LUI RITUAL: Sarah Tarca
Here at LUI, we love the idea of rituals: those little everyday practices that help you feel calm, centred and whole. We believe shaving deserves to be part of this self-care routine. In celebration of mindful moments, the LUI Ritual series asks friends of the brand about their own positive habits and how they elevate their day.
HI, MY NAME IS… Sarah.
BUT EVERYONE CALLS ME… Tarca / Tarcs.
WHEN I WAS GROWING UP I DREAMED OF BEING… an author. Enid Blyton was my Taylor Swift. I chose journalism because it was a “more stable” career (I’m a capricon, OK?) and lol, that’s working out well for me, thanks AI.
BUT NOW I WORK AS… a beauty journalist, writer, creative and copy consultant, and I’m the co-founder of Australia’s first dedicated weekly beauty newsletter, GLOSS ETC. Oh, and I’m also a full-time mama of two little boys, Yuki and Miko.
THE FIRST THING I DO WHEN I WAKE UP IS… give Miko a kiss and try to extract him, and then shake some life back into my arm, which he’s used as a pillow for 8 hours.
THE LAST SONG I PLAYED ON SPOTIFY… The whole Tortured Poets Department on repeat. I’m really trying to understand (“like”) this album, but the repeat button keeps getting stuck on 'Down Bad' and 'Fortnight'.
MY MORNING ROUTINE IS…
1. Morning cuddles with the boys. Yuki coming in for a pre-wakeup group cuddle signifies the start of the day, and honestly having one under each arm for a few sweet, unrushed minutes is a highlight before the madness.
2. Then, hustle. Get the boys changed and ready for school, make the lunches while my partner Phil makes the fuel (our coffee – black French press – and their breakfast).
3. Pre-coffee, I have a glass of water with a dash of apple cider vinegar, followed by another glass of water with the Beauty Chef Glow Powder and Vida Glow collagen. Taking these daily are the closest thing I have to religion.
4. Shower.
5. Skincare: always vitamin C, preferably SkinCeuticals CE Ferulic (God’s work), moisturiser, sunscreen, and sometimes an essence before all this if I’m feeling wild.
6. Walk kiddos to school.
7. Then either yoga (I go 2-3 times a week), morning meetings, or I head home to start work.
THE PERFUME I SPRAY ON RIGHT BEFORE I LEAVE THE HOUSE IS… I’m down to the last drops of my all-time favourite (now discontinued – RIP) signature: Tom Ford Rose De Russie, so I’m mixing it up at the moment with a new love, Penhaligon's Liquid Love.
MY COFFEE ORDER IS… Soy flat white or a dirty matcha.
THROUGHOUT MY DAY I FIND JOY IN… we have a little family tradition where at 5:45pm each night an alarm goes off and we have to stop what we’re doing and say what we’re grateful for. It really made me look at those little moments in a new way, so that I can remind myself that there are so many moments of joy. Here’s some of the things on that list today:
Getting to morning yoga.
Deleting two thing from my to-do list (smug and satisfying).
Appreciating how pretty my street looks in autumn.
Listening to a podcast-length VM from my friend in Queensland.
Sending her back my own chaotic podcast VM.
Seeing the boys reunite after being away from each other a whole day (they literally do an airport reunion every time).
A great coffee from my local.
Finding some excellent Alexander Wang flats on Depop for $50. Depop is my spiritual home.
MY LUNCH ORDER IS… I work from home so it’s whatever I can find in the fridge that takes minimal effort to make passable.
MY 3PM PICK-ME-UP IS… sugar is not my thing (give me all the salt, always) so my little treat is one final coffee for the day.
AFTER A LONG DAY I SWITCH OFF BY… my favourite thing in the entire world is a bath, and the only acceptable temperature is “the sun”. No further comments.
THE LAST BOOK I COULDN’T PUT DOWN… Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson is a breezy read full of excellent one-liners and sharp observation, but underneath the easiness it explores themes around class and privilege. I don’t know that I loved it, but I did read it in under a week, so maybe?
MY NIGHTTIME ROUTINE IS… A huge part of my workday starts at 7pm (when the kids go to sleep), so I work for a couple of hours, then:
1. Often I shower again to unwind, and beforehand I dry body brush most nights.
2. I’m a dedicated body products girl, it’s the one part of my routine that never changes. Post-shower I smother myself in body cream, then move onto face.
3. Cleanse / treatment serum (I alternate between a retinol and lactic acid).
4. Face oil, then gua sha to try and unlock my jaw (I have Olympic-levels of TMD).
5. Moisturiser.
6. I also have a whole hand thing I do including excess serums I didn’t like for my face, cuticle oil and hand cream. Night time is where I’m peak beauty editor princess.
THE LAST THING I DO BEFORE BED IS… My partner and I have just instigated a no-phones-in-the-bedroom rule (sounds sexier than it is) so we’ll usually catch up on the day (which is basically talking about our kids), maybe watch something, or read a chapter or two. The last, last thing I do is apply lip balm. It’s a weird little habit but it tracks.
YOU CAN FIND ME ONLINE AT... @TARCA and @GLOSS.ETC.