Supermodel Coco Rocha has had a long week of fashion festivities, be it hanging out with her pal Christina Hendricks at Zac Posen (casual), snapping a selfie with makeup legend Pat McGrath backstage at Diane von Furstenberg (again, casual), or posing for photos with the equally legendary fellow super Caroline Trentini at Anna Sui (super-casual).
When we caught a few minutes of her time, she was just returning from the front row at the Diesel Black Gold show. "It was all black, no gold," she said, laughing, from her home in Westchester, where she currently resides with her husband, James Conran. Coco and James are expecting a baby girl in just two months, but pregnancy has hardly kept her from being all over Fashion Week — or from keeping up with her social media empire. We talked all things beauty, baby, and career, including the latest addition to her ever-growing résumé: designer. Read on for what she had to say.
NYFW is almost over: Do you have any plans for after?
"After Anna Sui, I'm staying put. No more traveling for me." Speaking of Fashion Week, you've worked a few of them. What are your most memorable backstage beauty moments?
"All of them were in Europe. Galliano shows were always intense and crazy — you would show up six or seven hours before the show just to prep in hair and makeup. Those shows were always done by Pat McGrath, and it was definitely a look: You would have to run home to your hotel to get the makeup removed before going out for the night, or you would have to remove it there because you would look absolutely crazy walking down the street."
You just released your book with Steven Sebring, and before that, you lived your life on the runway. What's your next venture?
"Disney is coming out with a new [version of] Cinderella, so they asked me to do my own clothing line for it, which has been the focal point for me career-wise. Being a Disney kid, I loved Cinderella." So, you're expecting. What excites you most about motherhood?
"The most exciting thing is figuring out who this little person is going to be. When you find out that you're pregnant, you think, 'How am I going to wait nine months to meet this human being?' That's been the challenge for me — to be so excited, but have to wait. Will she have dad's personality? My sense of humor? ... We're all set, and we even have all the cute little clothes... This season, everyone's asking what I thought of the clothes, but I've hardly noticed them. All I've been noticing are the baby outfits that North West is wearing! I have a totally different mindset now. I'm thinking of things I never expected [to think about] before." Are you nervous about anything?
"You're caring for another human being, who will expect the world of you, so you want to make sure you're doing everything you possibly can to take care of them. It's a little nerve-racking." How has James been?
"So excited! We didn't care if it was a boy or girl. He's obsessed and hasn't even met her. I'll be the strict one, and he'll be the cool dad. Just watching how he is around kids, I fall more and more in love with him."
NYFW is almost over: Do you have any plans for after?
"After Anna Sui, I'm staying put. No more traveling for me." Speaking of Fashion Week, you've worked a few of them. What are your most memorable backstage beauty moments?
"All of them were in Europe. Galliano shows were always intense and crazy — you would show up six or seven hours before the show just to prep in hair and makeup. Those shows were always done by Pat McGrath, and it was definitely a look: You would have to run home to your hotel to get the makeup removed before going out for the night, or you would have to remove it there because you would look absolutely crazy walking down the street."
You just released your book with Steven Sebring, and before that, you lived your life on the runway. What's your next venture?
"Disney is coming out with a new [version of] Cinderella, so they asked me to do my own clothing line for it, which has been the focal point for me career-wise. Being a Disney kid, I loved Cinderella." So, you're expecting. What excites you most about motherhood?
"The most exciting thing is figuring out who this little person is going to be. When you find out that you're pregnant, you think, 'How am I going to wait nine months to meet this human being?' That's been the challenge for me — to be so excited, but have to wait. Will she have dad's personality? My sense of humor? ... We're all set, and we even have all the cute little clothes... This season, everyone's asking what I thought of the clothes, but I've hardly noticed them. All I've been noticing are the baby outfits that North West is wearing! I have a totally different mindset now. I'm thinking of things I never expected [to think about] before." Are you nervous about anything?
"You're caring for another human being, who will expect the world of you, so you want to make sure you're doing everything you possibly can to take care of them. It's a little nerve-racking." How has James been?
"So excited! We didn't care if it was a boy or girl. He's obsessed and hasn't even met her. I'll be the strict one, and he'll be the cool dad. Just watching how he is around kids, I fall more and more in love with him."
