The actress, model and Dior Beauty ambassador talks through her daily wellness routine – from the products that she could never be without, to the destressing rituals that keep her grounded
2021 was a breakthrough year for Iris Law. The actress, model and Dior Beauty ambassador has spent the last 12 months securing her status as an emerging supernova – winning a role in Danny Boyle’s upcoming Sex Pistols biopic, as well as a slew of exciting new modelling contracts. On top of all that, somehow, Law has been balancing full workdays at Central Saint Martins, where she is currently studying for a degree in Experimental Textile Design (when we speak, she is on campus, sneaking in some time between lectures).
This bold new era was symbolically marked by Law at the start of the year. In a shock move, the 21-year-old decided to break from conventional beauty standards, swapping her flowing English Rose mane for a bleached buzzcut. It’s an expressive, anarchic approach to beauty that Law is hoping to cultivate further in the years to come. Here, she tells us more about how it’s developing – from the products that she could never be without, to the everyday rituals that keep her grounded.
AnOther Magazine: Tell us about your morning beauty routine.
Iris Law: I always use a jade roller on my face, every morning. I’m also obsessed with the Dior Prestige Rose Advanced Serum: it’s pink and it smells so good. You know one of those products that you’re so obsessed with that you can’t stop recommending it? I just love it so much. So I use that, and then use the Dior Prestige Le Baume Demaquillant cleanser morning and night. And if I have a shoot that day, I’ll use their Hydra Life Glow Better Fresh Jelly Mask, which is an exfoliant mask that makes your skin really smooth and ready for makeup.
AM: Do you wear makeup every day?
IL: No, I rarely wear makeup. If I’m not working, I’m probably not wearing makeup. I sometimes wear lipstick or a lip stain which I might put on a couple of times in the day, but I usually just have it in my bag.
AM: How has your beauty routine changed as you’ve got older? Have you started taking it more seriously?
IL: I used to be super expressive with my makeup – like wearing blusher high on the cheekbone, as opposed to low – but then as my skin got worse, I just started focusing on coverage. But when you have high coverage, it really takes out the shape of your face, and you have to go back in with blush and contour to try and make it look normal again. So that got really distracting, and I just didn’t feel confident with trying new things. But now, since my skin got better and I shaved my head, I’ve got a lot more expressive with my makeup. I’m addicted to eyeshadow.
“I struggle with anxiety – or I did, more so – and it’s just really important to find things that make you feel like you’re taking back some control” – Iris Law
AM: How have you felt since shaving your head?
IL: I cut my hair at a time where so much was changing in my life. I was moving out of my home, filming a TV show and acting for the first time, and coming out of lockdown. I was just pushing a lot of boundaries for myself. And [with a shaved head], you can’t hide behind your hair anymore – it changes your look so drastically. It just pushed me to just really look at how I wanted to express myself. It felt really empowering.
AM: What about outside of physical beauty products – what are your wellness rituals? How do you feel good mentally?
IL: I want to get to the end of the day knowing that I’ve given myself a good amount of nutrition. I take so many supplements and vitamins and drink lots of water. I have green juice powders and probiotics that I put in my water too, and I have a tea routine. I have all these different types of teas; like 10 teas, all for different times of day. Some with dried rose flowers or chamomile; some with echinacea ...
AM: Do they make a noticeable difference for you?
IL: I struggle with anxiety – or I did, more so – and it’s just really important to find things that make you feel like you’re taking back some control. It’s the same with essential oils and my diffuser: you can get all these different types of essential oils, and maybe it might be placebo, but it just like feels like you’re caring for yourself and figuring out how you feel at that time and what might help. Some oils help with hormones, like clary sage. Or if you need to breathe, there’s peppermint or rose or orange. It just helps you feel like you’re checking in with yourself.
AM: So what’s your favourite essential oil at the moment?
IL: Orange is my favourite essential oil; orange rind. It’s really uplifting, and you can put it in the bath as well as on your palm or wrists, and your pulse points.
AM: What about tea? What tea would you recommend?
IL: My favourite tea at the moment is Milk Oolong. There’s no milk or dairy in it, but it tastes really creamy. They grow it up in the mountains, at a specific height, and something about that type of air makes it taste [like milk].
AM: What about when you do feel anxious, or when you feel like you’ve lost a bit of confidence? How do you cope on those days?
IL: I just never push myself. I started feeling super anxious the other day because everything was getting on top of me with work. I had 20 minutes until the end of the day, but I just decided to leave. I took the evening to myself and didn’t do more work – even though technically I was on a deadline and should have done – but you need to just let yourself have a moment. Otherwise, if you overpush yourself, then the [quality of your work suffers]. So I think I’m good at saying “no, you need to chill”.
AM: What about your personal wellbeing goals for 2022 – is there anything that you want to improve or work on?
IL: I feel like I’m in such a good place with my health, my sleep routine, my food routine, and my work routine. So I don’t know – maybe I’d like to go running more. I feel like I’m on a good road. I just need to continue working.