“Hallie Gould is a NYC-based Senior Editor at Byrdie. Previously, Hallie wrote for Marie Claire, ELLE, Real Beauty, and Time Out New York. She has a penchant for black clothing, lipstick, and maintaining the intricacies of her (slightly bewildering) skin care routine.”

listen to Hallie's Playlist

Outfit Details: Top, Farrow ; Jeans, Topshop ; Shoes, ASOS — *Outfit Details:* *Top, Farrow* ; *Jeans, Topshop ;* *Shoes, ASOS*

Outfit Details: Top, Finders Keepers ; Skirt, Topshop — *Outfit Details:* *Top, Finders Keepers* ; *Skirt, Topshop*

On Her style

I’m pretty minimalist when it comes to my clothing — I stick to a neutral palette and shy away from most colors and prints. But, like most things, it depends on my mood. I like a lot of texture, so I’m always looking for knits, leathers, suede, velvet, silk... essentially anything fuzzy or soft. Fit is important to me, but not in a traditional sense. I wear oversized clothing most days and find myself attracted to structured silhouettes — big shoulders, uneven hemlines, boxy t-shirts. It’s rare that you’ll ever see me in something “nipped at the waist.”

ON where she shops

I love to rifle through No Relation Vintage, they have amazing finds if you have the time to look. I love Frankie, Oak, Opening Ceremony, Reformation, and Topshop.

on her morning routine

The first thing I do when I wake up is check my email and respond to anything pressing. Then I’ll check morning news links and scroll through Instagram. I make a cup of coffee and mix in a bit of Moon Juice Brain Dust, an adaptogenic potion that is said to increase mental flow. I figure it can’t hurt. Then I apply a Glossier mask and drink my coffee by the window. There’s such nice light over there in the morning.

“Beauty, of course, is about hair and makeup. But for me, it’s become so much more. It’s confidence, it’s positive body image, it’s acceptance. I struggled with those things for a long time. Beauty in its purest form is wildly inclusive — everyone has to wash their face. And once I realized that the whole thing — lipstick, curling irons, eyeshadow, et al — could just be about experimentation, it changed me. And that made me want to change others’ minds as well. My job allows for a lot of creative freedom, I’ve written about everything from herbal tinctures to crystal sex toys. It’s an outlet to satiate my own curiosity and also publish content that is truly serviceable. We do cover celebrities, but I think there’s a way to write about pop culture in a smart and cheeky way.
”

— On Beauty

On Her Beauty Routine

I start by mixing Shiseido tinted moisturizer with Clinique foundation to sheer it out and add a more luminous quality. I apply NARS concealer with a brush and then blend it with my finger to warm it to my skin. Then I brush on some powder (it smells and tastes like chocolate...) and start on my brows. I fill in each brow with a grey powder (brown tends to read more red on pale blondes) and brush them out to make sure the color is evenly distributed. I feather them out with clear brow gel.

My secret trick is to apply nude-colored eyeshadow to my lids and in the corners of my eyes. It helps to open and brighten the eye without actually adding any color. That way, I look better and more awake, but people don’t immediately know why. Same goes with eyeliner, I never wear black eyeliner because it makes my eyes look smaller.

On her skincare routine

I wash my face with Bioelements Flash Foam Cleanser or SK-II Facial Cleansing Oil depending on what I feel like my skin needs. The oil has concentrated pitera — a derived liquid from the sake fermentation process — which blends vitamins, amino acids, and minerals to allow for the surface of your skin to naturally rejuvenate. And it makes your face feel like a cloud. If necessary, I’ll leave a La Prairie peel or Glossier mask on while I finish the rest of my routine. It helps when I’m hungover or if I forgot to wash my makeup off the night before. I spritz on Glossier rose water spray to soften the skin and then moisturize with Lancome Absolue L’Extrait and Clinique eye cream. Most people don’t treat their neck and chest with as much as care as they do their face, but that skin is just as delicate. I slab a ton of moisturizer all over my décolletage twice a day.

On her haircare routine

I wash my hair only once a week because it tends to dry out. But when I do, I use Shu Uemura’s Cleansing Oil Shampoo and the Moisture Velvet Conditioner. Once or twice a month I’ll use a hair mask to moisturize. After the shower, I brush my hair and pump a quarter-size amount of Shu Uemura Essence Absolue oil into my hand and emulsify it between my palms. Then I run it over my ends and let my hair dry about 85%. That way, I don’t have to apply heat for as long and the texture stays intact. I use my blow dryer to dry the rest while my curling iron heats up. I wrap 1 1/2 inch strands around the wand and immediately pull the curl out so it reads more like a wave than a barrel curl. The most important tip is to curl away from your face and leave the root and ends out, so it doesn’t look too “done.” After I’ve made it around my entire head I shake out all the curls and spray dry shampoo to add matte texture.

on the mason Pearson brush

The Mason Pearson brush has always had this great reputation, but I never understood what exactly it did differently. Turns out, it combines boar and nylon bristles, which is easier on your hair than plastic bristles. It doesn’t irritate your scalp and actually prevents split ends, as well as spreads sebum oil in your hair evenly throughout. It’s expensive, but it makes a huge difference in the health of your hair.

On becoming a writer

I guess I always knew I wanted to be a writer, but beauty took a bit of coming around to. I worked a job while I was freelancing that required a full face of makeup every day. Eventually, it waned on my psyche and forced me to question why I wore makeup to begin with. Like, when does wearing makeup stop being about confidence and begin to veer into self doubt? I quit and decided to start getting used to my actual face. Ultimately, it helped me to fall in love with beauty all over again. But this time, for very different reasons.

ON her favorite author

I read a lot of Didion in college and really connected with her writing. Since then, I’ve reread her work a few times and always pulled something different out of it. Her writing is super nostalgic, and speaks to “young people” in a way that is almost magical. I feel like I can imagine the twinkle in her eye as she writes, like she knows I’m eating up every word.