Clad in Fall/Winter’s most wanted fashions along with archival pieces from one of Cebu’s greatest designers, Sofia Andres explores The Mall | NUSTAR and gets candid about growing up in the spotlight, and what she really thinks of beauty
This is an excerpt from MEGA October 2024 Cover story
It’s no secret that actress Sofia Andres has a gorgeous face—expressive eyes, arched eyebrows, the mestiza nose, high cheekbones, and a cute pointed chin all fall under what is considered beautiful both in reel and real life. It’s no wonder that beauty brands have approached her to be their ambassador, and her face can be found on many print and billboard ads.
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What’s even more remarkable is that hers is a beauty that grows on you even more upon closer inspection, because Sofia’s face is also honest as much as it is pretty. A bane and a boon for an actress and celebrity because her thoughts and state of mind always show on her face. It’s easy to see when she’s happy, tired, distracted, or interested just by how her eyes light for certain subjects; the series of emotions that play on her face as before she reacts or replies to something.
Don’t get her wrong though, as a consummate professional, she still delivers the work she came to do, no matter what she’s feeling at the time. It’s just her nature to be honest about her complexities as a person and she’s all the more beautiful for it.
SIGHTS AND SCENTS AT THE MALL | NUSTAR
Here in The Mall | NUSTAR, Sofia explores with MEGA the various luxury shops with a huge smile and eyes bright with delight. “It’s giving Dubai… it’s giving Abu Dhabi in terms of the luxury brands,” she muses when asked how she likes Cebu’s newest and first luxury mall. “It’s a new vibe. Every corner is very Instagrammable and the people here are very accommodating.” “I actually don’t enjoy shopping,” Sofia confesses in jest, “I don’t enjoy it because I end up spending a lot!” She laughs.
But she loves perfumes more than bags. Her face lights upon the mention of perfumes and she confesses that she has a collection that she loves to experiment mixing scents with. “I have a lot!” she says empathetically. “A. Lot.” Her tiny face breaks into a huge grin at the thought of her collection. “I like to mix scents so it’s unique to me. I just play around with a few scents and they end up smelling really good. “It’s weird, but I like it,” she says. “I’m very sensitive to smell and certain smells trigger memories in me. I’m very sentimental when it comes to that. But for myself, I don’t want to stick to just one scent.”
BEAUTY RUNS IN THE FAMILY
“I just let her play with my makeup—my lipsticks, my blush. Sometimes we do our makeup together. I just want her to experience it and then explain to her that she’s still a baby and this is for mom.” She stops to think of her little girl and continues, “She’s so talkative and such a character! I just always let her express herself. Sometimes I wonder if I’m too cool as a mom because I just let her be most of the time. Other moms are super strict about makeup and stuff. I’m very kikay pa naman.” She confesses, “I spoil my kid a lot—maybe a little too much.” And what does Zoe want to be when she grows up? Like mommy, of course.
BEAUTY IS
“…from within,” Sofia says, completing the sentence MEGA has asked all its subjects for the issue. As someone who has grown up in the public eye, having started out in the entertainment business so young, Sofia learned—and continues to learn—that she could not explain herself to everybody, even if she wanted to. “One of the harder things to find out when you grow up is not everyone’s on your side,” she says quietly.
“You really can’t please everybody, no matter what you do.” As an actress and endorser of beauty and lifestyle brands, it is part of Sofia’s job to look and stay beautiful. However, it is up to her if she takes care of herself out of self-loathing, as a penance for her inability to please everybody who has their eye on her, or do the other, more radical approach. She chose the latter.
She spoke into herself and said, “You know what? You have to love yourself. You have to value yourself. You should also know your boundaries.”
Read more about Sofia Andres and her new perspective on beauty in MEGA’s October 2024 issue, now available on Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio.