Hailey Bieber talks hockey, her Tim Hortons order and launching her skin care in Canada

“I’m so sorry, my puppy is chewing something that she’s not supposed to be chewing,” Hailey Bieber says over Zoom. She disappears for a moment, leaving me to a view of her sunny backyard, and then pops back into frame clutching a pint-sized pooch. “Sorry, she’s a baby — puppies and plastic!”

The model is wearing a black and white striped turtleneck, her recently shorn bob tucked behind her ears, large gold baubles adorning her lobes. She is at once poised and perky, speaking thoughtfully, smiling easily. Her cheekbones epitomize the “glazed donut” esthetic she’s helped make so famous, flooding the screen with light every time she moves her head.

A major source of that glow — and the reason for our chat today — is her skin care line, Rhode, which, a year after launching in the States, is finally available north of the border. Canadian dermises too can now look as dewy as a still warm Krispy Kreme — or perhaps a honey dip Timbit would be more fitting.

The range, comprising three products so far, is primarily focused on Bieber’s top skin care priority — hydration — something many Canadians can surely relate to. “I hope we can get you guys through those Canadian winters — fingers crossed. It’s gotten me through them,” she says, hinting that Rhode may have been field-tested in husband Justin Bieber’s home country.

Here, Bieber walks us through her skin care routine, shares how she deals with stress and tells us why she loves being married to a Canadian.

I know Rhode is very much your baby, but for anyone out there thinking, “Oh, there goes another celebrity slapping their name on some products,” can you tell me about your involvement in the line?

“I’ve always really wanted to have my own skin care brand and make my own products given the fact that I’ve always been really passionate about it and super interested in trying everything and finding what works for me. Over the years, having been in the modelling and fashion industry, I was able to meet so many amazing makeup artists and facialists and aestheticians, and was really able to develop my philosophy on skin care. And when the pandemic hit, I felt like I finally had the time to sit down and develop what I wanted the brand to be. The name Rhode was always the name that I wanted for my brand. It’s my middle name, maybe for those who don’t know that. From start to launch, it took a little over two years. I think some people maybe don’t know how long the timeline can be for those things. It takes a long time and I was involved in every single step of the way. From the formulations to the packaging to the branding — every single piece of it, I was involved in and I’m so glad that I was because I’m very picky and I would just never want something to go out into the world that didn’t have my hand in every single part of it. I’m the creative director of the brand, but I’m also super heavily involved in all the product development. When we were in the formulation process, we reformulated some of the things 17 times, just because I’m like, ‘It needs to be perfect!’”

Let’s talk about the three products you launched with, starting with the Peptide Glazing Fluid, which is quite unique on the market. What do you love about it?

“I love products that can do more than one thing. Like, I love a lip-eye-cheek [product]. I felt like what we were able to do with the Glazing Fluid is we were able to have this product that was a really interesting hybrid of a gel and a serum and it was a new, different texture with these great ingredients and the focus was your barrier function and keeping your barrier healthy. Hydration is always the biggest thing for me because no matter what your skin type is, you need hydration. We all struggle with dehydration. What we ended up doing with the Glazing Fluid is we had this product that became very multi-functional — a true great hydration product for the skin but also this great product to mix with your makeup and use as almost a highlighter. I use it morning and night. In my morning routine, it’s my serum step. So I use either a toner or an essence and the Glazing Fluid and then sometimes I skip moisturizer and just do SPF, or moisturizer and SPF. And then also, when I’m doing my makeup, I mix it with my foundation, sometimes I mix it with a little bit of blush. I used to always mix moisturizer in with my foundation because I liked the sheer skin finish that it gave it, and I feel like the Glazing Fluid just now tipped that to the next step.”

I also love that you included a lip product because I think there’s nothing worse than having gorgeous, glowing skin and then dry, chapped lips.

“Can’t do it! Can’t do it! [Laughs]”

Why was that important to you?

“The whole line forever is going to be based on what I find to be the essentials and that will expand in other categories eventually as well. I was like, ‘What would be the three things [I’d want] if I was going to get on a flight?’ Because as part of my job since I was 17, I’ve travelled so much and planes kill the skin. [Laughs] It’s so hard to travel and keep your skin healthy, so I was thinking what would be the three things that, desert island, on a plane, like if I really had to choose, and it would be a great serum, a great moisturizer and a great lip product. I can survive and live off of those three things. And I think people tend to categorize lip as a separate thing a lot of the time, whereas for me, I think our lips are such an important part of our skin care because they’re such a prominent part of the face. And I also just hate dry lips! I’ve used a lot of things on my lips where you put it on and then 30 minutes later it feels like it kind of absorbed and went away, so I wanted to make something that really felt like a seal and a treatment that was going to stay on the lips. We were doing all this hydration testing and testing how long the wear would be and my biggest tell is that if you put it on and you go to sleep, if when you wake up, it’s still on the lips and it still feels hydrating, that was the biggest sign to me that it would last all those hours. So once we got it there, I was really excited, because I was like, ‘all right, now I know.’

