Monthly Archives:

February 2018

Beauty, Body

Sasheer Zamata Sashays Her Way Into Kate Spade’s Latest Campaign

Photo via KateSpade.com

Sasheer Zamata has moved on from the SNL soundstage to the beauty counter as one of the fresh faces of Kate Spade’s latest fragrance, In Full Bloom.

Zamata joins award-winning actress Laura Dern (aka Admiral Holdo from The Last Jedi or Renata from Big Little Lies) and Rookie editor and actress Tavi Gevinson. While the ads mark the first major beauty contract for Zamata and Dern, Gevinson has pulled up to the beauty bar before (so to speak) as the former face of Clinique’s 2015 #FaceForward campaign.

While most beauty brands tend to tap one star to solidify the image of their latest breakthrough, Kate Spade sought to craft a campaign that would touch women of all ages by tapping the three all-stars whose 21 (Gevinson), 31 (Zamata), and 51 (Dern). “We focus on a psychographic instead of a demographic,” Brian Vander Meyden, vice president of global marketing and prestige sales at The Premiere Group, Kate Spade fragrances’ distributor, told Women’s Wear Daily. “To have women of three different ages speak to what in full bloom means to them makes [the fragrance] unique.”

As part of the campaign, the trio shot individual video “love letters” to themselves that you can check out below. They also shared pearls of wisdom in a few clips with Zamata highlighting how important it is to have friendships built on lifting each other up; Dern reminding everyone about how the mistakes we make ultimately end up helping to shape who we are; and Gevinson focusing on the building of trust and the subsequent feeling at home with your S.O. when it comes to love. And all of the videos are worth a watch if you want to brighten up your day.

When it comes to the scent itself, In Full Bloom features fresh and vibrant notes of rose petals, rose centifolia, peony, lemon and green tea. The juice comes housed in a teardrop-shaped bottle topped with the same white rose at the heart of the perfume (though it appears a little reminiscent of Marc Jacobs’ throwback aroma, Lola). The perfume will be available tomorrow, March 1, in four sizes with prices ranging from $28 to $98, plus a body lotion priced at $50 so you can slather the scent all over before spring even starts.

Continue Reading

February 28, 2018 by
Fashion

OMG, Chromat’s Coming to Nordstrom In Sizes Up to 3X!

A post shared by CHROMAT (@chromat) on

Chromat’s been known for delivering eye-catching designs dressed on models of all sizes since it first rocked the runway at New York Fashion Week back in 2010. But the “future-forward body wear” brand is celebrating a big breakthrough: it’s coming to Nordstrom with an order that includes sizes up to 3X!

Chromat’s designer Becca McCharen-Tran shared the good news during a panel for the opening of the Fashion Institute of Technology’s latest exhibit, “The Body: Fashion and Physique,” where she sat alongside Christian Siriano and Kim Jenkins, a professor and lecturer at both Parsons and Pratt Institute, to discuss increase in inclusivity in the indutry. Slated to hit Nordstrom in March or April (just in time for Spring Break), McCharen-Tran told Refinery29 that though she’s nervous and excited about the it, she’s already ahead of the curve — yes, pun intended — to fulfill the unexpected order with help from a factory with curve sizing experience. After all, it’s been her mission to create clothes for all bodies that made Chromat’s show one of the most-watched during Fashion Week and earned her a runner-up spot for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund in 2017, according to Fashionista. But those sizes haven’t always been readily available on store shelves. “We were so surprised,” McCharen-Tran told Refinery29. “That’s why the order with Nordstrom is so important. It’s the first time a retailer has been so supportive of our curve inclusive mission.”

So what’s kept the brand’s larger sizes off the sales rack until now? According to McCharen-Tran, it’s the fact that retailers haven’t reached out about them. The designer noted that the burgeoning brand has been wholesale focused, producing only what had been ordered from major retailer like Barneys and Revolve, who never asked for them. “No one has ever bought above a size large for us,” she said. “Barneys has never bought above a size large, so we were producing extra sizes on our own.”

