When you’re a person online, your audience has a front-row seat to your evolution.
Take the case of Jadé Marie — you might better recognize her by her online alias, JadeyWadey180 on Instagram and YouTube. The now holistic esthetician launched her career in beauty at 19 years old, sharing dramatic makeup transformations on YouTube and Instagram — false eyelashes, contour, the whole nine. She moved from Utah to L.A., grew her followers to over a million, and did the beauty influencer thing (brand trips, PR hauls, etc.). Then in late 2019, Jadé looked in the mirror and didn’t recognize herself. She realized the glam content and online persona she’d built for over a decade no longer resonated, so she endeavored to rebrand.
Jadé describes her rebranding — she’s dropped the makeup entirely and is now a full-time esthetician specializing in holistic skincare — as a “coming home” to herself. Before anyone knew her as JadeyWadey, the makeup artist and influencer, Jadé was an esthetician in Utah. After graduating from cosmetology school, she worked in holistic wellness spas and clinical studios and learned about skincare (really, the base of makeup). But this happened to be the early 2010s, Instagram was still new, and makeup content was trending — people wanted the dramatic before and afters.
“I’d share my skincare tips in my YouTube videos, but I didn’t feel like it was popping off at the time,” explains Jadé of the early days of beauty influencing on Instagram and YouTube. Makeup though? Her followers couldn’t get enough. As a savvy young entrepreneur and talented artist, Jadé followed the opportunities. “It was like this overnight transformation where JadeyWadey, really took off,” she says. “So for 10 years, I focused on the makeup side of things.”
Here, Jadé opens up to R29 about the “really big pivot” that changed her life and career, how being online eroded her sense of self, the wellness tips she learned in her journey back, and how they influenced her to create her skincare brand, JADÉ Complexions.
What was it like being an OG beauty influencer? How did being online at such a young age affect your self-perception?
When I moved to L.A., I felt pressured to stay up with always looking glamorous and covering myself with makeup. I always struggled with this idea of perfection. When you’re on social media at a super young age, it does something to you. There are all these filters, FaceTune. You fall into this place where you have to keep up appearances. With makeup and enhancements, I tried to mirror what I thought I looked like online. But in my real life, it wasn’t who I was.
You say you experienced a “really big pivot” in your life. What was that change?
I was deep in the beauty industry — and this was right before 2020 — and I got to a point where I did not recognize myself anymore. I felt like I needed a total rebranding to get back to the core of why I got into the industry in the first place, which was to help other people feel comfortable in their own skin. Ironically, the more popular I was online, the less comfortable I felt in my skin.
“The more popular I was online, the less comfortable I felt in my skin. ”
Jadé Marie
What practices and lifestyle changes helped you get back to yourself?
I retreated for a bit. I was less focused on social media because I felt that taking care of myself was the most important thing. I started to dabble in mental health practices: meditation, affirmation, and holistic practices that I was taught at a young age when I first learned about skincare. I became plant-based. I did a 180. The transformation was so extreme; I saw it in my skin but in my mind, too. I was like, how can I get this methodology out to other people?
How do you infuse these mindfulness and mental health practices into your facials?
In my private skincare studio in West Hollywood, I have a Signature 180 Facial that starts with breathwork. I play a meditation. There’s also a sound bath. It’s more than a facial, it’s an experience for the skin and the senses.
What does your social media content look like today?
I knew it would be a big risk to do a whole pivot because people followed me for the makeup, but my passion and first love has always been skincare. So bringing that back and reviving the esthetician side of my career was honestly like coming home to myself. In my YouTube series, I talk about meditation and all the aspects that helped me on my own personal journey, mixed with skin education.
“I knew it would be a big risk to do a whole pivot because people followed me for the makeup, but my passion and first love has always been skincare.”
Jadé Marie
What’s your skincare routine?
I’ve never felt that you need a 10-step routine. I’m a big believer in getting facial treatments and doing them yourself. Through my YouTube series, I teach viewers how to do at-home facial treatments with minimal products. I’m a big believer in having an amazing exfoliator to help resurface dead skin cells and help with cell turnover. I love having an oil for self-massage, and a gua sha tool.
Speaking of exfoliation, you just released your first skincare product,JADÉ Complexions Crystalline Marine Facial Polish. What inspired it?
My little brother Stephen. He was dealing with a bunch of different skincare concerns: cystic acne, uneven texture, clogged pores, hyperpigmentation. I would give him facials once a month, but his skin wasn’t getting better. So I started mixing him custom blends. Over time, this little mask formula I made was helping his skin so much. I was like, ‘We might have something here.’ I never thought I was going to be creating a brand. But from the results I saw with my brother’s skin, I knew I wanted to help other people with similar concerns.
It’s a physical and chemical exfoliant. On the physical side, it has a gentle amount of baltic gem powder, a tree resin that helps polish away dead skin cells. On the chemical side, it has glycolic and salicylic acid to help with brightening, acne, and breakouts. I also found this unique algae called Jade Alga, sourced from France, that’s very hydrating. [Ed note: The Facial Polish comes with an affirmation: ‘I am ready to shed what no longer serves me. I welcome softness.’]
How do you use the polish?
I use the facial polish as a 10-minute mask two times a week, at night. It smooths out uneven texture, dissolves pore congestion in clogged areas like the T-zone, and helps alleviate breakouts quickly. You could also use it as a pimple spot treatment or a clarifying cleanser, mixing this with an oil cleanser to enhance your cleanse experience.
Exfoliation is so important if you want your other products to penetrate and work into your skin. If you layer serums and oils on top of dead skin cells, they’re not going deep enough into the epidermis to do anything for you to see results.
You have over a decade of experience as a makeup artist. So I’m curious, what does your makeup routine look like now?
It’s honestly become very simplified, because of this product. In the past, I struggled with breakouts and clogged pores, so I felt the need to add a ton of glamour. People probably miss the glam stuff I used to do…but now I love a good glowy, dewy tinted sunscreen look, minimal eye makeup, and lip balm.
What advice would you offer young beauty influencers today? What would you want them to take away from your experience?
I’m very open about speaking about the negative effects that social media can have. I think the biggest thing is to be authentic and not feel like you have to change yourself. The world needs that. The world needs to see the true us, unveiled and unhidden.
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