Before co-founding her eponymous brand, Liz Earle worked as a successful Beauty Editor and offered her expert skincare advice as GMTV’s resident beauty expert. Sixteen years later, with a now hugely successful global beauty brand, 30 published books, five children and a whole farmyard of animals; we caught up with Liz to find out just how she manages it all.
Your skincare range has grown into such a hugely successful, global brand. When you started the company did you ever think you would be where you are today?
Kim and I hoped that we would be able to help women around the globe in their quest to achieve radiant, beautiful skin. But we never expected that 16 years on we would now be helping women in over 90 countries across the globe, and that one Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser would sell every 30 seconds! It truly has exceeded all of our hopes and expectations.
What is your everyday skincare routine?
I really don’t believe you need to overload your skin with a dozen products each day. I always advise that it is best to keep skincare simple, that way it is easy and doesn’t become a chore. My skincare routine is simple – just the three-step routine of Cleanse & Polish, followed by Instant Boost Skin Tonic and Superskin Moisturiser. Just these three simple steps keep my skin in really great condition and I never worry about how my skin looks anymore, which is such a release. Then I simply dip in and out of our Special Treatments range as and when I feel like my skin needs a little extra help.
With the weather changing, will you be adapting your beauty regime? Any top tips for our readers?
During the colder winter months, plummeting temperatures can leave your skin feeling dry, tight and in need of extra nourishment and protection. The best ingredients for helping the skin to retain its own moisture reserve are plant oils which mimic the skin’s own naturally effective moisture barrier, sebum. I recommend doubling up with facial oil like our Superskin Concentrate at night underneath your existing moisturiser during winter. It’s an intense, aromatic blend of 100% pure plant oils like softening argan and organic rosehip oils, soothing neroli, lavender and chamomile essential oils plus protective natural source vitamin E to nourish and protect winter skin.
Your brand was founded on The Isle of Wight, are you inspired by nature and the countryside?
The Isle of Wight offers a stunning environment which reflects our company focus on natural beauty and wellbeing. Much of the imagery we use in our Liz Earle publications, online and instore is actually inspired by the picturesque scenery we are surrounded by. The names of our Treatment Rooms at our flagship London store are actually inspired by different Isle of Wight bays and each has a beautiful coastal portrait of the particular bay on the wall. We like to bring a little bit of island life and a coastal retreat to the Mainland.
How do you adapt between the county and the city life?
I moved from London to the West Country with my family a few years ago. My life can be quite frantic with so much traveling and organising, so it is a sanctuary I can escape to. It’s also a very hands-on life – we run a working organic farm and we only have one man to help us, so at lambing time, it’s all hands on deck; we’ll be out helping in the lambing sheds in the early hours of the morning. It’s not very glamorous but it’s incredibly satisfying. We now have chickens, pigs and sheep, as well as horses and three dogs.
Liz Earle is fundamentally a botanical brand. How important are natural products to you and knowing what goes into your skin?
I believe that natural ingredients offer more skin benefits and some of the most potent skincare ingredients are found in nature, including antioxidant vitamins, anti-bacterial essential oils and anti-inflammatory herbs. Our skin is a complex, living organ and the very best results come from treating it holistically, with naturally skin-compatible ingredients. We use well over 100 different naturally active ingredients throughout our skincare range, they may be more expensive and difficult to use than synthetic ingredients, but naturally active ingredients have potent skin and haircare benefits.
What are your top three hero products you swear by?
Top of my list is our Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser. The beauty staple works on every age and skin type – taking the guesswork out of choosing a cleanser. Our Superskin Moisturiser is fast catching up with Cleanse & Polish as my ultimate beauty must-have. I absolutely always double-check I have at least one jar in my wash bag when travelling – I will not leave home without it! And finally my favourite facial oil is our Superskin Concentrate. I warm the divinely aromatic oil in my hands before massaging into my face, neck and décolletage every evening before bed.
Any top makeup tips for when you’ve only go 5 minutes to get ready?
I’m now never without our new Sheer Skin Tint. I usually follow this with a slick of mascara and a pop of creamy blush colour on my cheeks. I also like a natural-toned, pinky lipstick mixed with our Superbalm – perfect to nourish lips, leaving them smooth and deliciously glossy. To give my hair a bit of extra body when time is tight I tip my head upside-down, give it a good ruffle up, lightly spraying with Elnett unscented hairspray before standing up – works a treat!