The good news comes on the heels of Nordstrom recently stocking the sales floor with straight and curve offerings from Khloe Kardashian‘s Good American brand sitting side by side on the rack instead of separting them. It’s an annoyingly common practice at brick and mortar stores which often places plus-size sections in a corner or on a completely seperate floor, almost out of sight of others because heaven forbid a larger woman is seen shoping alongside her straight-sized counterparts. But McCharen-Tran has hope that small steps like these will not only lead to more visibility for diverse body types beyond the runway and less segregation on the sales rack but also to universal sizing standards. “Hopefully that’s where retail is heading, to be honest,” she said, though Siriano noted that it could depend on the types of garments and the materials used to create them. “So that everyone can know based on their measurements what size they are anywhere.”

So now’s the time to rewatch the Chromat’s Spring 2018 recent runway to start thinking about which of the chic swimsuits styles you’re planning to add to cart as soon as they arrive at Nordstrom!

February 27, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Nicola Formichetti’s Nicopandas Come Out to Play With MAC

Photo: MAC Cosmetics via Teen Vogue

When I first started playing with makeup — not just swiping my mom’s lipsticks, but actually receiving play makeup to mess around with — I tended to go really wild when I dressed up. Smearing creamy blue and white shadows on my lids, applying layer after layer of thick pink gloss, and using my stash of stick-on earrings as jewels to dot all over to accent my look was all part of the prepwork before donning what I pretended was a gown before presiding over my subjects. And while I don’t play princess as often as I used to, that playful attitude has stuck around.

It’s also what drew designer Nicola Formichetti, who many might know as the former Mugler creative director who had Lady Gaga rock his first runway, to finally link up with MAC Cosmetics. The head of Nicopanda has a long histroy with the beauty, having previously paired up for a number of campaigns over the, including Gaga’s Viva Glam campaigns. “They have always been very supportive of me and my creativity,” he explained to Teen Vogue. “It was a natural progression to create product together with Nicopanda. They are like family, and we really trust each other.”

Photo: MAC Cosmetics via Teen Vogue

But this time, Formichetti wanted to bring his brand, which he says is all about “trying new things, sharing and creating new ideas,” to the beauty counter by letting his creative spirit run wild to craft a collection that is meant for everyone who loves who likes to play with pigments. “Diversity and inclusivity are part of everything I do and Nicopanda does,” Formichetti said of the collection that is slated to hit MAC’s website on April 5th and MAC stores and Macy’s on April 11th. “Working on this project, I was inspired because everyone had their own take on how they wanted to play with the color palettes — a total freedom of expression.”

That sense of spirit transformed into a collection chock with pretty pastels and other unconventional color combos in the form of three Full Face Kits called Stay Cute, Preppy Panda and Primapanda as well as six matte lipsticks that the glossy notes range from seafoam green (Galactic Mint) to deep plum (Toung ’N’ Chic). Not to mention, there’s a plethora of Formichetti’s signature pandas dotted all over the packagaing and even topping some of the makeup brushes in the collection. “I spent a lot of time really perfecting the packaging. I wanted to bring together the beauty of MAC design with the Nicopanda motif, and I am really happy with the results. It’s pretty incredible because packaging for this collection is unlike anything previously done by MAC.”

But the most unique (and most likely to sell out the fastest) is the face stickers that come in the shape of flowers, hearts, bows, as well as punctuation marks and Nicopanda heads — all decked out in glitter. Stick-on face accessories have been a staple in the industry, but in recent years, they’ve been remixed to appear more delicate and darling, like Milk’s series of tattoo stamps and Flirt Cosmetics Chicers, than these daring ones from MAC. That’s not to say you can’t lean into the look with a face full of them. In fact, Formichetti fully encourages makeup mavens to come up with with their own cool combinations, something he admits he’s spent hours doing. After all, what’s the point of playing with makeup if you’re not having fun? “Beauty can be the most simple and natural look or something totally over-the-top and crazy because it’s an opportunity to both empower and express,” he said. “It’s our differences that make us unique and beautiful.”

If you want to get up close and personal with some of the products int heupcoming collection, I suggest you head over to Teen Vogue to get a gander at some of them before marking your calendars for April 5th if you’re planning to shop online or April 11th when it hits stores. Either way, let me know what you’re planning to pick up in the commenst below!

