Just when we thought skinny jeans were going to remain in the back of our closet for the foreseeable future, the denim style has thrown us a curveball. It's been some time since we last seriously considered the skinny jean. In 2016, before swearing off the bulk of them, we attempted to revive the pairs with a few creative makeovers to prolong their use. Spoiler alert: we ended up ditching most of them anyway. But a new trend is sneaking into the denim silhouette that's having us question our stance.
The side-slit jean has been making its quiet debut for a few months now. Instead of a straight-cut at the ankle, these jeans feature an exaggerated open slit along the side hem. While the small change doesn't alter the skinny jean DNA entirely (tight in the thighs, tight behind the knee, tight just about everywhere else), it does add a subtle flare more adaptable to our current denim tastes. And with boot season on the rise, the denim cut creates a little extra window to show off all the pairs we've carefully invested in.
Will you find us reverting back to skinny jeans again? Never say never. It's going to take some more convincing to fully embrace the trend's predecessor. But for non-skinny jean believers, the slit trend has caught on to a few other styles from vintage-fit to wide-legged jeans. Shop the new split hem jean trend up ahead.
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In August, Olivier Rousteing announced a new, virtual version of the #BalmainArmy where anyone is welcome. The Balmain creative director — one of three Black men to ever helm a major fashion house — worked with a CGI artist (the same one who designed controversial CGI model Shudu) to create two Balmain-exclusive digital supermodels who embody the beauty, individuality, and confidence of the Balmain woman. It didn't take long before critics claimed Rousteing was simply "paying lip service" to diversity by choosing to work with virtual models, instead of human ones. Well, on Friday, the 33-year-old showed an array of diversity, in real life, at his spring 2019 show in Paris.
“I created the virtual reality army in the same way that I’m creating my collection,” Rousteing told Refinery29 exclusively in August. “I’m really obsessed with music [his collaborations with Beyoncé and Rihanna are proof of this] and what I really love about it are the icons [who brought the sounds to life].” Rousteing specifically called out Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Tina Turner, and Prince as inspiration, so it wasn't too surprising that the show opened with Cara Delevingne lip-syncing to Quindon Tarver’s version of Prince's "When Doves Care" from Baz Luhrman’s William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet.
Photo: Jacopo Raule/Getty Images.
Delevingne's rumored girlfriend Ashley Benson, sat in the front row, filming Delevingne just one day after the model opened up on Twitter about why she didn't report her sexual assault. Delevingne took a more celebratory tone on Instagram on Friday, cheering on Rousteing, writing: "Thank you for having me @balmain so many exciting things to come, I cannot wait to tell you guys. I love you @olivier_rousteing your heart, support and infinite talent is so incredible to be around and I feel so grateful even when you don’t let me kiss you."
Balmain's latest presentation was also a continuation of how Rousteing uses virtual reality to make fashion available for everyone. "In a groundbreaking partnership with [Google] Oculus, I'm democratizing the runway," he wrote on the show's invite, "to allow a new audience from around the world join me for an exclusive, up close 360 view of the collection. This year, I'm excited to announce the same number of people will be watching my show in virtual reality as in real life."
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In August, Olivier Rousteing announced a new, virtual version of the #BalmainArmy where anyone is welcome. The Balmain creative director — one of three Black men to ever helm a major fashion house — worked with a CGI artist (the same one who designed controversial CGI model Shudu) to create two Balmain-exclusive digital supermodels who embody the beauty, individuality, and confidence of the Balmain woman. It didn't take long before critics claimed Rousteing was simply "paying lip service" to diversity by choosing to work with virtual models, instead of human ones. Well, on Friday, the 33-year-old showed an array of diversity, in real life, at his spring 2019 show in Paris.
“I created the virtual reality army in the same way that I’m creating my collection,” Rousteing told Refinery29 exclusively in August. “I’m really obsessed with music [his collaborations with Beyoncé and Rihanna are proof of this] and what I really love about it are the icons [who brought the sounds to life].” Rousteing specifically called out Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Tina Turner, and Prince as inspiration, so it wasn't too surprising that the show opened with Cara Delevingne lip-syncing to Quindon Tarver’s version of Prince's "When Doves Care" from Baz Luhrman’s William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet.
Photo: Jacopo Raule/Getty Images.
Delevingne's rumored girlfriend Ashley Benson, sat in the front row, filming Delevingne just one day after the model opened up on Twitter about why she didn't report her sexual assault. Delevingne took a more celebratory tone on Instagram on Friday, cheering on Rousteing, writing: "Thank you for having me @balmain so many exciting things to come, I cannot wait to tell you guys. I love you @olivier_rousteing your heart, support and infinite talent is so incredible to be around and I feel so grateful even when you don’t let me kiss you."
