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The sky is turning orange. The entertainment industry is at a standstill. The world is topsy-turvy — and that’s putting it mildly. But Sarah Jessica Parker is feeling optimistic. For the second year in a row, she’s partnered with RoC Skincare to promote the #LookForwardProject, which aims to educate young people about the scientifically backed benefits of practicing optimism in their everyday lives. (Optimists have a 24% increased likelihood of having no chronic diseases, no cognitive impairment, and good physical health over time, according to research conducted at Harvard University.)
That’s not to say Parker is ignorant of the realities of living in 2023, especially when it comes to society's obsession with youth. Her point of view is that while she’s not trying to stop the clock, she does want to feel her best every minute she can. And for Parker, that doesn’t mean carving out time for a 10-step skin-care routine. (She does, however, stand by the three vitamin C-enriched products included in her limited-edition kit with RoC Skincare; 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the mental health advocacy group SeekHer.) Below, in her own words, Parker shares more of her unfiltered thoughts on age, skin care, and hotel shampoo. — As told to Dianna Mazzone
Women have a huge amount to offer the longer we spend in experience as parents and employees and employers and friends and colleagues and neighbors and wives and partners and anything in-between. We are better and have more to contribute. We are not of lesser value, but rather the contrary. We are a huge, important, and influential part of life and industry and friendships and love…
I think the hardest thing for all of us is to know something intellectually and to make it live emotionally for us. Like anything, it takes time to integrate ideas [about beauty] into our lives. It takes time to chip away at old ideas and welcome new things. But more and more, I think you're just hearing women talk about wanting to feel good about themselves when they walk out the door and really meaning it.
I just don't spend that much time [thinking about appearance]. It’s not that I don't have an ego, that I don't have a decent, healthy amount of vanity, but I just don't want to spend that much time really deconstructing it all. I like to be graceful with myself. I'm not delusional. I know that age adds up, and that there are consequences to being 51, 52, 53. I get it.
Do I want to participate in stopping time? No. [Get a] time machine? No. What small effort can I make toward feeling okay? I have to look in the mirror for work a lot and I can't be in total denial about the reality, and I'd like to feel good, and I'd like other people to think I'm presentable. Beyond that, it's out of my hands. People have opinions. That's the way the world works. Do I wish people were nicer to each other, especially women? Sure. Is it going to dominate the way I choose to live and how much time I devote to hoping to appeal to them? I have no interest after a while. I just want to feel decent when I wake up. I like these [RoC Skincare] products. I have for a while now. It's nice to have products in life you really use and believe in.
I have two products from RoC that I'm very devoted to already. So [in building this kit], I wanted to make sure that I could understand these [products] as well, because for me, unlike other women that seem to be extremely good at 10 steps [of skin care], I don't want 10 steps. I don't understand 10 steps. I don't want to get involved in 10 steps. So, how could these integrate into what I already had that was effective, that feels good, that smells good? I see the results. And, of course, I was getting a huge amount of information from RoC, which was helpful — and for me, necessary because I can't look at a label. I can't look at the front of the packaging and feel confident that I know what every word means.
I feel good about where we arrived. [The moisturizer] has SPF, which, for lazy people like me, is good. I want stuff that can [layer] well, that I could wear under base [makeup]. I don't ever [use] base or foundation in my own life, but I want something that can work well with professional makeup artists. I've never done more than wash my face. I think I've done three steps. What I do is serum, moisturizer, and maybe one other thing. That's it. I take most of what I have left over from my face and use it on my hands. I think if it's good for my face, it's got to be good for my hands.
My hair is pretty much as it's always been. I wash it, I put some conditioner on the ends, I pull it back into a ponytail or a bun. My face is my face. It is what it is.
I've been going to the same colorist forever. If I'm not working, I probably won't see her for six, eight months easily. And if I'm working, just because of continuity, I have to keep it [the same color], so that if you're cutting [tape] back and forth, your hair [matches]. So, I'm much more scheduled and obedient about that.
[My] hair care is the same. It’s pretty simple. I use Serge Normant's Dream Big Instant Volumizing Spray. I use — honestly — whatever shampoo. I use anything. I check before I travel and if there's shampoo in the hotel, I won't even travel with shampoo and conditioner. And when I [slick] my hair back I use something called Tancho Stick that I've been using for maybe 15, 20 years. It's amazing. It has a smell like heaven. And one [tube] can last you three, four, five years.
I think [with aging comes] more certainty. You’re less timid. You're asking fewer questions about, “Should I?” “Can I?” “Is that okay?” “Is that allowed?” With age and experience, you feel more certain about your place in the world.
Read more celebrity interviews:
- Mindy Kaling on the Unique Struggles of Melasma on Darker Skin
- Lil Nas X Says Fame Made Him Realize He’s Hot
- Lana Condor on How Being Adopted Shaped Her View of Beauty
Watch Jennifer Aniston react to TikTok trends:
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