What would be a message to your younger self about your journey as a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community?

Maisie: Go easy and be kind to yourself. It’s so easy to lean into the frustrations of where you’re not and what you’re not rather than what you are. Don’t try and fit in or conform because your individuality makes you stand out and is your greatest superpower, so lean into it.

What you are is absolutely enough already, so enjoy the journey. There’s a quote by Traci Ellis Ross that I love: “May the space between where you are and where you want to be inspire you” and I remember it a lot.

What was your relationship with beauty like growing up?

Maisie: Beauty has been a beautiful journey of self-discovery and self-celebration and realising that I don’t have to tame my hair in order to fit into Western beauty standards. I’ve had an afro or had it really short and I’m loving these cornrows I just had done a couple of days ago.

Finding the authentic heart of what makes you feel beautiful and embracing it and accentuating it. Some days I feel super masculine and lean into it, other days I feel hyper femme and want to have a full face of makeup and that makes me feel beautiful too. Being free to move and go with the waves of my ever-evolving identity is what beauty means to me.

What’s the most radical thing you have done in the name of beauty?

Maisie: The biggest one for me was cutting my hair off. I’ve never had short hair but three years ago I didn’t feel like myself anymore with long hair so I cut it all off and went really short. It was so empowering.

The day I cut it off was the day I did the first interview for Nine Perfect Strangers. It could have been a total mess, but I felt great and I think it was partly the energy that helped me get the job. I leaned into my butch side more and got to embrace the masculine and know what that feels like.

What’s the best beauty advice you have been given?

Maisie: Wash your face. When I was a teenager, I would come home from the club and go straight to bed. Now, I’m very firm on my process of cleansing, washing, hydrating, moisturising and exfoliating once a week. Also: water. I drink two litres a day and it makes a huge difference to so many aspects of life. Mental health, skin health, and your whole body functioning. Don’t sleep on water!

What is one rule that you live by to take care of your mental wellbeing?

Maisie: Walking is a huge one for me. Hampstead Heath is one of my favourite places to go with my dog and it just makes me feel so free to be able to stop and look at the plants and soak it all in. There’s so much beauty around us when you just stop and look and it brings you back into the small things instead of focusing on the big things we can’t control in the world.

I’m also learning to talk and share my feelings and learning to lean on those I love and to be vulnerable – there’s incredible strength and power in vulnerability. As queer people, your online community or chosen family are just as valid as your blood or adopted family. Talking and sharing with the people who want to be there for you has been a big lesson I’ve learned over time.