Nina Dobrev's Favorite Red Light Mask and Skincare Picks

Forbes

18-04-2025

Actress Nina Dobrev byfor Messika
Getty Images for Messika
Nina Dobrev has been a media darling ever since starring in the CW's The Vampire Diaries. Since then, the 36-year-old has come a long way in terms of her personal life and professional presence. For one thing, she is beloved within beauty and fashion's inner circles, where she is known for her natural beauty and inspiration-worthy hair.
Dobrev is just as likely to be spotted at West Hollywood's hair haven, Nine Zero One, as a glamorous Fashion Week presentation abroad. She regularly works with leading industry talent (including her best friend, celebrity colorist Riawna Capri) and celebrity makeup artists like Hung Vanngo that help to keep her up to speed on beauty's best. Once the news of her pending nuptials to ex-professional snowboarder Shaun White hit, inquiring minds were quick to ponder what her bridal beauty prep and wedding makeup looks might entail.
As luck would have it, I got the chance to ask her about the secrets of her beauty regimen. Below, Dobrev opens up about the skincare products, holy grail cosmetics and LED face masks that make up her A-list stash.
Photo byGetty Images
Our conversation took place as an e-mail exchange that began on the topic of ocean conservation—a cause Dobrev holds 'close to her heart.' It might seem unrelated, but the topic of sustainability easily segues into conversations about the beauty industry, which is estimated to create some 120 billion units of waste per year.
'For my birthday last year, I went back to one of my favorite beaches [and] was devastated to see plastic waste all over,' Dobrev tells me. But she is also adamant that 'small actions can make a big difference' and every piece of plastic kept out of the ocean counts.
Acknowledging beauty's excessive waste has fueled calls for everything from circular business models, to refillable and non-plastic packaging, to improved means of recycling 'empties.' In time for Earth Day, Dobrev has partnered with Zuzu to advocate for improved recycling infrastructure that would help keep said waste out of the earth's oceans.
Nina Dobrev partners with Zuzu to keep plastic waste out of the oceans.
Zuzu/Nina Dobrev
She also adds that her desire to be a more environmentally responsible beauty consumer absolutely impacts the way that she navigates the worlds of skincare and makeup.
'I do my best to support companies that are conscious of their products' [carbon] footprint and impact. I recently tried U Beauty Michelle's Essential Edit [a collaboration with actress Michelle Monaghan], whose packaging is made from recycled plastics,' Dobrev continues. 'I also try to use sunscreens that are reef safe, like [the SPF from the Australian brand] Ultra Violette.'
Right off the bat, I am impressed that Dobrev has named two niche beauty brands with cult-followings—and this is just the beginning of her beauty acumen. She then walks me through her beauty editor-worthy nighttime skincare regimen, which she applies while enjoying a cup of Chamomile and Magnesium tea before bed.
Photo byGetty Images
'After removing my makeup with reusable Makeup Eraser cloths and washing my face with IS Clinical Cleansing Complex, I use my LED mask,' she tells me of the ultra-popular beauty tech devices among celebrities and skincare experts alike.
For quick reference, specific FDA-approved wavelengths of LED light work by stimulating skin cells' mitochondria to produce more cellular energy, or ATP. Readers always ask me which LED masks celebrities like best—and Dobrev reveals her top two: Therabody TheraFace Mask and Shark Cryo-Glow Red Blue and Infrared iQLED Face Mask & Under Eye Cooling.
'At night, I really like the Therabody mask with a vibration massage. Shark makes a mask that has a cryo cooling element [for the under-eyes] that feels really nice for de-puffing in the morning,' she explains of her go-to masks. (Incidentally, celebrity facialist Candace Marino recently posted about the very same Shark LED mask.)
Therabody TheraFace Mask, $599
Therabody
'Then I apply my toner [or] exfoliant, a hyaluronic acid serum, eye cream and face cream.' She says she loves 'anything by Biologique Recherche,' adding that their Crème Contour Yeux et Levres Biofixine eye cream is one of her 'favorite' skincare splurges.
Another product she is 'obsessed with' is the Intraceuticals Rejuvenate Daily Serum. Plus, the 111Skin Cryo Revitalizing Moisturizer 'really perks my skin up on days when I wake up puffy and dehydrated—which sadly, is almost everyday,' she jokes.
To my delight, she then calls sleep the best 'beauty hack of all.' She is certainly not wrong; the states of deep relaxation and sleep are when the body naturally undergoes detox and repair processes that are essential for skin (and overall) health. But while prioritizing quality sleep is challenging us all, it becomes even more precious for celebrities and their busy travel schedules.
Photo by Nina Westervelt/Variety via Getty Images
Variety via Getty Images
Dobrev's constant travel prevent her from keeping regular facial appointments and treatments in any single place. But she makes it a point to work facials into her schedule at least 'every two to three months.' Who she sees simply depends on where she is geographically.
'I have collected skin experts all over the world over the years. For example, when I'm in New York I go to Fabricio Ormonde, Sarah Akram when I'm in Washington D.C., Sophie Carbonari when I'm in Paris,' she says. 'For sculpting [massage], I book with Ivan Pol. Or when I'm in Los Angeles, Kate Somerville for facials and laser treatments.'
Her list of go-to celebrity makeup artists is similarly enviable. When in New York, she names Hung Vanngo, Gita Bass and Soo Park (who did her engagement makeup) as her usuals. In Los Angeles, she might work with Fiona Stiles, Kate Synnot, Patrick Ta or Alan Avendaño, or Charlotte Prevel, Harold James, Chynara Kojoeva or Katharina Arkhipova if she happens to be in Paris.
Photo by Raymond Hall/GC Images
GC Images
Inside her personal beauty kit, her most-reached-for cosmetics include her favorite under-eye concealer (Pat McGrath Sublime Perfection Concealer in shade L6) and foundation (Dior Backstage Face & Body Foundation in shade 2.5). She always applies these with a BeautyBlender Makeup Sponge, she adds.
'My friend Arielle Vandenberg has a beauty brand called REL. I'm obsessed with her liquid blush,' Dobrev says of the REL Hydrating Cream Blush, which contains sea buckthorn and red algae for added skin benefits. 'I truly use it every single day in the shade Devon.'
Another staple? Victoria Beckham Eye Wardrobe eyeshadow palettes, which she keeps right in her purse because it's so small. Dobrev finishes every look with the iconic Charlotte Tilbury Air Brush Setting Spray. (Side note: one of celebrity makeup artist Carissa Ferreri's favorite complex hacks is to use this same spray before and after makeup application.)
Photo byfor Michael Kors
Getty Images for Michael Kors
No conversation about beauty secrets would be complete without mentioning haircare—especially when your illustrious brown locks are as admired as Dobrev's.
'Riawna Capri is my OG colorist, hair cutter, hair stylist and best friend,' Dobrev reveals of her celebrity hair guru. 'She was sadly out of town when I decided to cut my bangs, so [celebrity hair stylist] Mark Townsend cut them for me for the premiere of The Outlaws a few years ago.'
Because her hair grows so fast, Townsend taught Dobrev to trim her own bangs, which she does every two weeks.
'My secret 'bang' weapons are texturizing shears and Kevin Murphy Doo.Over spray,' she adds of the dry powder finishing hairspray, before ending the interview with a final tidbit of beauty wisdom for those with fringe: 'Never use regular hairspray in the bangs!'