Prestige Beauty Awards 2023: Meet the Panel

Faced with a plethora of lotions and potions to try out and select for the Prestige Beauty Awards 2023, we turn to our panel of beauty and style mavens – who know a thing or two when it comes to cosmetics and skincare upkeep – to find out what tips and tricks they have up their sleeve.

Beatrice Ho

Photography Jennifer Ying
Styling Gennady Oreshkin
Hair and Makeup Joyce Wong
Dress Sau Lee

Style maven Beatrice Ho splits her time between Manhattan and Hong Kong, and knows how to get her glam on. Whether it’s about protecting the skin from the blazing tropical sun or against frigid East Coast winters, she has tips that will enhance anyone’s routine. 

I started incorporating skincare into my daily routine when I turned 12. I was attending a summer school in West LA – this was when Bobbi Brown’s pink shimmery lip gloss and the Clinique three-step routine were having their big moment. 

I’m a proponent of double cleansing. I use a cream cleanser followed by a mild exfoliating cleanser twice daily. In the morning, I incorporate two serums, moisturiser, eye cream and SPF. I’m religious about SPF: I put on a layer of SPF 40 CC cream on top of the SPF 50 sunscreen and wear an SPF 30 cream eyeshadow. At night, after double cleansing, I always wear a face mask. I alternate between clay-based masks, exfoliating masks, hydrating sheet masks etc. As an advocate of red-light therapy, I include my LED face mask in my routine three times a week before using a Retinol Alternative or a glycolic or salicylic serum, moisturiser, eye cream and lip balm.

Many products I use are recommended by my New York dermatologist, Dr Lisa Airan. I’m blessed to have friends who are knowledgeable about beauty, so I take a lot of recommendations from them. Reading Gwyneth Paltrow’s wellness site GOOP is one of my guilty pleasures. I often learn about product launches there; then, I’d check out the ingredients and reviews before deciding whether or not to pull the trigger.

In Hong Kong’s climate, double cleansing with a gentle exfoliating cleanser is paramount, because removing make-up, pore-clogging dirt and excess oil from your skin is vital in humid climates. Using AHAs or BHA cleansers can also shed and stop the build-up of dead skin cells, reduce sebum production and keep pores clear. Don’t forget to bring the SPF down to the neck and store those sheet masks in the fridge.

My skincare and makeup staples are 111SKIN Cryo De-Puffing Eye Mask, Dr Barbara Sturm Glow Drops, Supergoop Shimmershade Illuminating Cream Eyeshadow SPF 30 and Chanel Inimitable Mascara (which I’ve used for 10 years) and Revive and Restore serum from Belleterra Beauty.

Beauty trends I love include applying white or nude colour eyeliner on the waterline and mascara on the bottom lashes to open the eyes up, and highlighting the inner corner of the eyes with shimmery eyeshadow.

The revival of the black pencil eyeliner from the early 2000s, on the other hand, has got to go. The models at last year’s Chanel show in Paris donned smudgy grungy black eyeliner, signalling the return of the trend. I thought they looked like racoon eyes. (Fun fact: I went through that phase for two years as an adolescent in London. My poor mother tried everything, from bribing to reasoning with me, hoping I’d ditch that look. She was never a fan.)

Taylor Richard

One of Hong Kong’s best-known content creators, Taylor Richard has won over many hearts with her fertility journey and, more recently, daily life with baby Levi. The former model isn’t afraid to try out all sorts of beauty trends – the latest is something called skinflooding.

I began incorporating skincare into my daily routine when I started getting acne at 13 or 14 years old. My mum brought me to a dermatologist who recommended some products to try.

My skincare routine is pretty simple. In the daytime, I use a light cleanser, hyaluronic acid, moisturiser and sunscreen, which I never skip, even when it’s cloudy or rainy. At night, I always do a double cleanse with oil first (even if I don’t wear make-up to get rid of sunscreen and the grime from the day), and then a mild foaming cleanser. I pat my skin with a towel (not fully dry) then add a peptide serum, hyaluronic acid, and moisturiser. I do all of these steps to my face and neck. I also moisturise my hands. Once a week I use AHAs to exfoliate my skin and get rid of any impurities that my other products may have missed.

