“My mom put me in ballet school when I was three, and I got en pointe when I was nine, which messed with my feet, my legs, my posture, and my body image. I was 15 and applying to a professional ballet school when I found out I had advanced arthritis. I know 15 is very young to have a crisis, but I was depressed and confused. My parents tried to push me toward math and science, but I wanted to do art. I secretly applied to Brown and wrote them a letter begging them to take me. And they did.
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. Growing up in France, I used to skip school so I could work. It’s not like I was missing anything growing up, but my parents were always trying to make ends meet and I wanted to break that cycle. At Brown I ran dining services, which included 10 cafeterias. I studied economics and graduated early so I could get a semester refunded. I took a job on Wall Street because they were the only ones sponsoring visas at the time—and I needed to be able to afford to live in New York. People love to criticize kids who go into finance, but the reality is not everyone can have a fun editorial job out of college.
After Goldman, I went to American Eagle to do strategy, but they laid off my group after six months. It worked out because I got a lot of severance. During that time, I had a not-so-great meal at Dig Inn. I emailed them some constructive feedback, and the CEO wrote back and asked me to get coffee. I joined their strategy group before taking over as head of marketing and ultimately, creative director. I opened 18 restaurants with them.
Someone from Glossier was basically eating at Dig Inn every day, and they told me they were recruiting. Emily Weiss reached out and I was hired to do strategy, but four weeks in, my boss broke her foot and I was asked to help oversee the showroom above the office. After a while, I mentioned I had ideas for retail, and that’s how I became head of retail. We opened all these amazing stores over the next few years. It was an amazing job.
When I left at the end of 2018, I realized I hadn’t been drinking for a while. I was constantly flying, and I was never a big drinker anyway, but I leaned into it because it felt good. People would always question me about it, and I started to think how there needs to be a cool drink that’s also good for you and that doesn’t make you feel like you’re missing out. That’s how Ghia, my non-alcoholic apéritif company, came to be. What’s interesting is that 93-percent of our customers identify as drinkers who are seeking moderation.
Building the brand has been difficult. Even though we’re non-alcoholic, we’re still part of this three-tier distribution system ruled by alcohol giants, which is very challenging and capital intensive. If I had known what I know today, I probably wouldn’t have started Ghia—it’s just so hard, and every year it feels like we might go out of business—but here I am, and it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. I’m also slowly but surely coming to terms with the fact that I might need to hand my baby to someone else. Creating the brand came naturally to me, but scaling it takes fuel and beverage expertise. I want it to grow to be way, way bigger than me.
I have so many ideas about what comes next. I want to be an artist. I want to renovate a house by the sea and rent it out. I think I’ll always want to host. I just worked on my first cookbook, Riviera: Recipes from the Coast of France and Italy. An agent reached out to me a few years ago, and I sat on the proposal for a long time because I’m not a trained chef and I had crazy imposter syndrome. Food is so tied to memory, and so much of mine comes from my childhood and from my grandmother’s cooking. A lot of the recipes in my book come from her—her personal recipe book is falling apart but it’s my most prized possession. When the fires were happening in LA and people were evacuating with essentials, the only things I really cared about were that book and my car.
BEAUTY + WELLNESS
I think people in America are fascinated by ‘French girl beauty’ because they’re obsessed with this idea of ‘effortlessness’—everything here feels so curated. I hate the word ‘effortless’ because it reads very white and skinny. But there’s a much stronger emphasis on individuality there than here so you’ll see girls wearing a lot of vintage, and there’s a real reliance on pharmacy products, which are usually quite affordable.
I don’t know if French beauty is actually as effortless as it’s made out to be, but I do know that my French friends don’t spend nearly as much money on beauty and I don’t really know many women who have a 10-step skincare routine. My parents always say that stress is what kills you, and I think you can definitely see stress on your face. They live in the south of France; they look very relaxed. [Laughs] I also really believe that you are what you eat, so I try to eat well and buy my food from farmers when I can—I’ve been loving my Farm to People deliveries—but I know not everybody can afford to do that. And I really prioritize gut health. I take probiotics from Good Bacteria, and I take Fatty15 for cell function. Has it changed my life? No, but I’ll keep taking it.
I’ve been working with a longevity doctor on my hormones because I have hypothyroidism—probably caused by endometriosis—which has honestly been the bane of my existence since I was a kid. I also take Chinese herbs from Dr. Natazia zu Stolberg to support my hormones, and drink her Rest + Digest tea daily.
I try to work out four times a week, but I’m not someone who knows what to do alone in a gym, so I do Pyro with Kristy Godso. She somehow makes you stronger without making you feel bulky. I also have a membership to Sky Ting, which I love because I can just show up and not think too hard about it. And sometimes I’ll do Pilates with Stef, Stefani Bertoncini. Her classes are definitely an indulgence, so I asked for a 10-pack for Christmas.
SKINCARE
I need to do Botox again. I haven’t gone in over a year because my derm’s been on sabbatical, and I’m very loyal to her. I’d love to get a facial every month, but realistically, it’s more like twice a year—usually with Sofie Pavitt or Raquel Medina Cleghorn. Sofie’s are great and accessible; Raquel somehow defies gravity. I’ve also been wanting to try Ställe Studios.
