Rebecca Minkoff Drops Her Skin-Care Routine

Robert Hundley

Rebecca Minkoff knows what works. After all, the designer’s eponymous clothing and accessories brand has remained relevant for 13 years, from the iconic Morning After Bag that put her on the map to merging fashion with technology in the past few years—a testament to the innate sense that she just “gets it.” 

That knowledge extends to her skin-care routine, for which she’s curated products, mostly from clean brands and female founders that she connects with. “When I’m shopping for skin, it’s really about lots of moisture,” she tells Glamour. “I want a dewy, bouncy look to my skin—which, sure, every woman wants, but I’m 40, so anything that’s super wrinkle-preventative is what’s on my list. It’s pretty simple.” 

But it hasn’t always been that way. Minkoff battled adult acne on and off from the ages of 20 to 28, and again when she turned 35. “As soon as I fixed my gut health, it really drastically changed my skin,” she says. “Healing the inside for me really took care of the outside.” She swears by two supplements, one that was recommended by her doctor and another that was recommended to clear up a  “red patch” on her daughter’s back as a baby. “I was like, ‘Well, what would happen if I took it?’  Within 24 hours, the redness on her back went away. And so once I took it, I was like, ‘Oh, damn, I’m never giving this up.’  And then from there, my skin-care routine became almost like a wash, then my moisturizer and that’s it.”

Below, Minkoff spills on the non-ingestible skin care she can’t live without. Read on for the latest installment of Drop the Routine. 

My supplements

I swear by a mineral supplement drink called ION Gut Support. Basically, with all the pesticides we eat, it destroys the insides of our intestinal lining and then toxins seep through. Obviously your skin is your largest organ, so this helps heal your gut lining. And then the one I discovered through my daughter is a probiotic called Ortho Biotic. I’m not sponsored by them or anything, but within 24 hours of me taking Ortho Biotic, the permanent redness I had always had was gone. As long as I’m consistent about that product, my skin is even-toned for the most part. I’m not wearing foundation right now.

My cleanser

At night I’ll use the In Your Face enzyme wash. It’s organic, vegan, pretty natural.

My mist 

I don’t usually use a toner. I feel like it’s too drying for me, but sometimes I’ll do a little bit of Rosewater from Mario Badescu. 

My serums

At night I tend to pile on as much moisture as I can. I’ll do Tata Harper’s serum followed by her Elixir Vitae, which I’m obsessed with. People are like, “You’re glowing,” and I’m like, “No, I’m not glowing; it’s Tata.” Whatever magic she has in those plants, whatever spells she’s casting in Vermont, it’s working for me. 

My oils 

The other brand I alternate with is Linnè, which has a Repairing Oil or a Balancing Oil. I love her products. She’s a smaller, lesser-known brand, but her stuff is incredible. At night, if I know I’m going right to bed and I’m not going out, I’ll use Vintner’s Daughter oil. I love that it feels luxurious. It smells amazing. I feel like it’s really moisturizing, and especially in the wintertime, I tend to use more oils than creams. I like having that barrier on my face. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but a derm told me that if you use moisturizer and it has water in it and you’re going outside and the cold is hitting your face, it actually freezes it, so oils are better.  If I want to do a moisturizer, Joanna Vargas has a great hydrating skin cream; the smell is unbelievable.

My eye creams

For my eye cream I’ll use Tata, or if it’s the morning I’ll use the Wander Beauty eye patches because I noticed in the last couple months when I wake up in the morning, I’m just puffy— doesn’t matter what I do. I think that’s probably due to age.

My exfoliator 

If I feel like my skin’s in need of a general resurfacing, the Dr. Dennis Gross pads are unbelievable. Those are more when I need it—like if I know I have a photo shoot, I’ll do it the night before, or in the wintertime I’ll do it more because I’m not in the sun.

My masks 

Honest has a great face mask; it’s that berry smoothing one. I don’t do a ton of face masks, but if I do, I think I prefer scrubs, and Linné makes a good face scrub

My acne treatments 

I got this prescribed to me by a dermatologist a long time ago: topical clindamycin. I’ll put it on whatever is brewing, whatever has been picked, and that’s my spot treatment. If I feel things are getting really bad, then I just go old-school and I have Clean & Clear face wash. That did it for me back when I had adult acne, and so I don’t really know anything else. But that’s happening less and less these days. That is not usually a problem, but if I feel it’s coming on, then I’ll do that.

My sunscreen

For sunscreen, I tend to gravitate towards mineral sunscreen, so Coola makes a great one. 

My lip balm 

I don’t really use lip balm, but this brand Laneige, the Lip Sleeping Mask, I actually just use this as a balm. Or I’ll just go old-school and do ChapStick. I haven’t found anything to combat ChapStick. I know it has chemicals and I’m anti chemicals, but sometimes I just throw one in my purse and it saves the day. 

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask

My treatments 

I do regular Botox. I’m due for treatment. I’ve gotten out of the habit a little bit during COVID because so much was closed, but I used to try to do a facial maybe every six weeks. And for that, I’d go to Joanna Vargas.

My tools 

I want to be that person who uses the gua sha. I have a face roller. I look at it every morning and I’m like, “I don’t have time for you.” When I see people on Instagram using it, that’s where my routine falls apart. I love it when women do that and they have the time for it, but I haven’t figured that out in my routine yet. 

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