If you’re looking for the next best skincare treatment, look no further than Nicole Bryl. With over 3 decades of experience under her belt, the makeup guru turned founder of Nicole Bryl Skincare is the go-to for all things beauty, especially when it comes to skincare treatments and all things surrounding.
Beyond just doing one’s makeup, it’s Nicole’s overall experience that she provides, forming and bonding a friendship that is unmatched when it comes to making that person feel and look the best they possibly can.
Now, Nicole Bryl continues with her newest venture: the 4-minute anti-aging Vitamin C skincare treatment. Used daily, the 4-step method skin prep was invented in Nicole’s own kitchen and is now loved and utilized by all her clients before applying their makeup. While the testimonials have been raving, it’s Nicole’s own personal use of the product now at age 50, that speaks for its own success story.
Flaunt caught up with Nicole via Zoom to discuss her roots in New York, how she fell into skincare and beauty, the making of her new handcrafted 4-minute anti-aging Vitamin C treatment, her relationship with her clients, goals, and more!
**Born and raised in Manhattan, what was a young Nicole like growing there?**
I’m a true New York City gal, literally born and raised on the island of Manhattan. And I'm still here. I grew up on the Upper East Side and went to the Rudolf Steiner School, a small private Waldorf school in that neighborhood, but I myself was a kid on a scholarship. Even though I was surrounded by all these posh Upper East Siders, I myself had to work harder for everything. I appreciated the education and am grateful to my awesome single mom for working her behind off to give me this privileged childhood. Have you heard of the Waldorf schools?
**I haven’t, what is that?**
They’re really cool, they’re located worldwide. It’s a global education movement, with over 1000 Waldorf schools on six continents and in over 60 countries, started by a man named Rudolf Stener, an Austrian scientist/philosopher/educator who founded his first school in Germany in 1919. Rudolf Steiner’s premise was to cultivate young people’s independent thinking and imagination, and empathy for others. They truly encouraged individualism which I fully appreciate now that I’m older. It's a very unique education, to say the least, which tends to attract a lot of creatives. I went to school with Carly Simon and James Taylor’s kids for instance, Jennifer Aniston was two grades ahead of me and a total sweetie by the way. All the boys used to fall over backward wherever they passed her in the hallway and she was always so humble about it. Many well-known actors have been Waldorf-educated. A school perfect for creatives.
I was there from elementary school all the way through high school graduation. It's a unique, creative education and a warm environment for children with super small classrooms for more personalized attention. For me it was the foundation of my life in so many ways, it supported my creative thinking and dreaming and emphasized honesty and ethics. There were also several well known fashion photographer’s kids who were classmates. A lot of my dear friends, their parents, were famous fashion photographers. After school, we’d go over to their mom’s studios and see all these massive campaigns being photographed. I loved it. One summer when I was 16, I convinced my mother to let me go to Paris to trail backstage with my friend and her iconic photographer mom Roxanne Lowit, at the Chanel, YSL and Christian Lacroix shows. It made an impression, to say the least. I'm very grateful for those early friendships and relationships which opened my eyes to the beauty world right out the gate.
While on that impressionable Paris trip I also spent close amounts of time with Picasso’s daughter, Paloma Picasso. She was so glamorous and worldly I was in awe. I’d sit and have conversations with her at dinner about beauty and art. She was very kind to entertain all of these conversations with this shy teenager. Going to these shows and watching the backstage action of fashion week, being that close to it all, and engaging in dinners with successful creatives like that really opened my eyes to beauty and detail and thinking outside the box. When you’re an artist and it's in your veins and you're passionate you want to create right away. For me it was painting, it was makeup, it was hair, it was acting, it was dance, music, it was everything, everything you could imagine and I knew I wanted to be a part of it for a lifetime to come. I’m grateful.
**When did you first get the idea for the 4-minute anti-aging Vitamin C skin treatment?**
I started doing makeup when I was 14 because my mom was a makeup artist so she’d bring me on jobs with her as her assistant and taught me the ropes. It then became my job through high school and continued as my bread and butter money through university. After university, I was given a position running a makeup department with 80 hour weeks. From there, it was one job after another, and now a lifetime of over 3 decades: 36 years to be exact of doing one face after another, hundreds of faces. As a makeup artist, I would create one-of-a-kind, customized skincare concoctions for my clients. One of my specialties was dealing with people who had difficulties with their skin. Often, they’d hire me if they needed real help with skin imperfections. I’d look at their face and right on the spot, create mixtures for them. I was known for skincare mixing actually. It was a lifetime of on-the-spot chemistry where I’d mix and mix.
