Paloma Elsesser Isn’t Falling for TikTok Beauty Trends

It’s hard to think of Paloma Elsesser without immediately picturing her skin: radiant and impeccable, as though it were crafted by god himself. So the obvious question is, was she born with it? The answer, as I found out earlier this week, is both yes and no. Genetics may have blessed the 33-year-old model, but she’s not leaving the rest to fate. Her regimen runs the gamut from chemical peels to microneedling to a steady schedule of lymphatic drainage facials. And yet, for all the behind-the-scenes effort, Elsesser insists she’s not a maximalist. “Like, 98% of my products don’t look pretty,” she says with a laugh, explaining why she swears by a mix of pared-back, science-based essentials and the occasional drugstore gem (including a Vanicream cleanser). Once her routine was laid out, she was game to tackle my avalanche of beauty questions, sounding off on everything from beef tallow and IV drips to peptides, NAD, and the curious rise of baby facelifts.

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SANDSTROM: You were on vacation, right? Where were you?

ELSESSER: I’m perpetually on vacation these days. I was in Mexico with my girlfriends.

SANDSTROM: Okay, let’s jump in. The first thing I wanted to know was what your go-to summer skincare products are.

ELSESSER: Okay, it’s naughty but I use exfoliating lotions just because I use so much sunscreen and I don’t want any clogging. So every few days I’ll do an AHA/BHA peel pad from Neova. Or I’ll use the now discontinued [Biologique Recherche] P50 one, or this one from my facialist at Rescue Spa called Danucera. And afterwards I pack some moisture back in. I love the Laneige Cream Skin Toner and Moisturizer with ceramides and peptides. And then I use Vanicream cleanser.

SANDSTROM: Ooh.

ELSESSER: Yeah, I’m just a simple girl when it comes to that. And for sunscreen, lately I’ve been using actually the Laneige one or the Innisfree. Actually my favorite is from Ultra Violette, it’s called Queen Screen.

SANDSTROM: Wait, going back a little bit, are you not supposed to exfoliate in the summer?

ELSESSER: It’s fine. If you’re just giving New York summer and you’re not baking in the sun, you just have to be consistent with sunscreen. I have really tight pores, so products can get trapped really easily. I get closed comedones, so I need to really clean those out.

SANDSTROM: Are you a Tretinoin user?

ELSESSER: I am not. I use retinols more in the winter, but I use the non-prescription stuff.

SANDSTROM: I was recently indoctrinated into the Tretinoin lifestyle.

ELSESSER: Do you like it?

SANDSTROM: I’m peeling from it, but apparently it has to be bad before it gets good.

ELSESSER: Do you have acne-prone skin?

SANDSTROM: Not really, but it was more for pores and fine lines. I was like, “I want to look like a baby for the rest of my life, obviously. A big, glowing baby.”

ELSESSER: Do you know about the sandwich method?

SANDSTROM: Yeah, I’ve been sandwiching. Are you completely makeup-free in the summer, by the way?

ELSESSER: During the day, for sure. It’s giving an eyelash curl and maybe a brow gel. Maybe I’ll give myself a little blush. I like a little bit of a sunburned look without being sunburned.

SANDSTROM: What blush are you using right now? There’s so many, I get overwhelmed.

ELSESSER: There’s so many. My bible is Benetint, like the blood tint. It’s super old-school.

SANDSTROM: That is old-school.

ELSESSER: I will love it forever. It’s unclockable, the actual product itself, because it’s watery. It’s not cream, not powder. I love the way that it melts into the skin. But I also use a MERIT one that I like.

SANDSTROM: Oh, that’s like the little round stick one right?

ELSESSER: Yeah. I like their color range. They have a really beautiful plummy one.

SANDSTROM: I like that one because it’s really sheer so I can really rub it on. But my mom stole mine.

ELSESSER: Your mom?

SANDSTROM: Yeah, she loves it.

ELSESSER: That’s so cute. I always say MERIT is like a grown up Glossier.

SANDSTROM: It really is. Next on the list, slugging. Yes or no?

