This conversation is the first time I’ve connected with Holey, although I’ve been a fan of her work for some time. 

Her unique point of view certainly stems from her distinguished path into beauty: Holey received her bachelor’s degree in engineering, and later pivoted to cosmetic chemistry, studying at the Institut Supérieur International des Parfums, Cosmétiques et Arômes Alimentaires in Paris. As a final leg of her education, she acted as an apprentice to Parisian skin care expert Joelle Ciocco. When she arrived back in the states, she got her certification as an esthetician—and started building a reputation for diving deep into understanding a patient’s skin, not just treating the surface.

We chat about a lot of aspects of how she cares for skin holistically, but one of the most fascinating was how she approaches skin care through nutrition. “Blood sugar, fiber, and variety. If you address those three things in your diet, I guarantee you’ll see significant results in your skin,” she tells me.