It’s particularly difficult to look good outside in the winter, for the two seconds that we’re outside anyway. Everyone’s bundled in a hodgepodge of layers, and rushing—typical New Yorker “speed walking” dials up a notch to the point where it looks like we really really need to find a bathroom. There are far fewer stop-and-chats. But I couldn’t miss the girl in the white Mongolian lamb coat (and her equally cute boyfriend) waiting for a table outside Peel’s on the Bowery. And I learn that, of course, she’s French; a fashion student at Studio Berçot in Paris, spending a few months in New York to perfect her English��� and shop for beauty products.

“I put on Janssen Cosmetics, it’s a German line, and there is a spa in Paris—you can only buy it in the spa. I use a cleansing gel, a lotion, and a cream. But my day cream is Christine Chin—I heard about it from Into The Gloss! When I came to New York I had a lot of spots, because of, I don’t know, the weather, and I went for a facial at Christine Chin and it was really good. I also put Camellia oil on my face, from a Japanese store near St. Mark’s Place in New York called Sunrise Mart. I read that it’s really good for acne and for when your skin is dry. If I put it on for one night, I see a difference—it regulates oil and the spots get smaller. I wear a little bit of powder foundation, Bare Minerals by Bare Escentuals. I don’t wear mascara usually because I think it looks really intense—but when I do, I use Armani Eyes to Kill. My perfume is my boyfriend’s perfume, actually, Caroline Herrera for men. And my other perfume is men’s as well— Lalique Encre Noire pour Homme; it smells so good, it’s really strong...it has a very woodsy scent. But every time I wear it, people ask me about it.”