February 27, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Soap & Glory Offers #MoreThanLips Service By Helping Women Run for Office

While nothing can make you look perfectly polished in an instant like a bold lip, Soap & Glory is putting its money where its mouth is by doanting $20,000 to help others around the country raise their voices for change and help level the playing field when it comes to public policy. And the best thing is that you can lend a hand pout too!

The brand known for its fresh and fun bath and body buys (all wrapped in pretty pink and vintage beauty photos, of course) wants you to lift others up with a little bit of lip service. All you have to do is share a post on Instagram or Twitter using the hashtag #MoreThanLips, and Soap & Glory will donate $5 on your behalf (up to $20,000) to She Should Run, a national organization working to increase the number of women running for elected office to 250,000 by 2030.

The campaign is meant to remind women everywhere that whatever their shade of gloss, they can, and should, always share their voice, especially during a time when there is a dire need for the varied perspectives and experiences that women — across many different backgrounds — can bring to leadership. According to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University, women only make up about 19.8% of the seats in Congress, including 22.0% of the Senate and 19.3% in the House of representatives. As for local state legislatures, women currently hold 22.6% of state senate seats and 26.3% state house or assembly seats, making up 25.3% of the 7,383 state legislators in the United States. But there’s still plenty of work to do in order to create a more effective and representative government.

To really get the conversation going, the brand created a private video booth during the LA Women’s March where participants could share what makes them feel powerful, releasing the clip on Thursday. Women from all walks of life, including those who have experienced homelessness, addiction, domestic abuse, chronic illness, and more, shared their stories of triumph over tribulation with one concluding, “I am pretty badass.”  Because those that have something powerful to say are pretty badass.

And check out the full video below:

Continue Reading

February 23, 2018 by
Decor, Lifestyle

Lady Gaga’s Stylist Launches Line With Ikea to Make Your Space Look Glamorous — And I Want Everything!

via Ikea.com

You may not know Bea Åkerlund, but you’ve definitely seen her work before. The fashion activist and costume designer has added her decadent touch to create some of the most memorable looks of our favorite stars. We’re talking Beyoncé‘s iconic Lemonade-yellow dress from the “Hold Up” video (as well as half of the clips from her eponymous visual album); Madonna‘s Mark-Antony-meets-Cleopatra-inspired ensemble for her 2012 Super Bowl Halftime Show; Katy Perry’s Katy Kat CoverGirl collection commercial (and her Harper’s Bazaar Icons NYFW performance that I got to witness first-hand ); and even Lady Gaga‘s eye-popping “Paparazzi” video.

But now the stylist is adding her signature blend of gothic glamor not to your wardrobe but everywhere else in your apartment with an exclusive Ikea collection that is not only Instagrammable but also brings a bit of the red carpet home with you. Called OMEDELBAR (which is “immediate” in Swedish), the collection features home accents and accessories, like a gilded clothing rack and valet stand to put your prettiest pieces on display as well as a Birkin-inspired lighting fixture, all designed to allow you to get imaginative with your interiors and transform your space into the decadent dressing room of your dreams.

“’B. WHO YOU ARE’ is about embracing yourself, no matter what the world thinks of you. It’s about individuality and creativity – two important cornerstones of OMEDELBAR,” she said of the collection in a press release.

While the collection hit shelves on February 14th — yup, while we were drowning in red hearts, lipstick, chocolate, and all things amoré — the great thing is that everything is very affordable. The most expensive pieces are the armchair, the ottoman, and the clothes rack, which are priced at $249 and $129, respectively. Not to mention that the collection is available for purchase at almost all locations, save for IKEA Grand Prairie or IKEA Jacksonville.

And as much as I want to snap up everything, regardless of the lack of room in my house, I decided to sift through everything to narrow down it down to a few favorites I’m planning to purchase before everything disappears. Read more to see what I’m adding to my shopping list.

Continue Reading

February 21, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Rihanna Celebrates Her “Dirty Thirty” With A New Killawatt Highlighter

Rihanna might’ve lamented the end of her 20s on the eve of her birthday (honestly I am too!), but the beauty mogul is celebrating the start of her new decade by helping everyone else shine bright — like a Trophy Wife, not a diamond.

