I meet Paulina Porizkova at Claridges, which is fitting. The Tiffany blue stripes on the teacups are a perfect match for the Estée Lauder bags nestled beside her. Even in the picture-book setting, Porizkova is striking, one of those people you assume is a model before you've even been introduced. Tall, poised and immaculately put together - hair freshly blow-dried, lips recently glossed - she radiates a level of otherworldly-ness that speaks to her modelling legacy.
Porizkova rose to the fame as a model in the '80s before transitioning into acting and more recently writing - in 2022 she published No Filter, a series of essays that examine the complexities of being a woman. She landed her first Estée Lauder campaign in 1988 (for a perfume called Knowing) and now, more than 30 years later, she is returning to the brand, not of the face as a campaign but as a Global Ambassador and she intends on making her mark.
On her return to Estée Lauder
'Estée Lauder as a brand means a great deal to me, it has such a legacy and of course I hung out with Estée Lauder herself, who was a powerhouse. She was a woman who made things happen, the original badass, that's Estée Lauder, so it's pretty fabulous to be working with a company with that sort of history. Back in the '80s when I first started working with them, I was this arrogant youth, I didn't have the same level of appreciation for the company, it was a job, you know?'
'Since then, the world has changed a lot. I think it was brave of them as a brand to ask me to come back, they know I'm never going be some token old lady in a campaign, I see this as a platform to spread the word that the second part of your life is the best part of your life, that you shouldn't be ashamed of looking your age. Now is the that, as women, we really come into our power - I've been shouting about this on Instagram for a while now and now I have Estée Lauder on board too. We need to celebrate women of all ages. Sure young women are wonderful, but what about us? I refuse to be invisible.'
On starting out as a model in the '80s
'I was a rented face and a rented body, there was a lot of lounging around mansions and looking remote, icy, but beautiful, that used to be the brief. And it's funny, because take the camera away and I was the exact opposite. As an Estée Lauder woman people imagined me shopping at Saks, but I used to find punk stores in New York, I was a 22-year-old who wanted to dye her hair green.'
On going against the grain
'I think I'm predisposed to being slightly radical about things. I was 15 when I started modelling in Paris and I had what were considered funny teeth - I had a gap between every tooth and so for five years I was told never to open my mouth in pictures, it was seen as unattractive. I could have had them fixed, many people at the time would have done, but no, I kept my teeth until I was 21 and still managed tote on the cover of everything including Sports Illustrated. Then I did a movie and decided to get them done, I felt didn't have anything else to prove at that point. It's a similar story when it comes to wrinkles - I feel like I have a point to prove - I don't need to change, beauty standards need to change.'
On reframing the concept of ageing
'I'm feeling more vibrant and more alive at 60 than I have most of my life. I'm about pro-ageing, not anti-ageing and as for the phrase "ageing gracefully", who the hell does that? That's not to say that I'm against the various steps people take to preserve their looks, do whatever you want, my problem is with the narrative that puts youth on a pedestal. Because as long as we keep trying to erase signs of age to look younger, we're telling the younger generation that being young is better. And that's not necessarily the case. I see the various stages of my life as seasons - it's like spring, summer, fall, winter right? And in my eyes no one season is better than another, they're different. Right now I'm in my fall season - it's autumn and I'm feeling pretty hot.'
The First Estée Lauder Product Paulina Fell In Love With
It's a cult classic for a reason.
Estée Lauderwww.lookfantastic.com
When it comes to skincare it's hard to get more iconic than Estée Lauder's Advanced Night Repair Recovery Serum. Made with famed moisture magnet hyaluronic acid, it draws moisture to your skin and keeps it there.
What the brand says: 'Deep nightly renewal. Unfiltered morning radiance. This deep- and fast-penetrating face serum, with our exclusive 1-in-60-million Night Peptide, harnesses 40 years of pioneering Night Science Research. Skin looks smoother and less lined, younger, healthier—more radiant and even toned.'
What Paulina says: 'First it was Knowing, because that was the first Estée Lauder product I ever tried. I really love that fragrance. My second would be Advanced Night Repair Serum, or Night Repair as it used to be called. I used it when I was younger and didn’t even need it. Here I am using it still, and now I can truly see a difference.'
Annie Vischer is beauty director at Grazia. Annie was previously beauty editor across a number of lifestyle titles at TI Media (now Future Plc) including Woman & Home magazine and Feel Good You. Annie has over a decade-worth of experience as a beauty journalist under her belt and is an established authority in the beauty industry, known for covering skincare, make-up, hair care, body care, treatments and wellness in print, online and across social media.