Karah Katenkamp, Curve Mannequin | Into The Gloss

“I grew up in a city of 100 individuals in rural Ohio—the closest mall was an hour away—however after I was 13 my dad received a visit to New York Metropolis. He was allowed to deliver one particular person and he picked me. I used to be obsessive about the town from the second we took our first taxi trip. I received scouted on that journey, however being from rural Ohio, my dad stated, ‘Completely freaking not.’ I received scouted once more at a espresso store in Cincinnati. I signed up for an old style modeling faculty that taught you issues like learn how to stroll and do your make-up. Once I received my first job modeling nursing scrubs, which was actually thrilling, the lady who was working the mission supplied to attach me to individuals. She despatched me to New York to satisfy with companies and right here I’m, nonetheless modeling and doing jobs for manufacturers like Fenty Magnificence, Calvin Klein, Skims, and Aerie, which was unbelievable as a result of the billboard appeared in Instances Sq.. Seeing myself three tales excessive? Simply serious about it makes me emotional as a result of I consider that 13-year-old who got here to the town for the primary time and what she would’ve thought if she noticed herself.

On the finish of the day, I’m a mannequin, however it’s vital for me to proceed saying that I’m a curve mannequin to emphasise that we’re nonetheless within the business and representing curvy girls. I by no means noticed that rising up. I even keep in mind Googling curvy fashions to see ladies who regarded like me however I might by no means discover any. And by the best way, I don’t thoughts being referred to as ‘plus-size.’ I’ve all the time been robust and thick. Once I got here to New York, I had an agent ask me about my ‘weight acquire story’ and that basically threw me off as a result of I’d all the time been this dimension—and it’s that method for lots of girls. There’s not essentially one thing that ‘occurred.’ We’re girls. We’re curvy. That’s it. So, how did I get right here? Properly, I used to be simply born. [Laughs]

I’ve needed to be taught to care for my pores and skin properly since I’m on set loads. Meaning I don’t use loads of energetic or actually intense elements as a result of I’ve eczema and psoriasis, and my pores and skin can flare up fairly simply. That stated, among the best elements about being a mannequin is that I get to strive all kinds of merchandise. Each make-up artist swears by various things, and someplace alongside the best way I heard about La Roche-Posay’s Cicaplast Balm. It’s modified the sport for me. It’s so thick and hydrating, so I slather it on in a single day when my pores and skin is sad, and by the morning, my pores and skin’s texture is loads higher.

I all the time return to Bioderma’s micellar water to take off my make-up—it by no means leaves a movie. My eye make-up remover—the Bi-Facil from Lancôme—is somewhat oily although. It’s what I seize after I put on heavy eye make-up at work, however it’s light on the identical time. Osea’s Ocean cleanser is basically light, too—and it smells actually good.

My aesthetician—I see Gosia at Williamsburg Magnificence Spa each two months or so—really helpful that I exploit Biojuve’s Dwelling Biome serum as soon as per week as a result of it has reside probiotics, that are useful with rosacea. I comply with it up with the Activating mist, which is meant to ‘activate’ the serum. And Weleda Pores and skin Meals Gentle is my go-to moisturizer year-round. It all the time leaves me with a good looking base for make-up.

I’m going to be trustworthy: I don’t put on sunscreen on daily basis. I’ve had a tough time discovering one which doesn’t break me out. But when I do know I’m going to be outdoors for greater than 20 minutes, I like Supergoop!’s Each Single Face SPF 50. I like that it’s actually watery and goes on easily.

In terms of physique cleansers, I not too long ago found Avène’s XeraCalm A.D cleaning oil. I really feel like loads of physique washes depart your pores and skin dry, however this one is just not stripping in any respect. And I exploit Eucerin’s Eczema Reduction Cream each morning and night time, however particularly when I’ve a photoshoot. It leaves this actually stunning glow on my pores and skin however it doesn’t make me look shiny both. Oh, and the Aquaphor therapeutic ointment? I apply it to every little thing: on my lips, on my palms, on my elbows. Typically I exploit a tiny bit to slug if my face is tremendous dry.

By the best way, I self-tan each two weeks, possibly somewhat bit extra incessantly within the winter as a result of I’m sometimes taking pictures summer time campaigns then so I must have some shade on me. I’m a professional at tanning by now. My favourite is the St. Tropez Self Tan Categorical Bronzing Mousse. It fades so steadily, it’s nice.

