Iman's First-Ever Fragrance Is Inspired by Her Travels With David Bowie

Iman is an undisputed beauty icon. Her modeling career spans an impressive four decades, her face has graced the covers of countless magazines, and she's walked her fair share of runways. Most notably, she also set the standard for inclusive makeup long before legacy brands caught up. Since 1994, Iman Cosmetics—inspired by her search for difficult-to-find shades created for women of color—has championed diversity (they were one of the first companies to offer a complete shade range of complexion products). And, of course, her 24-year marriage to David Bowie set the bar for love in the public eye.

Now, she's moving into a new venture: launching her first-ever fragrance exclusively with HSN. The scent, Love Memoir ($85), is a thoughtful homage to her romance with David Bowie. The rock star, who passed away in 2016, left behind an unmatched legacy and a wealth of memories with Iman, which naturally inspired her "deeply personal" approach. The resulting scent is an intimate blend of their travels, life together, and essence as a couple.

To learn all about the new scent and her inspiration, we spoke with supermodel Iman. Read on for some much-needed beauty advice from a timeless legend.

How She Found Inspiration

"Fragrance was the last thing on my mind when I came here to my house upstate. I hadn't spent a lot of time in this house since my husband passed away, so it brought back lots of memories.

"At the beginning of my stay, it was rather difficult because, as I said, memories rush in—from not just the house, but the landscape. But, the property is actually what helped me through the process. I thought I'd been through my grieving process. But unfortunately, I found that I didn't actually go through my grieving process. I have a teenager who lost her father, so I was more trying to help my daughter go through her grieving process. So, here I was on my own, and I had to learn how to sit and go through my grief.

"I had the most beautiful sunsets here. One of the things that's beautiful about the property is the sunsets, the mountain, and the great landscapes, but I witnessed these magical sunsets on a daily basis all year round. So I could see that spring, summer, fall, and winter sunsets are completely different because the landscape changes, and that what's calmed me and made me start looking at my memories—not with sadness, but with joy."

On Love Memoir

"Working with the perfumer, I wanted things that reminded me of Tuscany. I love Tuscany because when we [Iman and David] were at the beginning of our romance, we loved Florence. We got married in Florence; we honeymooned in Venice. I remember lots about Italy and the Amalfi Coast, so it was trying to capture those memories. So, the fragrance really became a part of me and him.

"It's a fragrance that is not trendy. It feels like a fragrance that has a past, and also, it is a little bit masculine. I also have black currant, bergamot, vanilla, and rose in there, which is feminine. So it has both a feminine and masculine vibe to it."

How She Stays Grounded

"I've never painted in my life. My husband was a painter, and my daughter is a painter. And I've never painted in my life, so I started painting last year. There were these beautiful sunsets, and I started with watercolors. I started doing just strokes of the colors. And that actually became the packaging that holds the bottle of Love Memoir."

The Skincare Ingredient She's Been Using All Her Life

"I've been taught by my mother since I was a kid. In Somalia, we used to use homemade turmeric masks. So, I still make homemade turmeric masks for myself. It's the ingredient we use the most in Somalia, whether we put it in tea, put it in food, or put it on our face."

Her Best Makeup Tip

"The idea with makeup is not really to conceal; it's to create a canvas for your face before you apply color. And you don't want to see where the concealer and the foundation separate. One trick I've learned from makeup artists is to apply the minimum. You can't subtract unless you're a great makeup artist. They know how to blend, blend, blend, right? But most of us don't. So, do it as light as possible. Think of it as a canvas."

On Morning Rituals

"I do meditation in the morning and reading before I do anything else. And so, on my Instagram page, I always start with what's called Iman Daily, which is a quote."

HSN Love Memoir by Iman $85.00

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