“I started Victoria Beckham Beauty because I knew that there was an appetite for it—but I wanted to do it in the way that I wanted to, with a real focus on clean beauty. Product ingredients are key. In the past, I struggled with my skin for so many years. When I was younger, I was seeing dermatologists who put me on all sorts of antibiotics and different topical solutions, and I decided to take the power back and really focus on what I was putting in and on my body. That meant looking at what I was eating but also the formulas that I was putting on my face. Of course, I still wanted our products to work, and that was challenging for my product development team and our labs, but we did it. I think that’s what makes us best in class.
SKINCARE
My skin has definitely become drier. It was oilier when I was younger and I didn’t like that, but as you age, you realize it’s quite good if you’ve got oily skin. I was very fortunate that I didn’t scar from the acne, but maybe if I had dry skin, I would have. I kept all skin types in mind when developing my Daily Cleansing Protocol, a duo consisting of an oil cleanser and a lactic acid gel cleanser. When I struggled with my skin, I couldn’t find the perfect cleanser. They would either irritate my skin and cause more breakouts or they were overly drying. You can either use my cleansers together or individually. At night, I use the oil cleanser first because it really does get the dirt and makeup off your face—so many cleansers claim to take makeup off but actually don’t—without stripping the natural oils that you want to hang on to. Then I’ll use the gel cleanser after that. But if I’m traveling and my skin is feeling a little drier, maybe I’ll just use the oil cleanser. Since the gel cleaner has lactic acid, you can use it once or twice a day, depending on your skin type. I like to use it on its own in the morning.
I developed the cleansers with Melanie Grant, who is a facialist I met years ago in Australia. She has been my skin guru since then. She is remarkable. She only ever uses the best in class products and she would always send me products to try. She’s actually the person that introduced me to Augustinus Bader years ago, so she is the one responsible for me collaborating with the brand. Like me, she’s struggled to find the perfect cleanser, which is why we decided to work together on the duo. She really is skin obsessed, and it’s been such a joy working with her.
If I have time after cleansing, I might use my Celluma Pro, which I’m quite obsessed with at the moment. I’ve genuinely noticed a difference in my skin texture since I started using it. Then I use my Augustinus Bader Cell Rejuvenating Power Serum, making sure that I press it into my skin, neck, and chest area quite firmly, followed by my Augustinus Bader Cell Rejuvenating Priming Moisturizer—I feel like I have the perfect foundation for makeup with those two on. If I’m being completely honest, I do not use sunscreen every day. Well… I’ll use it if I’m in Miami.
I recently worked with Iván Pol, better known as The Beauty Sandwich, when I was in LA. He gave me the most perfect facial treatment before walking the ‘Lola’ red carpet. In terms of facial treatments I can do at home, I’m a big fan of rollers and gua shas, especially in the mornings. The Skin Gym face roller and the Sisley Ginkgo Gua Sha are especially brilliant post flights and for depuffing. I also love the 111Skin Illuminating Rose Gold Eye Masks in the mornings, either as part of my skincare routine or whilst blowing out my hair—I want to use every minute wisely for extra skincare benefits.
MAKEUP
I always love a smoky, sexy eye. I will often start with my Smoky Eye Brick in Signature, combined with my Eyewear in Pecan—or sometimes Bottle Green—to contour the eye area. Then I use my Satin Kajal Liner just above the lash line and also a little bit underneath. If I’m going out at night, I go from using Cocoa to Cinnamon. Sometimes I’ll even use a bit of Sequin Green or Navy Noir if I want to have a little bit of a different take on my smoky eye. Quite often I use my Instant Brightening Waterline Pencil on the inside of my eye as well because sometimes using a darker color can be too much during the daytime. That said, I love a light touch. I do really love to wear makeup, but I have a less-is-more approach. When I contour, for example, I don’t like it to look like I’ve contoured. And I love lip liners, but I don’t want it to look too obvious that I’ve lined my lips. I’ve had the pleasure of working with [photographer] Peter Lindbergh quite a few times, and he’s all about a smoky eye, but it’s always smudgy and sexy—never harsh. It looks almost more like a natural shadow as opposed to a hard line.
I don’t really do a lot with my brows. I always say that Anastasia Soare, who is a very good friend of mine, is my eyebrow guru. Upon her recommendation I used Latisse for both my lashes and brows, and it helped to grow them back, but I haven’t used it in quite a while. These days, I’m obsessed with our Babyblade. I searched for the right brow product for a long time, something that came in a small enough component so that I could really get a precise application and carefully pencil individual hairs. I’ve never found a brow product quite like ours, which is why I decided to develop it myself. I use shade Medium Brown.
As far as lips go, I always line mine with my Lip Definer in shade No.2—I have about three of these in different bags at any one time—and then add my Posh Gloss on top. My go-to shades are Poolside and Picante.