As a mother, your skin must have gone through some changes. How did you regime change during pregnancy and after?
Most of us bloom during pregnancy and a simple regime of cleansing, toning and moisturising is all you need. But my top tip is that lavishing oils on your skin may help to prevent stretchmarks. Plant oils work well as their structure is much closer than mineral oils to our skins own natural oils. I especially recommend using rosehip seed oils for helping to guard against permanent scarring. It’s worth piercing a capsule of natural-source vitamin E and adding this to the rosehip seed oil.
We love the Liz Earle main, mens, haircare and makeup range. Are there any plans to introduce a mother and baby range?
We know that a lot of our customers use the Naturally Active Skincare range on their babies and children – particularly our Orange Flower Botanical Body Wash which is free from synthetic foaming agents which is perfect for the most delicate of skins. However, many of our customers have requested a specific mother & baby skincare range, so perhaps in the future…
What fashion brands do you love?
I always feel smart, comfortable and collected wearing classic pieces and I love British designer Alice Temperley for her contemporary take on classic styles.
Any top beauty tips for relieving mum’s tired eyes?
The best way to pep up tired eyes is to fill a basin with icy cold water, and splash over closed eyes between 15 and 20 times. The water will help to visibly brighten and refresh the eyes and help to make them sparkle again. When applying eye cream, warm a small amount between your ring fingers and dot along the eye bone. If you pop it into the fridge for 5 minutes before applying, it also helps to decongest and reduce puffiness.
With five children of very different ages, is it ever difficult to please all of them all of the time?
The short answer is yes! But the family just has to move at the pace of the slowest, so it does tend to focus on the needs of the smallest first. In a way, this has its advantages as we focus on simple family pleasures such as farm walks, collecting the eggs, identifying birds and wildflowers. Indoors, the older children are (mostly) happy to encourage the younger ones with simple games, jigsaws and music practise. We then try and find family favourites to watch on TV, such as Strictly. We have a good selection of quirky child-friendly DVDs too, such as Noggin the Nog and Pingu. Keeping everyone bonded together by simple pleasures tends to please most of them – most of the time.
When you’re not at work, are there any things you like doing with the family that you can all enjoy?
For me, perfect happiness is spending time enjoying the great outdoors with my family on our farm. I love to potter around our garden with the children, playing with the animals and collecting pickings from our vegetable plots for supper. Everyone loves being in the kitchen and baking is a favourite pastime – spice cake, plum crumble and Yorkshire puddings being the current favourites.
What’s your all-time favourite read?
One of my favourite childhood novels was Little Women. Despite their hardships, the characters survive through strong family bonds and acts of service helping others. A great example that definitely had a positive effect on me growing up.
When you’re not a work, how do you relax?
I try to walk every morning as I find this is the best time of day to exercise before things start to crowd and complicate the day. I love Nordic Walking, using poles to give an upper-body work out as well as intensifying the aerobic bit of walking. To de-stress I book myself in for a facial at our London flagship store. It gives me time to relax from my busy schedule and recharge my batteries.
You must get to travel a lot with work but where do you like to holiday with the kids?
I love going to Italy with my children as the restaurants are so family friendly and welcome five children with open arms and a wide smile (not a groan).
What’s your failsafe dish you cook that the whole family enjoys?
Roast lamb, potatoes, broad beans, peas, and salad followed by raspberries with meringue (made from our own eggs). My favourite time of the year for cooking is the Summer, when we can literally pick our own supper from the garden. Even friends in London are turning over their tiny terraces to fantastically productive beds of tomatoes, salads and herbs. You don’t need a huge acreage to get a great taste. Even herb pots on a windowsill can add fantastic fresh-picked flavours.
Finally, how will you be spending Christmas this year?
For me, Christmas is all about family time so I always feel most Christmassy enjoying the time-honoured traditions at home. Perfect happiness is late-night candlelit Midnight Mass, stuffing stockings and feasting on traditional festive fare we’ve spent weeks preparing – mince pies, Christmas pudding, chestnut stuffing and a home-made richly iced fruit cake. I can’t think of any place better than home.