Balmain's latest presentation was also a continuation of how Rousteing uses virtual reality to make fashion available for everyone. "In a groundbreaking partnership with [Google] Oculus, I'm democratizing the runway," he wrote on the show's invite, "to allow a new audience from around the world join me for an exclusive, up close 360 view of the collection. This year, I'm excited to announce the same number of people will be watching my show in virtual reality as in real life."
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Brett Kavanaugh's forceful, aggressive testimony stood in stark contrast with Dr. Christine Blasey Ford's polite deference as they both testified in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday.
We have to be careful and remember that behavioral analysis alone cannot determine somebody's guilt or innocence, says body language expert Patti Wood, author of Snap: Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language, and Charisma. After analyzing his testimony, she says that in these circumstances you can’t declare someone guilty or innocent. But she says it's worth to highlight revealing moments that say a lot about who he is.
"His extreme emotions and inability to control his anger, rage, contempt, and tears is revealing," Wood tells Refinery29. "I have analyzed dozens of congressional hearings and I have never seen someone questioned this broad range of emotions or this intensity." Wood says Kavanaugh used emotions that are known as "cover emotions" in deception detection; anger, "victim tears," and laughter. Those emotions can be sincere and could be because he is innocent, but they can also “cover” guilt, she says.
"His tears seem real and they can certainly call forth empathy," she continues. "They can show that he is absolutely innocent, but I have also seen in my work throughout the years that people who are 'caught' sometimes cry because they feel like victims of circumstances. I have additional problem with somebody crying during their congressional testimony. I have seen people eviscerated during congressional testimony. He was not questioned with the same intensity as many have been. He’s the first person I’ve ever seen cry."
Brett Kavanaugh gets emotional and breaks down in tears as he mentions his father: "Why did I keep calendars? My dad started keeping detailed calendars of his life in 1978."
She noted that throughout the testimony, Kavanaugh both evaded questions and redefined their terms. For example, he said he didn't do anything of a "sexual nature" to Dr. Ford. Wood questioned: What is his definition of sexual nature — he was never asked this — and did he say "Dr. Ford" on purpose, because her last name was Blasey when she was 15? "I have seen this technique used so often by liars," she says. "He has a habit of rephrasing and redefining terms and of not answering direct questions." This doesn't necessarily mean somebody is guilty, but it is an interesting habit.
Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images.
Another example of evasion is when he responded to Sen. Amy Klobuchar's question, "Have you ever blacked out" with "belligerent and attacking nonverbal cues," and responding with a question rather than an answer, “Have YOU ever blacked out?" Wood says he used humor and the "everybody does it, we all like beer response" in response to the questions about drinking. "I was very briefly a substance abuse counselor and I had to question people every week on their drinking and their behavior. I would have asked him more specific questions like, How many beers did you typically drink at a party? What is the most you ever had to drink in one evening? ... The drinking questions are critical to the assault allegations and it was interesting that that line of questioning was interrupted."
Wood says that a key piece of Dr. Ford's testimony was revelatory, when she said that the laughter of Kavanaugh and Mark Judge is the strongest impression in her memory. "If Kavanagh did it, and he was laughing he may not have seen it or felt it as anything but 'horseplay,'" says Wood. "He may not have had it register in his memory as anything wrong or bad. And or if he was drunk he may not have remembered at all. This is important because his anger is so strong and he seems so emphatic, and he could actually feel he never did anything like this."
Wood emphasized that we still don’t know the truth.
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"We try to stay up on trends, but this is less of a trend for us and more of a lifestyle." That’s what Dan Evans, the co-owner of Dagger Mountain Roastery in Valparaiso, Indiana, has to say about oat milk. This past February, Dan and his wife Ashton, who co-own the coffee roastery together, switched to offering Oatly oat milk as the only milk option at Dagger Mountain. It was Ashton’s idea and, at first, Dan was skeptical. Yes, he wanted to save money and stop "exploiting cows," but he wasn't convinced until the baristas on staff had their say. "I told our employees, 'Ashton wants to go completely oat milk,' and they said, 'fuck yeah!' I got really excited once I knew everyone else was on board."
Over the past year, the dairy-averse and beyond have become obsessed with oat milk. You've probably heard about it: Chalkboard signs boasting, "We now offer oat milk" continue to pop up outside local coffee shops, and cartons filled with the plant-based beverage are taking up space in the dairy aisle. Likewise, baristas across the country are suggesting oat milk to their regular customers as well as to their friends and fellow coffee aficionados. Everyone — from foodies to vegans to environmentalists — is talking about it.
