Rifle through the average handbag and you’ll probably find some coins, a spare hair tie, and a couple of year-old tampons lurking there. Gisele Bündchen, on the other hand, lives up to her wellbeing guru status with an assortment of items that help her perform at her best, boost health, and remain zen. Of course, it’s not just any bag—it’s a denim quilted Chanel bag that the supermodel has had since her mid-twenties. Below, Vogue discovers some of the wellbeing essentials she keeps with her at all times.
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1. A roll-on aromatherapy fragrance
Gisele knows all too well the power that our olfaction can have on our wellbeing. As well as smelling good, inhaling an aromatherapy oil can directly impact the brain’s limbic system, which is responsible for emotional and behavioral responses. The scent you use will impact this system in different ways, whether to calm or uplift. “I have a bunch of them for different reasons,” she says. “I have some with peppermint, but this is more ylang ylang and lavender.”
2. Arnica
A commonplace ingredient in beauty cabinets the world over, Gisele is also no stranger to arnica. “I am a very athletic person so arnica is great for that… if you have injuries, it’s very helpful,” she says. From softening bruises to alleviating muscle ache and reducing inflammation, if you don’t already know about arnica, it’s a topical treatment to get acquainted with.
3. Incense
Touting incense as a way to make her surroundings feel cozy and warm, it is also the perfect partner to her morning and nighttime rituals. “I start my day with meditation and the practice of asanas, which is movement in yoga, and I always light an incense or candle,” she says. “At night, I always pray.”
4. Caffeine-free tea
Coffee? Gisele doesn’t know her. “I love tea—I drink tea all day long,” she enthuses, showing off a ginger and chamomile tea bag. “I did drink caffeine when I was in my early twenties, and I had anxiety for that!” She no longer drinks caffeine, but loves herbal tea in all its forms.
5. Vitamins
Gisele is known to eat a predominantly plant-based diet, free of dairy and any kind of processed foods, so it will come as no surprise that her vitamins come everywhere with her—in particular, vitamin D3 and K2. “I believe that as much as we [should] nourish our bodies through food first, then you can supplement with vitamin D or zinc, or different things that are good for us,” she says.
6. A lip and cheek blush
While not technically a wellness essential, we all need a little help to achieve a healthy glow sometimes. “If you feel like you’re looking tired…” she says, holding up a Beautycounter Cheek Clean Cream Blush, which delivers a sheer finish to lips and cheeks. “You can put it on your lips, on your cheeks, and you have a little mirror.”
7. Resistance band
From jiu jitsu to yoga, Gisele lives an ultra active lifestyle—so it’s no wonder she carries a resistance band with her in her handbag. “I had shoulder surgery, so I take little breaks throughout the day and do my shoulder exercises,” she says. “This little band is amazing.” Taking five minutes to do a mini workout, she uses it to squat, to activate muscles within the body and to open up her shoulders.
Bobby focuses on creating higher margins while investing in society. He believes that our World has room for improvement, and one of his goals is to be part of the evolutionary process. What makes him successful is the collaboration with founders and partners. Bobby has a successful track record in envisioning and creating deals and opportunities from scratch in various industries.
Ramadan, a holy month celebrated by millions of Muslims worldwide, is upon us this week. It marks the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, lasting about 29 or 30 days and ending when the new moon is sighted. The month is marked by fasting, donating to charity, increased prayer, worship, and self-reflection.
Most of all, it’s a month to take a step back from everyday life and focus on faith. Each day we eat before sunrise and won’t eat or drink again until sunset. Muslims fast in order to strengthen their discipline and reflect on those less fortunate, who don’t have access to food and clean water. This is why charity is so vital to the month—it’s about cultivating a deeper understanding of the sufferings of others and practicing thankfulness for what we have.
For me, Ramadan is a time to detach from my everyday life and look inward at my spiritual health. It’s an annual fresh start, when I can try to incorporate new habits into my routine that I want to take forward into the rest of the year, such as praying more, visiting the mosque, and eating a healthy diet.
Ramadan is also a time of community and family—spending time with loved ones is a key part of the month. Whether it’s the cereal eaten with our eyes half-closed at 4 a.m. or the dinner cooked together that we’ve waited 14 hours to eat, Ramadan strengthens relationships with the other Muslims in our lives.
Kendall Jenner has been on a winning fashion streak in Paris. Earlier this week, the model channeled Audrey Hepburn in an all-black outfit from The Row (the look was even complete with an Old Hollywood headscarf). This weekend, she continued her streak of sophisticated minimalism, this time stepping out in the streets wearing a muted, all-gray ensemble. Jenner found an incredibly chic sweater dress in the process, proving that a cozy spring knit can still be sexy.
Opting for a piece by Ann Demeulemeester, Jenner slipped into the label’s long-sleeved wool sweater dress, which had a draped neckline and an asymmetrical leg slit. The dash of skin gave the comfy piece a more fashion-forward feel, and put focus on her sleek below-the-knee pointy boots by The Row. She also accessorized with a giant leather tote and tiny rectangular shades, one of her go-to finishing touches.
Slinky turtleneck dresses have been trending on stars like Kaia Gerber and Zoe Kravitz, but leave it to Jenner to give the sweater dress a more alluring feel. She could simply swap her boots for strappy stilettos, and she’d instantly be ready for a night out on the town. And who doesn’t want to party in a garment that essentially feels like pajamas?
I was born with the eyebrows I came to covet: bushy, thick, bordering on uni territory. They were perhaps the only perk of being naturally hairy; coated in a layer of dark fuzz I waxed and shaved or bleached elsewhere. In my mid-to-late-’90s teenhood, however, this Brooke Shields–esque genetic blessing was out of time. Skinny, manic pixie dream girl brows were the phattest then, as seen on Drew Barrymore and Gwen Stefani in her seminal No Doubt years.
“They look like caterpillars,” my then-best friend, who was six months and one grade older, condemned my brows at one of our many sleepovers, branding the longest hairs closest to the bridge of my nose “antennae.” Then she proceeded to hold me down—with my limp consent—and tweeze them within an inch of themselves.
Mine is an all-too-common cosmetic sob story for many elder millennials and Gen X’ers—Chrissy Teigen has aired her own similar saga. We sacrificed our natural brows circa the Clinton administration, and by the time the wispy trend went the way of the Rachel cut it was too late. Those precious, fluffy caterpillars never, ever grew back.
Growing out your brows can be as awkward as growing out your bangs. Nevertheless, I persisted in trying everything to reawaken my deadened follicles: popular growth serums, nightly swabs of castor oil, and 99% of the brow gels and powders on the market, all with moderate-to-disappointing results. Until, I am happy to report, now.
During a routine cleanup—a solid decade into my futile brow-growing journey— my esthetician Liz McKay, founder of Bare, A Skincare Experience in Westport, Connecticut, floated a solution: brow lamination, a treatment “similar to a keratin treatment for your brows,” she explained, “using the length of the hair to create a new shape.” As I now understand it, you are essentially faking your way to bigger brows.
The first of two solutions McKay applied—because I was immediately in—was a conditioner that renders typically coarse, rogue brow hair long, flat, and more pliable. She told me that these newly silky strands could then be brushed up and out to create the illusion of fuller brows and styled to cover gaps in growth. Finally, a second serum locks the new brow position in place.