What kinds of lifestyle changes have you had to make?
"[Giving up] alcohol and coffee, which is funny, because coffee doesn't bother me anymore. Now, I could care less, whereas before I had never gone more than a week without it." Have you introduced any new beauty products?
"I'm using a lot of cocoa butter! The Palmer's Firming Butter is great. I also now use the Desert Essence Deodorant, Aveeno's Positively Radiant Face Scrub, and I am constantly applying the Rosebud Salve lip balm." Has your exercise routine changed?
"Before pregnancy, I was not a big exerciser. You get married, and you enjoy life and don't worry about those things! When I got pregnant...that's when you start to think on behalf of someone else, and it's crazy how you are so determined to do whatever you need to take care of what's inside of you. When it was safe, I started working out — I have a trainer who makes sure I do everything correctly. I'm eating better. You keep up with a health routine, because you want this person to come into the world as healthy as they can. If I wasn't pregnant, I probably would have stopped two weeks into my routine! I would have been like, 'Coffee sounds great right now!'" What did you introduce into your diet that wasn't there before?
"There wasn't so much introducing, but excluding things. No fast food, no pop — I'm Canadian, so I say 'pop.' I did add a lot of vitamins, vegetables, and cardio to get my heart rate up. I was with a friend who has a baby, and I was holding her and for the first minute it was great, and by minute 10, my arms were dying. So, I've been strengthening my body and preparing for that." What's something your mom taught you that you hope to teach your daughter?
"That just because she's a girl, it doesn't mean everything's going to be pink, purple, and princesses. She can play with cars, do sports...If she likes something, I want to help her pursue whatever it is. My mom encouraged me — she got me trucks and cars...I was in running shoes all the time and playing sports. As a kid, I didn't know the music of my time...most of my friends knew who Britney Spears was, but I was listening to The Beatles." Have you gotten any good advice from fellow moms?
"Someone came up to me and said, 'Can I give you a piece of advice?' Those words can really be the most annoying thing. But, then she said, 'Do not take anyone's advice. You're going to learn on your own, you're going to figure things out, and you'll succeed at some things and fail at others.' That was the best advice. In the end, there's no perfect parent."
"[Giving up] alcohol and coffee, which is funny, because coffee doesn't bother me anymore. Now, I could care less, whereas before I had never gone more than a week without it." Have you introduced any new beauty products?
"I'm using a lot of cocoa butter! The Palmer's Firming Butter is great. I also now use the Desert Essence Deodorant, Aveeno's Positively Radiant Face Scrub, and I am constantly applying the Rosebud Salve lip balm." Has your exercise routine changed?
"Before pregnancy, I was not a big exerciser. You get married, and you enjoy life and don't worry about those things! When I got pregnant...that's when you start to think on behalf of someone else, and it's crazy how you are so determined to do whatever you need to take care of what's inside of you. When it was safe, I started working out — I have a trainer who makes sure I do everything correctly. I'm eating better. You keep up with a health routine, because you want this person to come into the world as healthy as they can. If I wasn't pregnant, I probably would have stopped two weeks into my routine! I would have been like, 'Coffee sounds great right now!'" What did you introduce into your diet that wasn't there before?
"There wasn't so much introducing, but excluding things. No fast food, no pop — I'm Canadian, so I say 'pop.' I did add a lot of vitamins, vegetables, and cardio to get my heart rate up. I was with a friend who has a baby, and I was holding her and for the first minute it was great, and by minute 10, my arms were dying. So, I've been strengthening my body and preparing for that." What's something your mom taught you that you hope to teach your daughter?
"That just because she's a girl, it doesn't mean everything's going to be pink, purple, and princesses. She can play with cars, do sports...If she likes something, I want to help her pursue whatever it is. My mom encouraged me — she got me trucks and cars...I was in running shoes all the time and playing sports. As a kid, I didn't know the music of my time...most of my friends knew who Britney Spears was, but I was listening to The Beatles." Have you gotten any good advice from fellow moms?
"Someone came up to me and said, 'Can I give you a piece of advice?' Those words can really be the most annoying thing. But, then she said, 'Do not take anyone's advice. You're going to learn on your own, you're going to figure things out, and you'll succeed at some things and fail at others.' That was the best advice. In the end, there's no perfect parent."