Christine Hamilton Is Taking Notes

In its milestone 10th season, Love Is Blind broke tradition by sending newly engaged couple Christine Hamilton and Vic St. John to Malibu for a largely off-camera getaway while their pod pals traveled to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. It was a matter of allocating resources, creator Chris Coelen told Netflix, noting that the pair “had fewer intersecting relationships with the other remaining couples.”

While some fans felt short-changed on the lovebirds’ behalf, it might not be the worst thing to effectively be told: Your relationship is simply too solid for us to mine any drama.

Indeed, as I chat with Hamilton over Zoom amid a truly fraught moment in reality TV, the speech-language pathologist says she’s happy she and Vic could bring something different to the show. “It seems like the viewers were really craving some sense of normalcy,” she says of the warm response from fans, who have praised the pair’s mature conversations and undeniable chemistry.

As the 31-year-old puts it with Midwestern humility, “We’re just two people that you’d find on the street, and we happened to fall in love, and this process worked for us.”

Of course, that process comes with quirks. In an effort to encourage authentic on-camera conversations, Hamilton says, the producers would try to limit chat among the women on trips to and from their hotel. They even had a code-word reminder.

“I don’t know where ‘Guatemala’ came from — but if any of the production team would hear stuff that shouldn’t be going on, they’d say ‘Guatemala,’” she recalls, noting that meant the women should save their conversation for later. “I think we actually got banned from listening to music on the way to set, because there were some girls that were still trying to whisper, and they were using music to hide the talk.”

The practical side of documenting your life with the world might come with a learning curve, but it doesn’t sound like Hamilton and St. John, a college professor, plan to step back anytime soon.

“We’ve been brainstorming how we can steward this online community that we have growing. It’s been really fun for us to see and interact with all the love and support,” she says, noting that they’re keen to open up about their journey as a married couple. “We’re still kind of in the works, but there’s definitely going to be some kind of platform or something where we get to share more.”

In the meantime, Hamilton opens up about the self-help book she regularly refers back to, her wish for Love Is Blind fans, and the unexpected research study happening in her Notes app.

The Fast Follow With Christine Hamilton

What’s a TV show or movie you can’t stop trying to get people to watch?

I’m forever a die-hard Sex and the City fan. So a lot of my girlfriends that haven’t seen it, I’m like, How did you survive your early 20s? It’s my go-to show. I’ll still rewatch it over and over and over.

What’s your most quoted scene from a TV show or movie?

From Sex and the City: “Maybe our girlfriends are our true soulmates, and men are who we have fun with.”

We have such a stigma on women as we age to find a partner and get married and settle down. And I couldn’t love Vic more, and he does complete me in a sense, but I will never neglect or forget the bond that I had with my girlfriends. Those relationships are so incredibly important.

What’s your most reread book?

I went through a huge self-help book phase. There’s a book called Eight Rules of Love by Jay Shetty that I’ve read a couple times. I love it so much because it’s good no matter what stage of life you’re in — you could be going through a divorce, you could be single, you could be freshly married. There’s so much good stuff in that book.

What’s a topic you could give a PowerPoint presentation on with a moment’s notice?

Chewing and swallowing disorders. I guess this isn’t for the average bear, but if you have a swallowing impairment, brushing your teeth is super, super important. If you have bacteria in your mouth and you aspirate, if it gets into your lungs, you’re going to end up with pneumonia. A lot of people don’t realize how important oral care is when you have a swallowing impairment.

What’s your most surprising hobby?

I can’t just watch TV — I get bored. So sometimes I’ll have it on as background noise, and I can sit and crochet, and it’s relaxing. I’ve done a blanket, a scarf, a toboggan, and I made a couple little ornaments. My nana actually taught me as a kid, and I never really picked it up until the past couple years. Vic calls me an old lady.

What’s the last/weirdest/best thing in your Notes app?

Vic says I twitch a lot in my sleep, so I started this diary trying to figure out why I do it: How much caffeine did I have today? Did I go to the gym? Did I stretch before bed? What did I drink? So I’m, like, being my own neurologist, trying to figure it out. So it probably looks really weird and chaotic.

He does the same thing. He’s crazy with his Notes. When he goes to the gym, he’ll write down his mood, what he ate that day, how much water he drank during his workout, how he feels after. He’s so funny. So I feel like I’m picking up on a little bit of those habits, too.

What’s something or someone you’re always defending, or a topic you feel strongly about?

Just being kind. Online [with] Love Is Blind, I’m seeing a lot of hate towards certain people. Not that what someone maybe did or said wasn’t wrong, per se — but that doesn’t mean that it gives people the okay to attack and say some really horrible things.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.