Sadie Bass talks body confidence, crying in the bath and the £3 mascara she can’t stop recommending

The fashion influencer chats through her self-care must-haves...

Sadie Bass

by Aimee Jakes |
Published on

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 Sadie Bass, the fashion influencer, YouTuber and reality TV star who is loved for being refreshingly relatable on the 'gram. With over 92k followers, she serves us plenty of 'midsize fashion inspo' as well as hilariously being 'CEO of the Anti Darren society, which is a private Instagram page aimed at 'gays and girls who are tired of Darren's antics.' Absolutely iconic, if you ask us.

As well as working with huge brands including New Look and Spotify, Sadie is also starring in the current series of Written In The Stars on Discovery+, a brand-new dating show based around star signs which sounds like our cup of tea.

Sadie chats exclusively to heat about her skincare favourites, meditation and the best advice she's been given...

On self-care

Self-care looks different to everyone, but Sadie stresses how it can also depend on how many Proseccos you drank the night before. We can relate.

"I have two self-care routines and it honestly depends on how hungover I am. Obviously, if I'm hungover, I'm not getting up and using a jade roller. I'll sleep in bed all day, watch reality TV, and order a takeaway. I think rest and having a slob day are just as important as a day dedicated to skincare and stuff.

"When I'm not hungover and feeling good, I like to have a sort of planning day which sets me up for the week ahead. I find it hard to focus and stay organised, so if I do it on a Sunday I find the rest of the week is better.

I'm quite spiritual so I like to sage my room, especially if a boy has been in it. I just don't want masculine energy in my space. I have my crystals. I also love a bath over a shower and because I'm quite emotional I like to have a little cry in the bath while listening to Lana Del Rey. Even if I'm not sad, it's quite cathartic and then I'm fine. All hot girls cry in the bath."

Becoming an influencer

Sadie is absolutely smashing it online, but how did she turn fashion influencing into a career?

"I used to do it alongside my full-time job, I used to work in fashion PR which kind of makes sense. I used to borrow things from the cupboard and be like, 'Ooh do you like my new outfit?'

"I think it really popped off when it was lockdown because we couldn't go outside and take photos. I started to do more chatty videos and not trying to be perfect and started talking about mental health and my body confidence struggles. That's where people resonated with me the most. It kind of just grew from there. I found it hard to go back to work after lockdown and then I was like, 'Sorry, I'm off, I'm going to try and do this full time.'"

On career highlights

"I mean, apart from actually being able to do my job which is a huge thing, I never thought in a million years I'd be able to do that. I love when I get to model on shoots or for campaigns because I was actually asked by a modelling agency to come in in the past and they were like, 'You're too big, you're too short.'

"So every time I do it I have this moment where I'm like, 'Yeah, no I'm doing this' and I'm really proud of myself. It feels quite surreal and it's just showing everyone that ever told me I couldn't do stuff. It shows how much the industry is changing because someone who is a size 12 is included in these kinds of things now which is amazing."

On body confidence

Sadie looks incredible on the 'gram and oozes confidence, so teach us! How can we feel more body confident?

"I definitely wasn't always as confident. If I told younger Sadie what I'm doing now I think she would throw up. Even just posting a picture of my body, I quite openly used to edit my images and try and pose in a way to look really skinny. Then I don't know what happened I just flipped a switch one day and was like, 'I'm so bored of hating myself, There's much more to life than this.' There's so much more to life than waking up and looking in the mirror and hating what you see. I couldn't do it anymore.

"I'd say my top three tips that helped me and they sound really obvious but it's actually quite hard to put into practice. Firstly, unfollow people that make you feel like crap. I think we forget that we have autonomy over our phones. We can just unfollow or mute people and we don't have to consume those things. If someone does trigger you, make you jealous or make you feel like you shouldn't look the way you look then maybe don't consume it. Start following people that look like you, inspire you, and make you feel like, 'Oh, she's got the same body as me, she looks banging in that outfit and I can look the same.' That's what helped me the most.

"Also, talking kindly to yourself, which is the most simple but actually the weirdest and hardest because in our heads all day we say mean stuff about ourselves. If you try and stop a negative thought before it comes in, it really helps. It sounds silly, but when you look at yourself, be like, 'Wow, you look really good, you look really sexy.' It sounds so silly and you will feel like an idiot but eventually, you start to believe it.

"The final thing is wearing things that make you feel confident and really good. Investing in those things that when you put them on that makes you feel like your best self. That's going to make you feel more confident in general. I love a matching underwear set, even if no one sees it. I don't know what it is, but they make you feel so good. In the mirror just seeing yourself looking sexy, I think it's quite empowering especially when no one else is seeing it."

