Yummy Mummy is a recurring feature on Amazingy Magazine that serves to shine a spotlight on the supermoms that combine raising a family with their own career and life goals – and look great while doing it.

This month our Yummy Mummy is Anneke Brinkhuis, a Dutch expat who relocated to Berlin for her husband’s job, calling this lively city her home for nearly six years now. Today, she works as the Happiness Manager for the Amazingy team, at the same time superbly managing the happiness of her own family as well. Read on to learn more about Anneke and her very own motto in regards to natural beauty.

Age: 37
Number of children: 2, Nele, 6 years old and Lea, 4 years old
Status: Married for 6 years, having been together 14 years

What’s your connection to organic cosmetics and organic beauty?
This may sound odd for someone being featured on the Amazingy Magazine, but I actually hardly ever wear make up – never have. My mom never really did either, so I didn’t grow up witnessing any beauty routines.

I’ve always considered myself too lazy to care that much about makeup as well. If you never get accustomed to using makeup, you don’t ever really miss it either. A lot of women I know who regularly wear makeup, often get asked if they’re not feeling well if they chose to go without their regular maquillage, whereas I always look the same. There is a sort of freedom in that, not having to adhere to any standards people may have of me. Another huge advantage of not wearing makeup: as soon as you have kids, chances are you’re not going to have much time for it either.

I consider myself fairly lucky with always having had clear skin, never having to worry that much about keeping it looking fresh and healthy.
Never really using makeup for me also had to do with feeling like I would just not be that good at it; I know very little about how to apply it properly. One thing that came with age was having stronger self-confidence, having established more of a personal style, and being more daring in trying out things that at an earlier age, I wouldn’t have done so. I just recently bought my first red lipstick, and I love the effect it can create, making me look like a femme fatale within seconds.

The one thing I do care a lot about however, is a good skincare routine. I believe that the secret to a healthy glowing skin comes down to three basic things: cleansing, hydrating, and protecting. I wash my face every day, nowadays using the Konjac Sponge, I’ve always been very meticulous about using a good facial cream, and in addition to that, I wear sunscreen.

I started caring more about organic cosmetics when I learned more about all the chemicals used in ordinary brands. Ever since I read an article as a teenager about how 90% of wrinkles are caused by sun damage, I’ve been applying sunscreen to my face and body religiously; I never skip a day, even during wintertime. Before I started to use organic brands, my face would always be covered with a rather oily sheen because of the heavy sunscreen, which is why I was I was all the more happy to discover Kimberly Sayers Ultra Light Day Cream with SPF 30.

My kids are very well protected against the sun’s rays as well; better safe than sorry. A product I can particularly recommend for kids is Mette Picaut’s Calming Cocoon Cream. It doesn’t contain SPF, but does miracles for winter skin and sensitive skin, something one of my daughters seems to have inherited from me.

Have you noticed your skin changing after being pregnant and having kids?
Pregnancy didn’t really trigger any huge changes, I believe moving to Berlin has had a bigger impact, and growing older of course. The water here is a lot harder than what I was used to from the Netherlands, and the quality of air, it being a city and not near the ocean, has made my skin feel a lot drier. Harsher winters and always having the heating on in the colder months hasn’t helped either. That’s why hydration is such a big thing for me to keep my skin looking healthy; I try to drink enough on a daily basis, use a good hydrating cream, and always use a humidifier at home to improve the air quality.

You have two daughters, how would you feel if they turned out to be huge fans of makeup and such?
Oh, they already are! My mom, their grandmother, never really used much makeup besides a bit of mascara either, but their grandmother from my husbands side is what I would call a Glamorama: she goes the whole nine yards, wears makeup regularly, does her nails, puts a lot of effort into her hair, the whole shebang. Whenever my daughters visit her, they come home looking all dolled up, and they’re loving it.
I’m fine with it, when my daughters are old enough to decide that they want to regularly wear makeup, they should, if it makes them happy. But I do hope that I succeed in raising them with the message, that what’s on the inside matters so much more. Being and staying healthy, and keeping your appearance maintained in a natural way already gets you really far when it comes to beauty, at least in my book.

Interview: Csilla Liptai
Make-Up: Aennikin
Photography: Dunja Karamehmedovic