Between producing and starring in the hit Netflix show "Nobody Wants This," and raising two daughters, it's not surprising that Kristen Bell doesn't always have time for a date night with her husband, Dax Shepard.
"We, much like I imagine many other couples, are always like, 'Gosh, we need a date night — damn, it’s been a minute since we’ve just been the two of us.' Because our kids, they’re always crawling in bed with us, and they’re big now, they kick during the night, and all the things that a family deals with," she tells Shop TODAY during a recent Zoom call.
But nights like last month's Emmys, where Bell was nominated for her role as both an actress and producer in the aforementioned series, serve as the perfect excuse for the couple to get dressed up and have a date night out. "We stayed at a hotel the night before the Emmys, which was absolutely glorious. It was just here in LA, but it was so nice to order room service and just be together and not worry about what time we’re waking up," she tells us.
While they might not always have the opportunity for one-on-one time, there's no shortage of family outings in the Bell-Shepard household.
"We travel a lot as a family," says Bell. "For pleasure we do, but then for work, we’ve made a commitment to always travel as a pack."
That's part of the reason why she's teamed up with Citi, to star in the new campaign for its Strata Elite Card and highlight the card's many perks, which range from points for travel to hotel credits.
"I’m a mom, I budget still. I make a very good living, but that does not mean that I am wasteful," Bell tells us. "I have always paid attention to points I’m accumulating at the movie theater or on my airline travel, I have always paid attention to discounts and kickbacks and rewards. And it makes the travel portion feel all that more rewarding when you know you’re getting something back."
For our Shopping Diaries series, we spoke with Bell about some of her current must-haves, from the skin care product she got her daughters hooked on to the sweatsuit that she owns in multiple colors.
Shopping Diaries: Kristen Bell
Her secret for smarter spending:
"I think you’re missing a major life hack if you’re not paying attention to the points and rewards you could be gaining anywhere, when you spend," Bells says. "Whether it’s things you normally spend on, like if we’re grabbing a dinner in LA or we have to host something or we’re planning a family road trip — which we do a lot — the Citi Strata Elite card simply has the best points accumulation and rewards."
The card offers benefits like 12 points for every dollar you spend on hotels, car rentals and attractions, six points per dollar for air travel and select restaurants and more.
Her morning essential:
"I’m obsessed with the Clevr matcha," Bells says. "They have a couple of different soft flavors, they have a strawberry and a vanilla and an orange blossom. They absolutely make you feel like you have gone to the best coffee house in Los Angeles, but first thing in the morning and you’ve just made it in your kitchen."
Her travel-friendly skin care fave:
Bell says that she bought this powder cleanser after getting a targeted ad for it eight months ago and has been hooked ever since. "They nailed it, they knew and they got it right."
"It’s just a powder, and I don’t ever have to worry about the travel of it all." She continues, "I’ve got both my girls hooked on it as well ... you put a little bit in your hands, mix it with water. And I have fairly sensitive skin, so I don’t do a lot to it."
Her low-fuss makeup must-haves:
Bell calls her beauty routine "minimal," saying that when she's in a rush, her makeup routine typically consists of these two products along with the below lip balm. "I find then I just don’t look sleepy [when I'm wearing those]. I’m not really trying to walk around with a full face of makeup. I just would like to look like I’m not still asleep."
Her giftable beauty essential:
Not only is this tinted lip balm one of her everyday beauty essentials, but it is also the perfect stocking stuffer — which are the kind of gifts she looks for this time of year.
"I focus in on stocking stuffers for my mom friends," Bell says. "Throughout history, moms have woken up Christmas morning with a flat ass sock hanging on the mantle. I find that unacceptable. So what I usually do is I will get my favorite products: I’ll get the face wash, I’ll get a couple of lip balms, I’ll get tinier things, like maybe a really good set of tweezers — things that are really important to have, that feel practical. And during the month of December, I fill up my girlfriend’s stockings, so they have something there."
Her around-the-house must-have:
"I have a pair of slippers from this place called Boston General Store that I’m obsessed with. They make practical products for your house: Tape measures, pens, notepads, staplers that are all really cute, chic and vaguely industrial looking."
While she didn't share the specific pair that she owns, we found this cozy style on the brand's site.
Her favorite product she discovered online:
Bell's face wash isn't the only product that she bought after seeing it on the internet. Last holiday season, she shared a relatable Instagram post about the many different products she bought after seeing some "convincing" ads during a scrolling session. (The balance board remains unopened and she never received the bird feeder, if you're wondering.) So we had to know which products that she discovered while scrolling she actually uses.
"I get a lot of weird yoga products and back stretchers, and I've got to tell you, I use every single one of them." She specifically calls out Chirp's stretching wheel. "I do love that one."
Her daily uniform:
"I, to an embarrassing degree, live in the [The Hey Gang] sweatsuit," Bell says. (In fact, she was wearing it in the Mud color during our Zoom call.) "I always get asked, 'What’s your fashion in real life?' And I’m like, well, depending on my mood, it’s either The Hey Gang sweatshirt in Gray or The Hey Gang sweatshirt in Olive. They came out with two new colors, Olive and Mud, and I immediately bought them. The Hey Gang is a woman-owned clothing company here in Los Angeles that makes very practical clothing and I find it to be the best sweatsuit I’ve ever owned. I have probably six or seven of them."
She travels in it, she does "drop off and pick-up" in it and she even wore it while filming the upcoming season of "Nobody Wants This." "It’s almost a joke in my friend group, how rarely I am out of a Hey Gang sweatsuit — I highly recommend, they’re very soft."
