virtual workouts. ‘I love yoga,’ she says, ‘and the Down Dog App is great. You can select the intensity, what you want to focus on, the voices of the instructor as well as the music. In my opinion, it’s the best yoga app.’
As well as yoga and virtual boxing sessions with her trainer, Sophie is a big fan of a hot bath. ‘I try to bath every day where possible – it’s great to unwind. I’ll throw in Epsom salts, bath oils, and the Cetraben Bath Oil, £10.99, which is really soothing for eczema prone skin.’
adds everything to bag
SHOP: Sophie's Entire Beauty Regime Here
Sophie Hermann Beauty Products
1 of 9Charlotte Tilbury Youth Glow Primer, £39
2 of 9Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Light Wand in Pinkgasm, £29
3 of 9Charlotte Tilbury Magic Vanish in Deep, £24
4 of 9Dior Backstage Face & Body Foundation, £29.50
5 of 9MAC Lip Liner in Spice, £15.50
6 of 9Maybelline Falsies Mascara, £8.99
7 of 9Dr Barbara Sturm Lifting Serum, £235
8 of 9Dr Barbara Sturm Cleanser, £45
9 of 9Tom Ford's Vanille Fatale, £174
READ MORE: Sophie Hermann Reveals Her All-Time Favourite Hair, Beauty And Skin Treatments