I use it all day, every day. I have it on right now with a liner. I love to do just a neutral lip liner and put it over. I’ve done a full liner-lipstick and then over the lipstick. I feel like it plays really nice with other products as well, so it’s really easy to use, and then I put it on every night before I go to sleep. I wanted to make all these products to be what my actual forever go-to’s are going to be. I didn’t want to put it out into the world unless I was really going to be using them all the time. I’ve been using these products for even longer than they’ve been out because I’ve been testing them for so long, and I still love them, and I think for me, that’s how I know we maybe got something good going.”

Rounding out the range is the Barrier Restore Cream. What were you aiming for when creating your dream moisturizer?

“I’m the type of person where I can do a really thick, heavy moisturizer. I like to sometimes layer things, especially at night, but I really wanted to find something that was going to be a more universal feeling moisturizer that’s good for the daytime and the nighttime. So I was looking for a texture that felt thick without feeling greasy or heavy, that felt like it really soaked into the skin, that played well under makeup, that worked well with other products, that just felt like a good layer on the skin and that had ingredients that I really trust and stand by. It took like 16-17 different iterations to get it there and that’s just because, again, I’m really, really picky, and I wanted the texture to be great and I wanted the feel to be great. I think we really landed on an everyday AM-PM moisturizer that I think has worked for a lot of people.”

So we’ve talked about products, but another huge part of skin care is of course lifestyle. Do you have any lifestyle habits you’ve found have helped your skin?

“You know, I think that there is truth to ‘What you put in your body shows on the outside.’ I think that trying to just be kind to your body is a big thing. I’m a big believer in just being conscious of what you eat and exercise and drinking water and staying hydrated and all of those things, but I’m also not the type of person who’s going to sit here and be like, ‘Yeah, all you have to do is eat super healthy,’ because I also love food and I’m going to eat what I want to eat. But I just think that it’s something that I’m aware of and know. Like, if I eat a bunch of sugar, I’m probably going to break out and so be it. We all have to have our days.”

Stress is another big factor that can impact our skin. What are some ways you manage stress and protect your peace?

“Nature, getting outside. I really love cold plunging or like a freezing 30-second shower at the end of a shower. There’s just a lot of science behind that that I think is really interesting. It’s very good for your mood and anxiety and depression and all these things, so that has been something that I’ve noticed a big difference with and that’s helped me.”

You mentioned getting to work with some of the best facialists and estheticians in the world. What are the biggest skin lessons you’ve learned from them?

“I’m such a big believer in less is more but when you talk to these really knowledgeable aestheticians where this is their whole life, this is all that they do, and they’re telling you that less is more a lot of the times too, I find that to be eye-opening because I think from people’s perspectives, they think that it’s like lasers and all these things that you’re doing for your skin all the time. And I’ve found that most people just recommend a good basic routine that you stay on top of and maybe a facial once a month or every other month. It’s really just about maintenance and that’s what I’ve found that a lot of people have told me in that space.”

We’ve touched on skin care, but I’d love to know what other beauty products you’re loving these days.

“I’ve been using this — it’s actually Jennifer Aniston’s brand — it’s called Lolavie, and she has this kind of leave-in conditioner situation. My hair gets very greasy very easily so a lot of the time, leave-in conditioners and products like that don’t work for me. But this one in particular does not make my hair greasy. It makes my hair smooth and detangles it — it’s so great. I’ve been using it for a while now and I love it.”

Any makeup faves at the moment?

“I’m using a lot of testers that we’ve been testing so that’s something that is definitely going to come down the line. But I also love the new Tower 28 balm bronzer. It’s so good. I love Tower 28 — their stuff is amazing.”

OK, to celebrate Rhode coming to Canada, I have a few Canadian-themed questions for you. First up, what is your go-to Tim Hortons order?

“My go-to Tim Hortons order is a French vanilla — looove a French vanilla — and a double chocolate doughnut and then sometimes a hash brown because their hash browns are so good.”

I feel like we need a special-edition Rhode glazed donut at Tims!

“Maybe! We did have Timbiebs. I’ll attach myself to that just slightly because, you know, we share a last name!”

Next question, do you like hockey and if so, what’s your favourite team?

“Yes! My favourite hockey team is the Toronto Maple Leafs — obviously! I could never say that it was something else because that would just be blasphemous for my in-laws and my husband, so we’re going to go with the Maple Leafs. Although, before I was married, I would have said it was the New York Rangers.”

Lastly, what do you love most about Canada?

“I love the people in Canada. It’s so true when people say that the people in Canada are just the nicest. I also just love the nature and the beauty of Canada. I think it’s one of the most stunning places ever. I love the seasonal change — I mean, it gets freezing in Canada, but I love that because I’m from the east coast and yeah, I just love it. I’m so happy to be married into a Canadian family.”

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Katherine Lalancette is the beauty and lifestyle director of The Kit. She writes about beauty and trends. Reach her on email at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter: @kik_tweets

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