Quotes from Jonathan Van Ness

As a kid growing up, I really hated being alone. I was always that kid that was like, 'Do you want to hang out? Let's go to the mall. Let's go to the movies. Let's go to the park.' I would call people and call people and call people. If I was alone when I wasn't at school, then there was something wrong.

I don't want to do transformations on people for the sake of a visual. I want to do it because it makes sense.

I vividly remember D'Angelo's 'How Does it Feel?' as a song I listened to around the time I came out.

When you're willing to be vulnerable, you can surprise yourself at how strong you can be.

Loneliness is, like, when you wish someone else was there, and solitude is when you enjoy being alone. I don't always wanna be alone, but I definitely like pockets of solitude to recharge and come back to myself. I think that's so important for everyone.

I've been an Amy Winehouse fan since her first album, 'Frank.' I always listen to her music when there's a lot going on and I want to be a bit grounded. It's like my musical warm fuzzy blanket.

My biggest secret is that I don't over-wash my hair. I wash it twice a week at the most, unless I'm on set every day.

Think about how your jeans would look if you washed and dried them every single day. That's like our hair, and you can't change your hair as often as your pants, so cutting down on washing cuts down on long-term damage.

Be able to see people's humanity. I think the way that you do that and see people for more than their surface value is, say, you're reading something in the news: the gender pay gap, or gay adoption, anything that involves a group of people being marginalized.

People think because they sweat, their hair is dirty. False. It's just salt and your natural oil.

Blotting pads are great in case you get sweaty or oily. But don't rub. It's a slow, methodical blot: set the pad on your skin and let it absorb, then move it to the next location.

Whenever anyone says I've taught them things by me being myself, I'm always like, 'Really? I just thought that was like, Wednesday for me. I was just wearing a kilt and a sleeveless top in a Rotary Club, it wasn't that big of a deal.'

I just - I come from a very little town where the militarization of the police force is a very real issue.

I'm really about body positivity and self-love, and I will definitely push the boundary with a pink midriff-baring top.

My podcast 'Getting Curious' keeps me really busy, which I love.

I am shocked almost on a daily basis that my being me everywhere I go affects people so deeply.

I was someone who wore bright purple sweatsuits with tall Doc Martens boots. I would iron Hanson decals on my sweatshirt. I was extremely flamboyant as a child.

There are times when you should listen to what people say about you, but also a lot of times you just don't need to listen so much. Don't worry so much and just go. Unless you're, like, in danger, and then don't. And then run, girl.

I think that I'm, like, an introverted extrovert. At the end of the day, when I get done doing hair at the salon or shooting a day of 'Queer Eye' or whatever, I definitely want to come home and, like, order pasta and sit with my cat or just one person or no people.

I went from being pretty fit to 230 lbs., which isn't, like, the biggest for being 6-feet-tall, but I had been 165 lbs. just three months prior. That taught me a lot about how people treat you differently when you're fit and when you're bigger.

Going to school was an absolute terror for me for, like, a decade.

If my energy was fake, then I would feel pressured, because I gotta, like, keep this up. I thank God it's just how I am. But I find myself wanting to work on being more comfortable in the silence with people.

A song like 'Tears Dry on Their Own' is really sad, but it's hopeful, too - that was my theme song for the first boy who broke my heart.

Please don't compare the nature and authenticity of 'Queer Eye' to 'The Bachelor.'