How Barbie Hsu looks so good in her 40s

We’ve been huge fans of Barbie Hsu (also known by her nickname “Big S”) since she starred as Dong Shan Cai in the teen drama Meteor Garden (2001-2) opposite boyband F4.

Beyond her acting career in film and television, Barbie became a household name as one half of the singing duo ASOS with her sister Dee Hsu (Small S) and with her hosting stint on popular variety shows including Guess Guess Guess (1998-2000), 100 per cent Entertainment (1998-2006) and Miss Beauty (2018). In fact, the lattermost show taps on Barbie’s expertise with beauty and skincare.

It’s no secret that Barbie is quite the beauty guru. In 2005, she even released a beauty books Mei Rong Da Wang (Beauty Queen: Secrets of Beauty Treatment). It is no wonder then that Barbie looks nowhere near her age as she turned 45 on Oct 6. Here are 10 tips we can learn from the Taiwanese star to achieve radiant, youthful skin.

Remove every ounce of makeup

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To Barbie, proper cleansing is an essential step that we shouldn’t slack off. In a 2008 SCMP post, Barbie stressed “No matter how good your diet is, if you don’t clean your skin thoroughly every day, it gets damaged easily. Don’t neglect removing makeup every day and make sure every bit comes off before washing your face.”

Be gentle

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In the same 2008 SCMP article, Barbie encouraged us to be gentle with our skin, be it during cleansing or applying skincare products. “Do it gently, as if your skin were about to break. Many people wash their faces or apply skincare products too roughly. Not only they have wasted the products, but it can make their skin look worse.”

Go cold

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Barbie believes that using cold water when cleansing the face can help tighten the pores. However, we don’t recommend using ice-cold water as it could damage the facial capillaries and lead to redness and flushing.

Instead, follow Barbie’s lead and keep your sheet masks in the fridge before applying to help tighten pores.

Include an essence

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In this 2018 Instagram post, Barbie expressed her love for Sum:37’s Secret Essence. She added in the caption that she depended on the essence to “save her [skin]” after plunging straight back to work after a holiday.

The lightweight Secret Essence employs proprietary technology and ingredients to improve skin moisture, texture, elasticity, firmness, tone and radiance.

Buy it here.

Do facial massages

Barbie revealed to Elle Taiwan that she is a pro at giving herself facial massage and adds that facial massages help skincare products absorb better.

Here’s how she does it, according to Cosmopolitan Hong Kong: Start with the Yang Bai acupoint above the eyebrows to improve blood circulation, oxygenation and metabolism. Then, massage the Ying Xiang acupoint on the sides of the nostrils with repeated circular motions to reduce facial swelling.

Finally, massage the Zan Zhu acupoint located at the tip of the eyebrows above the nose to promote blood circulation to the eyes, reduce fine lines around the eyes and reduce swelling. She does the facial massage for five minutes at a time.

Use rose oil

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Not only does it smell great and can help relax the mind and body after a hard day, but Cosmopolitan Hong Kong also revealed that Barbie employs rose oil in her facial massage routine to exfoliate dead skin cells.

Rose oil is said to aid skin moisturisation, help combat pigmentation and improve metabolism.

ALSO READ: Barbie Hsu says she's divorcing husband Wang Xiaofei after 10 years of marriage

Shield against the sun

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Ultraviolet rays from the sun are a major contributor to signs of ageing. This is why Barbie advocates for proper sun protection in her beauty book Beauty Queen: Secrets of Beauty Treatment by Barbie Hsu (Chinese Edition).

Besides sunscreen, Barbie also uses an umbrella or parasol to shield herself against the sun. Furthermore, Barbie added to Elle Taiwan that would apply copious amounts of sunscreen and layer foundation atop to cancel out any white cast. She also includes long-sleeved clothing and hats in her arsenal.

Eat mindfully

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Barbie believes that what you eat can manifest in your skin and appearance. In the 2008 SCMP article, it is revealed that Barbie eats vitamin C, E and D3, calcium, grape seed extract supplements as well as a Chinese herbal drink of angelica root, wolfberry and red dates to boost her complexion. She also raved about the radiance-boosting qualities of consuming bird’s nests.

Barbie also credits eating vitamin C-rich foods to help alleviate her dark eye circles, according to Cosmopolitan Hong Kong. PEP.ph also reported that Barbie consumes snow fungus soup thrice a week as it is touted to support collagen replenishment and have anti-ageing quality. In all, Barbie is a proponent of having balanced meals, thrice a day.

Sleep early

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It is said that sleeping before midnight is the optimal period for skin rejuvenation and repair. Barbie abides by this principle and will attempt to fall asleep before 11pm, staying up no later than 1am.

She credits this beauty sleep routine to be efficacious against dark eye circles, according to Cosmopolitan Hong Kong.

Combine aerobic and anarobic exercises

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Cosmopolitan Hong Kong revealed that Barbie does both aerobic and anaerobic exercises thrice and once weekly respectively to stay trim and fit.

Exercise, of course, has benefits for the skin too. Her aerobic exercise of choice is zumba while anaerobic exercises are weight training, pilates and yoga.

ALSO READ: Barbie Hsu: 'I stopped breathing right after giving birth to my son'

This article was first published in Her World Online.