lise Harris is a creative powerhouse with a bold, determined approach to life, constantly challenging society’s beauty standards. As a hair/makeup artist and editorial photographer, she’s worked with legends like Lisa Marie Presley and Anna Wintour. Her latest passion project, Your Roots Are Showing, shines a spotlight on the Silver Sister movement and the undeniable power of rocking a silver crown.

Ilise and I sat down to discuss her journey, the documentary, and the amazing stories behind it.

It was the quintessential disco brand—Stagelight Cosmetics. You can look them up. They were funky, with those blue, pink, and iridescent colors of the disco era. It was all about that flashy, bold vibe. So, I wound up being their model. The hired model was a little too classic-looking, so they asked me to come in because I had a bit more of an edgy look.

My makeup artist turned my skin into a real caramel color, and I had crazy curls. There was no face tape back then, just a makeup artist holding my eyes. It was wild!

That sounds amazing. How did this lead you to the makeup artist path?

The role required me to hire makeup artists for in-store promotions, but at that time, New York was such a party town, a lot of freelancers were hungover or didn’t show up. I got frustrated because I’d set up promotions for indie shops and there’d be no makeup artists. So, I decided to step up and be the makeup artist myself. I already knew how to paint, so it was a natural transition.

You took charge right away.

Exactly! But soon enough, I realized I didn’t want to work in a department store. I wanted to work for magazines. I was a magazine junkie and noticed the credits along the side of editorial pages—“Makeup by”—and that’s when I knew I had to make it into that world. 

The scrappiness and determination you had are incredible, and the attitude that if you didn’t know it, you were going to learn it.

I did! What’s the worst that can happen? I sleep on a bench in the train station. I didn’t let myself think about failure. I was focused on a star—it was there, and I followed it because I was going to be a makeup artist. 

I stayed for three months, worked for Vogue, and did a beauty campaign. It was a major campaign, and that allowed me to stay for three months and pay my bills.

You came back to New York with all that experience and a European portfolio. What happened next?

What was it like working with such high-profile people?

One of the wildest experiences was doing Lisa Marie Presley’s makeup for her engagement announcement with Michael Jackson. I didn’t even know who the client was until I arrived at Trump Tower. Everything was top secret. I thought my dad was going to be worried I was getting kidnapped, but I just trusted my agent.

Wait—so you did the engagement photos?! That’s wild.

Yep! We were in Stephen Spielberg’s apartment, doing their engagement photos. The whole scene was surreal. Lisa Marie was lovely, and Michael Jackson was in the other room. Lisa Marie ended up teaching me how to use individual false eyelashes, which I’d never done before. And even though I offered to help Michael with his eyeliner, she said, “No, Michael does his own thing.”

What an incredible experience. And you said you also worked with Anna Wintour and Martha Stewart.

I worked with Anna Wintour for almost two years, doing her hair and makeup. During that time, she was the editor-in-chief of American Vogue when it was still a hard copy magazine. I would visit her home one to two days a week, either in the morning before an important TV appearance or in the evening before an event. Anna was lovely, quiet, and gracious. 

When I did her hair and makeup, it was usually during her coffee break. She’d sip her coffee and read her paper, and I’d work in the serene environment she had. It was a peaceful experience, with her taking that time for herself before the day’s busy schedule.

And yes, I even worked with Martha Stewart!

Wow, that’s a contrast. What happened next in your career?

After my second child, I stepped back from the editorial world to be home more. I started a bridal business so I could work weekends. But then I realized doing bridal trials at home wasn’t ideal with two kids and two cats! So, I opened a little shop, and it grew into a 20-year business.

That sounds like a whole new chapter. Did you go gray early, or did that come later?

I was about 45 when I could see them having some presence. And really with no tremendous amount of thought except that this is expensive. I have to sit here. It smells and… I don't want to do this. So I didn't do it. And that's when I realized that I was doing something radical. I didn't know it was radical until people started making comments. My mother said, "Are you sure? Don't you want to color your hair?"

And then the real thing was a person, I don't remember who, but I do remember exactly where I was in the room where somebody came into my shop and said, "You're not going to be able to work in the beauty industry if you have gray hair." And the gauntlet was thrown.

You seem to have always had a questioning nature about beauty.

I’ve never been one to just accept things as they are. I was outraged when I first started encountering this pressure to cover my gray, and my decision not to do it became something much bigger. It was like I became radicalized, fierce about the issue. And it was my business to decide, especially as a hair and makeup artist. I had this position of quasi authority in the beauty world, so it was easier for me. No one could tell me how to wear my hair. But for many women in other professions, they didn’t have that same power to make those decisions.

Right, you had that position to stand your ground.

Because I was a hair and makeup artist, other women often shared their feelings about why they couldn’t go gray, I heard those reasons for 20 years, a long time to have the same conversation, which became both exasperating and boring, 

When I saw someone’s silvers, I could tell they were beautiful. They complemented her skin tone, eye color, job, status in life, and relationships, I knew this fear of going gray was based on dogma, it was complete nonsense, All I could do was lead the horse to water, and I did my best.

When the pandemic hit, we started seeing the skunk stripes, right? With everyone’s life turned upside down and people reevaluating, I saw it happening—it was really happening, though of course it had been building for years.

