My Morning Routine: Natashah Torki

We love Q&A’s and interviews, but we think the best way to get to know someone is to follow in their footsteps. Today we’re launching a new series called My Morning Routine, which will feature an eclectic mix of women as we shadow everything from their a.m. skincare routines to what they eat (or don’t).

Our inaugural MMR starts with Beauty by Dolly’s Director of Operations and Expansion Natashah Torki, whose morning consists of daily affirmations, Dr. Bronner’s, and her dog, Dexter:

“I wake up around 5:45 a.m.—I’m an early bird! I immediately say a prayer (“Ashem Vohu and Yatha Ahu Vairyu,” a common short prayer in our Zoroastrian faith) about being thankful for another day. I do look at my phone first thing after that, which I’m not happy about. I need to break that habit! I check my email, see if anyone texted me, etc. and then I usually spend a few more minutes snuggling my dog, Dexter. 

Before I get out of bed, I try my best to do a 10-minute meditation on the Headspace app. I love Headspace. I’m not always successful in mediating, but I always make the effort. 

Eventually I get out of bed by 6:30, feed Dex, and then get ready for the day. I start with my Sonicare DiamondClean toothbrush, which I swear by. I love it—and my dentist is much happier too.

Since I cleanse my face at night, in the morning, I just wash with water. (At night I use Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser for oily skin. No matter what products I use—and I’ve used everything from La Mer to Boscia to at-home oil cleansing—I always go back to Cetaphil. It leaves me clean and fresh without stripping my skin of natural oils.)

I then jump in the shower and use a SpaCell bath mitt to exfoliate my skin and get the blood flowing—it’s antibacterial, antimicrobial, and doesn’t harbor any water so it’s really one of the cleanest products for exfoliating in the shower. Traditional loofahs often stay wet, never fully dry, and harbor tons of nasty germs, like your kitchen sink sponge! Would you wash yourself with that? Yikes! I swear by my SpaCell mitt. Also, their products are biodegradable, which I love. 

I use Dr. Bronner’s Tea Tree Liquid Soap on my back to help prevent breakouts, and on the rest of my body I use a cleanser I make at home, which is free of chemicals and I know exactly what’s in it. I’ll share the recipe on an upcoming post.

I always lotion up with Nubian Heritage Coconut & Papaya body lotion in the shower before I get out so my skin can soak up all the goodness. 

I’m not really a breakfast person. If anything, I usually eat leftovers from the night before. I don’t really believe in the traditional “American” breakfast, which is basically just dessert in my opinion. But I do always make sure I take Dexter on a walk. That’s my time to unwind and set my intentions for the day. During our walk I always repeat affirmations that are specific to my personal journey and goals. 

I head out to work by 8-8:30 a.m. and since I was in business school—I graduated a few weeks ago!—I wasn’t in the studio as much. But now that I’m done, I’m back again four days a week and one day I work from home, which ends up being more chaotic because I not only do my regular 8 hours of work, but try to fit in doing 8 hours of housework at the same time!”