11 Self-Care Essentials Entrepreneur Chriselle Lim Swears By
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Welcome to Take the Edge Off, a monthly series where we break down the beauty and self-care routines of influencers, CEOs, experts, and celebrities to discover how they unwind and decompress, while taking a closer look at the holy grail beauty essentials they’re currently raving about.
If you count yourself as one of her 4.2 million combined followers on Instagram and TikTok alone, chances are you're already familiar with the sophisticated style and seamless relatability of influencer Chriselle Lim. Like so many others in the midst of the pandemic, Lim has gone through a number of significant life changes (she recently separated from her husband). But she's expanding her beauty and entrepreneurial chops—Lim is also the cofounder of lifestyle brand Bümo—with the relaunch of clean fragrance brand Phlur with the help of her business partner, Ben Bennett.
"My business partner and I acquired Phlur, and we decided to revamp it, rebrand it, and really just add a fresh young voice to the brand," she tells BAZAAR.com. While Bennett and Lim have plans to reformulate some of the brand's older and top-selling perfumes, Missing Person, Phlur's first new launch, is a scent that Lim holds especially close to her heart. "As I've been going through a transition in my life—I was married for quite some time—and I think one of the hardest things during that time in my life was just that void, like waking up to an empty bed, you know, no one next to me," she explains. "I just felt like that warmth was gone, and it took me a while to get used to. So for the very first fragrance, I wanted to capture kind of skin and warmth, and something that just felt really close—almost like second skin. If nude were a scent, it would be Missing Person."
Formulated with notes of bergamot nectar, neroli blossom, and white musk, Missing Person is Lim's current signature perfume, and is inspired by one's longing for a person, memory, or moment in time. For her, this beauty release and acquisition not only serves as an exciting new business venture, but also as a key component in her healing process. "During this time period, fragrance really healed me—I became so intentional with everything in my life," she says. "And so, even on my most tired, lonely, sad days, I would spritz something on, and it would just make me feel joyful and happy again, and I'd envision myself being confident again. And that's what scent allowed me to do—it was a big part of my transition and healing process. I just became so obsessed with fragrance."
Lim says that in addition to providing her with a sense of overall grounding, engineering fragrances from the ground up offers her a new opportunity to broaden her definition of personal style. "I think we all kind of have this notion of what fragrance is, and we usually associate it with our moms and, like, the older generations who had, like, that one signature fragrance; they'd wear it every day for the rest of their lives," she adds. "But you know, fragrance isn't that anymore necessarily, especially for our generation and the up-and-coming next generation. I view it as almost like clothes, right? Where it's like you evoke a certain mood or style depending on what you're wearing, or what you want to say the world." To Lim, fragrance is just an extension of personal style.
For a more detailed look at her beauty wardrobe, we chat further with the entrepreneur to discover the inner workings of her beauty and wellness routines, which include a strong emphasis on scent (from eucalyptus to luxury candles), a bevy of designer skincare staples, and frequent trips to the city of Paris for self-care. Read on for a closer look at the noteworthy products and experiences Lim uses to recharge and stay centered.
What are you reading these days?
I'm always reading, there's just not enough time to read, I think. This one is a bunch of little essays called Journey to the Heart. It's a really easy read—I tend to gravitate towards things that are easier to read because of timing—but it's just, like, little essays that give you encouragement throughout the day, and I just love it. It's the most beautiful book and just always puts me in a good spirit. It's really beautifully written and makes me feel so positive on, like, you know, especially with everything that I went through. It's so easy to be stuck in a place of just negativity and just bitterness, but it just reminds you of how beautiful things actually really are.
What are some of your go-to bath and/or shower products?
My go-to bath wash is like the yummiest bath wash I've used in a long time. It's from Naturium, their Glow Getter Multi-Oil Hydrating Body Wash. It's an oil and body wash that just feels so silky on the skin you want to keep lathering it on. It's really beautiful. So I've been using that every day in the shower.
I don't take that many baths, I should. I associate the bath too much with my kids, because I still give my kids a bath. I also always have eucalyptus hanging in my shower, like on the shower head, because I love taking hot steamy showers with the smell of eucalyptus. It helps open up the sinuses and all of that—it's the easiest way to create a spa in your bathroom.
What beauty or self-care products do you use on a regular basis to help combat Zoom fatigue?
