Microcurrent Facials, Flat Whites and Lights Out by 9pm: The Real Routine of Founder Fara Homidi
October 13 | 5 minute read
Words by Georgia Middleton
Some self-care routines are indulgent – even lavish: meditation, a cold plunge, three types of liquids before lunch. But for makeup artist and brand founder Fara Homidi, beauty and wellness are rooted in a quieter, more holistic type of pleasure. For the West Coast-raised New Yorker, she confesses to a routine that isn't about doing everything perfectly. Instead, it's a collection of small, considered things. Some are pleasurable – some are so instinctive, she no longer has to think about doing them.
Look Well Rested, And Like Yourself
Homidi's approach to skincare is simple, instinctual and most importantly, consistent. "Morning and night I use Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Foaming Face Cleanser, followed by Augustinus Bader’s The Rich Cream and the Shiseido Benefiance Eye Cream [editor’s note: not available at MECCA in Aotearoa (New Zealand)],” says Homidi, adding that she follows her AM skincare with SPF.
That same philosophy is mirrored in the treatments she chooses, seeing aesthetician Sofie Pavitt and her team in New York for a facial about every six weeks: "I love her microcurrent technique, and every few years I’ll do Ultherapy. I’m interested in treatments that work with the skin and encourage it to function at its best over time.”
When it comes to makeup, she takes the same pared back approach: "I use the Essential Face Compact every day, and the Essential Bronzer Compact whenever I need a little pick-me-up. If I have an important meeting or want to feel slightly more done, I’ll add the Essential Blonzer Compact and my new Pool Slick Lash Lacquer.”
Homidi is never without a lip look either, always throwing on one of her Fara Homidi Beauty "Smudge & Contour Lip Pencils and either my Essential Lip Compact or my Soft Glass Lip Plumping Oil, before running out the door.”
Get The Blood Flowing
Movement is essential – for the mind, body and face. Pilates has become the "architecture" of Homidi’s day, which she notices when it goes amiss. "It wakes up my body, clears my head and gives me a moment to myself before work begins,” she tells The MECCA Memo. “I love that it doesn’t require leaving the house or making an elaborate plan. I only need a mat and the decision to begin.” And like any good New Yorker, exploring the city on foot is a non-negotiable – she takes a "nice walk outside, once a day, to get the blood flowing."
Supplement Through Diet
Despite her father being a chemist, Homidi was raised with the belief that vitamins should come from food first, rather than supplements: "That has stayed with me my entire life and has really pushed me to have a healthy, balanced diet," she reveals.
Anyone who’s spent time on set knows how chaotic it can be. For Homidi, she loves having a fresh-pressed juice or fruit handy in between takes – “It feels refreshing and easy" – especially when the day is "moving quickly and there isn't much time to stop".
Like us, she takes her caffeine seriously too, drinking "two or three coffees a day before 1:30pm" (when she’s Down Under, her café order is the obligatory flat white).
Gatekeep Your Scent
Rather than purchasing a ready-bottled scent, Homidi prefers her fragrance in "quieter, more functional" ways. "I have a LOEWE hand soap that I love. Even something as simple as washing my hands becomes a small sensory ritual,” she says.
Her personal fragrance of choice is "whatever body lotion I'm wearing” – and she likes to keep her chosen scent a very well-kept secret (and if it makes you feel better, she wouldn’t divulge it to us off the record, either!).
As Always, Sleep On It
We all know a good night's sleep is one of the best beauty hacks out there – Homidi is with us on that one. "Between 8-10 hours a night" is her optimum, taking herself to her bed by 9:00pm. One of her biggest beauty sleep secrets is the Save My Face Beauty Pillow. "It’s a C-shaped curve on both sides that allows for your face to rest inside without smushing it... so you don’t ever wake up with face lines,” she tells us. Duly noted!
