When Dior approached designer and KNC Beauty founder, Kristen Noel Crawley, about working with the brand a few years ago, she was a rising entrepreneur just starting to make a name for herself. It was Dior Beauty’s PR and Special Projects Manager, Fanny Bourdette-Donon, who first recognized Crawley’s talent and saw her potential to capture mass audiences with her specialized beauty routines and personal style. In the eight years since Crawley began her relationship with Dior, she has developed into a household name within beauty and fashion circles, launched a successful beauty company of her own, and added Louis Vuitton, Valentino, and YEEZY to her impressive and selective list of luxury collaborators.

Crawley’s rise within the industry is not surprising. Her Instagram page alone reads like a high-fashion coffee table book with plenty of cut-out worthy images beautiful enough to make the vision boards of fashion students and fashion veterans. Crawley’s Instagram also often reveals the creative projects that she’s worked on with top designers. A few weeks ago, she posted an image of herself attending the Louis Vuitton Resort 2020 show sporting a pair of floral-laced custom grills that she designed with the 165-year old label and popular jeweler, Ben Baller. Collaborations like this have made Crawley stand out among the heard of top influencers and caused designers from around the world to call upon her as their muse.

In the first installment of CFDA’s new “Muses” series, Kristen Noel Crawley shares how she established her relationships with top luxury brands and how she selects whom to work with.

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How did your relationship with Dior begin?

I’ve been working with Dior for many years – they’re like family. They started with me when no one else was working with me so they’re really my day ones. We’ve been through three creative directors at this point (lol). I’ve always been into beauty and they took notice of that. I met Fanny almost eight years ago and she really saw something in me which has now led me to be a friend of the house.

What types of projects/initiatives have you done with Dior? 

I’ve travelled all over the world with Dior –– Asia, Europe, etc. We’ve done small campaigns and larger scale ones. One time we shot in the rose fields in the south of France –– that was incredible! Perfume, makeup, handbags –– I do it all for Dior.

What other designers or brands have you worked with and what makes you decide who to work with? 

I only work with brands that I truly love. I started working with Louis Vuitton a little over a year ago. We did a four-page spread for Vogue Brazil which turned out gorgeous. They’ve been a great partner for me. I also work with Valentino. I love the heritage of the brand and the people that work for it. They’re all friends of mine. My girlfriends Gilda and Giorgia started The Attico and I love working with them. I just put my KNC beauty lip masks in their “Attico Box.” I’m an Attico Girl for sure, all of their designs I adore. Alyx is a personal favorite of mine. I’ve known Matt and Jen for a long time and I am so excited to see what they have coming up next! I’m a YEEZY girl as well. I’ve been in their campaigns for the past few years, it’s always fun and interesting to see what new ideas Kanye has. I especially like to work with people that I already have a connection or relationship with. I won’t work with brands that I don’t already wear and love, otherwise it’s not authentic.

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What type of clothes/styles are you attracted to at the moment?

My style right now is very girly, 90s supermodel (I wish) and chic. I love a crop top, tight jeans and kitten heels with a little bag – that’s my uniform. I love prints, textures and obscure pieces. I like to stand out and take risks. If I commit to something I’m going all the way.

Does your beauty regimen inform your wardrobe choices or vice versa?

Of course! Sometimes I’ll think about a certain eye look that I want and I’ll have to build my outfit around that. Or I’ll know I want to wear a certain top or dress so I know my makeup look that night should complement that.

How have you been able to successfully navigate between the fashion and beauty worlds? 

For me, they’re one in the same. Fashion is beauty and beauty of course can be fashion. I dabble in both but I found ultimately that beauty is my true calling. I love to create products and make women and men feel more comfortable in their skin. I find that both beauty and fashion are both a huge part of my life so it wasn’t about navigating between the two, it was more about how can I combine them.

Who are some of your fashion muses?

I love the 90s supers –– Naomi, Yasmeen, Claudia etc. Their style was so classic. It’ll never fade. Left Eye is a major inspiration — she mixed chic and street so well. At the moment, I love to dress up and look feminine. I love pastels and delicate accents. A lot of times I’ll reference movies from my adolescence like clueless or legally blond.