The buzz around this new dairy alternative has caused exponential growth in oat milk sales — 425% in the last year, according to data compiled for Refinery29 by Square, Inc. Other plant-based milks like cashew milk, coconut milk, and even peanut milk have also experienced booms in years past, but none of them have ever managed to join the ranks of almond milk or soy milk as more consistent dairy alternatives.
From baristas' perspectives, oat milk lends itself well to creating the best, tastiest beverages. Lauren Sorensen, founder of Stonefruit Espresso + Kitchen in Brooklyn, NY, tells Refinery29 in an email that oat milk’s neutral flavor makes it perfect for espresso and matcha drinks. Coffee drinkers, too, are drawn to its more subtle flavor. "It just tastes better! You can definitely taste the almond milk in a drink, and that's sometimes overpowering. Oat milk is more neutral," Natasha Gonzalez, 22, tells Refinery29.
Many drinkers say its consistency is more similar to cow's milk than that of almond milk or other dairy milk substitutes. "It's usually thicker and doesn't curdle or chunk up in iced drinks like almond milk can," explains Allison Crooks, 30. And Bridget Berry, 23, tells Refinery29, "I'm an aspiring vegan so I have been doing a lot of research and personal experimentation with different dairy alternatives, and I must say oat is my favorite milk replacement as it tastes just as creamy and milk-like as cow's."
Another barista, Brendon Clark of The Wooly in downtown Manhattan, attributes oat milk's creamy texture to its high fat content. Clark says the fat content, which is higher than that of almond milk, is also what makes oat milk steam "wonderfully," which is just another reason why baristas in particular love it. James McLaughlin, CEO and president of Intelligentsia Coffee, the first U.S. coffeeshop to offer Oatly, echoes that sentiment. "Intelligentsia baristas became really enthusiastic about using oat milk because it steams and froths really well compared to other alternative milks."
Back in April, we heard from local coffee shops that they were having trouble keeping Oatly stocked because demand was so high. We reached out to Mike Messersmith, general manager of Oatly US, to find out why he thought the product had become so popular so quickly. "The coffee community is so connected and wired. It’s not even just about trends...when they see a product that allows them to either elevate the coffee experience or that they think solves a challenge that they face in a better way, they're so vocal and enthusiastic and passionate about it that it really expands." Perhaps unsurprisingly, when baristas encourage customers to try something, it's directly reflected in a coffee shop's sales data. According to McLaughlin, Intelligentsia Coffee's CEO and president, "Intelligentsia serves oat, soy, and almond milk in their coffee bars; however, it is oat milk that customers and baristas alike continue to choose as their favored alternative milk, as 13% of Intelligentsia’s beverages are made with oat milk." Since most of us tend to stick to our usual coffee orders, a product like this needs word of mouth to gain momentum.
Part of the reason that the global market for dairy alternatives is expected to reach $16.3 billion in 2018 is that consumers have become more concerned with environmental impact. "I switched to oat milk because it takes three gallons of water to grow ONE almond, and my conscience couldn’t handle that," Julie Rogers, 23, tells Refinery29. Baristas, too, recognize oat milk's appeal for their environmentally conscious customers. "It's a much more ecologically friendly choice than milk or even almond milk (almonds require a LOT of water to grow, and a lot of the almonds are from California, which has been experiencing droughts!)," Stonefruit's Sorensen explains. For the record, it takes around 383% more water to produce one pound of almonds than it does to produce one pound of rolled or flaked oats, according to statistics from the Huffington Post.
One potential negative environmental impact from oat milk could stem from the fact that some commercial brands use sunflower oil or rapeseed oil in their products. Though the environmental impacts of these oils are less than that of palm oil and soybean oil, there is a general impact — herbicide usage, pesticide usage, carbon dioxide production — that comes with growing the plants to make these oils and processing these oils. Overall, however, there has yet to be much research on the topic of how these oils and other oat milk ingredients impact the environment. As the dairy alternative becomes more popular, if drawbacks exist, they will likely come to light just like what happened with soy and almond milk.
When it comes to nutritional value, the difference between oat milk and almond milk isn’t all that significant. Oatly oat milk contains 2 grams of protein and 5 grams of fat, while many almond milk brands contain 1 gram of protein and 2.5 grams of fat. Since oat milk is made from a carbohydrate, it also contains more sugar than other milks. Like almond milk and cow's milk, commercial oat milk brands are typically enriched with vitamins and minerals like calcium, vitamin B12, phosphorus, and vitamin D.
