Anya Taylor-Joy, who shares the cover of British Vogue with Queen Elizabeth II this month, has her talent (see: “The Queen’s Gambit”), fashion personality (she is a global brand ambassador for Dior) and her unique perspective (see: her tip on meditation). After a childhood in Miami, Argentina and London, Ms Taylor-Joy, 25, is now used to moving every three months for work. She was recently in Ireland for ‘The Northman’, a historic epic opening on April 22.
“My idea of home is so different,” she said of her itinerary. But if her lifestyle is itinerant, she’s embraced a few beauty and wellness rituals that focus on comfort and self-soothing. Check out what she likes below.
Quiet morning time
I make it a priority to have an hour to myself in the morning. I am usually around a lot of people so I need at least an hour to recharge for the day. If there’s an opportunity to steam wherever I am, I’ll be in the steam room.
Hair and skin for the day
I learned about beauty from my mother. I’ve always had very long blonde hair, so conditioner was a big part of my life. I would come out of the ocean as a kid and cry for hours while my mom untangled my hair. Now I absolutely love Olaplex. I use the shampoo, conditioner, treatment and then put in the leave-in. I always use the conditioner root to tip. People say you shouldn’t put the conditioner on the roots, but I don’t believe that. If you’re blonde like me – Tracey Cunningham does my color – you should apply it to the roots. Make sure to rinse everything out.
I got to the party pretty late with skin care. I was 22 or 23 before I started paying attention. Now it’s my me time. It feels like an everyday luxury. I like the guasha. I picked it up during the lockdown – I got mine from Amazon – and I put it in the freezer. Using it is one of those comforting moments of, “I want to feel good about the state of the world, so I’m going to do a facial massage.” It’s not just for contouring the face – it works if you have sinus problems. There are pressure points on your face that can relieve sinus pain. After that, you should give your skin a minute to calm down.
I go to Shani Darden for facials. She is an absolute skin wizard. She introduced me to her retinol product. I have very sensitive skin, and that’s the only one I’ve used that won’t break me.
My daily skin care is quite simple. I love the Dior Prestige line because it smells like rose. They have a beautiful sheet mask that I wear on airplanes too. I have no shame at all. Then it’s the Dior compact with the SPF 50, and I’m out the door.
love a lip
In my daily life I don’t really wear makeup. Growing up, I definitely went through this very short lived phase where I tried to do smoky eyeliner. I looked like a raccoon. I’ll leave that to the professionals now. And I love a lip. Lips, I can do it.
I remember seeing my mother apply lipstick. Once I playfully drew a kitten nose and whiskers with her lipstick. It’s still something I do on my birthday. I didn’t grow out of it! If it’s just a regular night, it’s probably a bright red or a darker nude or mauve. Dior Addict in 8 or Chèrie are beautiful. That’s a gloss level that I’m comfortable with.
Otherwise I tend to get more matte especially with face masks. I have this trick: I apply, then dab it out and reapply when I get there. This way you don’t get the stickiness in the mask.
Bathing beauty
A bath is important to me at night. We are actually quite a large bathing family. My mother likes a bath. When I was little I remember we would take one together. I make my baths a little fancy. It’s very Valentine’s Day, but only for me! I love to slather my body in coconut or almond oil before taking a bath. Sometimes I mix in drops of essential oils of lavender, rose or patchouli.
I’ll light some candles – I like Valkiria from Overose and Byredo candles in Tree House and Bibliothèque. The end of the day is about taking care of that part of yourself that might not get a lot of attention during normal day-to-day interaction, and just asking for what you need right now. For me it’s 50’s jazz, a nice bath and a solid hour of reading.
Smell of a character
I have experimented with essential oils. It’s something I’ve been doing since I was 17. I like to create a scent that is unique to me, but also connected to an experience, so when I smell that scent again, I can associate that scent with, say, my 17 year old teenage self .
I usually choose a fragrance to wear with a character. Before “Queen’s Gambit,” Beth actually smelled like me. She is the character I gave most of myself to. For Beth, I used rose, some patchouli, sandalwood, pink peppercorns, and a few drops of vodka. Our girl went through it. I really believe in the work I do – to give that person life. It is important that their voice is different, the way they move is different and they smell different. Then you create a real person.
For ‘The Northman’ we were filming in Ireland. The greenery there is unlike any greenery you will see. The character I played is very connected to nature. One of my favorite things about shooting there was how much time I spent outside. I would swim in the Irish Sea. I burned a lot of Irish moss around the house. I smoke like this – Irish moss and sea salt.
From dancing to boxing
I trained as a dancer until I was 15. When I finished dancing, I was quite rebellious. I didn’t want to be disciplined anymore. For a long time I ate comfort food – mine is butter and cheese. But my work is so fast – it’s so adrenaline fueled – that my body burns it.
Now I really like boxing. It’s such an interesting way of meditating for me. If you’re not totally focused on what you’re doing, you’ll be hit. You start the class and suddenly, an hour later, it’s “How did I get here?” Because time has just flown by.
Breathing and Meditation Ups and Downs
I started with the Wim Hof breathing method when I was on a film where I had to be exposed to very cold temperatures. I love that man. I only know him from his YouTube videos. I call him Uncle Wim.
I’m trying to learn to meditate. Here’s a random challenge people can try: Ride a roller coaster and try not to yell. I just did it, and do you know how they take the picture? My friends screamed their faces off and I looked like Yoda. That roller coaster ride was game-changing. Everything is moving so fast and your only job is to stay calm – the center of the storm. Your breathing deepens in a way you’ve never experienced before. I’ve never felt so calm.
It’s a very random tip, but just give it a try.