Drew shared with Marie Claire some of her best beauty tips!

You know that beauty myth that guys hate a red lip? Drew Barrymore is here to tell you it’s not true. And if you’re still hesitant, she has a few suggestions. (PSA: We should all be subscribing to the Barrymore Beauty Bible.)

There are many things we’d love to bend Drew Barrymore’s ear about. There’s style, which she’s got in spades. There’s music—she has immaculate taste and has even penned lyrics for fellow cool girl Jenny Lewis. There’s boys, because she taught us a sacred lesson: He’s just not that into you. And then there are the tall tales that come with being a Hollywood star for over three decades…

But still, if we could only choose one topic for a Barrymore heart-to-heart, it’d be beauty. With her line Flower Beauty, she’s not only brought luxe and affordable botanical-infused products to the masses, but has done so with a fun, real-girl MO that’s just so refreshing. Whether she’s painting her nails on the subway (#commuterbeauty), easing our mind about our product-hoarding tendencies, or waxing poetic about the perfect shade of red, she just gets us.

In advance of launching her Spring 2015 collection, we chatted with Barrymore about her tried-and-true beauty tricks, handbag essentials, and hacks for doing your makeup en route.

Marie Claire: What are your most sacred beauty secrets?
Drew Barrymore: 1) Eye brightening! Undereye concealer just isn’t enough, so we created a brightening primer (Flower Lighten Up! Brightening Concealer Click Pen, $7.98). Instead of try to patch-up a dark spot, brighten it. Reflect out. Stop covering it up!

2) Brows are everything. I’ve started working from a kit rather than a pencil because it’s not just one color all year long for me. If I’m wearing a dark lip, I want light brows. If I’m wearing a light lip, I want dark brows. I also change the color of my hair, and that changes what color I want for my eyebrows. Plus, it has a taming wax I love because it makes brows dewy without being greasy.

3) My biggest criteria is lips that don’t feather. Whether it’s a lip balm, lacquer, or a stick, an anti-feathering formula is what I want and what I put in the line. It’s the most expensive from a lab perspective because it works better. It’s so important to have that experience for your lipstick.

MC: What skincare ritual do you swear by?
DB: Washing your face morning, noon, and night—most especially after those long nights. Fall asleep with your makeup on and you’ll wake up doomed is my philosophy.

MC: When it comes to carrying around products in your purse, are you a minimalist or a hoarder? We’re totally the latter.
DB: I hate a heavy bag because I carried one around for 40 years, and now I’m trying to lighten it up. And now I have a diaper bag, so that changes everything… But I always have a dark and nude lip, a concealer and a powder, and something for the eye, whether it’s an eyeliner or a mascara. What it really comes down to is something for eye, lips, and face. You can really get away with three things, but I like to double up and have the opposite sides of the spectrum for each product.

MC: We love and can seriously relate to your #commuterbeauty hashtag—what’re your best tips for beauty on the go?
DB: Just today I did my mascara in the rearview mirror of an Uber going to my next appointment. So a rearview mirror is really great—but only if you’re a passenger. You cannot do it as a driver. [Laughs] Safety first!

I think the most important thing for commuter beauty is finding innovative ways to find a reflection that you can do your makeup in. So, think the window of a subway or a spoon at a dinner table. I always judge a restaurant by whether or not they have a clean knife because it’s the best mirror.

MC: And what about painting on a cat eye in a moving vehicle—that’s kind of our thing…
DB: Wait for the stop!

MC: Your February 2014 MC cover got nominated for a National Magazine Award! What set it apart from other cover shoots you’ve done?
DB: You know, having a beauty company, I love tight shots on a cover. And I think people love it too. It’s so eye-grabbing and yet magazines are doing it less and less. So I applaud Marie Claire because we really pushed for it as we wanted it to be about the beauty.

MC: And remind us what smashing Flower shade you were wearing on the cover?
DB: Rose Bud!

People did a style feature on Drew and her three new fragrances she is launching for Flower Beauty!

When we had the opportunity to sit down with Drew Barrymore, actress, PEOPLE guest beauty editor and founder of the successful beauty (and now fragrance!) brand, Flower Beauty, we found that the well-known star can still surprise us. See why she’s enamored of the scent of whale vomit (yes, you read that correctly), what beauty move she can do with her eyes closed and more.

