When it comes to celebrities who are over the top, Mariah Carey takes the cake. She bathes in diamonds, works out in stilettos and wears furs and gowns for no reason other than because she just wants to. So it comes as no surprise that Mimi (the nickname she gave herself a few years ago) rang in her 47th birthday—or “anniversary,” as she likes to refer to birthdays—just days ago with some dish on her best-kept beauty secrets. In perfect Mariah fashion, she divulges to Vogue on what keeps her looking good.
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Good Light Matters More Than You May Think
Hot lights on stages and sets pale in comparison to the custom lighting that Carey had set up in her New York apartment replete with recessed lighting, chandeliers and candles. She says overhead lighting is abusive and she doesn’t like harsh light, often requesting in her tour riders a lamp or clip light so that she doesn’t need to be exposed to unflattering light.
Curl Queen
With a head of naturally curly hair, back in the day Carey rocked her hair au natural almost all the time. But she says that her ’90s curls made it hard to be a singer and that she was often made fun of. Her hair may be blond and perfectly coiffed today, but then she didn’t really have conditioner nor did she know how to comb through her hair. Today, when she has to do her hair from scratch she says she keeps it natural.
Less Is More with Makeup
One makeup item that Carey hates: mascara. In fact, she dislikes it so much that she says she never wears it, and when a makeup artist tries to put it on her she throws a fit. But when it comes to fake lashes, that’s a whole other story. And get this: She says that if you wear a lot of makeup, you have a lot of makeup to take off, so she tries to wear as little makeup as possible so that she doesn’t have to steam her face to get it all off.
Carbs are a No-No
The key to keeping her body looking good as she approaches 50 is to eat Norwegian salmon and capers—that’s it. She says she tries to eat just protein and never salad before a photo shoot because it bloats her. In terms of exercise—she once famously climbed on a stairmaster on television wearing a mini dress and stiletto heels—she keeps it to hour-long walks and 45 minutes of swimming a few times a week.
