Melissa Villaseñor Drops Her Skin-Care Routine

The “SNL” star gives the lowdown on her cruelty-free faves.

Melissa Villaseñor Drops Her Skin-Care Routine

Twenty minutes on the phone with Melissa Villaseñor is a lesson in keeping it real. Then again, would you expect anything less from the woman who makes us howl with laughter over her impressions on Saturday Night Live? (Wow, wowwww!) 

“I think seeing my face on TV made me more conscious of all this stuff,” the 33-year-old comedian says when I ask when her interest in skin care started. “I never had a routine until I started SNL. I honestly was just using Dove Body Wash on my face in the shower. When someone was like, uh, ‘You need a cleanser,’ I was shocked by what a difference it made.”

Like a classic ’90s makeover montage, her colleagues at SNL jumped into action. “Vanessa Bayer was so cute my first season at SNL. She was like, ‘We're going to get you connected with hairstylists, and this new skin-care company, and this thing and that thing.’ I forget where we went, but we met on a Sunday once at some skin-care place, and the esthetician asked what my regimen was. I was like, ‘My what?’ So she just loaded me up on Skinceuticals.”

The rest, as they say, was history. Villaseñor says she became hooked on trying new products, until she settled on what she calls her “not too crazy” routine. The most important criteria she has now is that the products she uses are primarily cruelty-free. 

“Even with food and clothes, I try my best to be animal-friendly,” she says. “I try not to buy leather items or anything tested on animals. I have a dog, who's a rescue named Jenny, and a gorgeous tabby cat named Ella, and they mean so much to me. I can't imagine them being tested on. It hurts my heart.”

So what's made the cut for her then? Ahead of the Film Independent Spirit Awards’ airing on April 22, which Villaseñor is hosting, we asked the comedian to drop her routine. Read on for the serums she swears by, the SPF she says smells “pretty,” and the gadgets that have upped her overall skin-care game.

My Cleansers

I've been changing it up with my cleansers lately. Sometimes I'll use Tammy Fender's Milk Cleanser, but the one I really love these days is Tata Harper's Purifying Cleanser. I found Tata Harper though my mentor and friend Whitney Cummings—she's a huge skin-care girl! I don't know if you follow Whitney, but she's shared so many posts throughout the years of her whole routine, and she has all these tricks up her sleeve. I think she tagged Tata Harper on some things, so I went on their Instagram and loved how the products look and that they're cruelty-free. It's a high price, but it's worth it because whenever I use their cleanser, I can see the difference in my skin.

Tata Harper Purifying Pore Detox Cleanser

Tammy Fender Cleansing Milk

My Serums 

I love Drunk Elephant. Its vitamin C serum is beautiful. It makes my face nice and tight—and overall makes me look awake for the day. There's a difference, I can tell. I swear. I also really like the brand's B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum. I mix those together when I start the day. 

Drunk Elephant C-Firma Vitamin C Day Serum

Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum

My Sunscreen

I use the Mad Hippie SPF. I got it at Whole Foods and love the way it smells because it doesn't have that overly sunblock-y scent. It just smells really pretty. Also, the artwork on the packaging is great. I won't lie—it's what drew me to it. 

Mad Hippie Facial SPF 30+ Sunscreen

My Oils 

I love a face oil. I actually prefer them to moisturizers. My favorite of the moment is Josie Maran's CBD Oil. I'll mix a little in with my SPF and I'm ready to start my day. I also got a little essential oil roller called Love Potion from Tata Harper. It smells so good. I put it on my wrist for a little pick-me-up through the day. 

At night I'll use the Herbivore Phoenix Oil before bed. The smell is really nice, it hydrates my face so well, and the bottle is pretty. Just looking at it soothes me! To apply it, I'll get one of my rose quartz butterfly stones from Georgia Louise, which I stash in the fridge, and use it to give myself a face massage. Before the pandemic, I used to get a lot of facials from Georgia Louise. If there's one person I go to for a good facial, it's her. I also like the Herbivore rose quartz Gua Sha stones. Those are good for jaw tension.

Tata Harper Love Potion

Josie Maran Skin Dope Argan Oil + 100 mg CBD

Herbivore Phoenix Rosehip Anti-Aging Face Oil

Georgia Louise Lift+Sculpt Butterfly Stone

My Mist 

I love the Herbivore Rose Spray. It's light and smells great, and it wakes me up with a single spritz. It doesn't hurt either that the bottle is glass, which makes it more sustainable. 

Herbivore Rose Hibiscus Hydrating Mist

My Eye Cream 

I use Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment With Avocado. It's a solid cream that doesn't have too heavy of a fragrance. That's what I love most about Kiehl's—everything is simple but effective. I'm a little lazy about eye cream, though. I've had bags under my eyes my whole life; it's just genetics. But if it's a slower day and I have more time to do my routine, I'll put eye cream on.

Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment With Avocado

My Tools 

I'm obsessed with my NuFace, the microcurrent device. That's another thing I saw Whitney post about and I figured, well, her face looks good—I want that! I usually use it a few times a week and have definitely seen a difference in my face. A defined cheekbone always feels nice-looking.

Then I have one of those light things, the LightStim. I use the red one for wrinkles. It's warm and soothing. I'll do that sometimes while laying in bed watching TV or while I'm on the computer or reading. I don't know that I've noticed a difference with this one yet, but I use it a few times a week. I think I need to maybe take photos of my face before and after to map things out more—but I do know it's one of those tools that's supposed to help your skin over a long period of time.

NuFace Trinity Facial Toning Device

LightStim for Wrinkles

My Lip Balm

For my most of my life, I was a chapstick addict. I'd always have one in all my pockets, everywhere, every single day. I wouldn't leave the house without it. But then I tried Aquaphor after it was recommended for my tattoos and I became a convert. It makes my lips hydrated and soft, and I like that it's unscented. It's everything you want a good lip balm. I also use it when my hands are chapped from the cold in New York. It really does help everything. 

Aquaphor Lip Repair

Get more of Melissa Villaseñor on Saturday Night Live at 11:30 p.m. E.T. on NBC every Saturday and on her podcast Laughing With Myself. Tickets for her California Girl stand-up tour are also available on her website now. 

This story originally appeared on: Glamour - Author:Lindsay Schallon