All the major beauty companies were sending me tons of skincare and makeup products to try out on my clients, for all their Red Carpet events and photo shoots such as the Met Gala for instance.
One of the things I always gravitated towards was Vitamin C, so I started implementing that into my mixtures. Vitamin C skincare mixtures, different types. One day after many years of using Vitamin C at work, I went into my kitchen and thought you know what, I love all the Vitamin C products they send me. I do see a difference when I use them on clients’ faces, there is a longtime anti-aging effect indeed, but all the Vitamin C products they’re sending me are too watered down and have too much fragrance in them. I want something cleaner and super potent and strong that can immediately tighten and smooth skin to slow down the effects of aging, but without all the fluff ingredients. Vitamin C is a long-time proven anti-aging ingredient known for slowing down aging by zapping age excellerating free radicals (pollutants found in the air), gobbling them up and thus slowing down the aging process. It also helps to boost collagen which plumps your skin and keeps it looking supple.
I began formulating in my kitchen like a mad scientist. I literally locked myself in for 4 months straight. I’d wake up at 3 am like, “Oh, wait a second, that one jar needs 3 more ounces of…” I’d have all my sample glass couplets laid out. Every single one: Specimen A B C D. Every day, I’d test the levels on my own face. Finally, after 4 months, I came up with my first product which I named, Vitamin C Face Lifting Water. I started using it every day twice a day and within a week, my skin was noticeably different. My skin texture smoothed and it felt lifted, it looked like I had been on a vacation. I went to see one of my clients on 5th Avenue, she said, “Oh darling, you look wonderful. What have you been doing? What treatment?” I said, “Oh well I created this thing, I call it Face Lifting Water.” She said, “oh my god, can I buy some?” I said “yes, but I have nothing to put it in except for a regular water bottle.”
She said, “Sure, no problem,” so I went home and handcrafted one for her (it takes 46 hours to create). I put it in a regular water bottle and I delivered it to her 5th Avenue apartment. After two days, she left me a voice message, “Nicole I need 7 more bottles, please. I think this stuff really works!” She literally ordered 7 more bottles. I was in shock since I never intended this would be something I would ever sell or make for clients. She kept ordering and reordering, telling her friends about it. I was running up and down 5th Avenue, Park Avenue, delivering water bottles filled with my Vitamin C Face Lifting Water. I eventually thought, “well people keep buying, maybe I should look for actual skincare bottles and make some labels?” So I did. Then, not long after and in a very short period of time, I came up with the remaining 3 steps and almost overnight it seemed, I had my very own 4-minute skincare treatment. Clients caught on and It kept growing and growing via word of mouth and a company was founded.
Now my long-time makeup clients have turned into devoted skincare customers and the love and care I used to give one client and at times has expanded to hundreds of customers worldwide. On any given day, I can be shipping to Switzerland, Dubai, and Ohio, on another day, to Prague, Germany, and Texas, and on the next, I’d be shipping to Australia, Spain, Florida, and California. It kind of organically grew and has continued to grow (through word of mouth) into an underground cult following of really cool, fantastic, lovely ladies who are obsessed with clean beauty products that actually work quickly and who appreciate and love my handcrafted Vitamin C skincare formulations. Fast and effective no-nonsense. It's the culmination of a lifetime of work I did with makeup mixing, now encapsulated into an honest 4-minutes. It's really fun for me, but it’s all handcrafted by me personally so I literally sit and make it for days and hours on end.
**How did you get it down to 4 minutes?**
As a makeup artist, I was working on 3 to 4 clients a day. I had to get up a lot of times at 3 am or 4 am and pound the pavement: going here, there, and everywhere. I didn't have time to sit around and luxuriate all day long. I wanted something that was fast, effective, and straight to the point to get myself ready each day while working these crazy hours and traveling around the world with clients and always on the go. To get my own morning beauty out of the way quickly and feel tight and plumped and fresh.
I’d stand in front of my clients and they’d always comment “you look so good, what are you doing?” So then I began implementing my 4-minute treatment on them before I’d do their makeup. They said, “Oh my god, I
love this! I want to order a kit.” Then they started requesting travel sizes to bring on the plane with them to throw in their handbags. Clients had one full size in their home bathrooms and then a travel size for their bags. It kept growing from there. It really works quickly and I’m honored so many have become such loyal customers.
