7.30AM I wake up to a really annoying ring on my phone because I’m a deep sleeper. I barely have my eyes open and I’m flipping through texts and e-mails; people have already e-mailed from Paris.
8.30AM I wash my face with Clé de Peau face wash, put on RéVive moisturiser, brush my teeth, get ready, and then walk to work. My closet is like a uniform – I could sleepwalk into it, and my right hand would pull out black jeans, and my left would pull out my T-shirt. I have more than 50 pairs of black jeans, and my closet is filled with black shirts: my slouchy black, my stiff black, my dressy black that I wear under a jacket, my brushed-cotton black, the more dressy cotton black, the cashmere black, the knit black that’s made to look like a T-shirt. I’ve always loved that scene in American Psycho when he opens the closet and it’s all arranged by colour. And I love sneakers and sneaker culture. I have around 40 pairs and usually three of the same style. But I feel like I can’t pull off crazy sneakers, so I wear toned-down all-black ones. Once a month I send all of them to Leather Spa and get them re-dyed black. I work out once a month. I started a while ago with a trainer, and I was really good about doing it three times a week. But then I started going to Paris for Balenciaga, and the schedule has just been insane. He teaches me things to do, but I never do them. Before, I was lifting weights, running, and stretching because my body gets so tight. I’m really not flexible, so he had me buy one of those foot stretchers. I have it right next to my bed so I don’t forget.
9AM I’m proud of being on time, and I feel very uncomfortable walking into meetings when everyone is waiting for me. I usually eat breakfast – oatmeal and juice from Juice Press – at work. I like the Doctor Green Juice and the Ginger Fireball; I can’t afford to get sick. I don’t drink coffee. I go right into meetings with all my different design teams. I get around 300 e-mails a day, but I’m adamant about responding on time. I hate being on the phone, though. Some of my friends like to chitchat. They call at night, and I’m always like, “Get to the point.” Unless it’s urgent, tell me next time over dinner.
12PM I don’t get a chance to read Women’s Wear Daily until midday. I order lunch; I always eat at my desk. Sushi of Gari in TriBeCa is my favorite, and I get the Tuna of Gari, their version of omakase. Sometimes I get La Esquina or Kori, this Korean place that makes grilled salmon over rice. I eat everything. I’m actually obsessed with eating things that were gross to me when I was little, such as brussels sprouts and tomatoes. My work refrigerator is filled with Fiji water and juices. I probably have five or six beverages – juices, iced tea, water, smoothies – throughout the day. I also have weird cravings for chocolate milk and root beer.
1PM If it’s a fragrance day, the Coty team comes in and we go through samples of scents. The most I’ve smelled in one sitting is 40, and my nose was completely numb after. They give you coffee beans to smell in between scents, in a little glass to cleanse your palate. Since our B. Balenciaga scent is a woman’s fragrance, we wanted to add a feminine, sensual side to it. I love lily of the valley but wanted something that kind of threw it off, so we came up with the idea of edamame rounded out with woody scents and cashmeran.
2PM I try to organise meetings on the hour to the hour, though sometimes they only last 15 minutes because I like to keep them to the point. On average I have 10 a day, but at times it will stretch to 15. In between I’ll set up my showroom, do line-edits while styling a look book, and review visuals in the store. When I have long meetings and we’re just sitting around, I get really lethargic. Music is a big part of my inspiration – I love all genres. There’s a new artist called Banks who I’m really into, and Sharaya J, who is in my new T by Alexander Wang campaign. She’s Missy Elliott’s protégée and is going to be huge. I only like white flowers in the office, either cabbage roses or white peonies, and lily of the valley, of course.
8PM I leave the office and walk home – it lets me decompress. I don’t go out during the week anymore. Ninety percent of the time I pick up dinner or my assistant calls for delivery, and it’s there when I arrive. I don’t think I’ve ever cooked at my apartment. In my refrigerator all you’ll find is fruit, Shiseido eye masks, vodka, and grapefruit juice. And weird chlorophyll drinks – I think they help me counterbalance my stress levels. Sunday nights are for movies, but Friday or Saturday is when I celebrate. I’ll meet up with all my friends and have dinner. I’ve had the same group of friends since college; they’re like family. En is one of my favourite restaurants, and I love ABC Kitchen. Sometimes after dinner I’ll go dancing, but I’m not cute when I go out because I’m not planning on running into fashion people. When I know I have to see a lot of people or do an interview, I’m mentally prepared and ready to be open. But if I’m on vacation or walking down the street or into a restaurant and it’s crowded, I get really shy. I’m quite introverted, and people mistake it for being rude. If I know I’m going to the CFDA Awards or the Met Gala, I still get anxious, because these things and paparazzi are nerve-racking. To relax, I love getting pedicures – not manicures. I get a massage about once a week. I just zone out and fall asleep. I’m really good at falling asleep. I usually catch up on it in the car on my way to meetings. If I’m riding to SoHo from Chelsea, I’ll sleep in the car for 15 minutes.
8.15pm By the time I get home I’m on autopilot. I put the TV on, but I’m not even watching; I just like noise. I don’t like the news because it’s too depressing. It’s always some kind of murder or missing case. I love all those singing- and dance-competition shows, and action films and comedies. Bridesmaids is my all-time favourite movie. I’ve watched it multiple times, and it never gets old. I’m obsessed with going on the Internet and finding YouTube sensations. There was this Swan Lake video where this girl was literally on pointe, toe-spinning on top of a guy’s head. And I like music videos – I just watched some old Beyoncé. I have a lot of beautiful photographs and family portraits in my apartment, but I haven’t really gotten into investing in art. I’m a bigger collector of vintage furniture. My friend Ryan [Korban], who decorated my house and worked on the SoHo store, helps me find amazing items such as the Karl Springer black shell chairs in my dining room. I collect tickets and memorabilia from concerts and festivals – I have a whole drawer filled with all this crazy stuff, from wristbands and badges to light-up sunglasses.
12AM My bedroom is white and minimal. I have four floor-to-ceiling windows, but they face the back of a metal building. My apartment is in an old sewing factory, and you used to be able to see the Empire State Building, but then the New York Law School building went up right in front. They were nice enough to make it so the students can’t look in, but it kind of feels like The Truman Show when he reaches the wall. Before bed, the last thing I do, like the first thing in the morning, is check my e-mail. I turn off my lights, TV, computer, set my alarm, and then look at my phone one more time. Everyone says to shut everything off at least an hour before bed, but it’s so hard because I might miss something – it’s bad behaviour. Maybe in Paris or Asia someone is e-mailing me. I’m very international.
