An Insider's Guide to NYC's Best Cultural Beauty Spots
When it comes to New York beauty tour guides, they don’t come much more qualified than Stephanie Flor. The New York-based makeup artist has a roster of high profile clients and is the founder of Around the World Beauty, a company that celebrates cultural beauty traditions around the globe. Skip Sephora next time and try one of these multicultural beauty emporiums, exploring New York’s diverse neighborhoods in the process, from Little India to Koreatown.
CAP Beauty, Chelsea
Store
At CAP Beauty I always find the most awesome workshops to attend that expand my idea of beauty. It’s a magical store filled with the coolest beauty finds from all over the country. This store inspired Around The World Beauty to host our own small intimate beauty meditations, empowering women to focus on self-care and invest in products that work from the inside out.
The Alchemist’s Kitchen, East Village
Shop, Beauty Salon
Silvana, Harlem
Restaurant, Bar, Middle Eastern
Tonymoly, Koreatown
Best for: K Beauty
This is my favorite beauty stop in NYC for the best karaoke and the cutest face masks in the world. After traveling to Korea last year and learning so much about K beauty it was great to find some of the best brands back at home. My Tonymoly beauty-must is the Snail Eye Cream and the mask bar, which has an endless selection of vegetables and odd beauty ingredients to make skin food.
Paintbox, SoHo
Best for: Fashion nails
Head to Paintbox for the ultimate Sex and the City moment, glass of champagne included. This ultra sexy nail spot isn’t your regular mani—the in-house artists work backstage at Fashion Week and its creative director, Julie Kandalec, creates new collections every season inspired by her travels. You’ll find some of your favorite magazine editors and celebrities getting the hottest nail looks, too.
Butala Emporium, Little India
Best for: Indian beauty
I visit this beauty bonanza when I’m running low on bindis or just need a little Indian beauty inspiration. The store has tons of goodies like henna and face packs, and everybody who works here is filled with goddess knowledge. I always stock up on DVDs that breakdown Ayurveda (an ancient Indian approach to healing) and Hinduism, which are great for exploring Indian culture and traditions.
Aire Ancient Baths, Tribeca
Spa
Inscape, Chelsea
Yoga Studio
Annick Goutal, Upper East Side
Shop, Store
While traveling in the south of France, I learned that not all fragrances are created equal. The closest we get to pure luxury in NYC is Annick Goutal, where you’ll find me learning about product launches incorporating the newest fragrance discoveries from around the globe. One of my favorite beauty travel hacks is to get miniature sizes and testers when traveling for a long trip. Since fragrances usually come in glass I always get a mini-tester version for my carry-on. Such a conversation starter on flights!
SacredWaters, Long Island City
Spa, Health Spa