HOW I SHOP: ARIANA MADIX

Country

We all buy clothes, but no two people shop the same. It can be a social experience, and a deeply personal one; at times, it can be impulsive and entertaining, at others, purpose-driven, a chore. Where do you shop? When do you shop? How do you decide what you need, how much to spend and what's "you"? These are some of the questions we're putting to prominent figures in our column "How I Shop."

After a tumultuous couple of years, "Vanderpump Rules" star Ariana Madix has emerged as one of the most visible figures in pop culture. In addition to concluding her 11th season of the drama-filled Bravo reality series (of which, I'll admit, I've watched every single frame), she's starred in countless brand campaigns, published a cocktail book, competed in "Dancing With the Stars" (finishing in third place), appeared as Roxy Hart in "Chicago" on Broadway and is preparing to host "Love Island USA" this summer.

But, at the end of the day, Madix is one of us: a millennial New York-to-Los Angeles transplant with an overflowing closet who loves the mall, obsessed over the Spice Girls and survived an indie sleaze era.

"I think you could see on the most recent season of 'Vanderpump Rules,' there were a lot of boxes, a lot of new clothes. I had to get rid of old clothes to make room for these new clothes. Now I'm in a position where my home and my closet are a lot smaller, so I'm having to be super honest with myself about: Am I really going to get this tailored? Does this actually fit? Am I going to actually wear this? And just be careful about not having too much. It's honestly the biggest blessing and it's the most amazing thing, the things I dreamed about my whole young adult life of like, 'Man, that's so cool.' But it does get overwhelming.

"Anytime I get sent skin-care stuff, I get super excited. Right now, literally in this moment, I've been using the Dr. Brandt eye gel. I've been putting it on with my concealer, and I don't know if my makeup looks that good right now, but I've been really into it."