On a drizzly day in April, the sky outside may be grey but Stacey Solomon is lighting up a London hotel suite with her expectant mother glow.
Resplendent in a peach floral dress that stretches over her growing bump, the mum-of-two is looking forward to welcoming baby number three later this year.
Right now, however, she’s got other things on her mind.
"Sometimes I forget that it’s even happening," she says, patting her belly. "Because life happens and I’ve got the two kids and I’m running around after them. It’s only when I lay down at night and I’m like, ‘Oh, yeah, you’re in there, you’re coming soon.'"
The Loose Women panellist will be having her first child with partner Joe Swash. The baby will join Zachary, 11, and Leighton, 6, her sons from previous relationships.
In addition to her regular appearances on the ITV talk show, Solomon has just been unveiled as ambassador for skincare brand YourGoodSkin, a role she was thrilled to accept since she was already a big fan of the range – not least because it’s so affordable.
"I’ve got sensitive skin and I wanted it for everyday use, twice a day, and I don’t want to pay a million pounds for something I’m going to use every day," she says.
"I just went through a period of my life where my skin just wasn’t happy and kept flaring up.
"I had really big breakouts, almost like boils rather than spots. I think now from my pregnancy hormones, I’ve got a lot more spots on my chin.
"Underneath this foundation, you would see I’ve got really quite big pores. So I do have to close them before dirt gets in."
Finding a simple but effective skin regime, as well as watching what she eats and drinks, helped Solomon get her skin under control.
"I think cleaning my face really made a big difference, but what made the biggest difference was drinking loads of water and trying to be as conscious about what my gut would like as possible.
"I mean I still have those days where I’m like, ‘I cannot face cleansing, toning and moisturising today,’ but most of the time I’ll take my make-up off because it’s just not worth it for me now. As soon as my pores get clogged, that’s it, I’m going to get spots."
On days when she does have the odd spot, Solomon uses the tricks of the trade she’s learned from having her make-up done by professionals for years, ever since she shot to fame as a contestant on the The X Factor in 2009.
"Before, I didn’t realise you have to have to put a primer on, so I would always just put my foundation straight on my face.
"Now I put my moisturiser on with SPF in it, then I’ll put on a primer, so that the foundation doesn’t all just go right into the skin."
One thing that hasn’t changed, however, is that she still loves a beauty bargain – like a £5.99 foundation.
"I usually use Bobbi Brown foundation, but then there’s some others I will also use like Collection.
"It’s some odd mix and match – I think Bobbi Brown is a bit expensive, so I would mix it with Collection, so you don’t use it all up and you get a bit of both coverage.
"And I love all the microfibre mascaras you can get now so you don’t have to wear false lashes all the time."
Plus, the Dagenham-born TV star doesn’t require a glam squad every day.
"I love doing my own make-up as well, there’s something about drawing on your face, it’s almost like meditation."
In fact, she’s never afraid to go bare-faced, even on social media.
"I don’t think too much about should I do a makeup-free selfie? Or should I wear make-up today? I just live my life," she says.
"I don’t care what I look like. I think,’Yeah, that is what I look like’ and there’s nothing wrong with what I look like."
With her bubbly personality and an attitude like that, no wonder Solomon is so popular with her 1.4 million Instagram followers.
While she admits she occasionally has to resort to deleting comments and blocking nasty users, on the whole fans are warm and friendly.
"I’m really lucky people are nice. It doesn’t matter if I’m doing a really emotional post or just a ‘Hi, I’m being silly’ post," she says.
"I think people are just really, really lovely and accepting. And it’s easy for me just to be whatever I am."
