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What Zooey Deschanel (Still) Can’t Live Without

Photo-Illustration: The Strategist; Photo: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images, Joe McKendry

If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what everyday stuff famous people add to their carts — like hair spray or an electric toothbrush. Back in 2020, we spoke with actress Zooey Deschanel about the liquid eyeliner and rice cooker she can’t live without. Four years later, we asked Deschanel — who is the face of Vera Bradley’s winter collection — to revisit her list, and it turns out she’s still passionate about her Dyson Airwrap, alongside a few new favorites.

What she still can’t live without

I have multiple Dyson Airwraps, because I like to have one for travel. I have a European one with the European plug (so that I don’t blow out my dryer); it works in the U.K., too, because it’s the same voltage, it’s just a different plug.

To do my own hair with a regular blow-dryer is really hard, but with the Dyson AirWrap, it’s easy. And you can use it to curl your hair, too. So it does multiple things. It’s just such a great tool. I always had trouble doing my hair until I discovered that.

And some new favorites

I was just looking for easy eye-shadow sticks, because I would use an eye-shadow palette, but it’s just a lot. You have to have a brush and the whole thing. I don’t know why, but I just happened upon this one. This particular color, it’s just the perfect color for me. I mean everybody has different coloring, so it might not work on everybody. But for me, it’s subtle enough. I have other colors, but I use this one almost always, and I have bought dozens of them. I put them in my bag. It’s just a great eye-shadow stick and easy — and it lasts all day.

Weleda Skin Food Original
$17
$17

People used to put it on for hand cream, right? It’s really thick. I had some, and I wanted a really thick moisturizer. And I was like, Why don’t I just put this on my face? I mean, it’s all-natural stuff. So I just tried it, and it’s amazing and it’s cheap. Look, a lot of people break out if you put on heavy products. So I get it’s not for everybody, but if you have dry skin, this stuff is great for your face. If you’re not worried about breakouts and you have dry skin, it’s fantastic.

I’ve worn these forever. People always ask me what jeans I wear, and there’s just not any better jeans than Levi’s. They have a million cuts. I almost always am wearing dark-wash straight-leg jeans, and Levi’s just makes good ones. They’re not overpriced, they’re just good jeans, and I like that. I will occasionally wear a light wash, but I think the dark wash suits me more. It’s a little more classic and goes with the rest of my wardrobe. I usually wear a tucked-in button-down or a sweater or T-shirt.

I love tights, and I’ve tried them all. Ballet Beautiful is a workout company, but it puts out tights and stuff, and they’re just the best tights. They don’t run, and they’re nice and opaque. I’m wearing them right now. They fit so well. I just bought a few new ones so I could have some when I was washing the others. But I literally had one pair, one or two pairs, that I had for years, that are still good. No offense to Sheertex, but I ordered some of those in what was supposed to be sheer tights, and they were a thick beige color. I was like, this is not as advertised. So, yeah, these are ballet tights and they’re opaque, but they’re really nice.

I have this in gray. I tried to buy other colors, but they were sold out. I just love it and wear it all the time. It’s a nice scoop neck. It’s really pretty. I always get compliments, and it goes with everything. You can put it under something. It’s great for the summer. I don’t really like summer clothes very much; I like sweaters, so to have something that’s a tank top I don’t mind is just nice.

Ilia sent me some stuff, and I think it was sitting in my makeup kit for a little while before I tried it. Then I had a makeup artist at my house, and she saw that I had it, and she was like, “Oh, that’s a really good color. That’s a really nice product.” And I was like, “Oh, yeah, I just had it here.” And I tried it, and it’s so pretty. It feels nice and softens your lips. It’s a little glossy, but it looks really natural. I wore it in the movie I just did, because it was kind of a natural look. And I remember, the director, she was like, Oh my God. Whatever you had on your lips looked so natural. There are a lot of nice shades, and nothing is overpowering, and it kind of leaves a little bit of a stain.

I never go in the sun. I hate sun. I dislike it. I know it’s also bad for you, but I also just hate it. So I’m always wearing a hat. And then I have these. I tried these because I know Miranda Kerr, who started the company. She gave me a sample, and I loved it. It’s a mineral sunscreen that’s not tinted, but it disappears. It’s not like chalky-white-mime, which a lot of mineral sunscreens are. And no matter what you do, it’s like that: It’s just glowy and kind of disappears. You can put makeup over it; it’s a nice primer and smooths the skin. It’s kind of like a serum, but it’s sunscreen.

You need different things for different stains. You have to have Shout wipes in your purse because they are abrasive and take out stains really fast, and they’re a great product. Tide Pens, also great. Sometimes you have to saturate a stain, but there’s not enough product in there. If you have a huge stain, that’s where you need Puracy. I always have these with me in my suitcase. I have Shout wipes and the Tide Pen in my purse. I also have a Magic Eraser. Nothing sucks more than when you have a nice thing that gets ruined because you spilled tomato sauce on it, and if you don’t treat that stain right away, you just ruined something awesome. And then the kids just destroy nice stuff all the time, so I try to be really on top of that. Especially for the holidays when they’re traveling with their nice clothes. Sometimes, they insist on wearing their fancy clothes on the plane or something insane, so you have to be ready with your stain remover, and usually you can get stuff out.

The Vera Bradley brand is really great about having internal organization. It has so many great travel bags — I love the toiletry bags. Everything is very optimized for organization. I also love the Vera Bradley backpacks for travel. They all have sleeves so that you can put them on your suitcase. They have a million pockets. It has a little place for your laptop or iPad. It’s got pockets on the outside. I like things that help me keep organized when I’m traveling, for sure. So all the bags do that, and they’re cute and keep things organized and compartmentalized and in their place. There are so many patterns, but I think it’s just like whatever suits you. There’s also plain solid colors. I like solid colors, too.

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What Zooey Deschanel (Still) Can’t Live Without