Badminton Champ, Hope Warner, and Mom, Talk Beauty, Hair, and Sports

1. AURA: Hey, ladies! How would you describe your mother/daughter bond? 

Becky: We are both really close, and always have been! I think we’ve been through a lot together throughout the years, and always get on so well. 

Hope: My mum does a lot for me and I’ll always be so grateful for that and try to repay her in any way that I can.

2. AURA: Hope, what makes you love playing badminton? 

Hope: With badminton comes travelling, which is one of my favourite aspects about it. I get to travel all over the world and see some amazing things. It really inspires me to continue working hard, since it’s not something that everyone gets a chance to do. I’m also very competitive and, of course, love the sport itself and competing against different players from different countries. The thrill and excitement (and nerves!) that comes with competing. Amid all the ups and downs—it’s all part of the process. 

3. AURA: Becky, what do you love most about watching Hope play?

Becky: I feel so incredibly proud of Hope when I watch her play. Playing at this level takes real commitment and determination, not just for all the training you have to do, but for all the disappointments and heartbreak you have to deal with along the way. When she was six, I had trouble persuading her onto court to play with other children; so when I see her walk onto the court now, empowered and confident after the journey she’s been through, it reminds and inspires me to be empowered and confident too.

4. AURA: So Becky, did you always know that Hope was going to be an athlete? Were there any signs when she was growing up?

Becky: I wanted to make sure Hope got into a sport early enough to be able to make it a career if she wanted to. When she was three somebody gave me a small badminton racket; it was so light and perfect for her age. so we found a court and gave it a go. Just managing a couple of hits backwards and forwards at that age, together with the speed at which she picked it up, showed she had great coordination and balance and she just flew from there.

5. AURA: Is there a sport that the two of you like to play together? Or maybe a game?

Hope: We both love sports, but we don’t actually get the chance to play together much. However, when I was little, my mom and I used to play badminton together all the time! 

Becky: We played some tennis and squash too, so we have always been into racket sports. Hope and I are both very competitive, but we have a lot of fun and laughs when it comes to something like that. 

6. AURA: Do the two of you have any special mom and daughter traditions? 

Hope: We have a small tradition of ordering a takeaway, or going out to a restaurant one day every week. It’s only a small thing but it’s a time where we can both relax and talk about something that happened in our day or week. 

7. AURA: Hope, how would you describe your hair, what you love about it, and what you’d like to change (if anything)? 

Hope: I have fine, toffee-coloured hair, which I’ve always quite liked. I find that my hair grows back quite quickly too, which I’ve considered to be lucky because it means I have the chance to get it cut and styled every couple of months! One thing I would like to change though, is the overall health of my hair. 

I exercise a lot because of badminton and sometimes don’t look after it as well as I would like to. AURA’s hair care products motivate me to care for it better with their amazing, high-quality, personalized Shampoos, Conditioners and Masques. So fingers crossed, that I will have reached my hair goals in no time. 

8. AURA: Becky, how would you describe your hair, what you love about it, and what you’d like to change (if anything)? 

Becky: Like Hope, my hair’s quite fine, it used to be toffee-coloured but isn’t anymore! About three years ago I took the plunge to grow out all of my dyed hair and go to my natural colour (whatever that was after so many years!). Now I have a head of grey hair, which I thought would make me feel old, but in fact, it doesn’t. 

I really like the natural variation in tones and highlights and it’s great not to have to dye my hair every few weeks anymore! The only problem I have now is that my hair is thinning as I get older, so it would be great to see a difference in that over the next few months.

9. AURA: What is the best hair or beauty advice your Mom has ever given you? 

Hope: My mum has always been very honest with me about what looks nice and what looks average. This is actually really helpful and she has always been right about my best pieces of clothing! She also helps me to figure out how to wear my hair, depending on where I’m going, and she straightens and styles my hair from time to time. 

10. AURA: Has Hope passed on any beauty advice to you?

Becky: To get my eyebrows threaded instead of waxed! I gave it a go a little while back and it was a much more pleasant experience!

11. AURA: Who are some of your favorite sports icons and how do they influence you?

Hope: I say this a lot, but I take all the great aspects of many different successful and amazing athletes, then try to put them all together to use in my own career. Some examples are Serena Williams—her powerful and intimidating presence on court is something that I would love to possess. 

She is also an incredibly strong female who I really look upto. Someone else I admire is Roger Federer, due to how calm he is on the court. He has class and is creative in the way he plays and is very respectful to his opponents; this is the kind of person I aspire to be on the court too! 

12. AURA: What inspires your daily style?

Hope: I will mainly go for something comfortable, yet trendy/classy. My outfits depend on how I’m feeling that day, but I can go from a hoodie and denim jacket combo to a fitted blazer and flared trousers. I really like to be quite free with my clothing and my hair.

I’m always trying to style it in different ways because I think it’s exciting and refreshing. While playing sports I’ll usually choose to have it in a classic ponytail, but try to mix it up with a french plait or a high bun on other days! 

13. AURA: How has your hair changed over the years and is it part of your persona? 

Hope: I have actually never dyed my hair, but I have thought about it many times in the past and will most likely cave into the idea at some point in the future! My hair has been at all different lengths throughout my 19 years—when I was younger it used to be down to my butt, and naturally wavy. I then got a lot of it chopped off one year to shoulder length but decided that it wasn’t for me just yet. 

Since then I have always kept it mid to long but have had it shaped in different ways. I would really recommend experimenting with your hair (in sensible ways, of course). It’s something that I eventually want to do, even though the thought of it seems scary but so much fun at the same time. 

14. AURA: What’s your AURA Ritual including your hair goals, aroma, and temporary pigment? 

Hope: I went for the Moonlit Stroll aroma at medium strength and it smells so good! My main aim was to improve the condition of my scalp. It can get really dry sometimes and playing badminton often it can also get itchy and oily all at the same time. I’m feeling really confident in AURA’s products to regain the health of my scalp and make it healthier and comfortable. 

I’m really excited to use the new hair Masque too, which is going to repair and smooth out my hair and this is something I will find extremely helpful. When I wash my hair, I’ll massage my hair all over with the AURA Shampoo, wash it out and move onto conditioning. I leave the Conditioner in for around 3-5 minutes after I have smoothed it onto the ends of my hair. Lastly, once or twice a week, I use the hair Masque and leave it on for roughly 8 minutes—it all smells and feels so nice! 

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