In less than a month, I will turn 20. And somewhere between packing away my teenage years and stepping into this entirely new decade, I had a realisation my entire beauty routine is basically a fan tribute I never officially gave proper credits to. Every cucumber slice, every eye mask, every stubborn wing of eyeliner none of it actually started with me. It all began with the characters I grew up watching, half-copying without even noticing I was doing it. So before I close this chapter, I think they deserve their flowers. This is my thank-you letter to the fictional women who quietly built my routine.
Mia Thermopolis and the Cucumber Slices
I grew up watching Disney Channel every day and night, and whenever The Princess Diaries came on TV, it was a must-see.But it was that one small, simple scene with her lying back with cucumber slices over her eyes that got stuck in my mind for years. It wasn’t really dramatic, it wasn’t even about beauty, but something about that picture of quiet self-care made me curious enough to try it myself. I did, and somehow that one scene became the first brick in a routine I didn’t know I was building when wearing a face mask.
Blair Waldorf and the Eye Mask I Refuse to Sleep Without
I was 14, probably too young when I started watching Gossip Girl. But Blair Waldorf, in her true Upper East Side fashion, never went to sleep without her silk eye mask. Every single episode, there it was. I tried it out of pure curiosity, and it’s now become a non-negotiable part of my nighttime routine.
Elle Woods and the Manicure as Therapy
Legally Blonde, especially with the whole new prequel series buzz, reminded me why I kind of adored Elle Woods so much. She treated her manicure appointments like therapy sessions talking through her problems while getting her nails done, using it as an actual coping mechanism. It taught me that self-care isn’t silly. Sometimes fixing your nails really does fix your mood.
Cassie Howard and My Jade Roller Obsession
I have really complicated feelings about Euphoria, but Cassie Howard’s elaborate extensive facial-tool rotation jade roller, rose quartz gua sha, ice roller genuinely broke the internet for a reason. I caved and finally used that one jade roller that I had sitting at my home after watching that scene, and I’m not exaggerating when I say it actually works when you’re consistent with it.
The Winx Club Fairies and My Lifelong Eyeliner Addiction
I’ve worn eyeliner or kajal since I was three years old. The Winx Club fairies, with their exaggerated wings and dramatic lash lines, are the reason a tiny wing at my outer corner became part of my identity, even wearing it to school when I definitely wasn’t supposed to. Nobody ever asked, and I never stopped.
Barbie and the Perfect Morning Routine
The opening of the 2023 Barbie movie, with its exaggerated “perfect morning” sequence is basically a celebration to the ritual of getting ready. It reminded me that a beauty routine doesn’t have to be that serious to matter, it can be joyful, fun and entirely for yourself.
The Girls Who Made Me, Me
Looking back, my beauty routine was never really mine alone, it’s a moodboard stitched together from fictional girls who didn’t know they were raising me. As I turn 20, I’m not trying to grow out of these habits but I’m definitely keeping the cucumber slices, the eye mask, the jade roller and the wing liner exactly as they are, proof that the characters we love never really leave us.They just become something I do for myself every day.
The First Skincare Routine I Ever Knew Lived On My Sister’s Shelf
Beauty’s Burnout Era: The Pressure To Keep Up
