Sitting down to get a manicure with Paige DeSorbo is likely a dream come true for many Bravo fans — and for good reason.
When Us Weekly got the chance to giggle and gossip with the 31-year-old reality star, topics ranged from fall trends (she’s down for the return of skinny jeans), The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives (she’s “obsessed”) and of course, Summer House (her three words to describe the upcoming season are “confusing,” “telephone” and “silly.”)
Style and beauty is a natural place to start with DeSorbo, whose partnership with Malibu has led to a special manicure available at Vanity Projects in New York City to keep the summer vibes and drinks flowing into fall.
“It’s inspired by my Malibu drink, the Malibu Paige Breeze, so it’s a little pink and orange,” DeSorbo told Us at the NYC salon. “I feel like there’s small ways you can bring the summer into the fall like [through] your nails or an accessory. Pink is very big for the fall, so it’ll be easy for the girls to match it.”
Getting into the specifics of recent fashion fads, DeSorbo is ready with opinions and tips.
“I really didn’t see capris staying. I didn’t see them hitting and staying, [but] I love them. I think they’re so easy. It’s almost like easing you back into skinny jeans,” she said, confirming that denim cut is definitely “happening” again.
Related: Everything to Know About ‘Summer House’ Season 9
“I’m not super mad at it because I got rid of, like, my skin-tight skinny jeans, but I never got rid of my skinny jeans to my ankle,” she continued.
How does one wear skinny jeans in 2024 after years of trying to make wide-leg denim work? DeSorbo suggested a kitten heel, loafer or a ballet flat. “Which is so 2000. Just think, ‘What would Hilary Duff do on the Nickelodeon red carpet?’ And there you go.”
When asked for a trend that needs to die, DeSorbo just wants everyone to take a beat.
“Overall, I’m sick of trends going out so quickly,” she told Us. “I wish they would last a little bit longer because right when I buy it then it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s over. OK,I’ll just get rid of all the leopard I have now.”
She added that her style is always “evolving and changing.”
“There’s things that I would’ve loved that now I think like, ‘OK, well I am in my 30s, maybe a baby blue set that’s the size of a toddler isn’t something I need to wear anymore,” she quipped. That said, DeSorbo believes the naked dress will be in “forever” and she isn’t ready to stop the no-pants look she turned heads in at BravoCon in 2023.
“I’m literally obsessed. That’s a trend that people probably want to die and I hope that it stays forever,” she said.
After five years on Bravo, DeSorbo is aware of the power she has when it comes to fans looking to her for fashion guidance.
“I feel like I tricked everyone and I love it,” she said with a laugh. “No, I think I definitely went into Summer House thinking, like, big picture. ‘What would I do with this platform for the next couple of years?’ Never did I ever think I would be taken as seriously as some people take me. I think that’s why I have to take myself not seriously because I’m like, ‘I tricked all these people.’”
Naturally, fans don’t just tune in for the clothes, but rather to watch, analyze and rewatch the drama between the full cast, which includes DeSorbo, Kyle Cooke, Amanda Batula, Ciara Miller, Lindsay Hubbard, Carl Radke, Gabby Prescod, West Wilson and Jesse Solomon.
Miller previously teased to Page Six that Solomon, who joined alongside Wilson last year, will have the most to answer for when the show airs.
“I would say Jesse definitely got in the mix,” DeSorbo told Us when asked about Miller’s remarks. “You know, he really came in hot season 2 and there’s nothing I love more than seeing someone come in hot season 2 because it really hits you right in the face. He was all over the place. A lot of moving parts.”
Related: ‘Summer House’ Cast’s Dating History
Circling back to the aforementioned three words to describe season 9, DeSorbo admitted she had “no idea what was going on” during several games of “telephone” in the house. She also confirmed Solomon was involved.
“He sure was. He answered it. He hung it up. All the stuff,” she said.
Fans are also anxiously waiting to see exes Radke and Hubbard share the house for the summer after calling off their engagement last year.
“I’m actually gonna give Lindsay and Carl a lot of credit,” DeSorbo told Us. “ I never would’ve been able to do what both of them did, and I felt like they were very mature, and honestly at one point I was like, ‘You guys might be friends at some point in your lives. Not right now, who knows?’ I think they really did a great job.”
After wrapping production on the show, which will likely return to Bravo in early 2025, DeSorbo and former costar and comedian Hannah Berner resumed tour dates for their “Giggly Squad” podcast.
“I actually get very nervous before we go out, and Hannah is the complete opposite. So I think she eases my nerves ’cause I know if I have a random stage fright moment and I go blank, she can carry it and she’s so good with crowd work,” she said of the tour. “So I definitely lean on her as my anchor on live shows for sure.”
As much as she leans on Burner, DeSorbo noted that touring takes a toll. “All I keep saying is I don’t know how Taylor Swift is out here doing it. I just ordered an acupuncture mat that TikTok says she brings on tour from Amazon,” she said. “I’m exhausted!”
The weekly podcast and live shows dive into personal stories, social media trends and all of pop culture. DeSorbo’s current obsession is Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.
“I want a camera in their house. I want them to stream 24/7,” DeSorbo said. “I honestly love them all. That’s the thing with a first season reality show. I want them to all be happy. but I love Taylor. I love Demi, I love Jessi.”
Related: What ‘RHOSLC’ Stars Have Said About ‘Secret Lives of Mormon Wives’
The Hulu series, following eight Mormon women who are famous on TIkTok as mom influencers, has become a quick phenomenon.
“I think it was crazy that they were, like, concerned about marriage and kids in their early 20s. I wanted to literally kidnap all of them and take them to my house,” she said.
So what would DeSorbo’s first question be for the group? “Is soaking real?” she said through laughs. “Like, is that a thing that they really do?”
Clips from “Giggly Squad” and DeSorbo on her Amazon show often go viral on TikTok. Recent popular videos include her revealing she was secretly throwing out boyfriend Craig Conover’s (of Southern Charm fame) flip-flops — “I don’t think he actually believes me,” she told Us — and DeSorbo detailing the time she gave Victoria Beckham her bracelet because the former Spice Girl complimented the piece of jewelry.
“I just saw Lindsay Lohan at Michael Kors and I had a moment to go up to her and I chickened out and then I DMed her but she didn’t see it or respond back,” DeSorbo told Us when asked about recreating the Beckham moment with another celeb. “I just said, ‘Hi. I saw you at Michael Kors, I wanted to come up to you, but I got scared. You looked stunning and I’m obsessed with you.’ And that’s what I wanted to say to her so I felt like I needed to DM it to her. Even if she doesn’t see it ever, I feel fine with it. She looks better than ever. I kept seeing [her] pictures and I was like, ‘A Paris [Instagram] filter? Maybe a little FaceTune?’ Then I saw her in person and I was like, ‘You look 18.’ She looks incredible.”
Following the interview, DeSorbo welcomed guests to Vanity Salon to get their own Malibu-inspired manicures.
“I think I am such a good example of [keeping the spirit of] summer all year round because I talk about summer all year. I think about it. I watch it on TV after I live it,” she said of the campaign. ”I think September is such a transitional month. Like, I still have summer clothes I didn’t get to. So I feel that Malibu helps keep the summer in September.”