Self-care will forever be our favourite hobby but we appreciate that recharging and putting yourself first looks different for everyone. Each week, we'll be asking the celeb lot to share their ideal self-care Sunday routines, the hard-working beauty products they recommend to their friends and which TV show they're currently binging…
This week it's all about Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu, this Love Island 2022 winner and undisputable icon. The former Turkish soap actress quickly became the nation's favourite (alongside boyfriend Davide Sanclimenti) thanks to her unrelenting commitment to the drama, glorious outfits and her ongoing beef with a 'cursed' yellow beanbag.
Soon after leaving the villa, Ekin-Su landed a huge brand deal with BPerfect and launched her own collection which quickly became a success. The stand-out product? The Radiant Glow Face Perfector which is so good, it keeps flying out of stock.
The beauty brand is now launching an 'Ekin-Su' themed counter in the Enoch Shopping Centre (Glasgow) from Thursday 2nd November to Sunday 5th November. If you're in town, Ekin-Su will also be meeting fans in-store on Saturday 4th November from 12-4pm. Definitely not one to miss.
Ekin-Su chats exclusively to heat about her favourite make-up tips, the true meaning of wellness and the body glow she couldn't stop wearing in the villa...
On BPerfect
"It all started when I was on Love Island a year and a half ago and it all started with one product and it was Bperfect's Body Talk Liquid Lustre. It’s a body product and it gave a bronzey, all-over glow and it came with a big body brush. I remember using that pretty much every day in the villa and the other girls were obsessed with it.
"Obviously, at the time we weren’t allowed to show product labels for copyright reasons on camera so we had to put a black sticker over any of the design, so you wouldn’t know it was BPerfect. Brendan saw I was using the product and as soon as I left the villa, we got in touch. It was the perfect collaboration and it started from there really."
What's Ekin-Su's top pick from BPerfect? If she had to choose?
"The one and only Radiant Glow and I would pick shade three. Shades three and four are the most popular shades, so they sell out quickly. The idea behind it was that we should create a face product that does all the amazing things the Body Glow does. Something you can use a primer, an all-in-one glow - all different shades, all different skin types.
"It really kicked off on TikTok, especially on the lives and the more people tried it, the more people realised that this isn’t just something we’re promoting for the sake of it with my name on it, it’s a great product and it really works."
On self-care
"I'm going to keep it really real and I'm not going to say I wake up and I have a perfect-looking face in the morning and I wake up and have a relaxing shower - no! I wake up, I make a coffee like everyone else and I just turn on the TV. Usually, if I'm staying at Davide's we make breakfast together and then my morning routine would be a coffee then gym.
"When it comes to beauty and skincare, it would have to be completely zero make-up, a good moisturiser which has SPF in it, because you've got to do SPF now before you get into your late 30s. My mum always says that. I also love the three-quarter lashes from BPerfect as they are very natural-looking. I always run out of them, you can ask my PR team.
"Every month, I'm like, "Kira, I need new eyelashes, I need new eyelashes!" I use them pretty much every day, especially the middle ones[from her lash set] and the three-quarter ones. I use them in my basic day-to-day."
www.bperfectcosmetics.com
"If I'm doing more of a pamper ritual day I do a face mask, eat lots of chocolate, chill, and watch some Netflix, especially serial killer documentaries. Whatever is number one on Netflix and that is my day, very normal, nothing crazy."
On fake tan
"I usually don't wear fake tan and I remember when I worked with BPerfect, Brendan was like, 'You've got to try the face tan!'
"I had never done fake tan before and I was really curious. They have their 10 Second Tan and it comes in a light, medium and dark shade which also comes with a mitt.
"I applied it before an event and it looked like I went to Spain for two weeks, I couldn't believe how good it looked. There were no patches and it had an amazing coconut sort of fragrance. You would have never thought I had fake tan on and after that, I was like, 'You know what, I get it.'"
On make-up tips
"I always used to do my eyebrows first, but now I don't do them first - I literally do them last. When I've finished the glow, the shadow, the mascara, and eyelashes, I can then draw the shape of my eyebrows in a way that suits the make-up that's on my face, So sometimes thin eyebrows, sometimes bushier, pushed-up eyebrows. It sort of depends on the look I'm going for.
"I also don't apply my concealer until I've done my eyeshadow. Everyone is different, but I personally find that my eyeshadow might leak and it just goes everywhere. I think, 'Okay, let's be smart here - we don't want to make a mess!'
On daily wellness habits
"I like reading, walking, the gym… Davide listens to audiobooks, but I don't, they're apparently really good. He recommended me some. I would say, going for a walk in the park, fresh air, seeing friends, seeing family…
"Also, visiting the country you're from is always a good thing to remind you of who you are and where you're from. It's always worth remembering I'm not the girl from Love Island, I'm the girl that went to so and so high school or lived in Essex. It's good to remember who you are."
On fitness
"I did ask Davide to coach me and he's keen, so it'll be fun for him to coach me as a client. With all the chaos and our busy lifestyles, I lost that push after Love Island and getting that routine back can take a while. Especially as women, we're really hard on ourselves and our bodies change all the time. You'll be bloated one week, the next you won't and then you might crave chocolate, which is fine. I do and I eat cupcakes and I'm not embarrassed or ashamed of it. But it's also good to feel happy in yourself and I think going to the gym shouldn't be a chore, it should be part of your routine."
On bedtime rituals
"I love candles, everywhere in the house there are candles, there are essence sticks, I've got lavender pillow sprays… When I was away filming recently and staying in a hotel, I had the pillow spray with me every night and it made me feel very relaxed."
On life-changing books
"I would definitely recommend starting with books like The Power of Now, Good Vibes, Good Life, I read these books years ago. They are really motivating me to write my own book one day so keep your eyes peeled for that.
"It would be like a journey of my life with the help and guidance of what to do in these situations and how to cope with things. I always find that when I don’t have anyone to talk to, I want to find that book that I can relate to. Something that says I should take this step if I’m feeling anxious, for example. Reading isn’t always fun and I can admit I can get bored and want to switch off and snooze. But I think that if it relates to you, I don’t think you can get bored of a book."
On great advice
"The only advice I can say is the older you get, the more you realise how short life is and everything we worry about will mean nothing when we're not on this planet anymore. Every day we worry about so many things, but there's a war going on or something really tragic is going on and you don't realise how grateful we should be right now.
"There's no point in being unhappy in life all the time, it's a choice. You can control that, you can choose to be happy, and you can choose to be a better you. You're the only power in that situation, you need to push yourself and it can be hard, but life is like that."
Quickfire round:
What show are you currently watching? I’m not addicted to anything at the minute. I recently watched the Beckham documentary on Netflix and I find murder mystery stuff interesting.
How do you like your cuppa? I don’t like tea with milk, I know it’s an English thing, but because I’m Turkish, I’m just not used to it. My coffee order is an almond latte with sugar-free caramel syrup.
Go-to loungewear brand? I don’t stick to any brand, it could be Davide’s T-shirt and some leggings or my tracksuit. I like to mix and match.
Everyday perfume? Baccarat Rouge, I think everyone uses this now.
Go-to takeaway order? A good burger and fries.
Favourite candle? I love the cupcake ones from Yankee Candle, they last a really long time.
Ekin-Su will be at the BPerfect store in the Enoch Shopping Centre on Saturday 4th November from 12-4pm