Name: Radhika Mohan
Location: Santa Clara, California, and when I’m in India, I call Bangalore home.
Day job/current gig: I work(ed) part-time, from home, for a medical transcription company — a job that involves a lot of typing…and chipped polish.
Hangouts online: weekendramblings.com, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, Facebook and Pinterest
Current favorite product: Dior Creme Abricot Fortifying Cream for Nails. A little sticky and best used right before bedtime, but this cream sorts out any pesky dry bits around the nails almost overnight.
Beauty inspirations: Clear blue skies and starry nights, my mom’s garden after a rain, and the best mood board of all — Pinterest!
One word that best describes your outlook on beauty: Simple
What makeup/beauty products can’t you live without?
This Indian girl can’t live without a black eyeliner, and my favorite is the Urban Decay eyeliner in Perversion. Also, Bobbi Brown Corrector (dark peach) and a good lip balm.
When did you start getting into makeup?
For the longest time, I had a 2-step makeup routine — Maybelline Mineral Power Powder Foundation (which I bought mostly because it came with a brush) and a liquid eyeliner. Trouble started about 5 years back when I discovered beauty blogs. A brief stop at a Chanel counter, and I got myself a brand new obsession!
What’s your best beauty time-saving trick?
My go-to time-saving beauty trick is to use my lipstick as a blush. Pick up the color either directly from the lipstick or from the lips and dab on to the cheeks. Perfectly coordinated blush in a second! Or use a lip-cheek combination product like the Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge.
What’s your favorite beauty tool?
Chanel eyelash curler, which for reasons unknown is/was a limited edition release. My lashes are quite straight, and I love how the curler gives them a naturally lifted appearance.
What’s the best beauty advice you ever received?
Eat healthy, walk a lot, sleep early. Of course, when it comes to actually following all that advice, I am a bit of a work in progress. :P

What’s your skincare routine?
Grab a cookie or two…this is going to be one long answer! My skin type is oily/combination-sensitive, and here’s what I am using currently.
Face wash: Olay Cleansing Cloths for oily-combination skin. These have salicylic acid in them, and the textured cloth provides gentle exfoliation to keep skin looking clean.
Serums: Chanel Resynchronizing line – Le Jour and La Nuit. The day serum has salicylic acid in it, and La Nuit — for the night — has hyaluronic acid. Both are light enough to use under my regular moisturizer and are perfect for my crazy skin type.
Moisturizer: Lush Dream Cream (actually a body moisturizer meant for sensitive skin) for the day and Clinique Moisture Surge Overnight Mask for the night.
Eye Cream: Chanel Sublimage Eye Cream. I had always believed a good face cream would work just as well for the eye area, but after trying a couple of samples of this cream and noticing a difference in the darkness around my eyes, I gave up on the theory and bought a full-sized (tiny) jar.
Face masks/treatments: I am currently using the When Travelmate Essence sheet masks. And, Biore Pore Strips – a must-have for anyone who has a camera inches away from the nose!
For my incredibly dry lips, I depend upon the Fresh Sugar Polish and the Rosebud Salve.
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve tried in the name of beauty?
I can’t call this weird as it is something a lot of people do, at least back home in India — use a mix of henna powder, yogurt, and egg as a hair mask. It adds in moisture to the hair and gives it a healthy shine, but I cannot stand the smell of eggs…and yogurt…mixed together. Sigh…the things I try on my hair!
Do you have a trademark look (hair/styling/makeup)?
Brown eyeshadow, black eyeliner — I look sleepy-eyed without it — and a nude/neutral lipstick.
Lipstick — L’Oreal Nature’s Blush
Are there any beauty decisions you’ve made that you look back on and ask yourself, “why?!”
I did try cutting my hair myself, ending up with a lopsided blunt cut that took ages to grow out.
Where are your favorite places to shop?
I do a lot of my shopping online, but in-store or online, I love to shop at Nordstrom and Sephora.
Anything else you want to share?
Another great interview, I really like this new series, Karen 🙂
just discovered radhika’s blog a few weeks ago! keep up the good work, rads!
Thanks Amy! 🙂
Radhikaaaa!! loved reading more about u! love ur blog n well, for all ur readers – she’s a sweetheart 🙂
Pooorva..that’s so nice of you! Thank you 😀
i love this series, karen. i haven’t been to radhika’s blog in a while, will head there now.
Excited to see Radhika here ..:) 🙂
Just as excited to be here 😛 😀
I love your signature look Radhika; you look effortlessly stunning! I’m another Indian girl who cannot live without black eyeliner! 😉
Hi Sasha..thank you! I guess we are just too used to kohls 😀 So what’s your favorite eyeliner?
I love the MAC PowerPoint pencil in Engraved. It’s so easy to apply and it stays put unlike some! 😀
Oh okay..putting that on my list! 😀
Another Bay Area gal! (me too, living in San Bruno) It was nice getting to know you. Maybe we’ll run into each other at Sephora! 🙂
Hii Christina..maybe we will 😀 😀
I love how you got started with makeup. So similar to me.
Some of these beauty blogs should come with warning labels 😀
I’m a fan of Radhika and I didn’t know she is in the South Bay! I’m from SJ and I always wondered if any of the bloggers I like are somewhere close. Keep up the good work!
Hi Kat! There are a lot of bloggers here – like Christina said in the earlier comment, we just might bump into each other at Sephora 😀
Love Radha’s website and often pop in to see how I can lighten my wallet that day 🙂 🙂 🙂 Keep up the good work girl, we need more brown-skinned beauty bloggers like you!!
Thank you, Pavithra 🙂
I know radhika from more then 3 years .. n am so thankful that I came across you through these beauty blogs ..
Mind it …. she looks serious in pics here but she is one of those witty person who can lift your mood in fraction of second ….
Rads u havs changed the way I use to look at beauty ..
C n F …. 🙂
Awww..thank you for the comment, Rashmi! I think we both have changed in the way we look at a lot of things – all in a good way 😀
So happy to see Rads mentioned here. Thanks for these interviews, Karen. I usually read Rads blogs as I share her love for dark eyeshadows and black eyeliners 🙂
Hi Fieran 😀 Thanks so much for the comment! Yayy for dark shadows and black liners 😀 😀
This is a lovely post. I may not know Radhika in prison but I really like her blog and her honest reviews for products. She’s a fabulous blogger and should soar very high.
Hii Neeraj! That’s a lot of praise, especially from someone as talented as you are..thank you!