The fact that oat milk is only marginally more nutritious than almond milk hasn't stopped it from dominating the independent coffee shop market. Still, the one factor that could hold it back from finding a permanent place in the hearts of Americans is price. While it can feel like no big thing to pay a little extra for oat milk when you're already dropping money on a latte or cappuccino at your local coffee shop, the price difference between almond milk and oat milk may be enough to deter people from purchasing the milk alternative when they spot it in the dairy aisle right next to the other options. Chiara Diona, 19, explains to Refinery29 that oat milk is hands down her favorite dairy-free milk option, but that isn't enough to make her buy it at the store. "The oat milk options to buy for at-home coffee are never as good as the really expensive coffee shop ones, so I only buy it when I’m out and still use almond milk at home. Oat milk is a splurge."
Oat milk is more expensive. According to The New York Times, that's because it has a higher wholesale price than other milk alternatives. A 32-ounce carton of Elmhurst Milked Oats cost $5.99, which is a dollar more than a 32-ounce carton of the brand's Milked Almonds. That amount of almond milk is even cheaper coming from other brands like Blue Diamond and Silk. For oat milk to reign supreme among all other milks, it needs to find its way into the daily routines of at-home coffee brewers, cereal lovers, and more. However, since oat milk has only recently come on the plant-based milk scene, there isn't much competition. As demand grows, other brands could begin producing their own versions, thus driving down the price.
The oat milk obsession hasn't made it to every part of the country just yet. For example, while oat milk sales skyrocketed in the U.S. generally in the past year, not a single oat milk transaction was made through Square in Nashville, Tennessee during that time. On the other hand, Nashville was the country's ninth biggest consumer of almond milk during the same period. However, word of mouth from baristas and fans still has time to reach those smaller cities and towns, which could eventually spread the trend across the entire country.
In some areas well-outside major cities, that's already happening. Dan Evans says that in Valparaiso, Indiana, people are excited about oat milk even though they're located more than an hour outside Chicago. "There are people talking about it all the time. It's sold at Target now."
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People always say that everything's better in moderation — alcohol, ice cream, continuously binge-watching The Office. It might be hard to refuse in the moment, but you'll thank yourself when you don't wake up with a killer hangover, or sleep in late for work after clicking "still watching" 14 times.
Another place where moderation will serve you well? Makeup. It's what separates the pros from the amateurs — especially when it comes to deep, dark lipstick. You might be tempted to pair a vampy winter lip with powdered, matte skin or even a smoky eye, but it's actually much fresher and more modern to leave the rest of your face alone.
"I find that keeping the eyes simple when doing a dark lip keeps things balanced," says makeup artist Patrick Ta, who works with celebs like Olivia Munn and Joan Smalls. "It obviously depends on the occasion how much or how little I'm going to do with the rest of the face, but for day-to-day glam [I like to] keep it simple with a few individual lashes, a touch of monochromatic blush, and a healthy glowing complexion."
Ahead, find 11 celebs who've nailed the look.
Priscilla Ono, one of Fenty Beauty's global makeup artists, did this look exactly right, putting model Duckie Thot in a glossy black lip, while leaving her eyes bare except for a bit of shimmer along the inner lash line.
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With a dark berry lipstick this glorious, how could any other makeup compete? That must have been the thinking of makeup artist Kate Lee, who paired that lipstick on The Crown 's Vanessa Kirby with pink, shimmery eyeshadow and the tiniest flick of black eyeliner.
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For the 2018 Brit Awards, makeup artist Vincent Oquendo dared to put Hailey Baldwin in a bold, sparkly blue-black lipstick and then left the rest of her face fairly minimal, with subtle baby pink eyeshadow and long lashes.
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"This is a modern take on old Hollywood glam," says Ta. "Because we went with a dark lip, I kept the skin fresh and the eyeshadow minimal."He tapped a frosty highlighter on Adriana Lima's inner corners, cheekbones, and tip of her nose for a nice texture contrast to her super-matte lip.
But that doesn't mean you have to go totally bare. "We went for a deep burgundy lip, berry cheeks, and a lightly smoked-out lower lashline," Ta says, regarding this look on Munn. "The focus was still on the beautiful lip, but I wanted some dimension in the eyeshadow."
Makeup artist Emily Cheng paired naturally glowing skin and a few swipes of mascara with a matte burgundy lip for Yara Shahidi's glamorous (yet effortless) look at the SAG Awards.
A light flush, carefully-placed highlighter, and natural lashes keep Alexandra Daddario's vampy lip from being overpowering.
Monochromatic makeup is an easy way to make a look instantly feel more polished. Case in point: Laura Harrier's berry lip and sheer plum eyeshadow.