Instruments-wise, I like my TheraFace. I exploit it to prep for shoots. It has so many attachments, however my favourite is the chilly ring. I exploit loads of ice on my face—generally I’ll dip my head in a bowl of water with a bunch of ice—but when I’ve sufficient time, I’ll seize the TheraFace or my gua sha cryo sticks. The TheraFace additionally has a scorching ring that feels so nice on my masseters, which have a tendency to carry loads of rigidity. And I like the Omnilux contour crimson mild masks a lot. I attempt to use it for 10 minutes each night time and it helps a lot with my rosacea. Even when I’ve windburn, if I exploit it earlier than heading to mattress, it’s passed by the subsequent day.

On a standard day, I don’t put on make-up. I prefer to let my pores and skin breathe and have a relaxation from all of the make-up at work. If I do put on one thing on a time without work, I simply curl my lashes and apply lip gloss and mascara. However I solely put on tubing mascara as a result of I wrestle with raccoon eyes. The primary time I found it, I actually wished to cry as a result of I used to hold round concealer and make-up wipes with me on daily basis. Caliray and No7 make nice ones. Caliray goes on a bit thicker so I exploit that one for extra glam appears to be like, whereas No7 is best for castings as a result of it’s much less dramatic. It helps too that I tint my lashes each two weeks. I by no means thought I’d do this myself, however then I had a make-up artist inform me it was very easy and she or he was proper. It takes 5 minutes, too. And Fenty Magnificence makes my favourite gloss, the Gloss Bomb in Fu$$y. The shade’s not that far off from my precise lip shade—and I by no means need to stray too far. Oh, and for somewhat further contact as a result of I don’t have outlined lip strains, I like Mac’s liner in Stripdown. It’s a ‘90s traditional.

If I’m sporting a bit extra make-up for a casting, I am going for the Nars Comfortable Matte concealer. It blends rather well and provides me good protection. I’ve a few completely different shades as a result of I like to combine them to essentially match my pores and skin. Then I exploit the Nars Laguna bronzing cream in Laguna 02 on my eyelids. I picked this up from one other make-up artist: In case your eyelid is somewhat bit darker than your below eye, you appear like you don’t have darkish circles. The tails of my eyebrows don’t develop as thick as I’d like, so I fill them in with the Kosas Forehead Pop Nano pencil in Medium Brown. Then I perform a little contact of Benefit’s highlighter in Bounce, too. It’s somewhat pink and never too shimmery. For blush, I like Nudestix’s blush stick in Naked Again, a cool nude that appears so, so pure on me. And I prefer to depot all of my face merchandise and lipsticks into Vueset containers. It’s a lot simpler to journey or go to castings with two containers which might be smaller than index playing cards than to pack a bunch of bottles.

On the hair entrance, I am going to David Bullen at Pearlita for cuts. However I don’t dye it—anymore. I went by means of a section in highschool the place I dyed the underside half of my head in all types of colours—the underside was mother saying ‘sure’ to dyeing it and the highest was to make my dad blissful. However pink, blue, purple… You title it, I had it. That was sufficient for a lifetime. [Laughs]

I wash my hair nearly on daily basis, but when I wasn’t on set all the time, I’d wash it twice per week. I like the Pacific Salty Wave shampoo and conditioner. They’re my secret discover. A bottle of every is simply $10. They do not have sulfates or parabens, however the shampoo nonetheless lathers, which is vital to me as a result of I don’t really feel like I really washed my hair in any other case. And the saltiness provides my hair nice form and quantity. For styling, Redken’s Max Maintain is the most effective. I like the nozzle as a result of it sprays in a triangular mist, so it’s not too aggressive. And the ends of my hair actually love the Badger natural oil. It smells like almonds, which actually might be what actually will get me.

On the perfume entrance I like citrus-y, musky-but-light scents. I in the end need one thing that blends properly with my pores and skin and doesn’t stand out an excessive amount of. I not too long ago found Lunamaris from Diptyque. It’s imagined to remind you of moonlight—it’s impressed by the moon reflecting on the ocean—and I suppose it does. It has pink peppercorn, incense, and rockrose. I’m fairly conservative in spending, however it was definitely worth the splurge. The identical goes for Santa Maria Novella’s Cinquanta. I purchased it in Florence final November. It’s meant to be a mix of Japanese and Italian tradition, so it’s received bergamot, grapefruit, and orange blossom as a nod to Florence and inexperienced tea as a nod to Kyoto. I discovered the model by means of TikTok really—everybody was posting about it in Florence—and it was my first actual introduction to high-end perfume. It’s insane that they’ve been round since 1221. 804 years? That’s loopy.”

—As advised to Daise Bedolla

Photographed by Shana Trajanoska in Brooklyn on February 18, 2025