It’s no secret that we’re all beauty junkies here at TLE HQ. Products land on our desks on the daily (even as I type, what I thought was carefully organised pile is about to spill over, Jenga-style) and office talk generally oscillates from a team member’s latest French pharmacy find to the ultimate website to track that all-important discontinued MAC lipstick. Even now, I hate to admit but with concerning frequency my weekends take the form of Netflix (and chill, in the most literal sense) and some form of sheet mask or a new fandangled promise-all treatment smothered across my face, much to my other’s bemusement.
More than a year in to quizzing our favourite women on their beauty routines though, we’ve all noticed that the looks we all get most excited about come from the women whose routines are the most low-maintenance. Enter, Leilani Bishop the Tommy Hilfiger and Balenciaga-model turned entrepreneur who just so happens to be the walking advertisement for that whole less-is-more approach people make-up artists have been waxing lyrical about now for years.
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For those of you familiar with her countless campaigns and big magazine covers, you’ll be forgiven for thinking she couldn’t possibly be that perfect in real life. And yet, when we spent the morning with her in New York, she was indeed as tall, beautiful and flawless as the pictures say she is. When we meet, she’s in the midst of seriously busy stint working on a huge project (that we’ve been sworn to secrecy about); not that it shows. Between her glowy AF complexion and her effortless model-of-duty get up, she looked more put together than I do Monday through to Friday. And from her line to her personal approach to beauty, nothing about Leilani feels forced or contrived. A self-confessed yogi, she radiates a certain ease and effortless, which is why we were so curious to find out exactly what her skincare and beauty routine includes (unsurprisingly, her three signature scents have a big part to play), plus pick her brands on how, as a mother and a wife (she has a teenage son, crazy, we know!), she manages to keep a handle on everything, all while making time for herself too.
I was discovered twice. The first time was when I was in the dentist office, when I was 14, which ended in my first photo shoot. The second time I was on the beach with my family. I’d never though of being a model before but was obsessed with models at the time. I had Linda, Christie, Naomi, Cindy and Claudia all over my walls. As a model you are groomed to be your own boss; you are technically self-employed and all of your choices affect your bottom line. It was natural transition to start my own line. I couldn’t imagine working for someone else after all of those years being in charge.
Growing up in Hawaii and travelling the world, I have always loved the pure smells of the earth. I love how scent transports you in time, while carving your own memories. I also love how scent can add to a woman’s beauty and enhance her own mystique. My mom wore Dior Obsession in my teenage years and I’ve always loved the musky tones. My first scents were Tuberose and Gardenia oils, but my first fragrance was White Musk from the Body Shop. I loved the light take on a musky smell, and, now that I think about it, a bit like Obsession, which I believe was to heavy for me so this was probably my lighter alternative. At the time Body Shop was paving it’s way as one of the first beauty lines that had conscious ingredients that also don’t harm animals.
I have never been a fan of traditional fragrance and have always preferred simpler scents and oils. With my brand, I wanted to create something simple with elegance that was an elevated version of the oils I liked to wear. I think small, independent, discovery brands are gaining traction now because we are all disillusioned by the big marketing machines and want to be inspired by the lines we buy into. People are really inspired by personal stories, now more than ever.
At first, I felt pressured to pump out a bunch of products, but my peers kept telling me that quality is better than quantity, which is so true. I love being able to concentrate on sharing my three signature scents and really investing in their longevity. WWD recently talked about how the major brands are also slowing down as they find there is a lack of loyalty to newer products compared to older ones; you know, the real brand signatures like Chanel 5 and Dior Obsession.
Learning to follow my instinct has been really important. There are millions of great ideas and a lot of them are similar. It’s your point of view that makes you stand apart. I’ve learnt to follow the road map but not to be afraid to veer off when it feels right. I have to keep growing in life and when I am at a point where I am not challenged, I like to day dream about the possibilities life holds. When I get an idea that excites me, I know I have to figure out a way to bring it to fruition. I have several projects I am working on at a time; it really is just about getting out of your own way. Once you can do that, anything is possible and ‘figure-out-able’ as my friend Marie Forleo likes to say.
