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Long before beauty brands had TikTok mascots (or even social media for that matter), Bliss had Bliss Girl. The illustrated, beauty-obsessed character was the face of the brand\u2019s mail-order catalogues in the late \u201990s and early 2000s\u2014a J. Peterman\u2013style project that founder Marcia Kilgore wrote herself, packed with playful copy and a handful of favorite products per issue instead of the usual beauty-brand catalogue speak. Bliss Girl, drawn by illustrator Steven Campbell, was the character readers followed through those pages. Now, 30 years after Bliss opened its first SoHo spa, she\u2019s stepping off them.<\/p>\n
Beginning September 1, Bliss Girl\u2014played by comedian Veronica Kwiatkowski\u2014stars in a 10-episode social series imagining what happens when she walks out of the catalogue after 20 years and lands in 2026 New York. As the premise goes, she still knows everything there is to know about skin care, but dealing with modern life is another story, as the series follows her learning Apple Pay, surviving a bad date and picking up her own 30th birthday cake from Magnolia Bakery. Episodes roll out on Bliss\u2019s Instagram and TikTok.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Joining her for a cameo is Bethenny Frankel, a longtime Bliss devotee and self-described quintessential New Yorker. \u201cThis was really the first brand that brought spa into your home. I remember the spa locations being the elite<\/em> cr\u00e8me de la cr\u00e8me, and just getting an appointment to be in the space was a flex,\u201d Frankel says. \u201cI went to that rooftop W Miami spa a few times when someone else was footing the bill, and I was so proud.\u201d<\/p>\n Three decades in, Frankel still keeps a couple of Bliss staples in rotation. \u201cI love the vitamin C serum. They\u2019ve always had a leg\/body cream that was so incredibly rich and by far the best out there,\u201d she says. \u201cThey have maintained a quality at a reasonable price for decades without incident. That\u2019s a feat in the beauty world.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s that consistency that Frankel says she likes most about the era Bliss came out of. \u201cI miss the loyalty to brands and not being hypnotized by gimmicks, the shiny objects or buying out of FOMO,\u201d she says. Her own \u201990s routine, by contrast, was far less considered: \u201cI would binge, then juice, wash my face every night, pick my face occasionally, get regular facials because of breakouts, but I had no routine. I think I just dried out and stripped my skin and I didn\u2019t use sunscreen. My daughter is so on top of it and knows more than me in my 40s. Social media has done some wonders.\u201d As for what she\u2019d actually bring back from that era, Frankel doesn\u2019t hesitate: \u201cI have always liked microneedling, and I miss old-school extractions.\u201d<\/p>\n On Bliss Girl\u2019s return specifically, Frankel is unequivocal: \u201cThis is very smart and very cute and reminds us where it all began. She really started spa culture.\u201d<\/p>\n To make sure the character felt right, the brand went back to the source via Campbell, who returned to reimagine the 2026 version, all while keeping it recognizable to the fans who remember her from the catalogue days.<\/p>\n The celebration continues into October, when Bliss will host a consumer pop-up in New York.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n