Belen Arce is the co-founder and managing editor of Caviar Feeling, an online media outlet for uncovering the latest trends in fashion, beauty and living.

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1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

I’ve always been so curious about communication with fashion being one of my little pleasures, I remember as a kid watching the red carpet coverages and imagine myself as one of the interviewers, something that still flirts around my head.

Rewind a few years, I was the laziest person when taking beauty and skincare but my skin condition (acne-prone) soon prove me that knowledge is power and the hype of natural ingredients soon turned myself into the beauty junkie I am nowadays.

I studied advertising and PR back in Spain but soon realised that my career will jump into the editorial industry as I enjoyed writing from an early age.

Being involved in the blogging world for a few years led me to be at this day, the Co-Founder of online media outlet, Caviar Feeling, an adventure and a dream at the same time that started two years ago with my business partner and best friend from uni.

At Caviar Feeling we talk all things beauty, particularly clean beauty; wellness, and lifestyle with a simple and well-curated aesthetic where our main goal is to spread our passion on what we do and to help others make better life choices by sharing our knowledge on topics that matter for our readers.

2) What does a day in the life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

No day is the same for me which is one of the things I love from my job, although it has changed a lot in the past few months due to the global situation.

These days I like to set up my alarm between 7-7:30 and depending on how am I feeling I will do some workout at home followed by a light session of meditation and a bit of journaling, after these me-time moments I’m ready to start my day and have some brekkie before I jump straight to my laptop.

My winter-go-to-brekkie is an oat porridge bowl with a mix of seeds, peanut butter, and a piece of fruit all together with a pre-cleanse drink on an empty stomach and a collagen boost right before getting ready.

Another thing I enjoy about my mornings is doing my skincare routine (not surprisingly for a beauty editor).

Around 9 is time to open my laptop and start organising daily articles while trying to keep my inbox at 0, which mostly consumes my morning and after a quick lunch, I come back to the hustle with brands, clients, and PR’s to deal with.

Social media takes a long part of my days too and a few other things that as a business owner I need to take care of. The hours go so quickly almost every day and suddenly I realise is 7 pm (or even 8) and I should be switching off for the day.

3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?

I’m so grateful every day for the kind of job I have, as a business owner there’s a lot to juggle with but also the flexibility that I have is just priceless. Just the thought of being able to work from any place of the world as long as I have an internet connection to rely on gives me goosebumps.

Before lockdown, I was still working remotely most of the days but going to beauty launches and events played a huge role on my calendar.

Nowadays, I’m just so happy to be able to do them digitally, we’re busier than ever so that makes everything run super smoothly. I don’t know what I’ll do if eventually, we go back to the previous always-running mode.

4) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

I agree that a balanced life is a happy life. Although lately it’s been a bit harder with all the restrictions that we had on place I’ve tried my best to stay in touch with my family, (an 8 hour time zone is sometimes not the best), and friends.

Back forward a few years, I enjoy to spend time with myself, which has been groundbreaking during the lockdown, I enjoy taking long bubble baths on a company of a candle, some essential oils, and my favourite bath salts.

I’ve also been over-masking and going for long walks to see the sunset to achieve that wholeheartedly feeling within me.

5) In the past 12 months, have you started or stopped any routines or habits to change your life?

Most of my days I try to enjoy a session of meditation which has been so good for me both personally and professionally. I feel like this practice has allowed myself to grow and to be more aligned with my inner thoughts. I truly encourage everyone that hasn’t try mediation to give it a GO.

6) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

I’m a huge advocate of podcasts, I try to listen to at least one episode per day.

Some of my favourite titles are Clean Beauty Insiders The Podcast with Elsie and Dominika founders from BYBI, natural, vegan and cruelty-free skincare brand; and The Glow Journal Podcast by Gemma Watts, where the beauty writer runs the conversation with the beautiful minds behind the world’s biggest beauty brands.

I love a good newsletter, I’m obsessed with the one from The Good Trade, get into it if you are ever looking for sustainable inspiration.

7) Are there any products, gadgets or apps that you can’t live without?

These days I’ve been up-levelling my self-care routine at its max and I’m obsessed with my quartz face roller a simple tool to massage my face before going to bed and give me that sleeping beauty glow the morning after.

8) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

Gwyneth Paltrow, undoubtedly, she is such an icon and a role model, with a career so aspiring as hers. I would love to know how she still keeps that glow on her face as an actress, businesswoman, mom, and so many other hats.

9) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?

People should get into mediation if they haven’t already. I truly believe that having a calm mind will allow everyone to stay sane on crazy times like the ones we are living at the moment.

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