Turning 30 is a milestone—a time to take a step back and take stock. As I reflected on the decade gone by, one thing became clear: I’d had a hell of a good time.
Calling yourself a Professional Party Girl is both slightly ridiculous and bordering on obnoxious, but so are most of the things I do. I had realized that, turning 30, I had become the Carrie of my friendship group: ridiculous, obnoxious and somehow still loveable. The idea of Professional Party Girl had emerged in an extended period of partying in Berlin. Somewhere between the almost limitless access to hedonism and the hardcore nightlife, the term was coined. Complete with the acronym PPG and a list of traits that made one qualify at the PPG Academy (ridiculous and obnoxious…) it was somewhat of a joke until a piece I had written on perfumes to wear in the club came out last December. Upon publication, my phone vibrated with a flurry of texts consisting of screenshots of the byline: “By professional party girl Bee Beardsworth.”
PPG had become a semi-joke that had stuck and thus,I felt the need to say goodbye to my twenties the only way I could: with a big birthday party. And I had to look fabulous. After a hot ‘n heavy summer followed by an absolutely slammed London Fashion Week (it’s a hard job but someone has to do it), my skin was congested, breaking out, tired and stressed. So, I turned to your favorite beauty girls’ favorite beauty girl, Nellie Faith Eden, for advice, and she told me to pay a visit to Pffefer Sal immediately.
The Party Girl Skincare Routine
Bee Beardsworth
Sitting on the cloud-like sofa in a tranquil treatment room at the Pfeffer Sal clinic, I came clean to resident skin savior Jayne. “How bad is partying actually for your skin?” I asked, mildly scared of scorn or judgment, but on a mission to really get down to what happens when your way of living isn’t remotely Clean Girl. After all, the checklist on a patient waiver form might ask you to list supplements, health concerns, and alcohol consumption—but it doesn’t include benders or sweating on grimy dance floors.
Luckily, Jayne didn’t bat an eye. “When you party, you’re going to have inflammation in the skin,” she said matter-of-factly, guiding me through a Three Sixty facial, which required me to stick my head inside a special hood while a camera took six high-tech scans of the various layers of my skin. “Inflammation builds up as heat in the skin, so after a big weekend you’re going to want to calm this down,” she continued. “Heat can be caused by everything from alcohol and smoking to caffeine, sugar, dairy, and spicy food.” I shuddered as I realized that partying might not be the only lifestyle choice that’s chaotic for my complexion.
Firstly, preparation: it’s all about vitamins and hydration. I was told to take probiotic supplements, use a vitamin infused face mask one a week, and to nourish my skin with hydrating products, both in my daily routine and before a big night out. I started grabbing The Nue Co. Pre + Probiotics that had been gathering dust in my cupboard, along with their Skin Method supplements. The redness in my skin also indicated a need for soothing barrier repair. After cleansing, I began following up my liberal (see: obsessive) misting of Curél Deep Moisture Spray with a splash of Dr Loretta’s Barrier Enhancing Milky Essence mixed with Skinceuticals Hydrating B5 Serum and Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Niacinamide Serum. I had dry eyes from both PPG-esque excessive eye makeup removal and far less exciting screen time, and I’ve become addicted to the Reome Firming Eye Treatment. And if you think I have baby skin for a 30-year-old, put it down to my excessive use of SPF (Herbar’s Sun Shield is a current favourite).
More Skincare Advice From Great Party Girls
“I don’t deserve this face. I have seshed to the max most of my life,” chef, columnist and semi-retired party girl Gizzi Erskine tells me. My journalistic integrity led me to interview some of the Great Party Girls who have come before me. Gizzi, 46, details a “pretty extreme” routine of aesthetic treatments, including micro needling and hardcore laser, accompanied by acids, retinol, moisturiser and some light Botox. However, she primarily puts her gorgeous glow down to having good genes—and an even better time. “Martinis are great for digestion. Dancing keeps you young."
Next one my list was HRH Princess Julia, another legend on the London circuit. “Since 1976, I’ve been to discos, punk gigs, pubs, bars and the odd house party,” she says. Known as much for her iconoclastic gothic style as her presence in iconic pop culture moments of the last half century, from being a New Romantic muse to DJing at Hacienda, she is perpetually partying. “Always take your makeup off before sleeping…although I have been guilty of leaving it on for a few days in the past!” she says. Julia’s secret is hydration. “I’m a firm believer in moisturizer and have daubing on creams since I was eight years old! It doesn’t matter if it’s cheap or expensive— just slather it on.”
The Party Girl Beauty Routine
Bee Beardsworth
The fated Saturday of my 30th rolled around (yes, God gave me a 30th on a Saturday) and my complexion was quite literally glowing after three treatments over three weeks at Pffefer Sal. I’d started with the most relaxing facial of my life before following up with (the aforementioned) deep skin analysis, topped off with the perfect peel. I was also taught how to care for my skin, both before and after partying, in an effort to minimize the damage whilst still having fun. For the ultimate snatch, I had a FaceStim treatment the day before my birthday, contorting my face using EMS to maximize blood flow, lift and tone.
If it wasn’t already clear, I used my birthday as the ultimate excuse to pamper myself. I got a fresh manipedi at Townhouse before swooping past the ultimate It Girl vintage archive, Nordic Poetry. There, I fell in love with an iconic 2003 Galliano Dior number to match the YSL Tom Ford silver platform heels I’d snatched up for £50 on eBay (very Carrie). Meanwhile, my saintly boyfriend collected the perfect gold latex afterparty look from Poster Girl and a custom partygirl cake from Lily Vanilli. I prepped my skin with 111Skin’s Brightening Mask and some Rhode eye patches before my makeup artist Sasha Chudeeva came over to beat my face à la Dior Pat McGrath glittery grungy glam. With my mini Tower28 SOS spray, MAC Cool Spice liner and Discothèque perfume stashed in my new Tom Ford Gucci clutch, I was ready to party.
And how does a Professional Party Girl recover? One of my top tips to avoid the dreaded hangover is electrolytes before bedtime; I am currently obsessed with SWIISH’s mango flavored ones. Always remove your makeup with a double cleanse, even just to retain some dignity, no matter what time you’ve stumbled in the door. Then, hydrate, hydrate, detox and hydrate. On a Monday, I routinely do my PPG post-party skincare, but for a one-stop shop, my go-tos are the Beauty of Joseon Calming Mask, the Sarah Chapman 3D Moisture Mask and the Irene Forte Pistachio Face Mask. Oh, and the ultimate PPG post-party hack: mainlining a Drip Hydration Hangover IV as you lie horizontal on your sofa, still riding high on the memories from the night before.