Before Barrymore launched her three new fragrances — Cherished, Radiant and Sultry — she spent hours in the lab trying out different scents, which led to her falling in love with quite an unusual smell: whale vomit (also known as ambergris). “When a whale would eat squid, I believe they would digest [it] in the whale’s stomach, and the whale would throw it up out and everything that was in his stomach to break down the squid,” she says. “It has this most potent, amazing, knee-buckling scent to women. I became voracious, I was like, ‘I want it! I need more!’ I kept grabbing it and smelling it like a little piglet.”

In case you were wondering (slash panicking), there’s no whale vomit in Barrymore’s fragrances. “Now they’ve decided to do a molecular copy of [ambergris] because they don’t want to hurt whales and take from whales anymore, thank God for that,” she shared. “And it’s in some of the best perfumes out there. That was cool to learn. I loved me some ambergris.”

In addition to being able to identify the smell of nauseous whales, the beauty mogul has another hidden talent: applying lipstick with her eyes closed à la Molly Ringwald in The Breakfast Club. Well, maybe not quite like Ringwald in the iconic scene (you know, the one where she applies lipstick without her hands), but she’s close! “Didn’t we all try to attempt the lipstick between the … When she did that trick, you were like, ‘Oh, you’re so cool.’” she says. “Not that I do that, but I think I could do lipstick with my eyes closed or anywhere,” she tells PEOPLE.

And to prove her point, she’s committed to the concept of “commuter beauty,” which she loves to share her Instagram. “I don’t remember the last time I sat down and did my makeup. It’s always on the go,” Barrymore says. “I want to see women putting their pictures out there of [their] on the go. That excites me. That would be my first thing, my #commuterbeauty hashtag that I am obsessed with, because it’s so true!”

But even though Barrymore is a pro at doing all her makeup on the go and mirror-free, she doesn’t run her beauty empire alone. She often asks friends and family — even her husband, Will Kopelman — for input on the collection! “I ask my husband his thoughts because he comes from an amazing family — he’s so smart, so chic and he has amazing taste,” she tells PEOPLE. “And I ask his family and I ask my friends. I like to get people’s opinions on things. I think you always have to trust your gut, ’cause that’s all we have, but it’s really good and crucial to get opinions.”

This week Drew is the guest editor for People Magazine’s Beauty Special. Be sure to pick up the new issue to read her comments!

Drew Barrymore‘s beauty cred is legit. She was named PEOPLE’s Most Beautiful woman in 2007, spent seven years as a CoverGirl spokesperson where she earned a “college degree in beauty,” and is the proud owner of cosmetic and fragrance line Flower. So it was only natural to appoint the actress and trendsetter as our guest editor for PEOPLE’s beauty special. In this week’s issue, Barrymore (below, smelling testers for new Flower scents) opens up about what inspires her products and what makes her feel beautiful. Then pick up this week’s issue for her top picks and even more beauty advice!

I feel most beautiful when …
I’m making my husband [Will Kopelman] laugh with my ridiculous dances. I do interpretative comedy dances and he’s laughing, and his laugh starts to sound almost like Santa Claus because it’s such a high pitched capacity. That’s when I feel the prettiest. I can’t believe I’m telling you this!

My favorite smell is …
Patchouli. I love the way that it exists in the air and you can always smell it when you walk by. It translates and permeates in a way like no other scent.

It takes me ___ minutes to get ready in the morning!
Two minutes! I actually am going to do an experiment video to show this.

If I had to wear one lip color for a whole year, it would be …
100 percent, “Mauve Mimosa” lip butter. I never go anywhere without it. [The color on the tube] looks a little brown and I think it intimidates people. But the truth is, it makes you look like you have almost a tan glow. I also use it on my cheeks. It is the perfect nude color, beachy, bronzy, natural enhanced lip color. You know what it’s like? It’s like honey. Never name a lipstick “Mauve anything,” I’ve found. I should have named it “Honey Kiss!”

Who are your Flower fragrances for?
It’s for this woman who is just trying to pull it all off and feel great about herself, and be as happy as she can be. And love as much as she can. That was the story for the Flower scents.

What’s been your favorite reaction from a fan that uses Flower?
This woman just stopped me on the street and she said Flower beauty made her feel really good about her skin. She always bought these really expensive, crazy products to make her skin even and now she’s using About Face. As an owner of a beauty company, women are really loyal to their skin. People love what they love and they know what they know and they stick with it and they don’t experiment. So I loved hearing that from this woman, it made me very happy.

