Get to Know Alice Moireau

Last year, the magazine L’Officiel Paris filmed model Alice Moireau taking sushi lessons from a master: celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa, who has restaurants in major international cities (Paris included). Moireau wore a pretty blue-and-white dress, too fancy for a kitchen, and had her long wavy hair hanging down, yet she listened attentively while Nobu told her what to do and mimicked him carefully. If the shoot had started as a gimmick — glamorous girl in the kitchen — it became quite serious. Moireau, who grew up in a converted tavern along a more rural stretch of the Loire river, began modeling at 14. Now in her early 20s, she sees modeling not as her vocation but as her adventure. It allows her to travel to parts of the world she might otherwise miss. In her spare time, she wanders through markets looking for recipe ideas and shops for used and vintage clothing — old things that are both more beautiful and less wasteful. Here, she talks about her childhood, travels and the thoughtful, conscientious life she wants for herself and others. 

On Where She Grew Up:

I was born in Paris but I moved to the country side when I was 2 years old, in the middle of France, in the Loire Valley. Life as a kid was very bucolic, I grew up in an old 1920s guinguette along a river. I didn’t have any TV but we had a small boat that, with my brother, we sailed every time and we invented so many stories in the cabins my dad built in the garden for us. 

Her Favorite Childhood Memory:

I was baking every weekend, it was my favorite thing to do. Once I tried to make macaroons but it was so hard and measurements were so precise that I failed. So I challenged myself to make macarons as good as the ones in Ladurée and baked macaroons for at least six months every weekend. And at the end, my salted-butter caramel macarons were so good that I could have sold them!

On Becoming a Model: 

I was 14 when I did my first photoshoot in Japan and 16 when I signed with an agency in Paris. My first experience was so incredible that I never wanted it to stop. I always kept my studies on the side, it has always been my main focus. Modeling is, for me, a creative playtime, a means to meet people and travel.

What She’s Most Proud Of:

The time I share with my friends in the house I grew up in. One weekend a month, I organise a trip with a different “curated” group of friends each time. I’m really proud to introduce them to a part of my life up there and happy to cook for them. Those are my best memories.

On Her Personal Style & Where She Shops:

I only wear vintage clothes that I buy in thrift shops around the world. Vintage clothes is a whole thing: It’s cheaper, they have better style and contribute to reduce waste and fashion production. All these reasons make me want to buy clothes in thrift shops more than [a fast fashion] store.My favorite place is a huge Emmaus, which is the equivalent of Goodwill, in my countryside. Every item costs between 1 and 7 euros and it’s all amazing granny clothes that no one cares about. A very precious place.

Her Favorite French Beauty Products:

I love the face flower water spray by Sanoflore that I use everyday. My favorite is orange blossom! I also apply every morning La Mer concentrate to hydrate my skin and use the Shea Butter lip balm by L’Occitane. My perfume is also French, it’s Histoire d’Orangers by l’Artisan Parfumeur, very fresh and subtle. 

What Inspires Her:

Food markets. I could spend my days in markets, wandering around stands, looking for a recipe idea, admiring the fruits and vegetables, fresh cheeses, bread… I love their atmosphere; it’s my favorite place. 

Her Favorite Place to Travel: 

I love to go to Lebanon and Portugal. They’re very different but they both have what I like: incredible food, nice beaches, seaside, good music and places to go to, parties in the streets and this Mediterranean feeling. 

Her Perfect Picnic:

In my garden in the countryside. What I would cook would be grilled veggies (eggplants and zucchini) and chicken on a BBQ, a fresh cottage cheese with basil, mint and coriander + guacamole + tomato and peach salad + hummus + French toast with caramel sauce. Everything homemade of course — that's the fun part!

Her Goals for the Future:

Open a design studio for restaurants, designing their visual identities: logos, menus, concept and interior design.