**I want to try one!**
So cool. I can’t wait for you to try the treatment! You know back before Covid everyone was in a rush. That's how New Yorkers were, we were in a rush. We didn't have time. My clients were like “oh wow, this works so quickly, excellent! I feel so fresh”. When they were on their own they’d message me and tell me that they threw on their makeup after my 4 minutes and say “wow, my skin looks amazing and my makeup held up well all day long.” And they especially enjoy using it in between all of their esthetician and plastic surgery treatments too. All the fillers or nips and tucks, whatever they're into, also have this clean and effective easy to use, effective vitamin C skincare always on hand. My die-hard customers often write in “I’ve been using my 4-minute treatment every single day. When I went to my esthetician for a facial, the esthetician would ask me, “what have you been using on your skin? Your skin looks amazing!’” For me personally, however, they are my one and only everyday anti-aging products, twice a day products because I’m not too interested to go and sit at an esthetician’s and am not brave enough to get injections or go under the knife. It's really however you want to use it.
**How often are you supposed to use it?**
I personally use it 7 days a week, twice a day morning and before bed. I always tell people they can use it 7 days a week and even twice a day if they need more help, but definitely for sure no less than 5 times a week for the maximum benefits. You don't ever want your skin to wean away from the daily anti-aging benefits. A lot of young people use it because they're like “I was so hungover, I woke up the next morning and threw on your 4-minute treatment and it was as if I didn't have a hangover at all. It was the best refresher I swear.” Whatever works darling, whatever works.
**You’ve had an amazing roster of clients. What are your favorite moments with them?**
There have been so many incredible moments through the decades. I've been so fortunate in my 36-year career as a makeup artist and have enjoyed so many privileged work moments. My favorite though are live events. I’ve worked every award show there is for instance, except for the Oscars, that's the only one I have not been to. The energy at a live event is so electric it's exhilarating. And the number of people that come to experience it is unbelievable. From the Emmys to the MTV Music Awards to Red Carpet movie premieres, fashion week twice a year for
20 years in a row and of course New York City’s Met Gala for 15 years in a row. Every single one, they're all really exciting.
But my favorite of all time most definitely was the inauguration in DC. It was insanely gratifying to experience being in a Presidential motorcade and trailing the first family down 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with security like you’ve never seen or experienced before. Being there for the first lady of the United States and serving and honoring my country. What an experience of a lifetime and with such global coverage, you can't beat that kind of exalted energy. Being a part of history even in such a small way is something I will cherish for the rest of my life. Ultimately, it’s all about positive energy no matter which career you're working. If you're lucky enough to spend your life working with people who you really enjoy, you're just flat out blessed. When I give my time and they’re grateful — to me, that's the beautiful part.
**Did you do makeup at the recent met gala and fashion week in NYC?**
No, this was the first time I said “you know what guys, I need a break because it's Covid and I don’t feel comfortable just yet”. The great trade-off though was when Fashion Week was happening, I was filling orders for customers who were sitting front row at the shows. It transcended into a different kind of beauty contribution, and I was still involved but in a better way for where I am now in my career as a business owner and founder. That part was really cool.
**Goals for yourself at this point in your career?**
I’d like to focus less on one face at a time as I have as a makeup artist and more on putting that same exact focus and energy into one jar and bottle at a time. I handcraft everything myself right now which is what makes it so unique, everyone who receives my 4 minute treatment is receiving a kit made by me. It’s the same skilled work, but I’m able to impact more people with my 4 Minute Treatment now. I love that. One face at a time is amazing to work. Being there for all these incredible moments in people’s lives has been awesome — but now I can transcend that same skill and reach hundreds of more people at a time. That part is very rewarding.
Because it’s all made by me, often people have to wait 4-6 weeks to receive their 4-minute treatment. But they know there is a wait. There are certain times of the year where things get very backed up, especially around the holidays. Usually, during those times, people start to order at the beginning of November so they can receive it by Christmas, but it's worth it when they get it. My longtime customers often order kits in the multiples because everything is vacuum-sealed so you can easily place the extra products at the bottom of your refrigerator and it stays fresh for a year then they don't have to wait and there are always products on hand.
**What are you most excited about next?**
I’ve been taking many meetings with different people as of late. Ultimately I’d like to grow the business and transfer it into a laboratory that specializes in clean beauty, artisanal skincare, and understands non-harmful, cruelty-free beauty products. I’d like to sit with their scientist’ side by side and teach them my formulas and work with them to recreate what I do by hand and what I’ve worked so hard to create. I want to maintain the unique quality and effectiveness of the products. It's all very exciting watching it grow and seeing it enjoyed by so many. Thank you to all for your trust.
