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The Beauty Products This Celebrity Brow Artist Uses to the Last Drop

Photo: Joey Healy

“I originally had dreams of becoming a costume designer,” says brow artist and entrepreneur Joey Healy over the phone. “But I was bad at it. I wasn’t very good at sewing.” Selfishly, we are glad it didn’t work out. Because Healy creates some of the most innovative brow products, including his Allure Best of Beauty Award-winning Luxe Brow Powder and Brow Renovation Serum.

In 2007, Healy graduated from Villanova University with a degree in business and moved to NYC, where he began working as a makeup artist. “So many people would tell me how great I was at brows throughout this period,” he says. On the side, he was working in beauty retail at Bloomingdale’s and Bergdorf Goodman. “From these experiences, I started to see where there were gaps in the industry,” he says. “There weren’t good waterproof brow products or good ones for women of color and redheads at the time.” Two years later, he decided to further hone his skills and attended the Aveda Institute to study aesthetics. He launched the Joey Healy Eyebrow Collection in 2011, followed by his first flagship brow studio in 2012.

These days, you can find Healy doing brows for major beauty editors and celebrities like Vanessa Hudgens and Lily Allen in addition to working out of his expanded studio and continuously churning out award-winning brow products. “I love being able to create a service for people where the effects are so instantaneous,” he says. “They look better and feel better. And it feels good to give people that confidence boost.” He’s able to stay energized throughout his busy schedule in large part thanks to his self-care routine, facials and hot yoga included. “To me, extreme work requires extreme self-care. It’s my way of saying thank you to myself.”

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Here, Healy’s A.M. routine:

8:30 — I’m not a big morning person, so I typically wake up around this time. Sundays through Tuesdays, I spend time at my house in Hudson Valley to replenish. Wednesdays through Saturdays, I’m typically working in my studio and staying in my Chelsea apartment, so those days tend to look different. But one ritual I’m really proud of is that I’ve started leaving my phone in a different room when I sleep. I used to wake up and grab my phone. I like to just relax in the morning instead of jumping straight into emails.

8:40 — I always light a candle before I start my routines. I love my quartz and amethyst candles from my product line. In the morning I usually light the quartz one, which is a warm amber and French rose scent. I like to put on my Brooklinen robe when I wake up, too. It’s so cozy. And then, at least three times a week, I plunge my face in ice water. It wakes me up, but it’s also just a good old-school beauty trick. I really see any inflammation go down as well as puffiness. It’s cheap and it’s easy. And then I usually put on my Tonymoly eye masks to really wake up the skin.

8:45 a.m — I make a cup of coffee. Coffee is essential to me, and I usually keep my eye patches on while making it. I like to sit outside on my terrace while I drink it and catch up on my messages, socials, and emails. Sometimes I’ll do my Wordle and Duolingo as well.

9:00 a.m — I reach for my NuFace. I really love microcurrent. I’ve pretty much tried them all. Between the ice plunge and microcurrent, I always feel like my face went to the gym: It’s plumper and bouncier and all of that.

9:08 — I shampoo and condition my hair. I’ve been using the Dae Monsoon Moisture Milk.

9:18 — Then I like to use the Lush Sultana soap on my body. It smells incredibly good!

9:22 — After that, I cleanse my face in the shower; I use Caudalie’s Vino Clean foaming face cleanser. I tend to be pretty oily, so this works really well for me.

9:24 — I reach for the Jh2O toner. It’s one of my favorites. It has witch hazel, reishi mushroom, aloe, and turmeric.

9:25 —  I slather on Drunk Elephant’s hydrating serum. I’m 36 now, and I notice I really need hydration.

9:26 — Then I go in with the Erin’s Faces Peptide Eye Cream. I’m a big fan of peptides, especially in eye creams. It’s firming and revitalizing and not too heavy.

9:27 — To moisturize, I use the Embryolisse moisturizer. This was in every makeup artist’s kit in 2007. It was always the go-to because it sits so well underneath makeup. But I’ve kept using it over the last 15 years. Sometimes I’ll use something a little lighter in the summer, but I’ve noticed it pretty much works well in all seasons.

9:29 — Lastly, I’ll lather on the EltaMD SPF 40 to protect my skin. It’s lightweight, it feels like a moisturizer, and it doesn’t clog my pores.

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Healy’s P.M. routine:

9:30 — I start my routine by cleansing. I love using the Shu Uemura cleansing oil — I’ve used it forever. I used to be afraid of cleansing oils, being acne prone, but this was something I fell in love with even when my acne was at its worst.

9:32 — And then I’ve been really into the placenta serum from Biologique Recherche. It sounds creepy but it’s a synthetic formula that mimics placenta, so it’s not real placenta. This is a luxurious step in my routine for sure, but it’s too rich for during the day. It brightens and hydrates.

9:34 — I then add my retinol prescription. This is the only thing that’s really gotten my acne under control over the years.

9:36 — I like to use the Bubble Over Night Sleep Mask. Retinol can be really harsh on the skin, so I like to follow it up with something nice and hydrating like this.

9:37 — Lastly, I apply my Brow Renovation serum. I run it through my brows to really help them grow. It’s a peptide-based serum and is definitely the hero product in the product line. It’s very hydrating and has a vanilla scent, and the tube lasts forever.

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On the beauty-marketing trend that makes him cringe:

I feel like there’s just a ton of celebrity beauty brands right now. And obviously there are a lot of great ones, but sometimes it also feels like celebrities are just slapping their name on anything.

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On how the industry makes him proud:

I love that it feels like things are more about self-expression rather than conformity as of late. I think people are using beauty in a way that people have often used fashion — to further express who they are.

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On the ingredient that is overhyped:

I would definitely say castor oil is overhyped. It comes up all the time in my line of work because people believe it will help their brows grow. It can be hydrating for the brows for sure, but there is no evidence that it will actually help them grow.

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On the ingredient he avoids:

I tend to avoid anything with alcohol in it. It’s really harsh on the skin and very drying.

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On the one routine he’d do in a rush:

I think it’s an obvious answer, but it really is true. I’d definitely choose to do my brows if I only had time to do one of my routines. I like to have them tinted. But if I’m in between tinting, I will use a little bit of our brow powder in the color Corduroy. It’s a very soft ash color.

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On the beauty services he loves:

I love facials. I get mine done from Taylor Worden. She has a 90-minute facial where she tailors the session to whatever your skin needs, and it’s amazing. I also love hot yoga. I love to get a good sweat in and be present with my body. I go to Modo Yoga.

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On his love for Botox:

I started when I turned 33. It’s made such an incredible difference in the smoothness of my skin. I go see Gary Goldenberg for my Botox.

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The Beauty Products Joey Healy Uses to the Last Drop