[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Former model and skin specialist, Adela Vesela, talks with us about using caster oil for longer lashes, coconut oil to whiten teeth, and our culture’s obsession with beauty and youth.
Who or what experiences taught you about skincare?
“I grew up in Prague, Czech Republic. Growing up I modeled. I started when I was 13 years old. My face was full of makeup all the time and my skin was so sensitive and dry, especially, later on. I had to fly all over so my skin was always dehydrated. I learned I needed to take care of my skin through exfoliation and hydration. My mom taught me to exfoliate. I was always watching her take care of her skin and put makeup on. She was a model too. But she was like me, I wasn’t crazy about modeling. It was just something fun.”
On never waxing, only tweezing…
“My mother taught me how to do my brows growing up. I do my own and I do them for all my girlfriends now. I always tweeze, never wax and I don’t like threading. It pulls out the hair follicle in an unnatural way. The brow hairs grow in different directions. When you tweeze you pull the hair in the direction that it grows – up and out. Otherwise you will get ingrown hairs.”
On regrowing thick brows and lashes…
“My super secret tip for amazing brows and eyelashes is organic castor oil. I get mine from amazon and its the black Jamaican castor oil. I rub it in every night. Like really rub it into the hair follicle and then you brush the hair. Then I rub it into my lashes and lash line. Even I use it as my eye cream. It’s very thick oil, but it’s so good for you. It’s packed with amino acids and vitamins.
“My lashes are out of control. I had to stop using it for a while because they were getting way too long and thick. It was crazy. I have been telling this to my clients and they don’t believe me when I say castor oil, but they come back to me and are shocked by how well it works. I work with high profile celebrities and when I see them on the screen I’m like yah, her eyebrows look good because of me!”
“Beauty isn’t everything, you have to be smart and be something.”
On our culture’s obsession with beauty and women supporting women…
“I’ve met so many different doctors and they say, ‘oh, let’s do that and oh my gosh yah, it’s going to make you look even better.’ And the world says the same thing, ‘oh you’ll be even more beautiful or even better if you do this or that,’ and I despise that sentence. I’ve heard it so many times and that’s why women are so insecure with themselves because they think there is always something to improve.
“There are so many beautiful girls, young girls, teenagers, they go way too much. And I see it especially in Malibu, where Veronica’s spa is, there are so many young girls and they have the duck lips and it’s so not right. This new generation of women are so consumed with beauty, fashion and money, that they forget about anything else. Beauty isn’t everything, you have to be smart and be something.
“Our generation and the generation before us, they are still so ambitious and I believe that women are gonna be in power. I hope and I know that especially 2016 will be such a great year for women to take over. But we are women and we should support and encourage each other like no matter what. Especially in Los Angeles.”
How do European women differ from American women when it comes to skincare?
“I wish European women would take better care of their skin. They are now, but they need to take care of their skin more. Like when I see my friends back home who are my same age, they just need to have better knowledge of skincare. The United States is so advanced because we are so obsessed with looking young and looking beautiful.”
What do you see most women doing wrong when it comes to skincare?
“Not using the right products and not cleansing. Cleansing your skin is so important. Just to take off the whole day, the dirt, the dust off your skin and not many women they do.
“Also, women forget about facials and I wish they would get facials more because face is so important. It’s the first thing you look at when you meet someone. Women spend so much money on hair appointments and nails, but they forget about their face. I see it all the time with my friends. I’m like, ‘oh, you’re going to another hair appointment?’ and they’re like, ‘yah, I just need another root touch up’ and I’m like well, what about coming in for a facial? Facials are much more important in my mind.”
On using coconut oil for teeth whitening…
“I am obsessed with coconut oil for when I have a toothache or I want to whiten my teeth. I swish a teaspoon of coconut oil in my mouth. I use the Organic Trader Joe’s coconut Oil and I put a bit in my mouth and swish for five to twenty minutes. I brush my teeth after and it’s amazing the difference.”
What’s the one skincare product you can’t live without?
“I have to have four! I can’t live without serum – serum, always serum, for the morning and night. I am in love with CE Ferulic from Skinceuticals. It’s really hydrating. It’s brightening with Vitamin C. It’s so good to use in the morning. Then in the evening I use Skinceuticals Vitamin B5 ,which is really hydrating.
“For moisturizer, I have two favorites. One is from Veronica’s skincare line which has retinol. Everyone should start using retinol even in their twenties! It’s great for wrinkles, it’s an amazing antioxidant. And the second is from my friend’s line, Ojas. I have been working with him for the past two years to develop a new skincare line. Its very luxurious. My friend who developed this brand put so much money in the research and using the best ingredients.”
What’s your favorite product from the Ojas line?
“The Lip Conditioner! It has peptides and stem cells. There is no other lip plumper out there that has his ingredients. The peptides fill out the wrinkles and the stem cells are anti-aging. But I do love his sunscreen too.”
-as told to BOND EN AVANT
Photographed by Amy Chang
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