HAIR
My hair is quite simple, really. I don’t do too much. Ken Paves, who is my best friend and hairdresser, is the only person that I let cut it. He is a genius. When it comes to hair, the more volume the better. But I do not like to feel too much texture in my hair, so Ken has a very light touch on products—he’ll use Wella’s Sugar Lift hairspray and L’Oreal Paris’ Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold after a blowout. For my color, I go to Josh Wood, who is the master of hair color, in London. I was introduced to Milbon’s shampoo and Restorative Treatment by a friend, and I’m really liking the products. Harper has become quite obsessed with them, as well.
NAILS
I like my nails to be quite long. I either like a nude nail or a dark color—it depends on what I’m wearing to be honest. For ease, most of the time I wear a natural color because I create content quite often and I like my nails to not stand out too much. My philosophy is that a dark nail looks gorgeous if you’re wearing tailoring or if you’re going out for the night, but I also like to dress in quite a lot of color, and if I have a different color on my nails, I start to question what I’m wearing.
I’ve known [nail artist] Tom Bachik for years. I haven’t worked with him for a long time because he’s based in Los Angeles and I’m based in London, but he’s great and very talented. I have a great girl that I work with in Miami. I have someone great in London as well, but honestly, I like to try new people depending on what I’m doing.
FRAGRANCE
Diptyque is my go-to candle brand—I go back and forth between Feu de Bois and Baies. Years and years and years ago, I made a fragrance called Intimately Beckham with my husband. I really enjoyed the process of creating it. But just like with my makeup, I didn’t want to compromise and I wanted to do things my way, so about eight years ago I started working with Jérôme Épinette, who is the most amazing perfumer. I knew that I had to take my time with the fragrances we worked on—which resulted in Suite 302, San Ysidro Drive, and Portofino ’97—because independently launching a fragrance is a huge undertaking. I was in absolutely no rush.
I feel quite vulnerable when I talk about the three scents because I’d never told those stories about my personal life before. San Ysidro Drive is named after the address my family and I relocated to in 2007. Every time I smell it, it takes me back to those early days in LA. It was also where I started focusing on my fashion career. It was a very special time for me as a woman to work on myself.
Suite 302 really takes me back. I would say it’s a tribute to the love affair that David and I have with Paris. In the ‘90s, we would often sneak away to Paris—just the two of us. We would stay at the Hotel Costes. When we lived in Spain, we dropped the kids off at school one morning, and David said to me, ‘I’m going to take you somewhere for the day.’ We drove to the airport, got on a private plane, and halfway through the flight, David went into the bathroom and came back out in a tuxedo looking so handsome. He said, ‘There’s something for you to put on in the bathroom.’ There was a white dress hanging up, so I put that and some makeup on. We landed in London, and there was the chauffeur-driven car that drove us to our wedding all those years ago. We drove to the house that we used to have in North London. We had a little chapel on the grounds, and he had covered the whole chapel with flowers. My parents were there. His parents were there. We had the vicar that married us all those years ago remarry us. It was the most romantic thing that he’s ever done. Then we went back to the airport and back on the plane. I had no idea where we were going again. We landed in Paris and had a mini honeymoon that was literally 24 hours long. We stayed at The Ritz in Suite 302.
I was in the Spice Girls when David and I first met. He was living in Manchester playing for Manchester United, and he would drive down to London. We literally would meet in a car park at a restaurant called City Limits. We would sit in his car and talk and really get to know each other. A friend at the time said, ‘You know, when people find out that you two are dating, everyone is going to go crazy. There’s going to be paparazzi everywhere.’ The same friend said, ‘When people know about you, take a trip. Do something special. The first trip that you should take should be to Portofino. There’s this amazing hotel called Hotel Splendido.’ That was the first time that we ever went away together, the first time that we were on a private plane together. We had 48 hours. Up until that point, every time we saw each other, it almost felt like a stolen moment because we were both so busy. The intensity of the two of us being together for that 48 hours really was amazing. I remember the blue skies. I remember how it smelt. I remember how excited I was to be with him for the first time.
I love each one. I wear them all depending on where I’m going, who I’m with, what I’m doing, where I happen to be, and what I’m wearing. They’re all genderless. Suite 302 is my perfect date night fragrance. It’s very sexy. I love the tobacco note. It feels very elegant, very chic, and very cool. There’s just something strong, powerful, and sexy about Suite 302. During the day, I switch between Portofino and San Ysidro. I love the modern take on a rose that you get with San Ysidro and how fresh Portofino feels. You can also combine the fragrances as well, so you can almost customize them. They’re all I wear at the moment.”
—As told to Daise Bedolla
Photographed by Alexandra Genova in New York on January 30, 2024
