You can always count on Lili Reinhart to keep it real. The actor is an outspoken advocate for mental health and body positivity, has a knack for gracefully shutting down social media trolls, and oh, yeah, once Postmate’d Dairy Queen to her hotel room. See what we mean?
So when we caught up with the Riverdale star on the set of her first CoverGirl campaign shoot, she couldn’t help getting gushy. “It feels very surreal to have all these people here for my CoverGirl shoot,” says Reinhart, who grew up admiring the brand’s ads with Rihanna. “I’m very humbled.”
To kick off Reinhart’s campaign as the face of CoverGirl’s new Clean Fresh Collection, we asked her to answer Glamour’s Big Beauty Questions. Here she sounds off on everything from self-expression through makeup to why we need to change the way skin texture is depicted in media.
What’s one beauty trend you’re obsessed with right now?
I really love Euphoria-style makeup—bold colors and shapes on the eyes, glitter all over the face. I think that show—and the makeup artists in charge of that show—has really opened a lot of doors for people to get super creative when it comes to shoots and red-carpet looks, and even just everyday makeup. When I went to an event not too long ago, I had my makeup artist put a silver piece of what looked almost like shiny plastic in the crease of my eye, so it kind of looked as if I had a metallic silver cut crease. It’s fun to experiment in that way.
What’s one beauty trend you wish you had never tried?
Oh, man. I guess I fell victim to overplucking my eyebrows. Not necessarily superthin, like Drew Barrymore ’90s eyebrows, but I plucked the front bits so they were shorter than they should have been. They weren’t natural-looking. But thankfully they recovered—and now I let my eyebrows grow.
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What’s one beauty rule you swear by?
Clean, fresh skin. I think the most beautiful makeup looks start with fresh skin. A beautiful foundation is vital to all those really good, glam beauty looks—to me it’s all about starting with the skin and making sure that looks good before you even worry about the eyes, or anything else. Your skin is where your light comes through.
What’s one beauty rule you think is B.S.?
I feel like “baking” your face with powder is kind of overrated. I think it’s just sort of adding product on your face that you don’t really need. I don’t like wearing a lot of product; I like keeping it very simple and clean. So I’ve never been a huge fan of layering on a bunch of powder. Less is more sometimes. No, most of time!
Fill in the blank: “I love my hair…”
Healthy. I use a lot of Olaplex, which strengthens your hair, in between highlighting sessions. I have to get my hair heat-styled for work every day. But for my CoverGirl shoot, we’re showing my natural waves. It’s nice to bring out the diffuser and let my natural hair texture come out rather than blowing it dry and straightening it out.
You travel constantly. What city or country gives you the greatest beauty inspiration?
When I’m in L.A., I feel like I have the most creative freedom to go crazy with makeup and try bold looks. I think it’s a really golden place for people to be very exploratory with their makeup.
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You’re stranded on a desert island. What are the three products you bring with you?
I would bring lip balm because I have to have lip balm with me literally everywhere I go. I use one by Hanalei. It’s made in Hawaii. I would also bring a moisturizer that has sunscreen in it. And probably a cheek stain that I could also use as a lip stain, like CoverGirl Clean Fresh Cream Blush. I love creamy products that you can use wherever.
What colors are you loving on your nails right now?
I actually don’t get my nails done very often. I rarely have polish on them; usually just nail strengthener. When I do paint my nails, they’re usually a very nude pink. I think I would paint my nails more if I wasn’t on set so much and didn’t have to worry about continuity.
What’s your getting-ready music?
I really like Tame Impala. I listen to feel good and chill. I like to—how should I say this?—calmly jam out to music. That’s sort of the whole vibe of my life, calmly jamming out.
How much time do you spend getting ready?
I tend not to have a lot of patience when I’m getting ready. If I’m going to an event, I’ll probably start getting ready an hour before. But if I’m just going out for breakfast for the day, I can probably get ready in five minutes. I’m pretty quick.
What is your favorite way to take a moment for yourself?
I like spending alone time, to be honest. I think it’s easy to get overwhelmed, especially when there are lots of people looking at you, fiddling with you, caring about what you look like, and kind of obsessing over every little thing. I find a lot of peace in alone time. I like to journal and get my thoughts out on paper. Sometimes I have a very anxious mind, so when I’m able to stop, chill out, and put pen to paper, it really helps me.
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If you could change one thing about beauty perceptions, what would that be?
Probably the idea that acne-free skin is the most beautiful. As someone who’s struggled with acne, I'’e definitely felt a lot less beautiful than other people because of breakouts. And I think there’s obviously a conception that people with porcelain skin, with glass skin, with acne-free skin are more beautiful. That’s an image that I would love to see change. I think we’re headed in the right direction—a lot of brands are slowly starting to photoshop less so consumers can see models’ real skin up close.
Who are the women who inspire you the most right now?
That’s a big question. I really love and have become close to Charli Howard, who is a British model. We met on Instagram—I followed her and we started messaging. I think she’s incredibly outspoken about body positivity. I’ve turned to her for a lot of advice.