I like to take off my makeup with Bioderma’s micellar water. If I’m not wearing any makeup, I’ll go straight into something like Sofie Pavitt’s Clean Clean cleanser or iS Clinical’s Cleansing Complex. I recently got Shani Darden’s Triple Acid Signature Peel and use it once a week, but day-to-day I stick to an exfoliating toner. Like most people, I love P50. The BHA from Paula’s Choice is another classic, and Eadem makes a great one, too. If I’m not exfoliating, I’ll switch between Tower 28’s SOS Spray and Isla’s Elixir—the Tower 28 is especially great on surf trips because zinc sunscreen really clogs my pores. I rotate serums, too. I love the Preservationist vitamin C from Lenox and Sixteenth—it’s so creamy you don’t even need a moisturizer. Augustinus Bader makes another vitamin C I like. But no matter what, I use Differin every single night—yes, I stack exfoliants.
For moisturizer, I’m hooked on U Beauty’s Super Hydrator—it just glides on so well. I really love their Multimodal Defender SPF, too, but it’s expensive for everyday use, so Supergoop’s Glowscreen gets the job done. And on the lip front, I love Dr. Idriss’ Barrier Baste lip peel followed by a layer of lip balm from Bioderma’s or Evolvetogether.
I’m very self-conscious about my eyes. I’ve always had eye bags, and I’m also just always tired from work, which shows. It’s genetic—my mom had an upper bleph—so I’ve been looking into it myself. I saw oculoplastic surgeon Dr. Mehryar Ray Taban in LA for a lower bleph consult and loved him, but I moved to New York. I’m planning to see Dr. Brett Kotlus next. In the meantime, I use Perricone MD’s Neuropeptide eye serum in the morning—I don’t know that it’s reversing anything, but it does make me look more rested.
MAKEUP + NAILS
Nothing changes my face structure quite like a good brow. I see Jimena Garcia, Chanel’s brow artist, twice a year for tinting and shaping. In between visits I do my eyebrows with Make’s Infinite pencil and dot a tiny bit of Saie’s Hydrabeam concealer to hide spots, and I am out the door. If I have an in-person meeting, or if I’m going out with my boyfriend or girlfriends, I’ll wear a little more. Glossier’s Stretch Fluid foundation is amazing. I just got the Le Skin foundation from Mary Phillips’ brand and it’s lighter, but still great. Mary really kills it, even though there’s no way I’ll ever underpaint like her. [Laughs] Otherwise, I think What The Foundation from Jones Road is so easy—I appreciate a product I can apply with my fingers, although I love the brushes from Hourglass and my old brushes from Marc Jacobs Beauty… RIP but also back soon?
Jones Road also makes these pretty Miracle balms that leave my cheeks so dewy. I’ll swipe on Flushed or Bronzed with a bit of blush. Saie in Mia and Rhode in Piggy are my favorites. I like cool mauve colors in general. And I love bronzer because I can always use some color on my face. I even like to put it on my eyelids, even though brands don’t recommend it. If I put on mascara, it’s usually Merit’s. It never makes me look like a raccoon, so I can use it on my bottom lashes, too. If I need more volume, I love Lash Clash from YSL.
I love a cool lip color to balance the colors on my face. Glossier’s Gen G in Like will forever be my favorite; it’s the perfect shade for me. I recently got one of Violette_FR’s Bisou Balms in Bonbon Myrtille and it’s very similar. Fara Homidi makes good lip liners, but they’re not an everyday thing. I did lip blushing with Erin Skipley at Contour + Ink in LA for my birthday, and it was one of the best things I’ve ever done. It took about an hour and a half and wasn’t too painful because she numbed me; I went out for sushi right after and just looked like I had on red lipstick. [Laughs] The color softens over time. She was showing me before-and-afters on her phone, and I won’t say who, but there were some very famous faces in there. Next time she’s in New York, I’ll definitely do a touch-up.
As for nails, I’m very bad with them—I bite and pull my cuticles. It’s such a vicious cycle because you pick at your cuticles, then they get dry and hard, and then you want to pull them some more. I carry cuticle oil with me at all times. I love the rose one from Tenoverten and the camelia version from Chanel.
HAIR
My hair has been a journey. I was shedding a lot because of hormonal issues, but I was also dyeing it frequently and using a ton of heat. My hair is naturally curly, and I just didn’t know how to deal with it so I was always running a flat iron over it. I took Nutrafol for a bit and it definitely helped, but I also really listened to Dianna Cohen, the founder of Crown Affair, about air drying and cutting back on heat. I tried her twist-and-clip method, but it was hard when my hair was shorter in LA. It was also so dry there so my hair needed more moisture—that’s when I started using her leave-in conditioner. Her hair towel is incredible, too.
I go to David Mallett maybe once or twice a year for a trim. At home I wash my hair every five days with Crown Affair’s hydrating shampoo or Rōz’s Foundation shampoo. I also use Crown Affair’s dry shampoo in between washes—and even on wash days sometimes because it adds volume and texture. I also oil the ends of my hair every single day and night with Rōz. And I’ve stopped dyeing my hair entirely—I’m lucky I only have one gray hair, and I just pluck it every month or so. I don’t plan on dyeing it again.
I’m very lucky to have three haircare founders as friends who spoil me. Dianna is one of them. In LA, Mara Roszak, who founded Rōz, used to cut my hair—she has the same texture as me, so she knew exactly what to do. And Babba Rivera made the Ceremonia Aceite De Moska oil I use every single week without fail. All three of their brands make amazing salt scrubs; I genuinely can’t pick between them.”
—as told to Daise Bedolla
Photographed by Shana Trajanoska in New York on February 20, 2026