Emily, our BIN editor, gets the scoop on Brooke’s not-so-guilty pleasures

Me time. Pampering. Indulgences. Maintenance. No matter what you call it, we can all agree that a little self-care is a definite non-negotiable these days. Not to go all motivational speaker on you, but you deserve it. You need it! And frankly, you’ve earned it. (Let’s be honest: we’re all going through some stuff right now.) It took Brooke some time to come around on the concept, but now she’s firmly team self-care. (Luckily for her.) Oh, and PSA: Brooke Shields brow maintenance intel, right this way… 

So, self-care: indulgent or essential?

“Essential. I used to think selfcare was indulgent, that it was a luxury and only for people of leisure. I wanted to be a workhorse. There’s an expression in French: métro, boulot, dodo—you take the train, you go to work, you go to sleep. You take the train, you go to work, you go to sleep. And I was like, yep, that’s me, that’s what I do.

But as I got older, I started realizing that I needed something else other than that. I needed more fun. We say the word pampering and it’s got a bad connotation. But we’ve learned, especially during the pandemic, that the ritual of self-care is so incredibly important.”

So, how are you self-caring at the moment?

“I get facials and massages, but I look at massage as more of a sports thing rather than pampering. I think going to get facials or going to a spa is the most luxurious thing I do.” 

Okay, but give me the weird stuff.

“I just got this new thing I saw in some magazine, and it’s like a teeny razor that takes all the peach fuzz off your face. It’s called Dermaflash.

And I did brow laminating the other day. I went in the other day and said, do you think I need to start filling in my eyebrows? I’m feeling sort of responsible here for the eyebrow world—I gotta keep them up! And they’re getting…blonder, let’s just say! From the sun! And thinner. And so they laminated them. It’s some chemical that kind of brushes them up.”

Hold up. Brooke Shields’ eyebrow care. This feels important.

“That’s one of the craziest things I’ve done, walked in and handed my brows over to someone! They looked a little nervous, the women said ‘oh boy,’ we all took a deep breath...”

Guilty pleasure time. When you want to indulge, what do you…

Eat?

“Haagen Dazs vanilla chocolate chip or vanilla swiss almond. Or spaghetti with tomato sauce. I love a good Italian tomato sauce. I would probably eat a Haagen Dazs spaghetty with tomato sauce flavor if they made it.”

Binge watch?

“Hacks is my self-care television show. It’s exactly my humor and I’m just so glad to know it’s out there in the world and people are wanting it. Give me a lemon or lime with tequila, rocks, and I’ll sit in front of that. What a luxury.”

Listen to?

“I love my daughters’ playlists. I love everything from Pop Smoke to Stevie Nicks. But if I’m just in the house by myself, I’ll probably put on something like Joan Armatrading radio and sing at the top of my lungs to Stronger Love. I love Tracy Chapman, Joan Armatrading, Tony Childs. I’ll do the Carole King and James Taylor thing, I’ll do Dire Straits. Or French pub music—not just like Edith Piaf, but music you’d hear in a French bistro. Or Hipster Cocktail.”

Do?

“I love baths. During the pandemic I propped my computer up on the chair and took long, hot baths and watched Unorthodox and Outlander. And when I was in Scotland I had baths with a glass of whiskey or tea, depending on what time it was. When in Scotland, you know. There’s something kind of primordial about baths, the warmth and safety and the ritual of it. But! Be careful with laptops around the tub! My husband gets terrified.”

What’s the most overrated self-care practice, in your opinion?

“If it works for you, it’s not overrated. I’m not here to say anything is ridiculous. If you’re taking the time for yourself, I don’t think it’s overrated.”

Underrated?

“Nails are my luxury. Someone sat next to me the other day, looked at my hands and said, ‘Are those really your nails?’ I had sparkles on them or something and he looked at me and said, ‘Wow, I would not expect that from you.’ And I was like, ‘You know, gotta honor the New Jersey in me a little bit!’”

Thanks, Brooke!