Q+A with Celebrity Esthetician Gina Marí

Gina Marí on listening to your skin, what excites her about skincare technology, and more.

Gina Marí has been dubbed the "top celebrity facialist in Los Angeles" by Allure Magazine, and for good reason. Inspired to enter the skincare space due to her own struggle with acne in her late 20s, Gina came into her profession with a fierce passion for finding solutions and creating radiant, flawless, and healthy skin for her clients using custom-designed treatments and advanced tech and science. She enters every appointment with compassion and the happiness and confidence of her clients at the forefront of her mind. Read on to learn more about Gina, her career, and her favorite products!

Q: First and foremost, we would love to hear about your journey in the skincare space. How did you get started, and how did you get to where you are today?

I had great skin growing up, and then in my mid 20s, I suddenly broke out. I'm from Los Angeles, so I was here in LA, and I went to so many different people to try and fix my skin until I found this one woman. She said, “If you trust me, I will fix your skin in six weeks.” And I trusted her. It was a scary six weeks because I looked like hamburger meat! It was crazy. But at the end of six weeks, my skin was fixed! She made me feel so good about myself, and helped my self confidence so much. You know, acne can be very challenging, not just physically but also mentally.

I was in a completely different industry at the time, but I said to her, “You made me feel so good about myself that I want to do what you do.” And so she said, “Okay, go to school and I'll hire you.” Skin is so important not just for its function, but for how it makes us feel, so I went to school, got my license, and she hired me. Her name is Dangene. She's in New York now, and she's the only woman I ever worked for. When we opened up an office in New York, I ran the office in LA, and she decided that she wanted to stay in New York. So I essentially opened up in Los Angeles!

Q: What do you love the most about what you do?

I love making people feel good about themselves. Whenever I would hire a new staff member, my whole motto to them is that the appointment is split 50/50. It's 50% science and technology, and 50% emotional growth.

Q: You're known for being at the forefront of the newest skincare tech and advanced science. Can you share with us some of the exciting skincare practices on the horizon that you might know about that you're excited for people to start to adopt?

I'm very much into technology, and our appointments are very busy appointments. They usually combine different technologies. Skincare is all about how to activate your cellular turnover. So mixing and blending different technologies that will work on a cellular level has obviously been very exciting to me.

Sometimes it's not that there's something new on the market, but it's a new way to combine older technologies. Skincare is often filled with, “Have you heard about this new laser? Or, have you heard about this new....?”, but it's often just a repurposing or repackaging of an older technology that already exists. So for me, finding different ways of blending it is what’s really exciting.

Q: Your programs are known for incorporating a lifestyle for healthy skin preservation. Can you share with us a bit about the day-to day-lifestyle choices you make to benefit your skin's health?

I'm really into healthy minerals, vitamins, supplements that you can take internally — probiotics and whatnot. Probiotics are also a very hot topic right now topically. So if you're going to treat something topically, why not treat it internally as well?

Obviously, staying away from processed food, eating organically as best we can, and clean beauty are all very important. Clean food is very important as well, and obviously exercising. I mean I'm 50, so bone density is important as well.

Dealing with the things that happen as we age and keeping your body healthy internally as well as externally will help everything. But also if you're stressed out and you want a glass of wine, have the glass of wine! Stressing about stuff is just as bad as indulging a little bit here and there. We've all had such a high spike in cortisol levels over the last 18 months, and we've been dealing with things that we were never taught to deal with. We're prepared for death, we're prepared for things like divorce, we're prepared for our kids to go to college, but we've never been prepared for what we've gone through lately. So if a glass of wine is going to help that, then have a glass of wine!

Q: What is a myth about skincare that you want to debunk? How do you deal with skincare misinformation that you come across in your day to day?

More is not always necessarily more, and sometimes keeping a skincare routine simple is actually better. The myth that you need to purchase, like, twelve products to achieve a result is not necessarily true. Some clients will come in and they've only used two products their entire lives, and I tell them not to mess up the system if it's working. Just keep it simple. I love simplicity in that. There are a lot of false claims out there. Consulting with a legitimate source like an esthetician or dermatologist is very useful!

Q: What is one product that everyone should be using, no matter what their skin type is?

Retin-A, retinoids, retinols!

Q: What is your best advice for someone who's struggling to find a skin routine that works for them?

Listen to your skin. Listen to how it feels afterwards. Just because one product may work for one person, doesn't mean it's going to work for another person. So go ahead, take your time. Also, spend time with that product, because you need to test it for a while. Unless of course you're having a reaction, then stop immediately. You need to just really spend time. Also if you're playing with your skincare routine, start small. Don't start with twelve steps — start with a couple steps.

Q: What do you wish people were talking about more in skincare?

I wish they were talking LESS! There is so much false information out there, and people get so confused, especially because we've had so much more time to spend on our phones or on the internet and whatnot. There's just this mass of information, so really listening to the quality of the source is incredibly important.

Rapid Fire Round

Q: Worth the splurge:

Noble Panacea! For the younger ladies, their serum from the Brilliant line. For the more mature skin types, their serum from the Absolute collection, hands down. Absolutely amazing.

NOBLE PANACEA | The Brilliant Prime Radiance Serum
NOBLE PANACEA | The Brilliant Prime Radiance Serum
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NOBLE PANACEA | The Absolute Intense Renewal Serum
NOBLE PANACEA | The Absolute Intense Renewal Serum
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Q: Favorite drugstore or budget find:


Versed Back-Up Plan Acne Control Body Mist.

VERSED | Back-Up Plan Acne-Control Body Mist
VERSED | Back-Up Plan Acne-Control Body Mist
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Q: Latest beauty empty:

Milbon detangling spray, love it.

MILBON | Weightless Replenishing Mist
MILBON | Weightless Replenishing Mist
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Q: Recent beauty discovery:

MAKE Beauty! I'm really interested to double cleanse at the end of the day, and they have a cleansing oil and also a cleansing gel. I am really impressed with this line, and their price point is great.

MAKE BEAUTY | Pre-Cleanse Fluid
MAKE BEAUTY | Pre-Cleanse Fluid
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MAKE BEAUTY | Succulent Skin Wash
MAKE BEAUTY | Succulent Skin Wash
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Q: Product you can’t leave home without:

Goldfaden MD’s Lip Therapy. It’s so hydrating.

GOLDFADEN MD | Lip Therapy
GOLDFADEN MD | Lip Therapy
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Q: Brand you wish more people knew about:

I would say Noble Panacea! Their line is so innovative and really taking skincare to the next level. The OSMV (organic super molecular vessel) programs the timed release of the active ingredients, protecting the molecule and allowing for deeper product penetration.

For more of Gina's favorite products, check out her shop below!

Gina Marí
Gina Marí
Recognized as an elite expert with a unique approach to skincare renewal, Gina Marí is at the forefront of the newest skincare technologies and advanced science. Praised for giving clients a flawless, radiant, no make-up look, Gina Marí provides a program designed for long-term skin maintenance and a lifestyle of healthy skin preservation. With an exclusive, high-profile, A-list clientele and a reputation for being meticulous, compassionate and delivering immediate results, Gina Marí continues to break new ground in skin research and preservation.
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