My main skincare concern is dryness, redness and sensitivity. I try to hydrate from the inside out with a lot of water, healthy diet and enough sleep. I learned how to read labels and realised which ingredients my skin doesn’t like.

I wear make-up because it’s a way of expressing and empowering myself. I love playing with my appearance and using products to portray how I want to be perceived that day. Sometimes it’s simple and light, sometimes it’s fun and colourful, and sometimes it’s smoky and sensual.

A make-up item I’ve been using for more than 10 years is the Nars Radiant concealer. I haven’t found anything that works better for me. I also really love Charlotte Tilbury products for pretty much everything. I treated myself to a full face of make-up from them for my wedding
in 2018 and have used a lot their stuff ever since. A newer brand I’m really into is Rare Beauty – I’m obsessed with its mascara. Also, Chanel Beauty is best for red lipsticks.

My biggest beauty influences are my mum and my grandma. I learned a lot from them growing up and still do. My first online influence that got me more into experimenting and sharing was Michelle Phan. 

I love trying new trends and products. Skinflooding (applying products on damp skin, but not retinol or Vitamin C) is a trend I discovered and now do regularly. That and “Coquette beauty”, which is soft, glittery and feminine doe-eyed makeup. I hope excessive highlighting and contouring will disappear – I’ve already been seeing it a lot less this past year.

My long time fragrance staple is Coco Mademoiselle by Chanel because my mum always wore that, so it’s a nostalgic and familiar smell. I feel like I’ve transformed since becoming a mum and I’m on the hunt now for something fresh and representative of this new me.

Tim Fung

As a digital content creator, Tim Fung always has to be camera ready to fill his social-media platforms with exciting travel and lifestyle tips. To ensure his skin stays glowing and flawless, he has an extensive skincare regimen – it began in middle school when he struggled with cystic acne – that protects, exfoliates, regenerates and, of course, hydrates. He shines light on his routine and hopes his tips will help those who share his skin type. 

My main concern to tackle is always my acne-prone oily skin. It’s like a bad cold that keeps making a comeback. There was a period in middle school I had to get facials every two weeks to clear my skin of excessive sebum. You might think oily skin is rarely irritable, but that’s not the case for me. I’m sceptical about marketing language so I always do my own research and sift through online reviews to make my own judgements. I also find it helpful to ask for product recommendations from friends with similar skin types.

For my morning skincare routine, I clean my face – only with water to avoid washing off the my skin’s natural oil – before a four-step routine of toner, Vitamin C serum, moisturiser and sunblock. In the evening I cleanse with a gentle oil-based face wash, followed by applying toner, a retinol serum and, lastly, a moisturiser to lock everything in.

After years of experimentation, I now swear by a few staple products – Vitamin C in the AM and retinol in the PM to build resilience for my epidermis and to slow the rate of ageing. An effective SPF is also crucial, even when I’m not exposed to the sun. When I’m in front of a camera for photo shoots or want to look good for an occasion, I’ll apply a tinted moisturiser to make my skin appear more even.

In terms of male beauty trends, I do like the middle-part hairstyle popularized by South Korean fashion but I literally see it everywhere on the streets. I’m looking forward to the emergence of new hairstyles for men; I hope we’ll see something a little more rugged and a little less polished.

Fragrance plays a significant role in my routine. It wakes me up and energises me for the day. I have a few favourites: BLEU de CHANEL Eau de Parfum for its complex sandalwood, cedar and tonka-bean notes, Tom Ford’s Oud Wood for its moody woody scent that’s great for the evening, and Jo Malone’s Sea Salt & Wood Sage and Byredo’s De Los Santos for everyday.