Dita Von Teese on Plastic Surgery and Her Beauty Routine
Dita Von Teese is the undisputed queen of retro glamour, oozing sophistication and poise with her signature red lips, cinched-in waist and jet black screen-siren hair.
And while many might know her as the pinup vixen who was once married to rocker Marilyn Manson, the 43-year-old — born a blonde named Heather Sweet in West Branch, Mich. — has a legion of fans from all over the world desperate to emulate her 1950s style.
The burlesque dancer, who is currently touring Australia with her striptease show Strip Strip Hooray!, tells us all about her effortless beauty routine, her favorite products, what she thinks of plastic surgery, and the one thing she’s very amused by at the gym.
“In my normal beauty routine, I don’t spend more than 10 or 15 minutes,” Von Teese says.
“Before I leave my house, I put my sunscreen on, powder, red lipstick, and sunglasses, and it takes minutes, but if I have a little bit more time, I’ll take it a little bit further.”
“For a show it’s very different. There’s a lot of things happening, like costumes and backstage setting up all the stage pieces and looking to see that’s everything’s in place and been prepared,” she said.
“If I were just sitting down and putting on makeup, it would be one thing, but there’s a lot of things that I’m doing to prepare for a show that make it intensive.”
When it comes to plastic surgery, the glamorous star isn’t against it. In fact, she wishes women would stop judging one another.
“I think people often get vilified for utilizing the technology that we have now, but you have to understand that plastic surgeons were around in the 1700s,” Von Teese said.
“We sometimes forget it’s not something new. We want to make fun of each other for it. If people didn’t vilify each other, we could learn a lot more about each other’s beauty secrets.
“There’s people that use those tools properly, and there’s people that turn them into an art piece which I can admire in a different way, but I just wish we didn’t have to vilify each other for those things. We’re women — share our beauty secrets freely.”
Von Teese has previously spoken out about using waist trainers to create the perfect shape, claiming it’s like “the blind leading the blind” and urging women to use corsets if they’re looking for a smaller waist.
The star is a big believer in working out, having been a Pilates enthusiast for the past 15 years and an avid ballet dancer.
“I get a little bored with my workout routine just like anyone ,so I’m always looking for new things,” she said.
“I tried fencing, and of course I’ve learned all sorts of social dances.
“Recently, I had this idea that I was going to go to a CrossFit studio and work out with a private trainer, and I’ve been really enjoying that. It’s fun to be in a different atmosphere. I always crack up at the shirtless guys walking around eating power bars and things like that, I’m very amused by it.”
Von Teese dyes her own hair from her natural blond to her now signature raven locks (“being around hair salons is something I really don’t enjoy”), is a fashion and lingerie designer, a bestselling author, and a very savvy businesswoman. And throughout everything, she’s stuck to her signature style.
When we asked her if she ever ventures out in a pair of tracksuit bottoms, scruffy hair, and minimal makeup, Von Teese revealed that on the odd occasion she will dress down and do her grocery shopping, but her style never strays too far from what she believes in.
“I like to do my own grocery shopping, but I have my own code of dress that is not far removed from what people would expect from me, but I don’t spend hours getting ready every day,” she said.
“I’m very efficient. My go-to look is a simple T-shirt, a pair of cigarette pants, and ballet flats. It’s in line with what my belief system is when it comes to dressing.”
“Sometimes I fantasize about having a different hair color, but when you have black hair, you can’t really experiment with other hair colors without having to wait for weeks on end until your hair is in transit,” she said.
“My makeup is something I feel is a part of me. It’s a hybrid that I created when I was in my teens — a 1950s exaggerated cat eyeliner, ’40s hairstyle.
“It’s something I’ve been doing since I was allowed to wear makeup and do my hair.
“Sometimes there are varying degrees of glamour, but I would never wear beige lipstick by choice. The only time you’ll ever catch me in beige is when some photographer tries to convince me to wear it for a shoot.”
Von Teese revealed that she is not a fan of contouring. Instead, she prefers to use highlighter to add dimension to her makeup.
“I think it’s very difficult when you have very pale skin,” she said.
“I do a little bit of highlighting, like sometimes a white sparkle powder on the cheekbones and a heavy stage-ready blush, because with the spotlight … it cancels out things a little bit.
“I’m fearful personally of stepping out onto the runway and being seen with that kind of contouring.”
“For skincare, I love a brand called Éminence. It’s all organic, and I love all the fragrances of it. Lipstick — I have always at least four lipsticks in my handbag at all time. I love Mac Ruby Woo and YSL red lip color, Dior.”
Von Teese claims that 1950s supermodel Carmen Dell’Orefice gave her the best beauty advice of her life.
“She kind of pulled me aside once and told me I was doing exactly the right thing and should stay true to myself and not listen to what anyone else ever tells me about how to change with age.”
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