I’m a few weeks into my winter hibernation and have finally recovered from the holidays. My social battery is back to a normal level (shh, I’m still hibernating). This January, I had nothing to do at night but listen to audiobooks while I organized every. single. drawer, made soup after soup, eat healthy, walk/yoga, read juicy novels (or books on how to talk to our spiritual guides or be a better leader), and put on soooo many face, hair, and even feet masks. And you bet the sauna blanket and red light therapies were at the ready for TV binging. Today I’ll dive into the dumb but SO WORTHWHILE beauty stuff that makes me feel great (yes, even the cheap stuff). I run dry, especially after the cortisol highs and over-indulgence of the holidays. But you see, I have a philosophy that most masks, like most forms of exercise, are worth doing, and are even GREAT. Of course, some are “better” than others, have better ingredients, are more effective, blah blah, but honestly, they almost all improve your skin and make you feel better. The cheap ones still give that glow and, more importantly, give you that sense that you took care of yourself. I would even theorize that the act of simply setting aside the time away from others and rubbing it on your skin, face, and hair sends a happy signal to your brain – Hey brain, I care about this body.

It all starts with the bath…

I have bought so many fancy bath oils over the years (my favorite is still this Jo Malone, but it’s too expensive for day-to-day use), but since I bathe so much in the winter, I really only use Dr. Teals foaming bath in lavender ($11 for two bottles). It smells good, foams up so easily, and lasts for 20 baths (the whole month). I do NOT like any jars of garbage that leave weird flakes or residue in my bath that I then have to clean, and this one doesn’t (a side of “chores” with your relaxing??? No thank you.) Oh, and I do NOT like a rock in my bath, waiting for them to dissolve to “work”. I’ve got feelings.

I recently bought a huge jar of magnesium flakes (I bought it locally, but found it $9 less on dumb Amazon – GD you Amazon!!). It’s unscented, so you can combine the flakes with the bubble bath. There are soooooooo many oils, salts, and rubs out there. My suggestion is to stick to one scent you love because it tells your brain that it’s time to relax when you smell it (that Jo Malone scent will always remind me of lockdown, as I used it almost nightly then, so it has an odd nostalgia for me now). I don’t have a scrub that I can recommend, but in my experience, they all make your skin so soft, and the fancier ones are slightly better but go so fast.

After bath, I’ve been dry brushing and my goodness I LOVE it (I just learned how to do it properly). Now I dry brush right before bed, too (it’s so exhilarating). I already had the HigherDOSE drybrush, but was given it again by a friend who is super into this stuff because it’s her favorite as well (I’m sure a more affordable one like this would also work well). P.S. I don’t believe dry brushing like a normal person actually gets rid of cellulite (hello, marketing), but it’s a huge mood boost and stimulates your largest organ in such a fun way (I don’t doubt that it does good things for your lymphatic system, but just get annoyed with slogans like that). And then I’ve been putting on this body butter that was gifted to me from Kai, and I feel like quite the woman sliding into bed – I smell soooooo good.

medicube PDRN Pink Peptide Serum | ExfoliKate Intensive Treatment | Clay Face Mask | HigherDOSE Dry Brush | Pure Radiance Foot Mask | Depology Serum-Infused Microdart Patches | Snail Mucin Sheet Mask | Dr. Teal’s Foaming Bath | PRDN Collagen Jelly Cream

Face Masks

I’m not the lady with 1/2 used face mask jars – I LOVE a mask. Gel, Clay, sheet masks – $2 or $200. I will put it on my face. I still love the Exfolikate “Hollywood’s 2 minute facial” (I’ll notice a distinct glow for 3 days) and recently have become a FULL CONVERT of all things Medicube or any Korean beauty products with good old-fashioned Salmon Sperm. I LOVE these PDRN masks (4 for $20, so more for special occasions), but for an everyday mask, this one is awesome and under a dollar a piece (also Korean PDRN). PDRN is basically salmon sperm DNA (I’m confused TBH) that helps you rejuvenate skin cells and promotes collagen reproduction. It’s both topical and internal. It’s no joke, and it’s absolutely noticeable. When I was first recommended it (like 8 months ago), I stockpiled it because I was so nervous that it was going to sell out (it’s oddly affordable). So now I have all of these and just smother the hell out of them on my face:

Allover Gel for Collage and Skin Barrier Hydration and PDRN Peptides for All Over Evenness (and Moisture and Plumpness, etc) – These were my gateway into it; I just couldn’t believe what a difference it made instantly in plumpness and firmness.
PDNR Jelly – I think it’s more expensive because it has more salmon sperm in it…(LOL). I got Jess and her friend in love with this one, too.

I don’t have any great nightly moisturizer right now, thus the amount of masks (I need recs for Korean PDNR moisturizer, not just jelly), but I’m trying Charlotte Tilbury’s “Magic Cream” because I had a sample pot and it feels really good. I also got a few solid recs from Natasha Glasgow, a clean beauty expert whom I follow and trust a lot because she doesn’t get paid by brands – FOLLOW HER. She told me about INNBEAUTY PROJECT Extreme Eye Cream, and I’ve been using it for 2 weeks and really love it (it’s so soft and creamy). Kaitlin also loves it:)

Hair Masks

For hair masks, I’ll try anything and do. I have famously dry, fine, curly, and porous hair (and I highlight it) – the real trifecta of “bad,” so I should be masking weekly. Here’s what I’ve been using in January:

Briogeo – I think the whole “Don’t Despair, Repair” slogan got me. Love it.
Kerastase – This is the one every hairstylist I’ve had recommends or sells at their salon. I use it and like it, but can’t tell a difference between the two masks, but trust them.

I just ordered this one because the reviews of it are so good. Listen, one time on a two-week shoot, my hairstylist ordered me to put normal conditioner on my hair, wrap it in Saran Wrap, and sleep on it. The next day it was the softest and silkiest it hasever been. So, again, I think if you have real damage, do some research to address your needs, but also, anything is better than nothing, and sometimes the cheap stuff really works in a pinch 🙂

I feel like I could keep going… But I’d really love to take a break and force you to witness my first nude photo shoot of 2026. I was so sick of shooting myself in front of my vanity putting on a cream, so we did this instead, and equal parts hilarity and regret. OK, other important things:

1. Get yourself a waterproof Kindle – I read self-improvement books as hard/softback so I can highlight and come back to them, but all my fiction is on Kindle. Then read my recs for romance novels and turn up that hand nozzle!
2. Light a candle – Duh. Again, most candles are created fairly equal to me. I love the viral Heirloom Tomato from Flamingo Estate and also any $8 fancy wannabe from Target (I stay away from anything too fruity).

Before we had a nice tub, I would put a stool next to our smaller tub and put an iPad on it, throw on Veronica Mars (back on Netflix!!), and sit in the tub for an hour. I’ve also been red-lighting it all over the place. The hat (for follicle regrowth), the face mask, and the blanket (yes, I’ve had partnerships in the past and am so grateful to use them). I’ve now gotten into the habit of daily use (4-5 times a week), which all the research says simply works. Red light stimulates collagen naturally and does a billion other good things.

I won’t bother to get into my supplement routine (I had to buy an XL weekly pill organizer). I’m tackling that heart inflammation in 2026, 13 huge pills at a time. I’m excited to get my second round of Function Health lab testing to see if any of it has actually worked…

Anyway, that turned into quite the rant. I stand by my thesis – Just like working out, any time you take for self-care is a net positive, a big “value add,” they say in business. If you have some solid recs, leave them in the comments. I love to try new things and am your #1 sucker for enthusiastic recommendations:)

*Photos by Kailtin Green