These Are Hands Down the Best Dressed Black Politicians
Queen Latifah’s Best Hair Looks Through the Years
The Black Man Behind The Quarter-Zip Movement Explains the Deeper Purpose Behind It All
Do You Know Zelda Wynn Valdes, The Black Designer Who Helped Shape The Legendary Playboy Look?
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First Do No Harm: Designer and CEO Natalia Allen Is Creating ‘Victimless Fashion’
Natalia Allen is the fashion designer of the future. CEO of her eponymous line, she’s developed a robotic system for producing what she’s termed “victimless fashion.” It’s a journey that gained momentum when she graduated from Parsons School of Design in 2004 with the Designer of the Year Award—as did designer Marc Jacobs before her.…
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Traveling Light, Part 2: Yes, You Can Fit a Full Face Into Minimal Space
This is my toiletry case. It doesn’t have a name, though it probably should, since we’ve traveled the world together for years. For now, let’s call her Clare—probably Clare the Eighth, at this point. But she’s always a simple, clear bucket case measuring approximately 4 by 5 by 8 inches, with a double-zip top, maximizing…
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Make a Dramatic Exit: 5 Designers on the Rise Give Us Their Takes on New Year’s Eve Style
The ball will soon be dropping; time to get your black-tie attitude on for New Year’s Eve! The Glow Up asked five of the hottest up-and-coming fashion and accessories designers what it takes to look white-hot for the last night of the year. Drama. Glamour. Making an unforgettable entrance. Are you about that life? Melanie…
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Queen: CCH Pounder Celebrates the Art of Black Womanhood With an Exhibition at Xavier University
If you watch television, chances are you’ve watched CCH Pounder. Over the past 38 years, the Emmy-winning Guyanese actress—who celebrated her 65th birthday on Christmas Day—has accumulated well over 100 acting credits, including recurring roles in the Avatar franchise, ER, The Shield, Law and Order: SVU, Sons of Anarchy and, currently, NCIS: New Orleans. New…
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Read My Lips: L’Oréal x Balmain Is the Budget-Friendly Designer Collab of the Season
It’s safe to say that 2017 was a big year for fashion’s golden boy, Olivier Rousteing, creative director of Balmain and Instagram impressario. At the tender age of 32, this year has marked his sixth at the helm of the French luxury label, and it was his biggest to date. Since June, Rousteing has overseen…
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Let’s Get Our Skin Tight in Time for the New Year With Hanacure!
New Year’s Eve is the last day of beauty for the year, and I plan to make it a good one. I don’t know about you, but the holidays are hard on my skin-care habits. “Jingle Bells” are the death knell for my exercise routine; I eat whatever I want; I stay up late binge-watching…
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To Be Real: Dressing My Way out of ‘Butch Envy’
In the summer of ’98, I lived in Harlem. There’s a longer story behind how a Midwest-raised black tomboi found herself in the Big Apple, but the short version is that technically, I was homeless, so my best friend offered me a place to stay until I started undergrad that fall. For most of my…
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The Hair Hits the Tour: Behind the Velvet Rope With Cassidy Blaine
“I’m like—that’s Janet Jackson! I do the cabbage patch and everything every time I see her!” So says Cassidy Blaine, who’s been turning out sick-ass hairstyles for Miss Jackson (if you’re nasty) and her touring crew for the last decade. And we can’t blame her; Jackson is indisputably an icon. You know it, and we…
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The Best Gifts Come Unwrapped This Holiday: Treat Yourself to Some #SelfLove, Part 4
“No matter how uncomfortable, how intense or how inconvenient your feelings are, facing your emotions, feeling them and accepting them for what they are is the best way to heal yourself and live a more balanced and peaceful life.” —Aletheia Luna Signs of the holiday season had barely rolled around before I began experiencing the…
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#BlackBoyJoy: The #CastMeJCrew Grand Prize Goes to 4-Year-Old Cayden!
Watch out, world! In what might be the best holiday present ever, the dapper and diminutive Cayden (aka @cayden_style on Instagram) beat out all other contenders for the grand prize in J.Crew’s inaugural #CastMeJCrew contest—a campaign notably started by a hashtag from Elle Fashion Features Director Nikki Ogunnaike. Cayden, who just started pre-K this fall,…