Fenty Beauty has just released a hyper-limited edition version of the cult favorite Killawatt Highlighter in Trophy Wife, which comes embossed with a triple X in homage to the bad gal’s big birthday. But don’t worry; the 3D hyper-metallic gold shade still features the same cream-powder hybrid formulation that melts into skin for that glow-from-within effect anywhere.

“You can use this on any part of your face — your eyes, your cheeks, your nose bridge, your collarbone,” she said of the beauty buy. “I like to use it on my body as well because it’s such a high sheen.”

The idea for the limited edition luxury first formed after brand gifted Riri with a custom blinged-out version of the cosmetic compact that the brand shared on Instagram, instantly inspiring some serious FOMO. Though I wish the Swarovski-encrusted version was available for everyone — maybe it’ll appear as part of an upcoming holiday collection — I still might have to get my hands on it before I hit the big 3-0 myself.

Are you planning to pick up this covetable cosmetic? It’s expected to fly off of FentyBeauty.com’s shelves soon. So if you, let me know what you think in the comments below!

February 21, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Amy Deanna Becomes The First CoverGirl Model With Vitiligo

A post shared by COVERGIRL (@covergirl) on

You might not know Amy Deanna yet, but she’s bound to become a household name after this! The Texas native was just named the new face of CoverGirl‘s #IAmWhatIMakeUp campaign for its TruBlend foundations, making her the brand’s first spokesperson with vitiligo.

Though you might have seen her featured in spreads for Atlas Magazine, it’s a huge opportunity for the up-and-coming model to help make the beauty industry more inclusive, starting with the first video ad which was unveiled Tuesday morning. In the clip, Deanna is featured not covering up her spots but instead using two of the brand’s foundations to make both of her skin’s hues look absolutely flawless.

“Inclusivity is important—not just for people of different backgrounds and ethnicities, but also people of all sizes,” she told People. “That’s why I was so excited to partner with CoverGirl on this project. Beauty comes in all shapes, sizes, colors, etc. Let’s face it, together we are a mosaic—that in itself is beautiful. We should celebrate that.”

Though the mega model in the making is helping to further break down beauty barriers, she notes that the industry still has a ways to go when it comes to diversity. “I believe that inclusiveness will challenge unrealistic beauty standards within the beauty industry and in humanity,” she told the glossy. “I remember seeing Queen Latifah on TV as a CoverGirl when I was young. That was so inspiring.”

In fact, many of CoverGirl’s famous faces, including Queen Latifah, Rihanna, Issa Rae, and Zendaya, are stars she looked up to as she began her modeling career and is now following in their footsteps. Not to mention joining the likes of fellow model Winnie Harlow and the legendary Michel Jackson who have shared their struggles with vitiligo, a disease that causes the loss of skin color in blotches that can occur all over the body as well as the hair and the inside of the mouth, according to The Mayo Clinic.

“At the end of the day I am just like everyone else, I just happen to have spots. It’s a part of my identity, but it doesn’t define who I am … For there to be so many of us and so little representation, it’s truly disheartening,” Deanna said. “I work with CoverGirl; I’m a black woman; I have vitiligo. That is empowering.” And that is a badass way to put it — congrats Amy!

February 20, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

#OnMyVanity: 7 Mascaras That Will Make You Forget About Falsies

A post shared by Val’s Vanity (@valsvanity) on

I receive a slew of samples, and when I find something I like, I can’t wait to tell you all about it!

When it comes to the pursuit of long, lush lashes, most of us can’t leave home without applying a little bit of mascara or even applying a pair of false lashes before leaving the house. While they’re great for dramatic effect and a slew of selfies, faux lashes aren’t a fit for everyone’s daily routine whether it’s due to waiting for the glue to dry, getting the strip to sit close to your lashline, handling the heavier load on your lashes, or just having your lengthier lashes pressed against your glasses all day (like me). So finding a formula that mimics the look of false lashes without the extra steps (and the aggravation that can come with it) has become a big priority for me in order for my lashes to be visible behind my frames.

And with National Lash Day here, I decided to dig through the drawers of my vanity to share some of my favorite formulas that get me the lust-worthy lashes without transforming them into spider legs or sticking to my glasses. These mascara not only fatten up your lashes but ensures that they reach new heights — no falsies necessary.

