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 Kate Hutchins, a fashion, beauty and lifestyle influencer and YouTuber with almost a million loyal Instagram followers. Kate is loved for her chic AF style, her fun weekly vlogs and teaching us how to pick hardworking fashion pieces with our capsule wardrobes in mind. TEACH US.
The content creator prides herself on mixing the aspirational with high-street and is forever sharing budget-friendly fashion hacks to make your outfits work. (Read: using a shoestring to cinch in the waist of a dress and a magic clip-on button from Amazon to do the same to jeans!).
Kate chats to heat about her favourite styling tricks for dressing 'expensive', her beauty routine and the best advice she's been given...
On starting out
"I think it was a mix of luck and desire. I remember when I was at university I'd really look up to certain influencers and took so much inspiration. I always thought it was such an amazing industry. I was studying graphic branding and identity and was really interested in the branding side of things.
"Then I moved to London in my third year of uni and I would just take photos of my outfits on the way to lectures. These were really easy outfits, but still quite chic. The one or two posts went viral on Pinterest and that's what really accelerated the growth. I was lucky that when I graduated uni, I went straight into influencing. I think I left uni with around 100k followers and I had just started a YouTube channel as well. I think those two together were a really good mix."
On a day in the life
"It changes every day but a normal day would be waking up fairly early as our day is usually fairly packed. I say 'our' as I have an assistant and two managers. Often I will shoot in the morning, whether that's at home shooting reels or YouTube or I'll go into London and shoot three/four outfits. Then I'll come home and do about an hour or two of admin, and another hour or two of editing and uploading. It's always very hectic.
"I think because it's a creative job you can't really ever plan your time. Often I'm running around like a bit of a headless chicken. I feel like I look like a duck on water - I'm looking very calm on top and then underneath, I'm paddling away! But I absolutely love it and really enjoy every single day, because you don't really know what's going to happen and you never know what brand campaign is going to come up and I love that."
On self-care
"I love self-care and I've always been really into it. For me, self-care is all about recharging my batteries. I'm definitely more on the introverted side, so I need these really quiet pockets of peace throughout my day. Even if it's five minutes or it could be half an hour, it helps me recharge and regroup. I find that makes such a difference and makes me a better person. So every day I make sure I have little pockets, but my ultimate Sunday self-care routine would have to be an 'everything shower', which is a shower where you do it all. Wash your hair, shave, exfoliate and I also have a dry brush as well. It's a brush which gets rid of all the dead skin and just leaves skin feeling incredible.
"So, I'll have an everything shower, change my bedsheets and get into bed with a cup of tea and watch YouTube. That actually lifts me up and puts me in a good mood as I'm quite conscious of what I consume. I don't like to watch anything heavy on TV unless it's something really, really good. I like to watch uplifting things and have cuddles with my two bunnies, as well. They make me very happy and I feel like animals are the best for making you really be present and in the moment. That is my ultimate day."
On skincare favourites
"With my skin, I'm fairly lucky that my parents both have really good skin. But I'm obsessed with skincare and I really love that part of my routine - again, it's that moment of peace where I can just dedicate to myself.
"One of my favourite skin tools is the FaceGym Microcurrent Facial Device. I only discovered it because I went to one of the FaceGym places in London and they used them during their facials. It's incredible because they start with one side of your face and one side of your face is completely lifted and the other side is normal. It kind of almost contracts the muscles in the face and gives you an instant facelift. It completely reduces puffiness and tightens and is a miracle tool. It's quite expensive, but it's one of those things I probably use every other day, so the cost per use is actually quite low. I always recommend that to all of my friends, I actually got my boyfriend to buy it as well!"
On budget beauty buys
"I love Rosemary oil at the moment. It's definitely trending on social media at the moment, but it is incredible. I get 100% pure rosemary oil and I mix it up with a bit of castor oil and put it all over my hair - it leaves your hair feeling so soft. It's great for growth and also great for straightening hair. I normally massage it in with my hands and get it really deep, which is another little self-care thing I do.
"Another one is my Amazon ice face roller. I got mine off Amazon and it's brilliant. I leave it in the freezer and if I wake up early and my face is super puffy, I'll ice roll my face and it reduces puffiness and it actually really tightens and leaves your skin feeling surprisingly soft considering there is no actual product being used. It's just water so it's very cheap and effective."
On make-up favourites
"My go-to's are the Benefit Fool Proof Eyebrow Powder, I don't have the best eyebrows and I feel a bit naked when my eyebrows aren't drawn on. The same with bronzer. I wear SPF on my face every single day, so my face is quite white compared to the rest of my body. I love the NudeStix Nudies in the shade 'Bondi Bae'. It's a cream product that's very natural and gives you a bit of colour.
"My favourite lipliner is from Charlotte Tilbury in the shade 'Iconic Nude'. It's a very natural, but deep nude colour. It just makes your lips look so much bigger without it looking too fake. I also love the Dior Lip Oils, they're just incredible. They're very luxurious and feel like a real treat."
On styling tricks
"I think accessories always really elevate an outfit. Without earrings, bracelets, a watch maybe and my bag and shoes, I just don't think an outfit is complete. These don't even have to be expensive, the earrings I'm wearing right now are from COS and they're a Bottega dupe. I absolutely love them, I think they just elevate an outfit.
"Other things would be high and low dressing, which is mixing really smart items like tailoring with more casual items like a baggy T-shirt. That juxtaposition works really nicely and it draws interest. Just really little things can completely change an outfit, even just ruching up the sleeves of your blazer just makes it look that much more considered. I always use little elastic bands and put them around the cuffs so they stay up."
On daily wellness habits
"I have a smoothie every morning which I pack in my five a day as well as any added supplements. That means I have my health out of the way, so if I eat rubbish for the rest of the day, at least I know I've got it in the bag!
"I add a supplement from the Beauty Chef and it's called the Glow Inner Beauty Essential. It makes it taste really nice and I love that. It's got all these amazing ingredients in it.
"Then I always use The Five Minute Journal every morning and you write down three things you're grateful for and three things that would make the day great. There are loads of little prompts that you just fill in and I always feel like that sets me up in a good way and makes me feel positive."
On life-changing books
"I love You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero and I read it at a point where I just really needed to read it. I think my confidence was a bit low and I was going through a break-up. I felt a bit lost and her book is amazing because she ultimately teaches you how to love yourself, how to accept the things you don't love about yourself or if you can change them, how to change them. I really like the straightforwardness of it - it really boosts your confidence. It's the perfect book to read during a low point or if you're stuck in a rut. I really love it."
On really great advice
"On TikTok, there's a trend going around and it's all about how when you're mean to yourself and you're telling yourself bad things about yourself, you're also telling that to your inner child. So next time you have these negative thoughts towards yourself, imagine you're saying that to a little version of yourself. You would never say those things to a child and you are that child really, just grown up. I always try and remind myself how I wouldn't speak to my younger self like that, so why should I speak to myself like that now?"
Quickfire round:
What show are you currently watching? I'm rewatching Sex And The City because the second season of the new series is out very soon.
How do you like your cuppa? Quite controversial as a Brit, but I like it really milky.
Go-to loungewear brand? Adanola or The NAP Co.
Favourite face mask? The Elemis Peptide4 Pillow Facial is really nice.
Go-to takeaway order? I love Thai.
Favourite candle? Diptyque Tubereuse, it's just the most beautiful smell.