ELSESSER: I don’t even know. No? I try not to get too wrapped up in TikTok beauty jargon. I take it all with a grain of salt, and the only person that I trust with my life is my dermatologist, Shereene Idriss. She’s like, “Slugging is just like, whatever.”

SANDSTROM: Wait, is your derm also your facialist or different?

ELSESSER: No, they’re different. With my derm I’ll do PRP [Platelet-Rich Plasma] under my eyes or Botox, things like that.

SANDSTROM: Remind me who your facialist is again?

ELSESSER: I go to a couple different ones, but I go to Rescue Spa more consistently just because I like BR [Biologique Recherche] and Valmont products. Sometimes I see Gill from Skin by Gill and I’ll do some micro-needling with her.

SANDSTROM: Cute. I don’t get facials often but last time I went I saw there were all of these lymphatic options?

ELSESSER: I have a lymphatic woman who does that for me.

SANDSTROM: Really?

ELSESSER: Yeah. She’s amazing.

SANDSTROM: So she’s just draining you? Is it just a little light massage by hand?

ELSESSER: She’s a bit more manual. It’s not the pressing kind. She uses some tools, but she’s head to toe. I have a massage bed at my house and I get regular massages and lymphatic massages pretty often.

SANDSTROM: Do you feel like you can see a difference in your face after?

ELSESSER: Yes. And getting it at home now has changed the whole situation. I literally have a massage bed that sits next to my beauty cabinet in my bedroom.

SANDSTROM: That’s amazing. You should send pictures of that over.

ELSESSER: Oh, you’ll fucking die. You think that you think you know what it is, and it’s bigger than that. Ali, what would you describe the size of the beauty cabinet?

ALI: Oh, it’s like an armoire.

ELSESSER: It’s not a cabinet, correct. It’s a beauty armoire.

SANDSTROM: Have you had Botox before?

ELSESSER: Yeah. Not like… I’m super like… [Wiggles eyebrows up] You see it’s–

SANDSTROM: Oh, so it’s like a casual Botox?

ELSESSER: Yeah, I’m very conservative. I don’t do filler.

SANDSTROM: That sounds like the right way to do it?

ELSESSER: I’m not against it, it’s just a preference. I actually think filler is amazing. I just feel like it’s a bit harder with my job and stuff. I think that the main objective should be leading with your own anatomy and not using the reference of someone. Everyone has a completely different face, a completely different anatomy. It’s just impossible to be like, “I want Angelina Jolie’s lips.” That’s when people end up looking fucking insane.

SANDSTROM: Apparently it’s such a thing now where young girls bring in pictures of people to their doctors.

ELSESSER: I think people have always brought in pictures. I’ve had two breast surgeries and I had to look at pictures of people. But it was harder to find references of breasts where I was like, “Oh, I like this on larger sized bodies.”

SANDSTROM: Right.

ELSESSER: So I would look at porn to find pictures. [Laughs] It was crazy. I was like, “Oh! Plus-size porn.” It was very helpful.

SANDSTROM: Wait, that’s so funny. Did the girls in the porn videos have fake breasts ?

ELSESSER: Some were natural, some were fake.

SANDSTROM: And then you did a screenshot moodboard from the videos?

ELSESSER: Correct.

SANDSTROM: That’s amazing.

ELSESSER: It’s a smart idea, no? Me looking at porn from an anthropological zone.

SANDSTROM: Was your doctor like, “What the fuck?”

ELSESSER: No. He was like, “That’s really smart.”

SANDSTROM: That’s inspiring. What do you think about the uptick in filler and baby facelifts in young girls?

ELSESSER: There’s obviously a lot of commentary on the beauty zeitgeist, but I try not to be too judgmental because I can empathize. It’s not our fault or their fault. But also I think it is dangerous to lead with trend-driven cosmetic work because it can shift so fast. I had a breast reduction and then I had them re-lifted when I lost weight. I did it for me and how I wanted to dress and my posture and all these things, and I don’t think that’s a trend derivative. Do you get what I’m saying?

