How Actress Rachel Bilson Gets Ready in the Morning

The early 2000s brought us TRL, classic fashion (hello, dresses over jeans), and The O.C., arguably one of the best teen dramas of all time. Thanks to The O.C., we were introduced to Rachel Bilson, who played the “tell-it-like-it-is” Summer Roberts.

The popularity of the show helped Bilson quickly became one of the faces of the millennial generation. Since then, she’s continued her acting career as a leading lady in shows like Hart of Dixie, and she’s also taken on the role of mom.

Bilson currently hosts a podcast with her best friend called Broad Ideas With Rachel Bilson & Olivia Allen, where they talk sex, mental health, ghosts (do they or do they not exist?), and everything in between.

As a mom and entrepreneur, Bilson has a lot going on, so it’s important for her to have a morning routine that has her feeling her best and ready to take on the day. We caught up with Bilson to find out how she starts a typical day and prioritizes her mental health.

She wakes up, then gets cozy

The first thing I need to do when I wake up is put something warm on my feet—I don’t like cold feet. I love the coziest of socks or slippers. My all-time favorite slippers are by Jenni Kayne, and my favorite socks are those plush slipper socks you can buy just about anywhere, even somewhere like CVS.

Next, is her favorite part of the morning: coffee

I go to bed at night just so that I can wake up and have coffee—that’s what I look forward to in the morning. One of my favorite rituals is setting up my coffee the night before so that it’s ready for me in the morning.

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I recently discovered that my favorite coffee maker, Moccamaster, has a single-serve brewer, and it’s changed my life. For years, I was using their full pot, but it’s just me here, so I needed something smaller. It’s actually drip coffee where you have a filter, your coffee grinds, and the whole thing. I’m so excited about it!

A new step I’ve added to my coffee routine is having a hot mug. I have an instant hot faucet, and I like to put the hot water in my mug, empty it out, then put my mug under the single-serve coffee maker to brew the coffee in a warm mug. I like to make sure it’s extra hot. Then I put cream and sugar in my coffee and I’m good to go!

If she wakes up early, she might do something ambitious

It’s not an everyday thing, but for instance, I woke up at 5 a.m. this morning and I had old bananas lying around, so I was like, “You know what I’m gonna do? I’m gonna bake bread.” That was really ambitious. I don’t want to paint a picture as if this happens every morning, but this morning it did.

Afterward, she makes her daughter food for school

I take pride in packing her lunches—it’s really fun! Especially if I use the PlanetBox stainless steel lunch boxes because there are compartments, and I get to organize them. I’m a Virgo, so that really speaks to my heart.

Then, it’s rise and shine for her daughter

I have to wake her up because she never gets up on her own, and then I get her ready and take her to school.

Before she heads out for the day, it’s safety first

I make sure to arm my SimpliSafe home security system, which is easy to do via the SimpliSafe app on my phone. As a mom, ensuring my family and home are secure and protected while I’m away is of the utmost importance. SimpliSafe just launched a new outdoor monitoring service and camera, the SimpliSafe Active Guard Outdoor Protection and Outdoor Security Camera Series 2, so once I arm my system, I’m ready to go.

I do love being able to see what’s going on at my house when the camera detects someone. I get to peek and spy on whoever’s there. Is it a new package? Is it the new jacket I ordered? I don’t know, but I get to see and it’s pretty fun.

Then, it’s time for her skincare routine

I brush my teeth before I leave the house, of course, but I don’t do my own routine until I get back from school drop-off. Honestly, I’m not the best at taking my mascara off the night before, so usually in the morning I’ll use Comodynes makeup remover wipes to get the excess mascara off, and then I moisturize with the Goopgenes face cream. That’s the extent of my beauty care.

She works out three mornings a week

I just started going to reformer Pilates three mornings a week—it’s what I do for my mental health. My post-Pilates treat is a caffeinated drink from a place next door. I’ve also added therapy back into my life one morning a week. I think therapy is really important for mental health, too.

Finally, she records her podcast

If we have an interview for the podcast, I come home after Pilates to get ready for that because we do the interviews at my house. I have to clean up the house very quickly and get ready for the podcast, and the podcast is really fun because I get to do it with my best friend.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.