For anyone unfamiliar with Never Been Kissed (which, how dare you), the movie is all about a 25-year old journalist—played by Drew Barrymore—going undercover as a 17-year-old high school student. It’s arguably one of the greatest movies in romcom history, but there’s one big difference between the real Barrymore and the character she plays on-screen: IRL, she would never want to trick people into thinking she’s any younger than the 46 years she’s earned on this earth.
Though the actress has her own beauty brand, Flower Beauty, and serves as the creative director for Garnier Whole Blends, her relationship with her skin- and hair-care regimens isn’t about how products make her look, but rather how they make her feel. “This is going to sound so self-indulgent, but I think the best beauty advice I ever received came from myself, when I looked around Hollywood as a kid and thought: ‘You cannot fall prey to this world of thinking your life is dictated by how you look,'” she says. “Because that’s dangerous, and it isn’t real.”
The actress prides herself on the fact that she has yet to try injectables or any sort of plastic surgery—which isn’t exactly the norm in Hollywood—even though it hasn’t always been easy to resist. “The other day, I was on a Zoom and found myself putting my hands on my face, holding up my skin, and thought that it looked better that way…Then I thought, ‘Oh my God—that’s where it starts,” she says. “But I feel the same way about wrinkles and sagging in my skin as someone might feel about getting a scar on their face. It’s shocking at first, but a year or two later, you just learn to live with it. It’s not always easy, but you just have to accept it and get used to it and feel lucky to be alive.”
Because she’s stayed away from the more heavy-hitting beauty treatments (though, as she puts it, “never say never”), she’s learned to rely on her own at-home routine to keep her feeling her best. “I think that if beauty can stop you from thinking about trivial vanity, then it’s working,” she says. “If you have room to think about bigger and better things, that means you’ve got a good routine.” Scroll through for the products she uses every day.
Shop Drew Barrymore's favorite products
Garnier Whole Blends Legendary Olive Replenishing Shampoo — $10.00
Barrymore first started buying this shampoo (and it’s matching conditioner) for her daughter, Olive, but wound up stealing it out of her bathroom and falling in love with it for herself. “Between using hot tools and getting older, the texture of my hair has totally changed,” says Barrymore, who notes that her main concerns are dryness and breakage. “But after the first time I used this I thought, ‘This looks like my old hair,’ and felt attractive and empowered.” The shampoo and conditioner, packed with olive oil, is known to help with dehydration and split ends and Barrymore loves the fact it’s available at an affordable price point at the drugstore.
Tata Harper Rejuvenating Anti-Aging Serum — $120.00
“I definitely have some splurges,” says Barrymore. One that she thinks is worth the money? This Tata Harper serum. “It smells so good, and it’s so expensive, but it is so worth it,” she says. It’s made with Spanish lavender-derived peptides, which work to stimulate collagen to combat fine lines and wrinkles, plus hydrating hyaluronic acid and skin-smoothing natural sugar polymers.
Organic Vitamin E Oil — $19.00
Vitamin E oil is known for the nourishing and moisturizing properties it brings to both skin and hair, which is why Barrymore stocks up on a bottle of the stuff every time she’s at the grocery store and “douses herself with it” on the weekends. “During the week, I’m caked in makeup and frying my hair at work, so I’m just trying to bring that hydration back in,” she says. “It’s become a huge priority for me in the last year, and now I just want to be soaking in this stuff.”
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