SANDSTROM: Yeah.

ELSESSER: Although I don’t think that perkier breasts are going to go out of style soon. That’s been a through line through time. However, getting a huge BBL has already in the last five to seven years shifted, or cat-eye surgery. But it doesn’t mean that I’m not susceptible to those desires.

SANDSTROM: Right.

ELSESSER: When I desire things I ask, “Well, what about in five years?” I think filler can get taken away from its fundamental use, which is balancing and creating volume where you don’t have it. It becomes about trying to look like someone else, and I think that’s unsustainable.

SANDSTROM: When you speak about your breasts, to me that has so much more to do with comfort, like how you feel in your clothes and your bras. Whereas a BBL feels specifically like an aesthetic-based thing.

ELSESSER: But I also know girls that have really subtle ones and that’s like, “Cool. Whoa. You want to feel better in your pants? It exists.” We fluctuate constantly between these trends, and it’s funny how it connects to economy and conservatism and politics. These things are all interconnected and people don’t think critically about how we are ultimately indoctrinated into these ideas. It all percolates from real sociopolitical things happening. Now we’re moving into this time of political conservatism, so things are more traditional. Five or six years ago it was about… Think about logomania and the BBL era connecting at the same time. Do you get what I’m saying?

SANDSTROM: [Laughs] I do.

ELSESSER: But it’s like now we’re in this weird scarcity, not taking up too much space, this obsession with apartness. The younger generation obviously values authenticity, but they’re so anti-cringe.

SANDSTROM: I read an article recently about how if everyone can be so thin because of Ozempic, then the next body trend will be like the hardcore Pilates body, like just totally shredded women.

ELSESSER: That’s really interesting. It makes sense in a post-Ozempic era. I think there’s going to be a lot more facelifts happening at a younger age because of the rapid weight loss.

SANDSTROM: My next question is very different. What’s your favorite scent right now?

ELSESSER: The consistent one that I’ve used forever is Nuit de Cellophane from Serge Lutens. But as of last week I’ve been obsessed with this new scent. It’s randomly by Guerlain. I tried it at the spa that I was at and I was just absolutely obsessed. There’s a day-timey one and a night-timey one, Néroli Outrenoir and Jasmin Bonheur. I like scents, they’re so experiential. I do this weird little thing where sometimes I spray perfume on my skin at night because it’s sexy and fun and flirty.

SANDSTROM: God, so do I. When I wash my face at night I like to spray little testers of perfumes just to fill up the room so I feel like I’m at a spa or something.

ELSESSER: Exactly. I feel like Elizabeth Taylor. And then you wake up and your face is clean and your body and your bed smells cute. Sometimes I’ll do a dab of rose oil.

SANDSTROM: I just got solid perfume for the first time.

ELSESSER: That’s cute. It’s good for the purse.

SANDSTROM: Yeah, maybe more of an object than anything of use.

ELSESSER: Which one are you using?

SANDSTROM: I don’t know. I was just in Marseille and I got it from that huge homeware store that everyone is obsessed with [Maison Empereur].

ELSESSER: Yes. I haven’t been but I know all about this homeware store.

SANDSTROM: I could have spent three or four hours there. My cart was just absolutely psycho by the end.

ELSESSER: That is a dangerous place for me because that is my shit.

SANDSTROM: But yeah, I’m going to see what the solid perfume can do for me. Anyway, what about IV drips?

ELSESSER: I hate IV drips. I find them so uncomfortable. Recently I went on a peptide journey.

SANDSTROM: Were you injecting them? I’m deep into reading about peptides right now.

ELSESSER: Yeah. They’re amazing, but it’s just a little annoying. I travel so much and I’m not trying to bring this weird refrigerated thing and all these needles. But I’ve done it and I do feel better. I have a friend who’s on the copper one and apparently it’s amazing.

SANDSTROM: That’s the one I was reading about. It seems like a really crazy commitment.

ELSESSER: Wait, the copper ones for skin and hair right?