Continue Reading

February 19, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Bite Beauty’s Latest Astrology Lipstick Offers a Pretty Neutral Pout for Pisces

Courtesy of Bite Beauty.

It’s almost Pisces season, and according to Bite Beauty, it’s time to pucker up!

The brand is expanding its limited edition Horoscope collection of its popular Amouse Bouche lipstick with inventive takes on each horoscope’s attributes. While the first lipstick in the line offered a deep a rich take on the airy and inventive Aquarius, Pisces is a fresh and juicy take on a neutral in the form of what the brand calls a “pitch-perfect peach.”

Some astrology afficoinados might scratch their heads wondering why a pretty pastel like a lavender or mint green wasn’t picked to represent the romantic and whimsical aspects of a Pisces, but the neutral hue makes a lot of sense! Pisces is the sign of “artists, visionaries, and dreamy creative types,” like Nina Simone, Steve Jobs, Chelsea Handler, Elizabeth Taylor, and the bad gal of beauty herself, Rihanna (just to name a few), according to astrologer Tara Greene, who was tapped by the brand to help select the shades. While they’re considered the most spiritual and compassionate sign of the zodiac, Pisces are also known for working their magic behind the scenes, swimming from social circle to social circle seamlessly to help bring their visions to life — just like a good neutral goes well with anything in your wardrobe or on your vanity.

Or as Greene put in in a press release about the hue, “Pisces are soulful, and like water they ‘go with the flow,’ blending in and out of different environments. Find them painting a masterpiece, writing an original song, or volunteering at an animal rescue organization.”

So don’t sleep on this shade — snap it up ASAP before it sells out! Besides, as a Pisces myself, I would be remiss to miss out on snagging this shade! As much as I love the idea of owning a shade associated with my sign, the fresh hue could also be a great way to transition my makeup from winter to spring without skipping a beat. Plus it could be fun to mix with some of the other shades in the astrology-inspired collection — I’m an Aries rising, after all.

February 19, 2018 by
Beauty, Makeup

Erdem and NARS’s Collaboration Redefines “Garden Variety”

Photo via Women’s Wear Daily.

Erdem Maralioglu is bringing his siganture romance from the runway to the beauty counter in its first color collaboration with NARS.

But the London-based designer wasn’t satisfied with simply selecting a few shades from one of his previous collections and calling it a day. Rather, he used the team-up opportunity to explore his aesthetic and develop a sercret garden of fresh pigments and palettes that “push different elements through color and product,” as he explained to Women’s Wear Daily.

“You can tell a story as much with what you’re wearing on your face as what you’re wearing on your body,” Maralioglu told Vogue.

The result is Strange Flowers, a 13-picece capsule collection wrapped in “weird” floral motifs of spiky dahlia and lilys, which made its debut backstage at his Fall 2018 show Monday morning after two years of development. The collaboration really plays up the pout with not only six lipsticks and balms in varying hues of red, plum, and mauve but also a powder lip palette inspired by the saturated pigments used to mattify the models’ mouths at one of his early runway shows. “There was a lot of time spent talking about the idea of using products or textures that you normally would associate with certain parts of the face, in different ways,” he said.

Other standouts of from the upcoming collection include an icy, pink-toned highlighting pencil to add irridesnce to the inner corners of the eye or anywhere else on your face, even when you’re on to the go. Plus there’s a batch of blotting papers, an unexpected but delightful addition that’s a major must-have for those (like me) who battle against serious shine during the spring and summer.

I’m already head over heels for Erdem’s aesthetic thanks to his penchant for contrast and contradiction, which he says he played with for the cosmetic collaboration, but the idea of using darker hues during a season when brights and neons tend to take center stage. Not to mention, I’m dying to get my hands on that lip powder palette — a surprising beauty buy that I have a feeling we’ll see more of as makeup mavens, novice and pro alike, continue to toy with textures on their lips, lids, and anywhere else.

While there’s no word yet on how much it will cost stateside, you can mark your calendars for May 1st when the capsule collection is slated to hit shelves nationwide. In the meatime, you can head over to Vogue.com if you want to get a closer look at the pretty products.

What are you planning to add to cart? Let me know in the comments below!

February 19, 2018 by