I’m so excited to introduce my latest Glow Girl, my lovely friend Natalie Cappello. I mean, can we talk about her hair? And that skin?! I just couldn’t resist. But let’s forget about appearances for one second. Natalie is one of the smartest, friendliest girls I know. She is also mother to an adorable 3-year-old Maltese Pomeranian named Teddy Baron, who, as you can see, looks like a baby polar bear.
Natalie, who lives here in NYC, loves a polished look and lists Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Miranda Kerr and, of course, Gisele Bündchen as her icons. Her hair inspo (because everyone needs one!) is Behati Prinsloo, but then again, all of the Victoria Secret models have the best hair. Just like me, Natalie’s cabinets are stocked with creams, lotions, toners, serums, masks you name it. She has a solution or product for anything and everything. As a fellow beauty girl, I needed the deets on Natalie’s favorite products, her workout routine that accounts for that off the charts bod, what’s up with that caramel colored, creamy skin, and everything else in between. These are Natalie’s secrets to living the pretty life in New York City.
Annie: Tell me a little about how you care for your skin. What products do you use until the very last drop?
Natalie: I always look for benefits like antioxidants or anti-aging features in a cream or eye cream to ensure I’m putting something of use on my skin. I have been leaning towards more organic and all natural products that are free of parabens lately.
My mother started me on Crème de La Mer since I was 16 years old. I religiously use La Mer Crème and Eye Cream every day and truly believe it helps with tone, moisture, and is age defying.
I will also incorporate a number of other products that I really love, like Nature’s Beauty Ovine Placenta Night Crème and Serum, Olive Antioxident DMAE Cream and Olive oil 24k Gold Serum, Ole Henriksen Truth Serum Collagen Booster and Vitamin C Cream. During the day I love the Caudalie Vinoperfect Cream with SPF 15 and the Premeir Cru Eye Cream is wonderful. Caudalie Beauty Elixir is a no brainer…every girl should have this in their cabinet.
A great exfoliator for the face is Korres Wild Rose Daily Brightening & Refining Buff Cleanser. It’s gentle and really helps give your skin a nice glow. I love it! I also love Korres Body Butter in Guava and as an alternative to perfume, the Laura Mercier Creams, like the Almond Coconut, are pretty fabulous too.
I also love the Alba line. Their Deep Sea Facial Mask is a great way to rejuvenate the skin.
Annie: What makeup products do you swear by? What would be your ‘stranded on a desert island’ favs?
Natalie: Ok so I love Bobbi Brown ‘Bronze Shimmer’ Brick (I wear this every single day!) and the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla. This concealer is a life changer, and I get all of my friend hooked. Also, Mac Lipsticks are my absolute favorite. They don’t taste strange like some lipsticks can. Hue is my favorite go-to color.
Annie: Your hair is my dream. How often do you wash your hair and what products do you use? What do you do to get such perfectly tousled waves?
Natalie: I wash my hair every 2-3 days with O&M Maintain the Main Shampoo and Conditioner. I’ll also mix in Oribe and Pureology occasionally. For deep conditioner, my hair colorist recommended O&M Seven Day Miracle with a few drops of the Frizzy logic Shine Serum and it works fantastically.
Between washes, I swear by Frederick Fekkai Dry Shampoo Powder. It truly works… You can go up to 4 days without washing. I find it’s much better for lighter hair since it’s a white powder but it easily dissolves if you rub it in well.
The perfect hairbrush is the Aveda Wooden Paddle Brush. It’s a must buy.
To get perfect natural looking waves, I use T3 Hot Rollers. You can buy them at Target, Walmart or anywhere really. The best thing about hot rollers is they aren’t damaging on the hair. Another easy at home option is blowing out your own hair. It’s best to use a thinner round brush to have the curl stay. I first brush my hair with my Aveda paddle brush then dry my hair all over so it’s just a tiny bit damp. This helps move things along, since it can take a while to blow it fully out when my hair is completely wet.
I then roll the round brush to the top of my head blowing it out facing upwards, allowing the brush to be on top of my hair and the dryer underneath. While it sits on the top of my head, I keep the dryer on it for a few seconds then let go. This creates natural looking waves as well.
Annie: You have certainly nailed those Audrey Hepburn brows. Do you believe in waxing or tweezing? How do you achieve such dark brows?
Natalie: Another tip from my mother—Don’t over pluck your eyebrows when you’re younger as you will regret it when you’re older! And I listened. I actually pluck my own eyebrows. Every few months I will get a wax or a threading to maintain the shape, but these are mostly sculpted by me.
For shading, I use Bobbi Brown Eyeshadow in the Smoke with their Brow Brush to give it that thicker fuller look. All of Bobbi’s brushes are amazing.
Annie: After sharing a hotel room together in Aspen over New Years, I can personally vouch that you have one banging body. Give me the details on your body and how you stay in shape. Gym or class?
Natalie: Well thank you, Annie!! I have been doing a mix of workouts here in New York City, ranging from P57, Barre, Barry’s Bootcamp, Soul Cycle and regular gym. My own workouts include long strides walking uphill on the treadmill on a 3.4 speed for about 10 minutes then I do long stretches that help elongate the leg muscles. The best thing for your body is bursts of cardio followed by stretching and weights, then repeat. I do lots of leg lifts and squats as well.
Annie: What’s your favorite summer & fall nail color?
Natalie: I love Really Red and Russian Roulette by Essie all year around and Licorice and Devil’s Advocate for winter colors. Tenoverten in NYC is my absolute favorite nail place.
Annie: Favorite lipstick, gloss or balm?
Natalie: All Mac for lipsticks. Crème d’nude or Hyue color is my go-to and of course the Christian Dior Lip Maximizer that has collagen in it.
Annie: Tell me a little about your diet. Do you “juice?” What is your alcoholic beverage of choice?
Natalie: I believe in never depriving your body of anything and eating in moderation. I don’t juice or diet. If one day you feel like eating a cheeseburger and fries or a piece of cake, eat it! But the next day you should eat a bit lighter and or workout to compensate for the calorie intake. If you’re exercising regularly and eating a well-balanced diet, you can look fantastic. And water; I think we all forget how the most simple thing on earth is so essential for our skin and health.
I love red wine. Of the Italian wines, Amarone is my favorite. Alcoholic beverage of choice is a Kettle Soda with Lemons.
Annie: What are you favie fav facemasks?
Natalie: Right now I’m using a hefty cocktail of Caudalie Vinoperfect Enzymatic Peel Mask (to immediately boost moisture and radiance), Boscia Bright White Mask (for brightening, smoothing and a serios even skin tone), Fresh Black Tea Instant Perfecting Mask (amazing for moisture), and Alba Botanica Even Advanced Facial Mask (to even skin tone and complexion)!
Natalie’s Glow Guide:
Neighborhood Nail Salon: Tenoverten
Hair Cut: Patrick Ferrara over at the new Julien Farel Salon cuts my hair and is amazing at styling
Hair Color: I am a loyal patron of Joseph Mullen, Director of Color at O&M Salon, as he has been my colorist for over 5 years
Facialist: Caudalie in the West Village
Dermatologist: Dr. Desar at Tribeca Skin Center
Favorite Juice: Anything Green! My new favorite spot is The Juice Shop and Sweet Green for salad! I am obsessed.