When Ciara Miller joined the Bravo reality series “Summer House,” the coronavirus pandemic was raging. Cast members typically travel back and forth between New York City and the house they share in the Hamptons, but for that season, the group didn’t leave each others’ sides for six weeks straight.
Now, five seasons in, Miller feels like she’s found her stride.
“Watching myself grow up in this atmosphere and in this space has been just a whirlwind,” Miller, now 30, said.
Last year, she tried something different, competing with other TV personalities on “The Traitors.” Although she was eliminated by her teammates, she considers her experience on the show a positive one.
“I got to shed different layers of myself,” she said. “It definitely brought a new level of confidence to who I am in front of the camera and who I am, period.”
Reality TV isn’t the be-all and end-all for Miller. When she started on “Summer House,” which kicked off its 10th season this week, she was both a registered nurse and a model. Miller hasn’t worked a nursing shift in over a year, but says she’ll never completely leave the field.
“I’ll always be attached to medicine,” she said. “I’ll work in the medical field or at least be doing some type of activism in the health care space.”
In a conference room at 30 Rockefeller Plaza on a frigid day in New York City, Miller discussed her cat Jasper, her go-to matcha recipe and how Prozac changed her day-to-day life. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
Starting the Day Early
Jasper the cat wakes me up at 6 a.m. for treats. I have to physically get out of the bed, give him a treat, and then he’ll go lie back down. He won’t have it any other way. I should get a second cat for him. Really, he needs a friend.
Prozac
I always have my Prozac in my bag. I can’t believe I’ve been rawdogging the past 29 years of my life. I could have been on medication a long time ago. I’m loud and proud because, one, I don’t care, and two, if only I knew — not that I’m saying you can solve everything by a pill — sometimes you just need a little extra help.
Brow Maintenance
I am an eyebrow freak. Even if I’m wearing no makeup, I have to have my eyebrows filled in at all times. The L’Oréal faux brow stays on for a long time. You can rub, smudge, it doesn’t move. Which is what I need, especially if, Lord forbid, I forget my eyebrow pencil.
Homemade Matcha
I don’t even want to buy it. I have to make it at home. I like to take the matcha powder, sift it, mix it with vanilla bean paste and a tiny bit of agave. Then I pour it over milk and then I take a French vanilla creamer, froth it and put it on top. It’s the best.
Electrolytes
I don’t like plain water, so I have to always have some type of flavoring. I like the sugar-free white peach Liquid I.V. An important PSA: You can’t drink multiple Liquid I.V.s a day. Your blood pressure’s going to be through the roof, your sodium level’s going to be insane.
Sunglasses
I don’t usually carry a case, which is kind of psychotic of me. I’m really into spacey-looking sunglasses these days. The only downside is that you can see my eyes. But if I’m talking [expletive], and I look over at something, you can see. Sometimes, maybe, that’s fine. Like, let them know.
To-Go Snacks
Typically I have some Slim Jims in my bag. It’s very 2005-ish. And people might even say it’s plastic, but it is so good to me. I love it. I love pistachios, fruit gummies. Technically, I’m a toddler — or I have the diet of one.
A Lip Combo
Make Up For Ever limitless brown goes with everything. And then I really love the Clarins Lip Perfector.
Makeup for the Road
I always need like some type of shimmer lotion. You use it on your face, but sometimes I do use it on, like, my arms because my arms get ashy during the day. Just a little squirt keeps you nice and hydrated. And then the Laneige Cream Skin Toner. Typically, when I’m going out, I’m not wearing any makeup, but I like to keep a toner in my bag. It gives me a glow as if I just came back from a facial, even though I didn’t, and maybe I didn’t even wash my face.
Daily Best Friend Visits
She lives in the same building, a couple floors down from me. Either she comes up or I go down. We see each other probably every single day.
Shivani Gonzalez is a news assistant at The Times who writes a weekly TV column and contributes to a variety of sections.
The post This ‘Summer House’ Star Loves to Eat Like a Child appeared first on New York Times.
