Danielle Fishel has a new title for the holidays. QVC has officially named her its Mrs. Claus for the 2026 holiday season. The role comes three months after she and Lance Bass served as the retailer’s Co-Chief Cheer Officers for its 40th-anniversary Christmas in July celebration. (“I worked very hard for this promotion,” she jokes.)
We sat down with Fishel in Los Angeles, where QVC kicked off the holiday season with a first look at its gift picks, to talk about what Mrs. Claus actually does all year, the beauty gift she buys in twos and the next Be Free launch coming to QVC.
In July you were QVC’s Co-Chief Cheer Officer, and now you’re Mrs. Claus. What was your reaction when they asked, and what does Mrs. Claus mean to you?
“My reaction when QVC asked me to be Mrs. Claus was an immediate yes. I love being a part of the QVC family and Christmas is hands down my favorite holiday. And I so believe that women do not get enough credit for all the thought that goes into planning all the little details that we remember for our whole lives from the holidays. So to be Mrs. Claus is quite an honor.”
She has seen that kind of holiday magic up close. “My mom makes homemade ornaments, and I’m there helping her. She wraps gifts beautifully. She starts her wrapping in September!”
Everyone knows Santa’s job. What do you think Mrs. Claus actually does all year? What’s your version of her?
“Mrs. Claus does everything. I’m pretty sure Santa just drives the sleigh! To me, Mrs. Claus is the person who is doing maybe some of the thankless work, but they’re the things that give you the best memories, like the home being decorated and the meals you’re going to eat. Even if you’re not cooking every single meal, you’re probably planning the menu, you’re delegating, you’re thinking of all the gifts, you’re remembering the in-laws or the friends. You have backup gifts in case you do forget somebody, a little closet you can go to and pull one out. You’re thinking about everyone through the holiday season.”
Since she’s the reigning queen of holiday glam, have you tried the full Mrs. Claus look yet? Are you doing a classic red lip, rosy cheeks, silver hair?
“The older I get, the faster those grays are coming in, and I might jump into that. And I love a rosy cheek. I tend to have some blush blindness.”
I’ve been using the Be Ageless body butter and I’m loving it! You launched it with the body serum in August. Even with LA’s milder winters, does your routine change with the season, or is it the same all year?
“I definitely am a very dry-skin girly, especially in the winter months. I get out of the shower, I stay a little bit damp, and then I’m slathering myself in that serum and then my body butter. During the summer, sometimes I can get away with just using one or the other. But during the winter months, it’s both. All the time.”
Last time you told us a body wash would be a great next step for Be Free. Any update you can tease us with?
“Yes, we have developed a body wash! I think it’ll be our next launch. It’s really very good: super lathering, smells delicious, all clean ingredients. So very excited for that launch. QVC will get it first!”
Beyond your own line, what’s one beauty gift from QVC’s holiday preview you’d put under your own tree?
“The Dr. Denese Serum ($65) is an absolute must in my beauty routine. It’s something my mom uses, and I like to buy a couple of them and gift them to friends. I love a stocking gift. I love something that’s small, something I can buy two of: one for me, one for you.”
Gifts are only part of the holidays. Is there a tradition from your own childhood that you’ve passed on to your kids, or a new one you’ve started with them?
“Every Christmas morning we make monkey bread. You buy biscuit dough, cut it into fours, roll it in cinnamon sugar, put it in a Bundt pan and pour brown sugar on it. It’s like a gooey cinnamon roll, but without the cream cheese, and it’s just an easy pull-apart breakfast. It’s something I look forward to doing with them every year.”
This past year has been huge for you, between Dancing With the Stars, your body-care launch and now Mrs. Claus. As the season kicks off, what are you most grateful for?
“I’m feeling grateful that with every passing year, I find new things that I want to accomplish and new things I want to tackle. I think it’s easy as we get older to just be complacent and to assume that we’re too old to learn new things, or too afraid to try something new. I have just so enjoyed tackling everything that comes my way and saying yes to everything, and I’m having the time of my life. So I hope I continue to believe in myself and to know that I can pretty much accomplish anything I put my mind to.”
As Mrs. Claus, Fishel will be sharing what she’s buying for everyone on her list throughout the season. QVC’s holiday gift lineup, which includes Be Free by Danielle Fishel, Dr. Denese, TATCHA and Laura Mercier, is available to shop now at qvc.com.
