Kristen McMenamy has been challenging beauty conventions since the late ’80s, thanks to her long limbs, angular features, and almost translucent skin. A former redhead, the Pennsylvania-born model sent shockwaves through the industry when hairstylist Garren chopped off her locks and dyed them black, after which François Nars plucked her eyebrows into oblivion. Two decades later, she ripped up the rulebook once more when she decided to embrace her natural grey hair. Having worked with the most successful names in the business, McMenamy, now 57, is finding fame on her own terms through her recently launched – and instantly popular – Instagram account. Here, she shares some of her favourite hair, skin, and beauty secrets she’s learned over the years.
@kristen_mcmenamy
On her skincare approach
With skincare, I have to keep it simple, because my mind is so complicated. In the morning I’ll use a washcloth and wipe my face with cold water. I don’t go for serums, just creams. But I don’t like creams that just absorb into your skin. I like to feel the cream on my face. I was sent this 111SKIN Y Theorum Skin Day Cream Nac Y2, and so far, so good. You can feel that it’s there and softening your skin. As for my body, I swear by Lipikar by La Roche-Posay. It makes your skin soft and it’s not so expensive.
111SKIN – Crème de jour Y Theorem
La Roche-Posay – Baume texture crème pour peaux sèches à tendance eczema atopique
On the importance of sunscreen
I use SPF religiously, even if it’s a cloudy day. I use one by Bioderma. It’s a soothing, repairing cream. If you have damage to your skin, this is the one. I also wear a hat. I hate hats, but I have to. People love to sit in the sun and have lunch. For me, that would be hell. I have very good skin because I’ve avoided the sun my whole life, apart from as a teenager when I tried to get a tan, which didn’t work.
BIODERMA PHOTODERM Spray spf50+ invisible, hydrate, absorption rapide – peaux sensibles
On her evening ritual
When I go to bed, there’s a variety of things I use. The Velvet Sleeping Mask from Sisley, I just load that on; you wake up and your skin feels really nice. And then the Chanel Sublimage La Crème. It’s so rich and so lovely. I would put that all over my body if it was cheaper. I think Karl (Lagerfeld) is looking from above and sending down these heavenly products.
Sisley – Masque de nuit velours aux fleurs de safran
On scrubbing
The one thing that I absolutely need to do is scrub the hell out of my face. I’ve been doing this since I was like 21. I do it at night with my hands and I scrub everywhere. It gets into the pores and then I use lots of cold water to get it off. It’s just very refreshing and I feel clean.
My first choice is Chanel Le Gommage. But if I feel like I really want to scrub, I use St Ives Blemish Control Apricot Scrub, which I get from Boots.
Chanel – Gel exfoliant anti-pollution Le Gommage
On feeling beautiful
Growing up, I always felt ugly. I wanted to be anybody else. I didn’t have boyfriends, I was laughed at by girls. I just was so awkward, and I hated my face. So I would load it up with make-up, like, really bad make-up, and that would scare people off. I just needed to cover the face I had.
