If you’re like us, you’ve probably wondered what famous people add to their carts. Not the JAR brooch and Louis XV chair but the hair spray and electric toothbrush. We asked actress and filmmaker Elizabeth Banks — who also serves as the chief creative officer of canned-wine company Archer Roose — about “hard-core” hairpins that last forever, compostable tea bags she uses daily, and the only white T-shirt she wants to wear.
You know, rose is my color. But the main thing about this is it does not come off. You can put it on in the morning and you are still gonna have pink lips even after you eat lunch and wipe your mouth. I’m very impressed by it, and it’s super-affordable. I don’t find it to be overly drying. I will say, though, that I often layer Aquaphor over it if I want it to look shinier.
I’m an Irish woman living in California, so I have to wear sunscreen. This has the best, classic summer scent. It’s vegan and comes in a beautiful spray, which is hard to find. I have kids who are not remotely interested in me putting sunscreen lotion on them and standing there while I rub it in. It’s just not gonna happen. I can literally chase after them and spray them with sunscreen and know it’s gonna stick.
I was introduced to this by Reed Clarke’s Fiona Stiles. The minute you start using these, you realize how versatile they are, how they don’t break your hair, and how they protect it, even when it’s wet. It’s a dream product. And the pins themselves don’t break. They’re not plastic. They’re hard-core; they’re gonna last forever. And once your hair is up, it doesn’t move. It takes maybe a few tries to learn to use it, but once you do, you’ll never go back to elastics. I have them in black, white, gold, and silver.
I grew up very traditionally where my mother made us sit down and write thank-you notes for everything. I think that’s a great skill, and I’m trying to instill it in my own kids. So I love old-school note cards. I never had embossed or engraved stationery before, though. I got this as a gift, initially, in my early 20s, and I thought it was so fancy. I love when somebody famous sends me something on their personalized stationery. I have framed cards from Madonna and Giorgio Armani and people like that. What I’ve come to realize, especially when I’m wrapping on a film, is that people like having an actual note with your name on it. I want to thank people properly at the end, and I want my stationery to be really nice, so I always have these stocked.
I do still take a lot of handwritten notes. I have Post-its all over my desk because, for whatever reason, I think taking notes on your phone while you’re in a meeting looks rude. I don’t remember how I found out about Aya Paper Co., but I love their journals. They have inspirational messages on them, which, as a creative person, you want to write down what inspires you. They have a spiral, which I love because they lay flat when you open them. And these are made with 100 percent recycled paper with sustainable production techniques. It’s a Black female-owned company, too. They’re doing everything right in my opinion.
I mean, I’ve been talking up the slow cooker for a very long time. I have the seven-quart one. Look, I’m a working mom who still fancies herself as somebody who can cook. This makes my life a lot easier. I literally throw things in it in the morning, and when I come home at night, the food’s ready. I don’t have to do anything, and I can put it in the dishwasher. I really like making ribs in it. That’s what I did most recently. But honestly, I truly enjoy throwing chicken into it with stewed tomatoes, sliced lemon, lemon juice, capers, and olives. And that just becomes like a version of chicken cacciatore, and it’s so delicious.
I started drinking tea long ago instead of coffee, partially to have less lactose in my life, and I realized black coffee was too harsh on my stomach. Once I switched to tea, I’ve never gone back. I love these round tea bags and buy them in bulk. I have one every morning. I like that they’re compostable. There’s no string or paper or anything attached. And it’s just my favorite brand. In the summer, I’ll pour it over ice. I can enjoy the same drink year-round, iced or hot.
Recently, I was packing for a three-week-long trip to Europe, and I very ambitiously decided I didn’t want to check a bag. One way to do that is by wearing a uniform every day. I realized that this was the only white T-shirt I actually wanted to wear in that process and that I needed more of them. I ended up buying three more and bringing all four of this specific shirt to Europe. It’s just supersoft, and the cap sleeves cut off right above those muscles so you can show them off. And the high neck is good for me because I try to stay out of the sun.
I’m wearing these right now. I went out to eat with a girlfriend and I couldn’t read the menu. She gave me her glasses and I realized I needed readers. I can no longer read anything. These Caddis ones in pink were given to me by Anne Morgan, who’s an Oscar-winning hairstylist. Now they’re my signature glasses. I have to wear them, especially on Zooms.
I’m a big hat-wearer. I have probably 50 baseball caps and probably 30 to 40 brimmed hats. And again, this is partly because of my sun aversion and partly about aging, too, at this point. Recently, though, I have lost a lot of my brimmed hats to my kids. They started loving them and wearing them, but also they’ve literally lost them. When I go on trips, I wear a hat and make my kids wear my hats because, as we’ve discussed, I don’t want to pack more than is necessary. I ended up losing a beautiful Rag & Bone hat at the airport, so now I’m all about picking up inexpensive hats wherever I go. Recently, I just grabbed this one at Nordstrom. It’s great, and I won’t feel as bad as I did when my kids lost the $300 Rag & Bone.
The Bubbly Rosé is my celebratory drink. It’s my Friday-afternoon, the-week-is-over drink that I can pick up at Target. But it’s also got a lot of functionality. It comes in a can, so it’s very easy to have with me anywhere. I keep it in my wine fridge in my home bar. I’ll drink it on its own, but for the weekend, it’s great mixed with orange juice for mimosas. And I like it in Aperol spritzes.
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