Canadian Kate King is Dolce & Gabbana Dolce muse

DEBORAH FULSANG sat down with the young beauty Kate King during February’s Milan Fashion Week to speak about fragrance, food and living the fabulous life as the face of Dolce & Gabbana’s newest scent.

Fulsang: So you’re Canadian, how often do you go back?
KATE KING: A couple times a year, I live in New York so it is pretty close.

DF: When did you leave Canada?
KING: I left Canada when I was 13, we moved to the States because my parents got jobs there. I moved around a lot when I was a kid and my parents are from all over.

DF: And yet you look so Sicilian in the campaign images, what are your roots?
KING: Well, my mother is from Guyana, so she has a background of a bit Portuguese, a bit Indian; very diverse. And my father is Scottish.

DF: What is your relationship with fragrance?
KING: I grew up playing a lot with essential oils. I used to buy lavender, patchouli and jasmine and I used to mix them. I have always loved beauty products and fragrance in particular. So it is really special that [Dolce and Gabbana] asked me to do the testimonial for it. It’s always been apart of my life.

DF: How old were you when you were mixing around with your essential oils?
KING: Maybe like eight or nine.

DF: Tell me a little about the shoot, it looks like you’re in a grove of flowers.
KING: We recreated the outside of a stately Sicilian home – we shot the film in Sicily, but we shot the print campaign here in Milan. Domenico [Dolce] shot it and Stefano [Gabbana] is the creative director, so it was their vision coming to life.

DF: And what was it like? Tell me about the experience.
KING: It was really amazing, they are both so lovely. They have a definite vision, they know exactly what they want: They’ve been creating this vision and it is really going back to their Italian and Sicilian roots.

DF: You talked about patchouli and some of those oils that you played with as a kid but what is it about this fragrance, the floral nature of it, that appeals to you?
KING: I think the fact that it is different. It’s the first time the white amaryllis has ever been used in a fragrance. When I look for a fragrance, I look for something that original and unique and can be instantly recognized. Like, when my friends smell it they can [say] “that’s her!”

DF: Where do you wear your fragrance?
KING: I’ve been playing around with it a lot lately. It depends: Sometimes I like to spray it in my hair, on my pulse points. With this fragrance, I’ve been spritzing it everywhere.

DF: Of course you wear Dolce & Gabbana Dolce now, but what others are your favorites?
KING: I really love Light Blue, I just bought that for my sister, she really loves that. I wore them together the other day and they smell amazing together. Oh, and Dolce The One, I wear that sometimes! The men’s cologne I wear if I feel like mixing it up.

DF: Have you had a chance to travel through Italy much since you’ve been working with D&G?
KING: Yes! That’s one of the perks with working with them. You get to come to Italy, which is such a beautiful country, amazing culture, the food, the wine…

DF: Do you have a favourite place?
KING: It’s a toss up between Venice and Taormina, which is a town in Sicily – it is so beautiful. Venice is magical: the water, the architecture. It is so old; you feel the history. The food…There is nothing not beautiful there! And Taormina: It’s on a mountain and overlooks the sea; there’s the architecture…

DF: What’s your favourite Italian food?
KING: I just tried pasta Pappardelle – am I saying it right? With boar. I’ve never had boar and I think it is my new favourite!

DF: I love that you’re eating pasta!
KING: Oh for sure!

Deborah Fulsang launched The Whale & The Rose in 2012 as a way to share her passion for fragrance. Follow her on Twitter @DeborahFulsang to tap her stream of consciousness on all things trend, pop culture and perfume-related.

MORE DOLCE VITA: We also think this new fragrance – it’s feminine but a bit earthy and sexy too – would be a perfect gift for a stylish and modern-minded woman in your life. Check it out.