My life would not be possible, or fun, without Catherine Littlefield. She has been by my side, growing Alchimie Forever right there along with me, since 2007. I think of her as my happy pill: when she is around, I laugh, smile, and giggle more. When she is around, I am nicer to be around. She is smart, gorgeous, kind, delicate, and funny. Somehow she balances out the “German soldier” in me (a term she coined once when I made her walk miles to meetings with heavy bags instead of taking a cab). Working together for so long means we have gotten to know each other really well… as this recent video interview shows. Still, in her answers below, I learned a couple new things about her, namely never to use her brush or be mean to her goldfish.
AP: What city were you born in? CL: New York City.
AP: What city to do you live in? CL: New York City.
AP: What is your middle name? CL: Healy.
AP: What is your astrological sign? CL: Aquarius to the core.
AP: What is something about you most people don’t know? CL: I have a four year old goldfish. He has an attitude and begs for food even when he’s just been fed. I swear he thinks he is a dog. I love him.
AP: What is your most prized possession? CL: I save all the birthday cards and important notes I’ve gotten. I love getting mail.
AP: If you could have dinner with the person of your choice, who would it be? CL: I’m a major Bill Clinton fan.
AP: Describe your fashion style in three words maximum. CL: Classic, American, Sportswear.
AP: Do you wear a watch? If yes, what model? CL: No watch for me, I tried once with a Swatch and it ticked too loudly for my sanity.
AP: Diamonds or pearls? CL: I mean, if we’re getting to choose, diamonds. I lived in Texas for four years and it definitely taught me to throw subtlety out the window.
AP: What is your #1 beauty secret? CL: Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer, Kantic+ twice a day for the past 7 years (the best), learn how to tight-line your eyes (they will teach you at the Laura Mercier counter), keep my face out of the sun!!
AP: What fragrance do you wear? CL: I mix Kai and Miracle by Lancome together.
AP: Botox or not? CL: I work for the best dermatologist in Switzerland (maybe in the world), so when I’m in Geneva, of course.
AP: Hair color: natural or not? CL: I don’t think I’ve seen my natural hair color since sixth grade. My mother has held onto her vision of me as a chick-white blonde baby and I like to let her keep up her dream. I see Marie at Marie Robinson for highlights.
AP: What are your special diet tips, if any? CL: You can eat basically whatever you like as long as you don’t eat a lot of it. Also, eat the yolk of your egg, it is good for you. Lots of arugula, ginger, and green juice whenever I can remember. Also, and this is debatable, but for me, I weigh myself regularly so I can keep track of things before they get hard to reign back in.
AP: What do you do for exercise? CL: Yoga. I love everything about it.
AP: What are three things that you always have in your fridge? CL: Sparkling water, butter, white wine.
AP: What is your cocktail of choice? CL: Ketel One and soda with a lime. Also, I am not afraid of a shot of tequila.
AP: What is your secret to work/life balance? CL: Keep a positive attitude.
AP: How many miles do you fly per year on average? CL: Not as many as I’d like to. Serious case of wanderlust.
AP: What are your three top tips for travel? CL: 1. Know which friends and loved ones you travel well with because a wonderful partner really elevates a trip to the next level. 2. Wear your hotel bathrobe as much as possible. 3. Most important, walking everywhere and eating your way through any city is a pretty wonderful way to experience a place.
AP: 3 songs on your ipod right now. CL: Marathon by Tennis, Dear Believer by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Stay by Rihanna.
AP: What book are you reading right now? CL: Let’s Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris.
AP: Quote to live by. CL: “Develop an interest in life as you see it; the people, things, literature, music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.” Henry Miller.
AP: What is your worst pet peeve? CL: I don’t like when people use my hair brush.
AP: What time do you usually wake up in the morning, and how many hours of sleep do you usually get? CL: I try to get as many hours as possible, I love sleep! I wake up around 7:30/8 usually.
AP: What is your favorite thing about the beauty industry? CL: That everyone is dying to share their favorite products, tips and experts that make them feel their best. The whole notion of “I heard about this product from a friend, my mom, my sister, my boss” everyone is just trying to help everyone and the second they experience something they feel works they can’t wait to tell their friends so they can feel and look great too. It’s all about sharing and helping, I love that.
AP: Least favorite thing? CL: Doctors who go overboard with fillers. Nothing ruins beauty faster in my mind.
AP: Who is your mentor? CL: Ada Polla. No question, she is the most hard working, honest, loyal, cute human on the planet I think. My other mentor just for life as a whole is my mom, she is very disciplined, organized, incredibly hard working and she sets her hair every morning with rollers before work and always has perfect hair and outfits. She is a total lady, so pretty and just the best person.
AP: Words of advice for young women starting their careers today. CL: Start interning as soon as possible, be creative, don’t be scared to change paths. Always act professionally. Have good posture and make to-do lists.
