Lucy Hale On Her Tried & True Beauty Tricks And Life After “Pretty Little Liars”

Photo Credit: Michael Simon/startraksphoto for Degree

After seven years starring as Aria Montgomery on Pretty Little Liars, needless to say, Lucy Hale has picked up more than her fair share of beauty tricks. The 28-year-old old actress and musician is now teaming up with Degree Women to share one of those tricks… how she manages to stay dry and stain-free on a busy day, whether that be on the set of her upcoming horror film, Truth or Dare, promoting her wacky new role in The Unicorn at SXSW or spending long hours in the studio recording music. The brand challenged Hale to take a black fashion item in her closet and wear it back-to-back within a short timeframe while wearing its UltraClear Black + White Deodorant. We caught up with Hale post-challenge to discuss her beauty tricks, her upcoming projects (including when we can expect new music!) and which of her Pretty Little Liars cast members she misses the most.

Photo Credit: Instagram/Lucy Hale

Let’s talk about the Degree challenge. Apparently, you’re a big believer that if you love something, you should wear it as many times as you want, which is kind of rare in Hollywood. How are you able to use the Degree product and how is it able to protect your clothes?
Yes, I mean it’s definitely a taboo to re-wear things when you’re in the public eye, but I am a believer that if you love something, you should keep it for as long as you want and you should wear it as many times as you want. And for me it’s actually fun to try to create different outfits with a different piece—and so that’s why it made sense to partner with Degree, because the whole purpose of the UltraClear Black+White Deodorant was created so you can wear your favorite black and white items as many times as you want. So it felt very authentic and organic. Their [UltraClear Black+White] Deodorant is great—it comes in a spray and a stick so you don’t get the white marks on black clothes, you don’t get the yellow stains on white clothes—which is just great because it’s one thing we don’t need to add to the list to worry about.

After seven years on the set of “Pretty Little Liars,” you must have picked up a few beauty tips and tricks. What’s the best trick you learned?
I think the main thing is I was constantly having to have a lot of makeup on—you know, like 12-13 hours a day—so my favorite part of the day was washing my skin and then putting a sheet mask on. So now I sort of have this slight obsession with face masks, and I would say that I picked it up in the hair and makeup trailer on PLL.

Who are you still close to from the cast? Ian Harding seems to post about you pretty frequently!
I know—I mean he’s kind of obsessed with me, he keeps stalking me…It’s really weird. No! I’m just kidding! I keep up with Ian a lot and he’s so sweet. He’s super supportive of what I’m doing and vise-versa. And I talk to Janelle [Parrish] and Sasha [Pieterse] quite a bit, but we all talk frequently. It’s exciting to see what everyone’s working on and what they’re up to. We created a family after eight years, so, we’re all still pretty close.

“The Unicorn” just screened at SXSW and from every review I’ve read, you’re getting rave reviews. People were doubled over with laughter. What drew you to the role, and were you excited to go the comedic route after so many years as Aria, who rode the constant struggle bus?
That’s very sweet! Yeah, it was so fun to get to—you know basically my character in this movie is a girl who’s super millennial, and claims that she’s an energy healer, and she’s just basically the weirdest girl you’ll ever meet. She’s just very bizarre and strange—like stares at you a bit too long, very touchy-feely. And just on paper it seemed really fun and different, and I was itching to do something really bizarre, so it just made sense. Yeah, comedy is super fun and new for me because I typically, you know, do more of the drama—especially on PLL—obviously that was…you know, some life was constantly on the line on that show. But yeah, as an actress it’s always fun to mix it up.

In “Life Sentence” your character truly embodies the “live like you’re dying” – because she thought she was. Is this statement true to how you live your life, or are you more cautious in general given the obvious ramifications of Stella’s decisions?
I somehow lie somewhere between playing it safe and being more like Stella. If the shows taught me anything it’s to live in the moment and you know you can’t take anything for granted. But she’s so spontaneous and she really didn’t know any other way. So I strive to be more like that too. Somewhere between a realist and a dreamer is what I am, but I would love to be more like Stella—absolutely.

Obvious question from [your upcoming horror film, “Truth or Dare”]. Which is it?
Definitely truth. And I’ll answer why—yeah, dares scare me, and I think if you use dare people just want to mess with you, so—that’s where I need to be more like Stella! I need to say dare and not care!

With so many acting projects in the pipeline, when can we expect more music?
Good question. Hopefully soon—I would love to dedicate some time to doing that and set aside six months to a year where I could solely focus on that but right now things are just, you know…If we go back for a second season of the show I’ll go film that in the summer so, kind of has to be a perfect storm for it to all work out. But hopefully soon!

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