SANDSTROM: Mm-hmm. And then there’s the NAD injectables, which people talk about a lot.

ELSESSER: I know. I did NAD in an IV once and I felt like I had smoked meth. I just was like, “Yo, this is nuts.” But I think it can be less intense if the bag is mixed with Glutathione or Vitamin C.

SANDSTROM: Yeah, I’ve heard that NAD makes you really nauseous and you should do it over six hours if you can, really slowly.

ELSESSER: Yeah. I’m just like, “I can’t be bothered.” But I’m not against it. If I had a more consistent schedule, I’d probably be into peptides more.

SANDSTROM: What’s a skincare trend that you detest?

ELSESSER: Oh, the whole “Morning Shed” situation. That shit is insane.

SANDSTROM: What is that?

ELSESSER: You ever see on TikTok where the girls sleep with the rollers, the bonnet, the eye mask, the mouth tape? It’s just too much, girl. And then they film in the morning shedding all of it.

SANDSTROM: Oh, they pull it all off?

ELSESSER: Yeah. You don’t need all of those products on your face. And beef tallow. It sounds fucking nasty to me. It’s also not supported scientifically.

SANDSTROM: Yeah. I’ve used it and I don’t think it did what my moisturizers can do.

ELSESSER: I do believe in natural products for people, but I also think that we’re so lucky to exist in a time with such sophisticated formulas. And when I say sophisticated, I don’t mean like, “Oh, sheet packaging,” I mean actually sophisticated formulas, informed by research.

SANDSTROM: Totally. What do you think about celeb makeup brands and skincare brands? Obviously we’re still up to our ears in them.

ELSESSER: It’s a lot. Hailey [Bieber] is my girl and she really did her research and found her market. It’s beautiful to see her thrive with amazing products, because I think there was an era where the product wasn’t matching the person. Like yes, you’re a major celeb, but your product is shit. And now I think that the bar’s pretty high, but it does make me sad though that this overwhelming celebrity-pushed market pushes out other amazing products. I try not to be too influenced and just use what works for me. I’m a bit more of a science girl.

SANDSTROM: Yeah.

ELSESSER: Like, 98% of my products don’t look pretty. There’s parts of beauty for me that I’m very experimental with. I really, really, really value and enjoy body care stuff. It’s so memory-driven and such a beautifully specific way to lean into how you care about yourself. That’s where I’m not super science-driven. I love scents and oils and lotions and potions and things like that. Also, body care is a place that I feel like is often abandoned.

SANDSTROM: I’m personally soap obsessed. What are your favorites?

ELSESSER: I love an oil-to-cleanser formula. I love L’Occitane almond oil one. I’ve used that very consistently for a very long time. I also like bar soap, because most times I’m home I use washcloths every day. I collect soaps from all over the world. I love the experience of shower care.

SANDSTROM: I’ve always wondered why I loved my shower routine so much and recently I realized it’s probably because I can’t be anxious in the shower. It is the one time I’m so present.

ELSESSER: Yeah. For me it’s such an easy way to feel connected to my body and feel good. I feel best naked and lathered in potions.

SANDSTROM: My final question is, what are your fall predictions for hair and beauty?

ELSESSER: That’s a really good question. What do you think they are?

SANDSTROM: I’m thinking thinner eyebrows, thicker eyeliners. Sherbert colored nails. Frosty make up. And I think straggly is coming back for good.

ELSESSER: Like greasy hair?

SANDSTROM: Yeah.

ELSESSER: For sure. I think people are simplifying and stripping things back. 10-step beauty routines have reached the pinnacle. Sometimes if I just wash my face and put on my favorite moisturizer, I’m doing great and that’s enough. And sometimes I don’t even want to fucking wash my face.

SANDSTROM: Thanks for saying that ’cause same.

ELSESSER: Oh my god. And sometimes I just don’t.

SANDSTROM: This was so fun.

ELSESSER: Oh my god. Thank you.

SANDSTROM: Have a great rest of your day.

ELSESSER: You too. Bye, baby.