'My mom is from Trinidad, and I was raised in New York—Queens. I’m into minimalism right now, so I’ve been dressing very Rad Hourani. I style his shows, and I’m totally into him, I love his aesthetic. I kind of match my beauty look to what I’m wearing, and I think the minimalist thing has creeped in. Every day I use a flat iron on my hair, and lots of Redken Glass 01 Smoothing Serum while I'm doing it. It’s expensive, but we always try and call it in or find places where it is really cheap. I wash my hair once a week with Mane ‘n Tail shampoo, and flat iron it every morning. I hate if it gets a little bit of wave, and this just seems the simplest way to manage it. I work with a lot of hairdressers for shoots, so I don’t have to go through the process of finding the right things—they just tell you what’s good. [Laughs] Peter Gray cuts my hair, and also Brent [Lawler]. He’s so good. Very opinionated, but I kind of like it. He’s not wishy-washy, he just does it, and I love that. I’m not big on looking at myself too much, so I just have to get it right, because I don’t have the time. I mean, I hardly have any time because I’m always going, going, going.

For my skin, I use Perricone MD Cold Plasma. It’s too expensive, but it just feels good. I use it morning and night. I’m really into skincare—it’s important. I use Nars Gentle Cream Cleanser, the Balancing Toning Lotion, and then he has this brightener thing that I kind of like. I know it sounds weird, but it just makes you look really bright. It’s not really a lightener, it’s a brightener: Nars Brightening Serum. And the Hydrating Moisture Cream. The jars are so massive, I told [François Nars] he has to stop. [Laughs] I’ve known him for 15 years, and I do all of his campaigns. I have been to his house in Tahiti, it’s amazing. He’s got everything, and the boat is right there…I have some soaps from Tahiti, like Tahitian coconut, which I use in the bath.

Then, I wear all the Nars lipsticks, especially Venice and Harlow lip gloss, which I always have in my bag. I love red but I can only do it at night. I did red lips for the longest time— forever—and then suddenly I just stopped. I used to wear tons of fake eyelashes, too. I was a real freak with eyelashes. [Laughs] I'd do the top and the bottom. I used to have to get up real early. Sometimes I would sleep with them on! That was a trend that I really got into. I'd do the mink ones; I was so caught up with that. Now, the look is kind of back, but it’s too much work. But I think people are getting more into 'minimal.' I love eyeliner, but I can’t do it on the top because it just doesn’t look right on me. I’ve been doing my eyeliner like this forever. I started with François Nars’ Black Moon, and then he had an assistant named Ayako, who now has her own line called Addiction, and she sent me her own liner. I’m so addicted to it; it's the best liner. François would kill me, but it’s amazing. It’s like a tattoo—it’s severely great. I think they only sell it in Japan right now. Anyway, my bangs are kind of my liner on the top. I don’t really do anything to my eyebrows either, because you can’t really see them under my bangs. They are very light—I used to pluck the shit out of them, so they got back at me. [Laughs]

This, I live for: Nars concealer in the color Custard. I’m not really into foundation; I used to be. I was talking to Pat [McGrath], and she was saying that she is putting foundation back on again because the sun has been so horrific. I used to wear it all the time, in the summer constantly. And when I stopped, I started getting sun spots, so I’m thinking she is absolutely right. I hardly go in the sun, I don’t go to the beach, I use moisturizer with SPF. I have super dry skin, from flying and everything. I come off a plane and I’m grey from being so dry and flakey—it’s horrible. For my body, I love La Mer. I have one tube left! It’s such an indulgence, but it’s really, really good. It’s better than all the other stuff. And I put Adonia Legtone Serum on my arms and legs, which keeps the elasticity in your skin. I also take silica—somebody told me, 'Take silica. Your hair will be strong and your nails will grow fast.' So I’ve always taken it, for years. I have a friend that puts it on her face and eats it!

I work out, do weights, I do everything a little bit. I have this one trainer I go to out here [in the Hamptons] and she’s great. In New York, I try to do it myself, but it’s terrible, I don’t have the discipline. I live up five flights of stairs, as well. That is the answer to thin legs! I think it’s the stairs, I really do. The trainer I go to also worked with [photographer] Francesco Scavullo, and he lived up many stairs, like four flights of stairs. My trainer said it was really crazy—after [Scavullo] decided to move into an elevator apartment, six months later, he had a heart attack and died. He lost all of his muscle, it just went. But really, isn’t that interesting?”

—as told to ITG

Patti Wilson photographed by Emily Weiss in Watermill, New York.