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While celebrity beauty brands are no longer novel, Naomi Watts’s Stripes Beauty still stands out. The brand prides itself on creating products for every part of a woman, from “the scalp to the vagina,” as Watts says. One of its newest launches, the Rich & Tight Cream ($68), specifically addresses perimenopausal hormonal symptoms like dryness and thinning of skin and hair. It was inspired by the “King Kong” star’s own experience with symptoms that, at the time, she didn’t know were early menopause. Stripes is shifting the narrative around menopause; rather than avoiding the topic, it’s providing support, solutions, and community.

Ahead, Watts opens up to Popsugar about the moment that gave her the push to launch Stripes, how the experience boosted her confidence during menopause, the beauty rituals that help her feel her best, and the essentials she can’t live without.

Popsugar: Can you take us back to the moment that inspired you to create Stripes? What were you experiencing personally at the time?
Naomi Watts: I was experiencing dry, aggravated, and sensitive skin, and I didn’t know that it was at all related to perimenopause and menopause. Being on camera, my skin was an important thing, but my dermatologist was saying, “Here’s a cortisone cream,” which would [only] calm it for a few days. It was just a cycle of doing the same thing. So once I got to understand that, I started studying ingredients and I started investigating cleaner, more gentle ingredients. Then one day during COVID, I just decided that because I’d suffered in silence and had to sort of navigate this whole experience on my own, the possibility that other women were feeling like that, too.

And since I’d learned a lot about skin care from investigating myself, I decided to create a skin-care line where women can feel hydrated, celebrated, and supported with education and community.

PS: What specific needs were you trying to address with the Rich & Tight Cream?
NW: We managed to achieve a certain duality with this product. It includes original ingredients like squalane and ectoin, along with peptides, shea and cocoa butters, which all work to make you feel hydrated and luxurious, along with firming the skin. And it’s not that easy to do those two things at once.

PS: Menopause is still rarely talked about openly. What surprised you most when you began going through it yourself?
NW: I remember coming out of the doctor’s office when I was 36, and he said, “You’re probably close to menopause based on blood work.” I called my mom in floods of tears, saying, “Why didn’t you tell me more about menopause?” She said, “Well, these were the conversations my mother never had with me, and so I never had them with you.” It was fascinating to me that, given we are half the population, we never talked to each other about it.

PS: How did living in the public eye shape the way you thought about aging, wellness, and self-care?
NW: Hollywood and the beauty industry are very much an ageist industry, so I was definitely scared to speak about it. I oscillated with the idea of writing a book or doing this company for many years and even thought, ‘Is this career suicide?’ And ultimately, I got sick of pretending menopause is not a real thing. So owning my story and having it bleed into my industry didn’t actually end it. If anything, it elongates us. Our stories still matter. We are consumers of TV and film, so why shouldn’t we see our stories reflected?

PS: What beauty advice do you wish you could give your younger self?
NW: Don’t do too much. I’ve definitely had moments where I went crazy, even gave myself a radical haircut. It took a lot to repair, but I would definitely say don’t be too extreme with your beauty choices.

PS: If you had to describe your current beauty vibe in three words, what would it be?
NW: Minimal, clean, and glowy.

PS: If you had to pare your routine down to just five essentials, what would make the cut?

NW: I would say plain ol’ water, a good vibrator, like this Smile Makers The Surfer ($34), Stripes The Crown Pleaser ($40) for hair, Westman Atelier Lit Up Glassy Gel Highlighter ($48), and the Bioderma Micellar Water ($20, originally $21) for makeup. And the Stripes Dew As I Do Vitamin C Moisturizer ($80) for skin.

PS: What are a few beauty or wellness rituals that genuinely help you feel your best?
NW: Sleep and water. If those are out of whack, it comes through immediately in your skin.

PS: What does feeling confident in your skin look like for you now?
NW: I would say just accepting who I am — good and bad days. When you’re my age, you stop overthinking and judging yourself for not getting it right every single day. I know every day isn’t going to be perfect, so I choose to feel great always. I’m on top of the world.

PS: What do you hope Stripes — and conversations around menopause more broadly — help change for the next generation of women?
NW: I hope that the brand contributes to a community that’s tried and true, and is a place where women know they’re not alone. Everybody needs community, no matter where you’re at, and that’s what I want the brand to be for women everywhere.

Naomi Parris is the assistant shopping editor at Popsugar, based in New York. With over eight years of experience and previous roles held on the brand’s Beauty and Operations teams, she enjoys telling stories that merge fashion, beauty, and Black culture. Naomi has also lent her skillful pen to Essence Girls United, Elle, Bustle, and Elite Daily. When she’s not crafting shopping roundups, high-profile features, beauty op-eds, or trend guides, you can find Naomi behind her blog “Eli-Nay,” where she inspires readers through style guides, cultural pieces, and innovative content on her Instagram.