Five minutes with cover girl Candice Swanepoel
Victoria’s Secret superstar and June cover girl Candice Swanepoel spoke to Vogue about her low-key beauty routine, Instagram addiction and upcoming book project.
After her discovery in a flea market at age 15, this South African beauty has had a meteoric rise to fame. Numerous coveted advertising campaigns, walking the runway for the best in the business and a lucrative Victoria’s Secret contract are all testaments to Swanepoel’s admirable work ethic.
The 25-year-old says modelling is a business like any other. “I set goals and try to do projects that I believe in,” says Swanepoel. “It's important to put yourself in situations that force you to learn and grow and be inspired. That’s why I enjoy doing editorial so much, because each shoot is so different,” she says.
Swanepoel relished in the opportunity to work with Vogue Australia and famed photographer Hans Feurer. “He shoots very differently to anyone else I’ve worked with,” she says. “It’s always interesting to see how different people perceive beauty and how they capture it.”
She admits working on the freezing streets of Paris wasn’t always easy. “The funny thing about the styling for this particular shoot is that I wasn’t wearing pants in many of the shots, which is a little daunting on the streets of Paris! I had arrived at the motorhome straight off the plane from St Barts, so the cold was a complete shock to my system,” she says. “I’m so happy to be a part of this issue; the crew was fabulous.”
The South African beauty has a laid-back approach to style, preferring a classic model-off-duty look of white T-shirts and denim. Her go-to outfit? “My old faded black high-waisted jeans, a white T-shirt, booties and Céline bag. Extremely simple,” she says. And beauty? “I use coconut oil as lotion and rosewater spray to keep my skin hydrated,” she says. “On days off, I don't use make-up.”
Swanepoel is an active participant in social media with over 900,000 followers on her Instagram @angelcandice and over 400,000 on Twitter. “I'm addicted to Instagram. There – I said it!
“I don’t think too much about what I post. That’s why I sometimes get in trouble! I see things that I think are beautiful and use it as a kind of public journal of my travels and experiences,” she says.
Australian fans of the Angel can rejoice, with her plan to visit Australia in the not-so-distant future, as part of her upcoming book project with Victoria’s Secret photographer Russell James. “Last year we decided 'let’s do it', and decided to combine our love of the most amazing natural locations and our love for making art, and do a book that we hope will be like a visual adventure.”
Locations are still to be confirmed but Swanepoel says her ideal will include Africa, Australia, Papua New Guinea, East Asia and South America. “A complete adventure both creatively and spiritually.”