On skincare

"With skincare, because I wear a lot of make-up it's always been important to make sure I take it off properly. I like to double cleanse and use micellar water to take it all off and then a CeraVe cleanser which is good for sensitive skin. A double cleanse is good and then it's all about adding the hydration back in. I've started using more anti-ageing products now and have been using retinol twice a week.

"I'm really liking the Origins GinZing range, especially the Energy-Boosting Cream Moisturiser and Brightening Serum because it's got vitamin C in and I find that makes my skin really bright and glowing. Another product is the Sarah Chapman Overnight Facial and honestly, it is beautiful. It's like an oil and you wake up and you don't even have to add glow products into your routine because you're like, 'Oh my god, I'm glowing already!'

On budget beauty buys

"I recently found out that Primark have this insane mascara and it's around three pounds. It's called False Lash Queen and it's a dupe for Better Than Sex. I'm a proper mascara snob and I was shook. Three pounds and it's the best I've ever used.

"Another dupe I love is Cloud perfume by Arianna Grande, it's a dupe for Baccarat Rouge. Baccarat is £220 and Cloud is £30 and it's the one thing people comment whenever I'm around them, they're like, "You smell so good, is it Bacarrat?" and I'm like, 'No babe, it's Arianna."

"It's one that boys always comment on, it's quite a sexy fragrance that's good for date night. It's better than some of my expensive perfumes, to be honest."

On make-up favourites

What are Sadie's make-up bag favourites that she recommends to her friends?

"I used to change my make-up all the time, but now there are a few things that if I don't use them, my make-up looks really weird.

"My go-to is definitely the Charlotte Tillbury Flawless Filter , it's so subtle, but it makes the biggest difference in making your skin look very dewy. Also, the [Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Wand in Pinkgasm {href='https://www.charlottetilbury.com/uk/product/beauty-light-wand-blush-pinkgasm' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener nofollow'}) which always sells out, but is incredible. Then, MAC Lip Liner in Whirl, I think I've used it since I was 16 when Kylie Jenner said she used it. Every time I change, I'm like, "I don't look right." It just goes with every colour it's the perfect nude."

On life-changing books

"I have two books by the same author which have changed my life. One is called, What A Time To Be Alone and the other is called How To Get Over A Boy, both by Chidera Eggerue. I actually met her at an event and I was so nervous to meet her, but she was so nice. Her books made me change how I was in relationships. I used to be very reliant on dating and male validation, but it made me realise my worth and how being alone is something to be treasured. If any of my friends are going through a breakup, I'm like, 'Read this book, it's just amazing.'"

On wellness habits

"Since passing 25, I've definitely got more into wellness. I don't really know what I was doing in my early twenties, I don't know how I actually survived. I had no rituals, nothing, I just used to roll out of bed and run to work. Now I'm quite open with the fact that I struggle with my mental health and there are things that are non-negotiables for me. I know if I do them, I'll be in such a good headspace.

"Meditating is something I've really tried to get into and I've recently started an app I love, it's called Superhuman which is made by this girl called Mimi Bouchard. She used to be on Made In Chelseaand has now become a wellness influencer. She admits when she was on the show that she was drinking a lot, in the wrong crowds doing the wrong thing.

"The app is so good because it has walking meditations, and it has ones for when you're doing your make-up. You're not just sitting and I find it really hard to sit still when your mind is just running. There's honestly a meditation for everything."

On really great advice

"A big thing for me at the moment is learning the power of saying no to things. I am a massive people pleaser, anything anyone asks me to do, I just say yes. Whether that's with a boy, with friends, with work, with plans and sometimes I think: I don't want to do this, I don't want to even be here, I don't even like this boy. I'm just going along with it because I'm a people pleaser. I'm now realising that if you say no to the things that aren't right for you, you attract the better things for you."

Quickfire round:

What show are you currently watching? Married At First Sight, it's so juicy, I love any relationship show.

How do you like your cuppa? I prefer an iced coffee or hot chocolate to tea. I like my iced coffee milky with a bit of vanilla syrup.

Go-to loungewear brand? Pink Soda Sport, you wouldn't think it but they have these fleece-lined joggers and every time they're in the wash, my life isn't the same. They're my emotional support set, they're honestly that unreal.

Favourite face mask? I love theBiore Rose Quartz Face Mask .

Go-to takeaway order? You just can't beat a McDonald's. I always switch it up but I can't just have a meal, I have to get a little chicken mayo or something on the side.

Favourite candle? The NEOM De-Stress Candle , I don't even want to light it because it's too nice.

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