Are there any red carpet looks you wouldn’t try again?
Nah. Just keep playing. Never get worried about what people say because it’s good to not be afraid. And certainly to not be afraid about what people are going to say.

What beauty/fashion advice would you give to your younger self?
It’s good to appreciate and remember to not be so hard on yourself because I bet it never looks as crazy as it does in your worried eyes. We have to be nicer to ourselves and we probably look thinner and younger and healthier and happier than we worried about in that moment.

For more on Drew’s favorite things, pick up this week’s PEOPLE magazine, on newsstands Friday

The Wall Street Journal website shared this great article where Drew talks about the makeup and beauty products that are her essentials for each day! We know that Drew practically grew up in a make up chair so I am excited to try out some of the ones she has suggested!

The actress blends business and creativity on film and in her Flower Beauty line

DREW BARRYMORE GREW UP in a makeup chair. The 39-year-old actress, producer and mother of two has spent nearly four decades working in Hollywood. In 2012 she added another title to her long list of accomplishments when she launched makeup company Flower Beauty with the Maesa Group. The name pays homage to her film production company, Flower Films, which has produced movies like “Donnie Darko” (2001), “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” (2003) and “He’s Just Not That Into You” (2009).

Ms. Barrymore, who partnered with Wal-Mart as the exclusive retailer of her 100-plus product line, sought to flip the traditional beauty model on its head by using social media and accessibility to market the brand. Her products are not yet available in Europe.

It’s been a busy two years, not only because she is still acting—her latest film, “Blended,” is currently in theaters—but this April she celebrated the birth of her second daughter, Frankie Kopelman. We spoke with the actress about skin care, Zumba and sleeveless dresses.

No matter how late it is or how tired I am, I wash my face two times daily, morning and night. I’ll use [a cleanser by] Oil of Olay, Christine Chin, Kate Somerville, Clinique, SkinCeuticals, Tatcha, Bliss or Dr. Bronner’s.

I believe so much in being nice and being happy. When you put something good into the air, the sheer positivity is the glow that outshines any makeup. But a good coverup doesn’t hurt either. And women, no matter how kind, look better when they feel better. And sometimes makeup is the route to greater self-confidence that day.

My hair needs a lot of shea butter masks. I love J.F. Lazartigue products and the Carthame range by René Furterer. I also really like using Restore shampoo by Living Proof. I always switch up my hair and skin routines. Things don’t usually work forever and that’s OK, otherwise that would be boring.

In terms of my makeup, I wear Flower Beauty exclusively. Normally I carry our Skincognito cream concealer and a neutral lip everywhere. I designed and curated the collection to function for everything a woman needs, from tinted moisturizers and concealers to lip butters, crayons, lipsticks. If you want to be fair-skinned and wear pastel colors, we’ve got it. Or if you want to rock a Bain de Soleil look, we’ve got that too.

We put the majority of our ad and marketing dollars into our formulas and rely on social media and foot traffic to get our campaigns out there. We still focus on beautiful images with empowering messages, but the millions that would go into ad buys go right to our formulas and into customers’ hands. I love that. But it also means we have to work harder on getting the message out there. But I do love a challenge and mixing business with creativity. Any idea needs business to back it to make it happen. Producing films for two decades made me happy because it’s all about a creative vision with bosses and rules. The beauty business is the same thing: romance and finance.

When I was pregnant I didn’t switch any of my products out. But when you’re pregnant you can’t use skin lighteners and you get really patchy from the melasma. I constantly looked like I had dirt on my face, which didn’t make me feel great. The good news is that as soon as you give birth, it starts to fade. So patience and a sense of humor were swapped out for Obagi Nu-Derm.

To get moving, I love Zumba. You get great cardio and I defy you not to end up totally laughing at yourself, which is also good for the heart. I love hot yoga and anything that has a sense of adventure. I hate the gym. My motto is “live, live, live” and I probably won’t be any kind of health and fitness guru to anyone because I am always figuring it out for myself. It is a personal and humbling journey and the one thing I know is you have to believe in yourself. I try to convince myself that although sleeveless dresses are my enemy, maybe I can make my husband laugh.