ESTHER WOJCICKI: I must congratulate you on your recent
70 th birthday. How are you feeling about this milestone?
MAYE MUSK: I had been looking forward to it because I feel
like things are really going to take of in my 70s. How old
are you?
EW: I’m 72.
MM: I’m younger than you.
EW: Yes, so much younger. Your modelling career is seriously
amazing.
MM: It is amazing! I was always just a working model with
three kids. Nobody knew who I was, but it didn’t matter.
Now I’m an inluencer, so I get to do interviews and use them
as a platform to talk about nutrition and go on glamorous
fashion shoots like this one for Harper’s Bazaar. It’s beyond.
EW: That makes me feel very good too. Any tips for aspiring
models of any age?
MM: I’ve always had my own business as a dietician, so I eat
well. You must maintain a steady weight, especially at our age,
as the cholesterol starts to shoot up.
EW: I’m really impressed with that part of your life. Tell me
more about your diet.
MM: I eat the basic food groups: Fruits and vegetables, whole
grains, low-fat dairy, good fats, and oils. I do have butter on
my bread because it’s delicious. I eat meat, especially chicken,
sparingly, because I’m not a good cook. People always want
to know what I fed my kids. I gave them real food, not frozen
pizza. In 45 years of counselling, I can tell you one thing for
sure: People don’t gain weight from whole wheat; they gain
it from fries and white bread.
EW: Any guilty pleasures?
MM: You’ll never see chocolate, cookies, or candy in my home
because I don’t have a cutof.
EW: What about your beauty routine? How do you always
look so good? Maybe you can help me.
MM: I eat well to keep my skin looking good, and I stay out of
the sun. I put on SPF if I’m going outside, even with a hat on.I always have moisturiser on my face and lip balm because my
lips get dry.
EW: Do you exercise on a regular basis?
MM: I’m not good at sports, but I do exercise because we have
to move. Besides walking my dog four times a day, I go to the
gym and do 30 minutes on a stationary bike while reading a
book because I get bored, then 10 minutes of weights and
10 of stretches.
EW: Your style is impeccable; I noticed that when I irst met
you. Where did you get your fashion sense from?
MM: I moved from South Africa, where I grew up, to Toronto,
about 28 years ago. I was living in a rent-controlled apartment
with my three teenagers when I met my best friend,
Julia Perry, who happens to be a stylist. At the time I thought
I had good taste. But one day she came over and said,
“You need to start dressing better,” and threw everything out
of my wardrobe except for six outits. I could only aford to
buy one new suit, two shirts, a pair of shoes, and a bag. I wore
that every day until I could aford more.
EW: I could use a stylist. Like me, you have three amazing,
wildly successful children. Can you describe your relationship?
MM: We laugh a lot, and we get together often.
EW: What about your mothering style?
MM: I worked from home while they were growing up, so I
took them to school and picked them up. They had to do their
own homework, and if they needed me they could interrupt
me, but they never did. They were good kids. I’m intolerant
of bad manners, so they are always polite around me, even now.
EW: It sounds like you’re the opposite of a helicopter mother:
You gave your children a lot of freedom to be what they
wanted to be.
MM: Yes, I had to work very hard, and they were always going in
their own direction. My three kids got their Canadian citizenship
because I was born there, and Elon decided to move to Canada
for college. Then my teenage daughter said, “Let’s go too.” It was
tough at irst because all my friends were back in South Africa. FASHION EDITOR:CASSIE ANDERSON. MAKEUP: TONYA BREWER. HAIR: PETER SAVIC FOR L‘ANZA. PRODUCTION: ANDY CRUM FOR OPUS REPS.Bazaar
BEAUTY
Maye Musk: CoverGirl model, dietician, and mother of Tesla founder
Elon Musk, chats with Esther Wojcicki, mother of YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki,
about life in their 70s, raising trailblazing children, and moving to MarsTHE FORCE BE WITH YOU
MAYE
On Musk: Dress, Stella McCartney. Earrings, Tifany & Co. All prices upon request.Photographs by DENNIS LEUPOLD