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SKINCARE
I wash my face a couple times a day and moisturise. I use a sonic care brush with a cleanser. Right now I’m using one from Earth Tu Face – I like to use all natural products – and my toner is from Tata Harper. I’m always trying to switch up what products I use, but am always adding products to my fail-safe collection once I’ve tried and fallen in love with them. My skin can get quite dehydrated too. Drinking lots of water really helps but I also love face oils as they mimic your skins natural oils. Pratima, Earth Tu Face and Rodin all make great ones. Generally, I steer clear from traditional facials. I’ve never broken out much so I try and avoid having someone picking at my face. I do love micro current facials though and love getting them at TAKE CARE in the East Village. I do love their lines and it is exciting that CAP Beauty in the West Village offers facials with those products. My bedtime routine isn’t dissimilar to my morning regime: Sonic Care with the Earth Tu Face Cleansers and Rodin’s Face Oil.
At this time of year when the weather’s changing, I use lighter products with SPF. I love Pratima’s SPF moisturiser. I have always been blessed with nice olive skin, so growing up in Hawaii I did not burn much and so did not take much care in wearing hats or sunscreen. As I get older I can see the effect of not caring for your skin – live and learn!
MAKE-UP
Luckily I started modelling around the time I started wearing make-up so I was fortunate enough to get schooled by professionals. I like to paint though so I like to think I have a good understanding of application and the importance of a light hand. I like to use a cream blush either from RMS or from Kjaer Weis, which I use to shade cheeks and also use on eyes and lips, very lightly. For eyes I just use mascara or sometimes line the insides of the eye in a brown for a more complete look. By night, I usually accent either the lips or eyes for evening, never both. I like to have a clean face with light mascara and a RED lip or I do a lined eye with a little shadow with a bare lip with just a little lip balm for moisture.
HAIR
Having a great head of hair as a model makes a difference: not only are hairdressers more inspired, it also helps to create interesting shapes and attitudes. Nowadays models carry extensions if they do not have thick hair but luckily I never had that issue. My hair has played into my modelling career in many ways. I booked a lot of hair campaigns and I’m able to do Farrah Fawcett hair—which is why I think Ellen von Unwerth asked me to play the crazy prom queen on the cover of Hole’s Live Through This album in the 90s.
I have very thick hair which takes a long time to dry and usually looks better dirty so I can go anywhere from washing my hair once or twice a week to a lot more if I am doing sweaty workouts. For shampoo and conditioner, I’ve used Terax forever. I also love Bumble & Bumble’s Purely Perfect line. It’s a non-foam shampoo, which I like because it doesn’t strip your hair as much. It’s called a cleansing crème.
I love when my hair’s been blown out and I haven’t washed it for four or five days—just dry-shampooed it. Then it’s a contained kind of wild. Serge Normant makes a great dry shampoo that I use. Otherwise I get out of the shower and let it air-dry on its own and use Serge Normant’s Meta Lush Volumizer. I am definitely a hair-undone type of girl, I like to wash and go without much thought, and salt water provides a natural hold so I can let it dry naturally. In the summer, I definitely use more moisture as I am in and out of the ocean so use coconut oil on as much as possible to protect from the salt and sun.
My hair is super thick in some places and thin in others so once I found a hair stylist I trusted, I stuck around. I have been going to my hairdresser Tommy at Serge Normant for at least eight years now and for highlights, I got to Amy Hudson at Marie Robinson because she’s great at the natural blonde look. I like my colour to be dark blonde with golden, just-been-sun-kissed roots—a little lighter on the top. It probably says a lot about my lifestyle that I only see her about twice a year, too. I’m very much an on-the-go, low-maintenance kind of person. I can’t tolerate hair colour that needs to be done every six weeks.
WELLBEING
After modelling for years and being at the beck and call of my schedule, being my own boss allows me to really prioritise. If I am frazzled, I know I need sleep, quiet time and nature. Balance is having enough time for me and just being. I am not happy if life is all work. Being a part of my family is very important as well as me time and friend time. I schedule in my yoga and workout classes as well as girls night and ‘me’ time even if that means getting up a little earlier. I found that if you schedule something it makes it happen. As much as I like to fly by the seat of my pants, I know that a schedule helps everything get executed.
I once read a book and did a test called ‘Discover Your Strengths’, which was super important and helped me understand how I operated. I think that society expects us to be good in all areas but it does help to jump in and to make mistakes and learn about all areas of your business; that way you know the inner workings. At the end of the day though, I think the longer we are in the work mode we realize our flaws in others eyes are actually our strengths, as it is the out of the box thinkers that really come out on top.