I have never been to Oregon, and Portland is on my bucket list. I recently found one more reason I must visit this city soon: Treat, a female-owned salon boutique, where Bridget Mahoney leads a team of magical aestheticians. Somehow she found me, and Alchimie Forever. Visiting Treat You (which was recently featured in GOOP ) and meeting Bridget is a 2017 goal. Until then, the next best thing was to get to know her through the interview below.
AP: What city were you born in? BM: Portland, OR.
AP: What city to do you live in? BM: Portland, OR (after spending 8th grade and high school in Sacramento CA).
AP: What is your middle name? BM: Nora, originally. But after getting married, I moved my maiden name to my middle name – Harrington.
AP: What is your astrological sign? BM: Aries! And I am that sign to a T.
AP: What is something about you most people don’t know? BM: I can be incredibly impatient. And for as much as I travel, I am really fearful of flying.
AP: What is your most prized possession? BM: An original photo of my parents on their wedding day. A gold ring heirloom from my mother.
AP: If you could have dinner with the person of your choice, who would it be? BM: Barack and Michelle Obama. Or Beyonce!
AP: Describe your fashion style in three words maximum. BM: Modern, Comfortable & Adventurous
AP: Do you wear a watch? If yes, what model? BM: I go through waves when I love wearing a watch. Nixon or Wellington, but currently – no watch.
AP: Diamonds or pearls? BM: Diamonds.
AP: What is your #1 beauty secret? BM: Sleep and water, which is not a secret… And layering your skincare products — the more layers the better, in particular before bed.
AP: What fragrance do you wear? BM: Mainly, Le Labo Santal 33 or Le Labo Rose 31.
AP: Botox or not? BM: Currently, not (never have), but I’ve learned to never say never.
AP: Hair color: natural or not? BM: Not. My best friend’s mom is a hairdresser and when I was in 6th grade, I begged and convinced her to put about 5 blonde highlights in my hair while we sat in the kitchen. And then I told my mother afterwards. Whoops! Have been dying my hair ever since.
AP: What are your special diet tips, if any? BM: I love love love food. I can definitely become too indulgent, so I am no diet expert. It’s all about balance, right… BUT I do love drinking water with lemon, raspberries, mint, ginger and cayenne pepper. It’s so refreshing. I hate drinking plain water and often forget to drink enough, but this way I can drink 2 gallons in a day, easily. Also, eating a healthy breakfast really does help dictate the rest of my day. I also crave, legitimately crave, kale and tomatoes, so that’s helpful.
AP: What do you do for exercise? BM: I alternate between Barre3, indoor cycling (Burncycle – our version of Soulcycle here in Portland) and occasionally running outside. I also play on an indoor soccer team with friends about 9 months out of the year.
AP: What are three things that you always have in your fridge? BM: Berries/nectarines, almond milk, some sort of Italian cured meat.
AP: What is your cocktail of choice? BM: I’m really into mezcal and lime juice right now, but usually whiskey and ginger ale with a lime. And champagne, always.
AP: What is your secret to work/life balance? BM: Not checking my work emails on vacation. Taking time to workout or read or meditate. Really, making time to travel with my husband, family or friends. It is so important in our household to make that time and not feel badly about it. Especially while we can in our lives right now.
AP: How many miles do you fly per year on average? BM: Many! Thousands. My husband’s family lives in Minnesota, so we visit them as much as we can, and they love to travel. We also book a lot of trips with our friends and family. We just went to London, Paris and Italy in March and it was so superb. Dying to visit Alaska, Nashville, New Orleans and Charleston next. I’d love to do more international traveling.
AP: What are your three top tips for travel? BM: 1. Comfortable pants & shoes for long plane rides. 2. I keep a pre-packed travel cosmetic bag that has all of my favorite/must-haves products that I can easily throw into any bag without having to think. 3. My husband and I paid to have TSA Pre Approved automatically for every trip (for the next 5 years) and it makes the security line process SO much easier — which usually gives me crazy anxiety.
AP: 3 songs on your ipod right now. BM: Fade by Kanye West, Julian by Say Lou Lou, and Formation by Beyonce.
AP: What book are you reading right now? BM: The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova.
AP: Quote to live by. BM: “My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; & to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor and some style. ” Maya Angelou.
AP: What is your worst pet peeve? BM: Bad drivers! And slow walkers who have no spatial awareness.
AP: What time do you usually wake up in the morning, and how many hours of sleep do you usually get? BM: Naturally, usually about 7 or 7:30am. But I can be a total night owl, which will throw me off and cause me to sleep late. I average about 7 hours a night. If I’m good, I’ll force myself to a workout class at 6 or 7am, which is such a great kickstart. It’s just the getting up and putting my workout clothes on that is so hard!
AP: What is your favorite thing about the beauty industry? BM: The creativity. The camaraderie and entrepreneurship.
AP: Least favorite thing. BM: The stigma that women or men in the industry didn’t or couldn’t finish college. Or the lack of intelligence. Sadly, that stereotype still exists.
AP: Who is your mentor? BM: My old co worker at my first job out of college. She is in her 50s, and she took me under her wing immediately. She is incredibly intelligent, vivacious, articulate, confident and insanely hilarious. She is still a very good friend to this day. I can’t imagine my life had I not met her when I did.
AP: Words of advice for young women starting their careers today. BM: To be confident and courageous. To harness any fear you have to go after what you want, and to ask for advice and help. Practice smart, interpersonal communication and don’t just hang out on your phone all the time. Know what is going on in the world. It’s an art to be able to strike up and hold a proper conversation with a stranger, or possibly someone who is interviewing you, and that can make an impression.