MAKE Beauty has this incredible balm—their Pink Matter Multi-Use Balm—I typically use it for my lips, but I recently realized it's honestly great for everything. I have really dry, brittle nails and cuticles, and when I get nervous, I play with my nails a lot, so I just slather that on before a meeting, and by the end of it I have really soft cuticles. I bring it everywhere—on the plane, in meetings—I'm just always using it. Yesterday, we even used it for my flyaways.
Also, Dior just launched their eye patches—they're really chic and cute, because they have the Dior logo on them. But most importantly, they're really cooling. The minute I put them on, it feels like ice is on my under-eyes. So I've been using those while I do my hair—I always prep my hair first before I do my makeup. I used to be the girl who, like everyone else, would do their makeup first, but then I realized that you can do so much prep work to your face while doing your hair, which is why I actually switched it up.
Do you have a favorite hand sanitizer, soap, and/or cream right now?
I'm always changing things up, but right now, I just have Chanel's La Crème Main Texture Riche, mainly because I always carry around small purses, and that one fits in my bag. But hand sanitizer-wise, I typically use the Everyone products.
Do you ever light a candle or stick of incense to decompress? If so, what are some of your favorites?
I'm not huge on incense, but I do use candles every single day. We have some that we're working on that I can't really share when they're launching, but I've been using a lot of ours to just, like, test. But besides that, I love using the scent Paris from Diptyque. I'm in Paris a lot, pretty much once a month, and this smell just reminds me of the city and allows me to bring a bit of Paris back to L.A. with me. So that's sort of my go-to candle scent, but I also use Santal 26 by Le Labo. And it's really exciting, because the man who created that is actually working on a few fragrances at Phlur.
There's a sense of nostalgia about Paris with me, because I think one, that's where I really started my career in fashion. Like, obviously I started blogging and all of that, like, way back in the day over here, but I feel like my career really took off once I started going to Paris. So that, and also again, when I was going through this heartbreak, the first thing I did was go to Paris, and it essentially healed me. So it's just a really special place, and I just love being able to bring that scent home with me.
What was the last beauty product you put on today?
I just put on this product also by MAKE that's a lip serum and is so delicious and yummy. It's also really cushiony and like a gloss, and comes in this fat little tube. I usually do a matte lip, and then add a little bit of the serum on top.
Are you into bold makeup, no makeup, or no-makeup makeup right now, and why?
Definitely not into no makeup—I love makeup. I wouldn't consider myself a bold girl, but I do love wearing my usuals every day. So, yeah, I do like playing with different looks, but everyday looks are my favorite, I guess you could say. I really love to extend my eyes, so I don't know if you would call that a cat eye, but I always do kind of like a slight wing with liner. I cannot leave the house without liner, I just look so tired. So eyeliner is my number one go-to, and then I always like wearing taupe shadow colors, which usually include a lot of different brown and neutral shades. I also love blush—just being able to play with rosy, pink blushes—and then, I like to experiment with color a lot on my lips.
What's the last fitness class you streamed or attended in person?
SLT here in New York—we don't have SLT in L.A., so whenever I'm in New York, I'm always at SLT. I could literally just do it for three days straight and my abs will be cut—I don't know what it is, but the moves are so effective for my body. I also stay a lot just for my work, so just using a good ol' treadmill, or even a Peloton, which is a plus. At home, I'm on my Peloton almost every day, so I always try to get a little cardio in, which can be hard with my schedule having long, late nights and early mornings.
What's one piece of self-care advice you'd recommend to our readers?
I mean, I'm a hypocrite, because I don't usually go by this, but I'm really, really trying: Take your vitamins. But also, I try to keep my regular schedule back at home over here. Just because I'm traveling, or in a new city or country, it's not like I'm trying to go out and do all sorts of new fun things. I think there's a time and place for that. But at the end of the day, you just have to take care of your body.
And especially during fashion month (I do almost all the cities), you're in it for the long ride, and you can burn out really quickly. I try to get at least seven hours of sleep, and although I'm a horrible water drinker, I try to down a bottle every night and keep it refilled. But I stay hydrated, work out, take my vitamins, and try to sleep early. It's nothing new, but I think that's what people just need to hear. It's not like you have to spend thousands of dollars on, like, a special massage or whatever; being consistent with a normal, healthy routine will take you a lot further in the long run.
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