The #ITGTopShelfie interview series focuses on the beauty routines of Into The Gloss’ lovely, accomplished, and loyal community of readers. Submit your own on Instagram—post your Top Shelfie (tag us @intothegloss!) and include the hashtag #ITGTopShelfie for a chance to be featured on ITG.
“Hi! I’m Taylor Tomasi Hill (@ttomasihill), writing from good ol’ Dallas, Texas. I’ve lived in New York and Europe and never pictured myself moving back to my home state. Sometimes I miss the energy, the art, and the architecture, but in general I love it here. Last year I helped launch The Yes, a shopping app that brings together high, low, runway, and emerging fashion brands. It’s super personalized and ranks everything in stock according to what you’ll love and what’s in your size. My official title is Creative and Fashion Director—I get to focus on the fun stuff. I’m a sounding board, a reality checker, a brand advocate, and a tough customer, and have a hand in customer experience, creative, brand partnerships, and social media. My best advice for loving your work? Loving the people you work with. I love finding workplace gems, and I’ve recruited a lot of my team from my past lives in the fashion industry.
I genuinely enjoy fashion, so it’s great that shopping is basically part of my job. I tend to gravitate towards unexpected, lighthearted styles and I mix everything: playful, serious, high, low, masculine, feminine, modern, vintage… When people start getting dressed again, I’m really excited about Huishan Zhang. Each piece is made-to-order, so they’re so wildly unique and special. And my latest denim discovery is Tu Es Mon Tresor. Every pair of jeans is hand-finished in Japan, which is cool. In addition to fashion, my work definitely gets me interested in the beauty community.
I rarely go for beauty trends in my normal day-to-day routine, but have historically had a bad habit of trying new things right before big events—not recommended! It hasn’t done me any favors in the past, so I tend to be a bit gun-shy now. Plus, there’s something about women who embrace their natural beauty that’s so striking to me. Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow, Christy Turlington, Diane Lane… We’re so used to seeing injected, super taut faces that it’s refreshing when someone embraces aging confidently. That being said, I do dabble with Botox—I’m just very aware of making sure I always look like me.
The most defining beauty decision I’ve ever made was coloring my hair red in college. I was an art school student, and went through phases of self-dyed blue, green, and firetruck red streaks. In my junior year I actually went to a professional, and they convinced me to try red. It stuck! Now I tend to wash only two or three times a week, since my hair is extremely dry. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve picked up a blow dryer in the past year—usually I just braid my hair while it’s damp to give it some texture, and once it’s dry I shake out the braid and spray Oribe Texturizing Spray to add volume. I rarely brush my hair. If I do it becomes frizzy, and anyway, I love a messy ‘do; my inspiration is Kelly Wearstler’s perfectly undone coiffure.
Joanna Czech is the best tool in my beauty toolkit. Why, you ask? Joanna is known for diagnosing skin and creating a customized skin regimen for each of her clients, so every product in my routine is part of a strict regimen she prescribed. First, it’s the classic Biologique Recherche power couple: Lait VIP O2 face cleanser and Lotion P50 PIGM 400. Then I mix BR’s Serum T.E.W.L. and Serum Amniotique and pat all over my face and chest. Joanna always says that the face starts at the nipples and ends at the hairline, so I try to wear a deep V-neck tee at night to allow for easy application. Over that I layer Oio Lab Brightening Treatment with Vitamin C. I alternate between the Augustinus Bader Rich Cream and Weleda Skin Food, and finally, a few pats of Royal Fern anti-aging eye cream seals the deal. I really didn’t realize how important it is to prioritize my mug before I started seeing Joanna. I’m super passionate about everything she recommends—I’ve also been testing a lot of her own product line, which is slated to come out this fall.
If it’s morning, I’ll also use Supergoop’s Unseen Sunscreen. And another Supergoop product I love is their Healthy Glow Sunless Tan. It’s taken me years to find a perfect sunless tanner that doesn’t turn orange, go two shades too dark, or smell awful. I love this stuff because it creates a really soft natural glow, though you can also add a new layer daily to make your tan a little darker. It soaks in immediately, so I can put my clothes on after applying without worrying about stains and streaks. And the scent is so faint I can sleep in it without being bothered—or bothering my husband!
My favorite makeup look is just concealer, rouge, and a little smudged lip. I start with Clé de Peau Beauté Concealer in Beige, which is always listed as beauty editors’ favorite for a reason. It’s the absolute best concealer I’ve tried—it stays on for hours and gives great coverage without looking like I’m wearing makeup. I like to use my fingers to warm up, and then apply a little under my eyes, around my nose, and, if I’ve accidentally gotten a little sun on my face, on my vitiligo. Then I blend it out with an Artis brush. If I want a little more coverage because I’m being interviewed or going to an event, I’ll blend two shades, II and III of Westman Atelier’s Vital Skin Foundation in the palm of my hand and apply that all over with my fingers.
The fact that my daily go-to cheek color is MAC rouge in Fleur Power probably dates me, but it’s a classic. Seriously! I’ve been using it since college, and apply it with a small Sephora travel brush. Then if I want a bit more color, which is practically always, I apply Tata Harper’s Cheek Tint in Very Popular on just the apples. I always apply Mustela Nourishing Stick as a matte base for my Bobbi Brown Pink Mauve lip liner, which gives me a stained look rather than a line. Then I give my eyes some love with Glossier Boy Brow, a quick eyelash curl, and RMS mascara. I’m allergic to many beauty products, and I’ve found that to be the best for sensitive eyes. I had been trying to get my hands on Jenna Lyons’ new Loveseen eyelashes for a while—they’re constantly sold out! But I recently received a pair and can’t wait to test drive them for something special. The final touch, especially in the winter months, is Tata Harper’s Concentrated Brightening Essence. I dab a little on top of everything to give my skin a dewy finish, and I’m out the door. Wait, no! One last dab of rouge and then I’m out the door!”
—as told to ITG
Photos via the author