Welcome to I Swear By This, an interview series where we chat with our favorite fashion and beauty insiders about the beauty products they use down to the last drop. This week, we asked Imaan Hammam—supermodel, She’s the First ambassador, and muse for Tory Burch's new Essence of Dreams fragrance collection—to share all of the beauty products she’s loving at the moment.
Imaan Hammam has always lived in a fragrance-filled household. Growing up in Amsterdam, mornings began with her mother lighting incense. During visits to her grandmother's home in Morocco, incense filled the air before Friday prayers—so much so that “the whole house would be in smoke,” the supermodel tells Coveteur. As Hammam grew into an omnipresent industry fixture on runways, covers, and campaigns, lighting incense and palo santo in her Brooklyn apartment every day helped her feel at home outside of Amsterdam. “Living here by myself in New York, putting those scents in my home bring me back to my family,” she says. “It’s amazing how scents can bring back memories or make you think of moments in your life.”
Filling her home with familiar aromas takes her back to her childhood, but considering how her career moves at breakneck speed—this year alone she’s covered Harper’s Bazaar, Mexican Vogue, the Wall Street Journal, and is now an ambassador for Tory Burch’s new five-piece fragrance collection—there isn’t much time to reflect. However, since the pandemic, she’s made it a priority to pace herself. “Because my lifestyle is very fast-paced, I’m always moving on to the next thing. But the best thing I’ve learned during COVID is to be in the moment,” she says. “If I think of the younger Imaan being 11 years old and looking at magazines and looking at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on TV (because that was something I loved watching), 11-year-old Imaan was never thinking of becoming that. I’ve always had these big dreams of becoming a model or doing fashion, but I never had the confidence and I never thought that it would be me.”
Among the myriad of perks that come with being at the top of fashion’s heap, unlimited access to the best beauty products is among the most enviable. Because of this, when a product earns a supermodel’s seal of approval, you know that it’s really good. On a rainy Monday morning, Hammam phoned in from her New York apartment to fill us in on the products that she reaches for every single day. Keep reading for Hammam’s beauty must-haves.
Electric Sky Eau de Parfum
“Of the five different scents [in the Tory Burch Essence of Dreams fragrance collection], I would say my favorites are Electric Sky and Divine Moon. What’s so great about this collection is that you can literally layer them and mix and match [them]. In the morning, I would go for something that’s a little bit lighter like the Divine Moon. But if I’m going for drinks with my girlfriends, I would go for Cosmic Wood or Sublime Rose [and] mix them. I love them all.”
Defend & Balance Tinted Mineral Sunscreen
“For me, a good moisturizer has to have SPF. That’s so important, so I’ve been using this moisturizer from Epicuren. It has SPF 50 and it’s literally life-changing. I take it with me everywhere I go. Having a good moisturizer is so important.”
Rosewater
“I have rosewater with me all the time—or a good rose oil. It calms my pores and the rose scent is so good to have around.”
Curl Shampoo
“It all starts with having a great shampoo and conditioner—that goes a long way. I’ve been using this Virtue shampoo and conditioner for years and it’s honestly my go-to.”
Organic Argan Oil
“I always have pure argan oil. Like pure, pure argan oil. I went to Morocco and this amazing woman pressed it for me. It’s the real oil, which is so hard to find. In a lot of products they say it’s argan oil, but it’s not the real thing. Being able to go to Morocco and get it freshly pressed is amazing. I use it for my hair, but I also use it for my body.”
Artist Eyelash Curler
“It depends on my mood, but with makeup I [typically] like to go with a simple look. Skincare is super important [to] me. Makeup-wise, I just curl my lashes and put on a little bit of mascara."
Blush Divine Clean Dewy Cream Blush
"I've been loving this blush from Rose Inc. I have it in my bag all the time. It’s a creamy blush, so you just dab your fingers and apply it. It goes a long way.”
Lip Sleeping Mask
“I always have a great lip balm in my bag. My lips always need to be hydrated. I don’t like a dry lip moment. I’ve been using the LANEIGE Lip Sleeping Mask. It’s a mask, but I use it all day. I don’t know if that’s good, but it’s so good for my lips.”