Where were you seeing this shift play out? On Instagram or just around you?

So, that’s when you decided to embrace a new direction?

I had turned 65 and was still working, doing headshots and local little things, making women feel their best, which is rewarding. But honestly, it wasn’t enough. Artistically, I didn’t feel fulfilled, and I know a lot of women can relate to this. 

If you have children, even with a nanny, your own aspirations end up on the back burner. You don’t get to devote your full self to them. Something has to give, and usually, your kids come first, as they should.

Career-wise, I felt like I wasn’t done. My kids were out of the house, I was healthy, and I still had some spring in my step. I wanted something next. 

During the post-pandemic period, I did some consulting for Face Stockholm, a mother-daughter, Swedish-based, American beauty brand. I had known the owners for many years and worked on wrapping my head around the pro-age market, the 50-plus woman. What is she wearing? How do we reach her? I spent a lot of time on Facebook and Instagram researching.

That’s when I discovered the Silver Sister Movement. I was amazed to see women growing out their gray hair younger and younger, documenting it, and making it a whole thing.

And this was around 2020 or 2021?

Exactly. So all of this was in my mind. When I turned 65, that felt like a big number. One night, I was tossing and turning, and as the sun started coming in, I realized I had been awake all night. I took a deep breath and said to the universe, "I need a project." It was straightforward, not wishy-washy. And as soon as I said that...

It was like a bolt of lightning. I know it sounds crazy, but I’m sharing it because I want people to know that when they’re hit with the muse, they should pay attention. 

I was inspired, and I almost felt something in my mouth, like something chunky. I was still a little sleepy and thought, "Okay, what is this feeling?" It visualized as vintage baby blocks that spelled out, "Your roots are showing." Without a moment’s hesitation, I knew it was a documentary, and I knew I was meant to make it.

It was about what’s happening in the world of fashion and beauty, all around the world, with people choosing not to cover their gray, the market shifting, and our perspectives evolving.

I quickly thought, "What are you doing? You don’t know how to make a film." But then I said to myself, "Shut up. You just received this. Stay out of your own way." And that’s exactly what I did.

What was your first step?

I met up with a director friend of mine, thinking I could get him involved. He told me I had this and should do it myself. He suggested getting a better phone and starting to gather content. I wondered if it should only be my point of view. So I decided to create this story using a chorus of women from around the world.

I started with friends, catching them during walks or car rides. I also approached Silver Sisters and would compliment their hair, tell them I was a hair and makeup artist working on a documentary, and ask if they would be willing to let me record them sharing their thoughts.

To my surprise, everyone I approached agreed. Later, I would follow up, share my Instagram so they could learn more about me, and let them decide if they wanted to participate. Once they agreed, I sent over a release form and followed up until I got it back. Altogether, I worked with 80 women, including many who were part of Silver Sister meetup groups.

That’s such a great way to get people involved! Did you have a framework of the film, or did it come together organically?

It was a bit of both. I knew I wanted to include a few professional voices, so I reached out to experts in the industry, like the founder of Hair Story, a hairdresser, and Ronnie Citron, an environmental toxicity advocate. I wanted their professional insights to serve as the pillars of the film.

I also wanted diversity in terms of personal style. I didn’t want this to be just for models or influencers. I wanted it to be for everyone. I wanted that diversity so that someone watching could either feel inspired or find someone they can relate to.

How long did it take you to find, interview, and get content from 80 different people?

We started putting it together, and the more I did it, new people kept popping up. Like Nina Cash from California—I found out about her later in the process, and I saw that she was a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. I told Max, "I’ve got another one!" So we kept adding new people, and it just kept evolving. 

Some of it wasn’t planned. For instance, the conversation about mothers... I didn’t even realize it at first, probably because I’m female and the mother-daughter thing is so obvious to me. We just roll with it. But Max, being a guy, said, "Wow, all of these women are influenced by their moms one way or another." He really brought out themes that I hadn’t even thought about.

What were some of those big themes that came out as you were looking at all the content and figuring out how to tell the story?

One major theme was certainly the mother-daughter dynamic. It worked both ways. Some people had moms who went gray early, and they didn’t want to look like their moms. Others saw how their mothers hated their silvers and hid them, and they thought, "I need to hide them too." 

There’s also the issue of dating—whether you’re in a long-term relationship or single, women feel they’ll lose their attractiveness as they get older, and "old" is still unfairly tied to silver. Women even feel they’ll be pushed out of the workplace for having gray hair.

Did you find that there were differences in how gray hair was perceived in different countries?

Absolutely. The U.S. is a bit ahead, but in countries like France and Italy, the pressure to maintain dark hair is huge. In Asia, shiny black hair is so iconic that going silver can be seen as aging negatively. But even in these cultures, I saw women breaking free from those standards. Change is happening, even where silver isn’t widely embraced.

Who do you think is the intended audience for your film? Who do you hope will watch it?

I would hope it’s for anyone—for those who are silvering, who feel they want to cheerlead and understand it in a broader context, as well as what I call the silver curious. There are still a lot of women dying their hair who might think, "It kind of looks okay on you, but I don’t know how it would look on me, and how do I get through it?"

That’s another thing in terms of diversity. I wanted to include some women who are still in transition so that we could visually see this two-tone phase and not think it’s the worst possible thing in the world.