Joy Sunday isn’t afraid to experiment. Best known from her breakout role as Bianca Barclay in Netflix’s series Wednesday, the Nigerian-American actress has been working on a number of  personal projects. “Right after Wednesday the strike happened, so for a long time there was a pause. That really inspired me to really kick into gear on my own projects,” she tells us over the phone. “This year, I’m really excited to be realizing a lot of that.”

As the the newest global ambassador of Lancôme, we can joyfully expect to see Sunday experiment on the beauty side as we eagerly await the return of Wednesday season 2.

Here, the 27-year-old actress chats having fun with makeup, the beauty icons that inspire her and the skincare cliché she swears by.

How did you feel when you were approached to be a Lancôme ambassador?

“I felt extremely lucky and very surprised. I was bursting at the seams. I couldn’t wait for it to all come together and it’s been a very long year. But I’m very excited to finally be able to share it with the world.”

Do you have a special connection with the brand?

“For sure. Lancôme made such an impact on me when they announced Lupita [Nyong’o] as an ambassador. In my memory, I can’t think of another brand that put a woman such as Lupita—who looks very much like myself—in the [spotlight]. And I was really happy that it was a legacy brand that had done so. It was a dream when they had approached me to do the same thing.”

Besides Lupita, who are some of your other beauty icons?

“There are a lot of Nollywood—Nigerian Hollywood—stars that I grew up watching who were very much the inspiration for my eventual career pursuits. I think they definitely formed my idea of beauty. They would accent the features that I had been discouraged from loving about myself. In watching these movies, I was able to embrace what people like me look like. It was a lot of lip liner, bright eyes and lots of colour. I definitely drew from that.”

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Do you generally like to go bold with your makeup or are you a little bit more laid back on a day-to-day basis?

“Well, when I have an artist I’ll tell them to go at it! If I’m going on a fun night out, I’ll definitely add colour to my eyes. I’m not afraid of colour at all. I’m definitely still learning how to paint the canvas, but I love accentuating what I have. I don’t hide behind my makeup, I like to bring it to the forefront.”

If you had to choose a favourite colour to play with either for your eyes or lips, what would it be?

“Gosh. The perfect red on my lips. It’s rare that I do red, but when I do…I’m getting butterflies thinking of it now. And I would say blue is always really fun to do on my eyes, and pink gloss on my lips.”

LancômeL'Absolu Rouge Cream Lipstick

Lancôme L’Absolu Rouge Cream Lipstick in French Bisou, $52

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Working on set for long hours can take a toll on your skin. How do you keep your skin looking so good?

“I do my skin care routine every single night. I also drink tons of water, which I know is hackneyed but I believe in it. I notice more of a glow when I drink more water. I’d say that’s about it but I can’t not admit that I got lucky with the skin. It cooperates with me. But, you know, there are certain times of the month when it doesn’t and that’s ok. I think not stressing about it is a huge part of it too.”

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What’s your skincare routine like?

“Well, it depends. If I’ve worked out then I’ll wash my face, I’ll use a bit a toner, and I’ll put on something with a BHA acid in the morning, wait for a little bit and then I’ll put on a face lotion and sunscreen. If I haven’t worked out that morning I won’t do a full [cleanse], but at night I’ll always wash, and pretty much do the same thing [I do in the morning], but maybe with a different acid or no acid at all. I’ll just do a serum, a lotion and a night cream.”

When do you feel the most beautiful?

“Truthfully, when I wake up I look at my face and it’s just there. And I can just appreciate it in the morning before I see anyone. That’s when physically I feel most beautiful. But when I’m walking around the world and I suddenly have a moment of awareness of my place in the world, that’s also when I feel really beautiful as a human being.”

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