One of the best things about Angelina Jolie’s Guerlain contract is that she’s now contractually obligated to give interviews to promote a beauty/fragrance brand, and that means Angelina has to sit there and answer questions about beauty, makeup, perfume and such. She’s historically avoided being that kind of celebrity woman, the kind who loves talking about those kinds of things. Angelina’s brand as a celebrity has been “mother of six/humanitarian” for years and years. Her idea of being a girly-girl was having someone else do her makeup and then throwing on a sack dress. So it’s fascinating to me that now, at long last, we are hearing her thoughts about all of this stuff. Angelina sat down with InStyle to discuss Guerlain and beauty and more. You can read the full piece here. Some highlights:
She wasn’t into makeup as a kid: “I’m sure I had my moments when I was little where I would put makeup all over my face, but I was a bit of a tomboy. And then I was a bit of a punk. Nowadays it’s very popular to dye your hair blue, for example. In my day you bleached it and used a Sharpie [for color].”
Zahara loves makeup: “I’ve never gone to a girlfriend’s house and played makeup. I’m not one of those women who say, “Hey, let’s have a night and do each other’s hair.” I’ve never been that, but I find that really sweet. I buy a lot, especially for Z [Zahara]. She went through a period of trying different things, but she’s pretty natural. I remember she had a girlfriend over one night, and they said they were going to do dress-up and did I have any makeup? I gave them my makeup, but I wear one color red, and I have black eyeliner and mascara—I have the most boring makeup kit. And my daughter and I are different shades of brown. I now have a backup kit in case anybody wants to play
Whether she likes to play up one of her features: “It really depends. I do either dark eyes or red lips. I have very full, big features, so if I did everything, I’d look a bit like a clown. It’d be just…a lot.
How she first discovered Guerlain: “My mother [Marcheline Bertrand] wore very little makeup. But she had a few items for a special event or holiday, and they were always Guerlain. There were little scents and powders, and I would occasionally mess with them. I remember thinking, “That’s not the everyday stuff. That’s from Paris!”
Whether she wears perfume: “[When I’ve tried] on a perfume just for fun, my children have gotten upset. [They’d say,] “It doesn’t smell like you.” I wear Mon Guerlain. Before that I wore a different scent that was very random, but it had similar notes. As I was making this decision [to be the face of Mon Guerlain], I tested it with the kids. They recognized enough of it, and they liked it. I wear it, and Zahara wears it. I’m a terrible liar, so I couldn’t promote something I didn’t actually like.
Finding the time to pamper herself: “[That’s] pretty funny. I’m that person saying “Can you not all be talking to me while I’m in the shower? Can you just not open the door at least? Let me finish and then I’ll get out. Give me a second.” “Give me a second” is the thing. I think most mothers say that all the time. Which now I can’t because my kids kind of go, “One. I gave you a second.”
On social media: “It’s funny—I feel like decades ago, to be different was actually the thing you wanted. Now I think it seems to be more desired to be with the masses, to blend, or be as good as or be similar to. My children don’t really do a lot of social media. I’m hoping they’ll have room to figure out what they like before they’re told by a bunch of other people what they should like or how they’re being perceived….Beauty—everybody has a different opinion about what that is. Intellect is the most beautiful. When you see somebody who has a mind on fire, that’s sexy. A person who is empathetic and thoughtful and passionate—there’s nothing more attractive than that. There’s nothing you could wear or put on your face to cover up if your mind is blank and your heart is dark.
Being known as one of the most beautiful women in the world: “Thank you. I look in the mirror and I see that I look like my mother, and that warms me. I also see myself aging, and I love it because it means I’m alive—I’m living and getting older. Don’t love having a random dark spot from a pregnancy, sure. I see my flaws. But what I see that I like isn’t about a structure or an appearance. It’s more that I see my family in my face. I see my age.
“There’s nothing you could wear or put on your face to cover up if your mind is blank and your heart is dark…” Well, lots of dumb people coast by on their good looks, and lot of dark-hearted people are pretty too, but I know what she’s saying – if you’re dumb or mean, that sh-t will catch up to you and there will always be something ugly about you, inside and out. I also love that Angelina is In-My-Daying about hair dye. IN MY DAY really hardcore people had to bleach their hair and use Sharpies, peeps. As for the rest of it… I’ll admit, I was in heaven with this interview. I love it.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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