5 Beauty Essentials Halima Aden Swears By For Glowing Skin

Source: Alexander Tamargo / Getty

Halima Aden radiates beauty from the inside and out. It’s rare to catch the effervescent 21-year-old model and activist without a smile on her face, and one convo with her can make anyone feel like they can take on the world.

We caught up with Aden to chat about all things fashion and beauty during Miami Swim Week in Miami over the weekend, where she was on hand to help choose the winner of the Sports Illustrated Model Search and slayed the runway at the Sports Illustrated Fashion Show at W South Beach Sunday night.

Aden’s skin is always glowing, so before she hit the runway, we asked her about the top beauty products she swears by to keep her skin in tip top shape – not only for summer, but year round.

As she strolled into a makeup and hair room for our interview, giggling in a belted, striped dress and a Halima Aden x Mondanisa hijab (she was beaming as she told us it was from her own collection), Aden told us that products aside beauty “really needs to come from the inside.” She continued, “That sounds kind of cliche, but it’s true. You’ve got to radiate and feel good about yourself and who you are. When you shine on the inside, it just radiates through.”

Then, she broke down her beauty regimen. Take a peek at Aden’s top five beauty products!

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Supergoop! Sunscreen, $32.00

Believe it or not, Aden hasn’t always worn sunscreen. Now, she knows that she needs to wear it (everyone should apply it daily regardless of skin tone), and there’s one specific sunscreen she can’t get enough of. “What I recently started doing is using sunscreen,” Aden told Madame Noire. “Cause I never even, I never thought I needed sunscreen.” She continued, “So I’ve been learning to wear sunscreen and like a good face mist. I love Supergoop! because it’s clear. The other stuff I was like, oh, I am looking like I’m like ready for the funeral, but like it has a great tint. Honestly, before I was like the [inaudible] and I’m like out here, walking around [looking] like a corpse. So I learned to research and I found the Supergoop! and I’m obsessed.” To mimic Aden’s sunscreen game, try Supergoop!’s Unseen Sunscreen ($32.00, supergoop.com).

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Supergoop! Defense Refresh Setting Mist, $28.00

Aden also loves Supergoop! Defense Refresh Setting Mist ($28.00, supergoop.com). You can spray it on your face over your makeup if you’re heading out, or without makeup before you hit the pool or beach. It dries clear, is easy to apply, and gives you full coverage from the sun.

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The Natural Essentials : Her Mother’s Secret Homemade Mask and Water

When it comes to her beauty regimen, Aden also swears by a few tricks she picked up from mom. “Obviously drinking lots of water, but I’m also Somali, like my mom, and one thing I’m so grateful for is that she has a very simple way of thinking when it comes to beauty,” Aden continued. “For example, she makes like an aloe vera homemade mask that I swear by. We like we went to the grocery store and she made our own face masks. I live by it. It’s like honey, aloe vera and turmeric. Those three we’ll have your skin nice and bright.”

“My Mom’s like, if your beauty regimen is costing you more than like 20 bucks, yeah, you don’t want to know what she said,” Aden said with a laugh.

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Cover Girl, Maybelline, and Shiseido Mascara, Pricing Varies

“I really love drugstore mascara,” Aden said. “I used to always wear Maybelline and I also like Cover Girl. I also really like Shiseido’s mascara. They sent me like an entire box and I’m obsessed with their newest mascara and also the packaging.” To mimic Aden’s mascara vibes, try Shiseido’s ControlledChaos MascaraInk ($25.00, shiseido.com), the latest mascara collection from the brand, or Maybelline’s Snapscara ($7.99, maybelline.com) and The Falsies Push Up Angel Washable Mascara ($10.49, sheiseido.com). From Cover Girl, try Lash Blast Volumizing Mascara ($6.94, maybelline.com).

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Dermalogica Products, Various Pricing

“I really like Dermalogica products,” Aden continued. “I like that it’s mostly organic. They don’t have a whole lot of ingredients and simple is better. It’s not harsh.” Dermalogica has a ton of products to address concerns for all skin types including anti-aging and acne, including their Special Cleansing Gel ($39.00, dermalogica.com) and Biolumin Brightening Serum ($87.00, dermalogica.com)

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Shea Moisture Body Scrubs, Various Pricing

Aden also swears by body scrubs, especially one made by her mom. “I really like anything,” she said with a smile when referring to her face body scrubs, adding that Shea Moisture is one of her fave body scrub brands. “Shea Moisture…I love anything by them,” Aden continued. “I really like that, because it’s also like cocoa butter.” There are several Shea Moisture body scrub varieties, including the Raw Shea Butter Ground Coffee Scrub  ($10.99, sheamoisture.com) and Manuka Honey and Mafura Oil Intensive Hydration Body Scrub ($9.34, sheamoisture.com).

“My mom also makes home scrubs,” she continued. “She uses brown sugar and honey. She lets it sit for like two days so it gets a little bit like harder, and then she adds other stuff like a little drop of coconut oil.”