Bella Hadid uses the word “excited” no less than seven times during our interview. But she really is, especially since launching her new fragrance line, Orebella, moving to Texas, and taking a step back from modeling. Her happiness radiates, even over Zoom, where her beachy hair and broad grin fill up the computer screen.
“I’ve been waiting for this baby to come out,” she squeals, referencing Nightcap, the newest perfume. Like Salted Muse, Window2Soul, and Blooming Fire before it, Nightcap has a unique bi-phase formula that has to be shaken to “activate.” Each perfume is also like a memory orb, Inside Out-style, into Hadid’s mind and elements of her personality. Below, Hadid talked to ELLE.com about her great summer, mini animals, the rise of vanilla perfume, and the high school memories that inspired her newest fragrance.
How has your summer been going?
It’s been great. I’ve been horse showing a lot. I went to Amsterdam to work for a little bit, and saw my family. [In the past], I would take the train over from Paris or London and see them for [just] a day. Now, with my schedule being more relaxed, I have the privilege of being able to push my flight and be with my cousins, my aunt, and my uncle for a couple of days. And now I’m back to riding, working on my Orebella stuff, and excited about the launch.
Why a fourth fragrance? How would you describe the scent profile?
To me, the three fragrances we launched are like a beautiful little family, and Nightcap is the “Lone Ranger.” She’s strong, fierce, and needed to stand on her own. It was the first idea I had six years ago, and I originally wanted it to be the first fragrance. My team has been trying to teach me about patience.
I knew I wanted a vanilla scent. And now, I’m seeing all these vanilla scents, but I’ve been concocting this for five years! But I think it’s important to be able to wait, and everything is in God’s timing.
And the name inspiration? I’m curious, because Nightcap can refer to an alcoholic beverage, but you’ve talked about sobriety in the past.
I wanted it to be a vanilla, spicy, ginger, cardamom scent, and the first [name] that came to mind was Nightcap, because it [had] a hot toddy, bourbon-y kind of energy. I had this nostalgic scent idea of a girl’s locker room, and that sweet, sweet vanilla smell everyone had [at the time]. I love vanilla. I love to cook with it. I love to wear it. I love vanilla candles. But I wanted to make something seductive, mature, youthful, and sweet, that still has the spiciness of the ginger. I was drinking cardamom tea when I was like, “What if we just add a little cardamom in there?” It really made it all come together.
But Nightcap was actually the name of one of my best-friend-favorite horses of all time. I went to the finals in high school with [Nightcap], the love-of-my-life horse.
Each of my fragrances represent different parts of my soul, personality, and character traits. It’s about being able to make little connections that the universe puts together for you. This one is really an ode to my teenage years and growing up. Horses have been everything to me since I was a kid. [This would have been] named after an alcoholic beverage. But at the same time, it’s really about my high school experience, my horse, and what that meant to me. I think I will eventually put out a smell that is more horse-y and more leather-y and beautiful.
It smells like a root beer float to me.
I love that. I want people to go into their own mind and be playful. It’s like a game of, “What can you smell?” But yes, like a root beer float or a gingery cream soda. There are so many different ways you can interpret it and that, to me, is the most fun part of fragrance.
What was your first scent memory?
My grandmother on my mom’s side never really wore perfume, so maybe her Nivea face lotion. My mom has worn Jo Malone. She makes a house a home, and had a candle lit in every room. She has [showed me] how scent can really [create] an atmosphere. But being in a Arab household, like the family on my dad’s side, there are a lot of scents constantly, whether it be spices, essential oils, candles, or incense.
I saw you posted on Instagram about how Orebella is animal-friendly, along with a cute carousel of animals.
Yes, we have two mini ponies, Muku and Mama. Then Funky and Bam Bam, which are the pygmy goats. I have my big horses and four mini animals. It was really important for me from the beginning to be vegan, PETA-certified, dermatologist-tested, and alcohol-free. We are one of four brands that has all of them. I said, “If we can’t do it now, I’ll wait 10 years until it’s possible.” I wanted something that’s not only good for me, my family, friends, and human beings in general, but also for the environment and animals, and all the things I care about on a daily basis.
How do you communicate your ideas to your team?
I make a lot of PowerPoint presentations. There are some really cool people that have a clean desktop screen, and mine looks like the ’30s to the 2000s just threw up all over. I’m such a visual person, but I like to keep some things in order when it comes to my work or ideas.
We also have so many group chats, always sending references, ideas, or new things. We’re a very collaborative team, which is really, really fun. We are small and just seven people, so we talk every day. All of the campaigns we’ve done are ideas that I had from conception.
People often pick up a new skill or hobby in the summer. Have you?
This summer, I biked a lot when I was in Amsterdam. But I’ve really just been focusing on this new, beautiful hobby of mine, a different version of riding horses than I’ve never seen or experienced before. To be able to go headfirst into something new, and try to be the best that I can be at it, is an accomplishment for me in and of itself. It just makes me excited.
But I’m going to L.A. this week and will see my friends, have some girl time, do some art projects, and swim in the ocean. To me, that is rejuvenation. So I’m very excited about that.
What kind of art projects do you guys like to do?
We like to paint, including painting pottery and ceramics. I love to glass blow.
I’ve seen them all. I’ve seen every episode. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to make eggs, waffles, and bacon [out of glass], but I [can] definitely make an ashtray, a small cup, or a toothbrush. It’s fun. You get to mix colors, and it’s very creative. I like being in the zone and putting all my focus into something like that. When it comes to art, it’s meditation for me.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Kathleen Hou is ELLE”s Beauty Director. Previously, she held the same title at New York Magazine’s The Cut. She’s appeared in publications such as New York, The New York Times Magazine, Vogue India, Forbes, and Allure. She was also a co-founder of Donate Beauty, a grassroots beauty donation project started during the COVID-19 crisis, which donated over 500,000 products to over 30,000 healthcare workers across 500+ hospitals.