Julianne Hough: I Looked Older at 18 on Dancing With the Stars Than I Do Now!

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She may only be 28 years old, but as a professional dancer since nine, Julianne Hough could probably write the book on a full face of makeup and super-glam hair. But when we sat down with the star – who’s the new face of Giorgio Beverly Hills’ Glam fragrance – to talk all things beauty, she admitted she’s not a fan of the full-coverage look she wore during her late-teens Dancing With the Stars days anymore.

“Back when I was on Dancing With the Stars at 18 years old, I think I look older than I do now,” Hough said. “I’ve definitely gone for a ‘less is more’ standpoint . I cut back on hair and makeup and all that stuff. As far as beauty goes, my philosophy is starting from the inside out. Being happy, having a positive attitude, drinking tons of water – happy girls are the prettiest girls.”

The star adds that in the age of heavily contoured and highlighted Instagram makeup so many girls aspire to recreate, her resolution going into 2017 is to embrace her individuality and show off her true beauty, minus all the makeup.

“For me, I’m only gonna look like this this year and then I’m gonna look different next year, so might as well embrace that,” she explained. “Maybe I’m just 28 and want to stay young, so I’m not wearing any makeup because it makes me look older. Maybe it’s because I feel like I’m getting older, I don’t know!”

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Despite cutting way back on the beauty routine since her dancer days, Hough still does incorporate some tricks into her day-to-day.

“For me it is a lot about your skin,” she said. “I use a wash-off lotion called Prtty Peaushun that has a glow and highlight and a little bit of gold in it.”

When she’s not acting, singing or dancing, Hough says she’s one to indulge in a spa day (“I love the cold plunge pool!”), but she doesn’t count on her fiancé, hockey player Brooks Laich, to join her.

“When we first started dating, I was like, ‘Babe, you gotta try this!'” she said. “He was like, ‘You know what, babe? There are certain things that we can do on our own. We don’t have to do everything together.’ He’s not so much into the relaxation thing. He’s like, ‘I’m a hockey player!'”

What do you think about Julianne’s less-is-more approach to beauty? Tell us below.

– Reporting by Jackie Fields