Oon Shu An Lets Us In On Her Beauty Secrets
Estée Lauder recently launched their new Advanced Night Repair Intense Reset Concentrate at their pop-up 'The Night Is Yours’ at ION Sky. This amazing new overnight treatment soothes the look of irritated skin that has been exposed to external stresses such as pollution, frequent travel and pulling late nights- restoring it to its bright, healthy-looking state.
Theatre actress and host, Oon Shu An, spoke to L'Officiel Singapore and shared some of her beauty secrets, how she balances work and self-care, as well as, some of her must-have beauty products that she always has in her bag. She also collaborated with Estee Lauder for a promotional video, along with local actor Desmond Tan, as they share their secrets to minimised pores and smoother-looking skin.
How does self-care play a part in balancing your busy work schedule and personal life?
I think it’s something that I constantly have to remind myself to do. Sometimes you just get so caught up with work that you go, "hmm, wait I can take care of myself later on, or tomorrow, or like another time." But I think it is definitely very important and it’s something that I try to take some time for every day, even if it means just 5 minutes alone with my thoughts. Also, self-care to me also means being kind to yourself.
Work is already pretty stressful and I think that having to deal with people and all that can take a toll on us, especially when we’re trying to understand each other. So what I try to do is to be kind to myself in the process, be it in the midst of misunderstandings-whether I misunderstand people, or if I felt like I did something wrong, to just take some time to just speak to myself kindly.
What is your best secret for healthy, clear skin?
Estée Lauder's ‘Intense Reset Concentrate’? (laughs) and the ‘Advanced Night Repair’ - I think that they are absolute miracle workers. Both products go very far for the small amount that you use, and they work very smartly as well because it is an overnight concentrate that allows your skin to reset. And most importantly, getting plenty of sleep and drinking lots of water! Another thing that I can't live without is the Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair PowerFoil Mask, it's so good that I simply must rave about it!
What is the best piece of advice that you've ever received, throughout your career?
This one was from my acting teacher back in Lasalle, and it was to keep pushing myself as an actress and as a person. He compared being an actor to being an athlete, being subject to long-term training for a marathon! You have to just keep going. And if you don’t push yourself, you won’t end up growing or learning, and basically, you have to take your own progress into your own hands.
I remember rehearsing this monologue for school and really feeling like giving up, cause I was like "I don’t get this, I don’t know what’s happening!" And I kind of did, even though I didn't verbalise it, but he could feel it because I was just not pushing the beats as hard as I could. And then he told me "you have to be like an athlete, you have to push yourself beyond what you feel."
What are the 3 essential beauty items that you must have in your bag?
Eyebrow pencil, eyeliner, and the Estée Lauder Lip Potion lip balm.
What are you most looking forward to in the next half of 2019?
I start shooting next week for the second season of this show called ‘Yes Madam’, this time around I’ll be playing a recruit. My character enters the army to try and bring back her boyfriend who has dumped her. And it’s quite fun because it’s going to be an all-girl platoon. I’m quite excited because I’m going to be working with Michelle Chong, and Alaric Tay, who will both be directing this film. The last time I worked with Michelle was for ‘Our Sister Mambo’ where we played the role of sisters. She also directed the first season of ‘Yes Madam’, so I’m excited to be working with her again.
At this point, you can probably tell that I'm a workaholic! I'll also be involved in a project with Checkpoint Theatre as their associate artist later this year, where I'll be writing and producing along with the team.
