Spilling The Tea with Amanda Pavillard

By Lucy Ivey

Photos by Carly Jean Sharp

Video shot and edited by Emma Kopkowski

Styled by Ariana Velasquez

Makeup by Zeik Stevens

Dress: Grover Rad @groverradstudio

Shoes: Free People

Bracelet: Vintage via La Loupe @laloupevintage

Sunglasses: Stylist’s Own

Growing up in Castlerock Colorado, Amanda Pavillard was always interested in the entertainment industry. At just 15, she decided to move to Los Angeles to audition for pilots in effort to begin her acting career. “ When I got out here, I just fell so in love with it, I started an acting class and really enjoyed it. I made a bunch of friends and I actually started getting involved in social media. And so I ended up testing out of high school, passing early and moving to Los Angeles full time.” Amanda tells me. We go on to talk about how she got her start in content creation. “So I had been out in LA for a while when I did initially start my YouTube channel and I had been working the classic like 9-5 minimum wage jobs but I saw so many people around me that were in the creative space. I wanted to act but my youtube channel kind of became my way of casting myself in my own roles and being able to have a creative outlet that I was fully in control of. It was so rewarding to be able to make money from something that was creative.” 

Everyone has an exciting moment in their career where they know this is what they are meant to be doing. For Amanda, that was fashion week. The multi hyphenate content creator was invited to her first fashion week in 2019. Amanda attended the Rebecca Minkoff, Jonathan Sihmkai, Alice and Olivia and several other shows. “Fashion Week is so overwhelming, and it combines everyone into one place. But it definitely gives you like a big glimpse into this world. When you're involved in that for the first time, it definitely feels like a culture shock and like nothing else I would have ever experienced in any other job before.” She tells me. 

Necklace: California Dirt @california_dirt

Top: Grover Rad @groverradstudio

Skirt: Stylist’s Own

Since the start of her youtube channel Amanda has attended a few other fashion weeks, had various partnerships with brands and recently started her makeup company, Radiate. “My love for makeup definitely came from my grandmother. She was always more than happy to give you a makeover and loved to talk about different makeup products, we would spend hours walking up and down the aisles and CVS and picking out new makeup products to try. During the pandemic, I kind of had this opportunity where I finally had the time to sit down and start putting together how I could start my own company. I ended up connecting with a lab out of Italy because they have a lot more rigorous standards in terms of ingredients and things that are used in their products over there than we do in the US. I picked the three products that I love the most and said I'm going to create the best version of these products in my opinion and from there it was just months and months of sending products there that I really liked in terms of texture or color or packaging and then them sending stuff back and tweaking it a little bit here and there editing the ingredients, making sure that the finish on all of the packaging was the right texture and all of that. It was so fun and I’m so grateful for the people that worked with me to create it. My sisters created Radiate with me and I loved working with them.” 

Sunglasses: Stylist’s Own

Hat: Stylist’s Own

Bra: Out From Under

Skirt: Desigual via La Loupe @laloupevinatge

Broach: Collina Strada @collinastrada

Bracelet: Vintage via La Loupe @laloupevintage

Like all things, work can be exhausting and sometimes even emotionally draining. Amanda and I talk about something she wishes she could change about social media and the beauty industry. “Society goes in these waves of seeing only one certain style, or one certain look or one certain height or one certain body type as beautiful. And that's just not the case. And I think it's so frustrating when those messages are perpetuated on social media, you know, like, everyone needs to look the same, dress the same, do their makeup the same, act the same, we're all kind of becoming clones of each other. And I think that that's so sad, because the most beautiful thing about life is that we're all so vastly different and unique and individual, and I think embracing that. That's what we should be doing. Not trying to all stick to one finite trend of what beauty looks like at any given moment.” Amanda’s brand is a living example of this. Inspiring people to “radiate the things that make them unique- be the brightest version of you.” 

Sunglasses: Stylist’s Own

Top: Worn Ware @worn__ware

Skirt: Tibi

Tights: Stylist’s Own

Boots: Free People

Belt: Stylist’s Own

When asked what advice she would give her younger self, she responded quickly. Be patient, In time everything figures itself out when you're passionate about something, it will find you work hard, and be patient.”