Model Khoudia Diop made her deep berry lipstick (L'Oréal Paris Infallible Matte In Roseblood) pop by tapping a layer of golden highlighter onto her Cupid's bow, inner corners, and cheekbones — and leaving the rest of her face to glow.
Don't want to skip eye makeup altogether? Make like model Winnie Harlow and play with texture. Makeup artist Hung Vanngo tapped a metallic eye gloss on her lids and finished with a flick of black liner for a dramatic look that's still brightening.
Or follow Taylor Hill's lead and opt for an itty bitty magenta cat-eye.
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Facebook said Friday that they experienced an attack on their computer networks that exposed the personal data of almost 50 million users.
“I’m glad we found this," Facebook’s chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a press call this afternoon. "But it definitely is an issue that this happened in the first place.”
You may have been asked to log into your Facebook account at some point today. That's because Facebook logged out over 90 million users in an effort to re-establish control over potentially compromised accounts as a precaution. Facebook has also temporarily disabled the "View As" feature.
Though Facebook has said they do not currently know the cause of the breach, they are beginning an investigation into the matter. As of now, Facebook is yet to determine whether affected accounts were misused in any way but the company says that it has notified law enforcement.
"We’re working hard to better understand these details — and we will update this post when we have more information, or if the facts change," Facebook said. "In addition, if we find more affected accounts, we will immediately reset their access tokens."
Things haven't been looking good for Facebook lately on the privacy and security front, and this new data breach is certainly not likely to help. The tech giant is currently under investigation by multiple agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, for their data sharing practices. The company has also recently come under attack for involvement in other discriminatory practices.
For now, Facebook says there is no need for users to change their passwords. For anyone having trouble logging back into Facebook, there is help available at Facebook's Help Center. As for those who want to take further precautions by logging out of Facebook, they can visit the “Security and Login ” section in settings, which lists all of the places where users are logged in and offers an option to log out of them all in one click.
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Today, there are roughly 55 million Latinxs living in the U.S. — each one of us with unique cultural experiences. In our new series #SomosLatinx, R29's Latinx staffers explore the parallels and contrasts that make our community so rich. Stay tuned as we celebrate our diversity during Latinx Heritage Month from September 15-October 15.
On a beautiful autumn day, the queen bee of a reality TV show holds the baptism of her son on her husband’s family’s lavish estate. Everything is going well until her brother-in-law, a fellow cast member and the baptism boy’s godfather, starts hitting the tequila too hard. By the end of the sprawling, carnival-themed bash, the godfather is drunkenly hopping into a bull ring to fight a live bull — and he does. For a very long time, much to everyone’s concern.
Netflix’s brand-new docuseries Made In Mexico, however, very much does. The moment the series, premiering Friday, September 28, was announced, it proved to be as polarizing as star Robby Checa’s soused-up baptism antics. On one hand, Mexico, about Mexico City’s wealthiest, most glamorous pack of friends, stood as the streaming service’s first-ever Mexican reality show — making it an instant trailblazer. As the series’ first two episodes, which were made available to critics, prove, it’s just as fun — if not more so — than anything on Bravo.
On the other hand, the series, which leads with its Latinx cred, was immediately accused of whitewashing. After looking at the cast, which is peppered with blondes and American expats, it’s easy to see why. Thanks to Netflix’s dominance in 190 countries, these many lighter-skinned, lighter-haired individuals are poised to become the global face for success in Mexico, a Latinx country with a 43% poverty rate where lighter skin color already has a proven, staggeringly high, correlation with higher education rates and wealth. As a Vanderbilt University study shows, there’s a 45% gap in Mexico when it comes to the schooling years of the nation’s darker-skinned citizens and its lightest; when it comes to monthly income, darker-skinned individuals are making 41.5% less on average.
The racial politics of the series is a knotty issue that speaks to which kinds of Latinx people are usually given a spotlight and opportunities. But, when you talk to the people involved in Made In Mexico, you realize the series was so excited to show an alternate view of Mexico, a country accused of sending “bad hombres,” “rapists,” and “drugs” to America by the president of the United States, it tripped right over the root of colorism on the way to Netflix.
While chatting over the phone with cast members Hanna Jaff, Columba Díaz, and Chantal Trujillo, all three women noted the opportunity to show “another side” of Mexico — one divorced from the drugs, violence, and poverty that usually dominates the country’s pop cultural discourse — is what drew them to the series.
Jaff, a Mexican-Kurdish philanthropist who has lived in America, Europe, and the Middle East, admits she is oftentimes hit with “negativity” when she identifies herself has Mexican throughout her travels. Trujillo, who went to high school in San Diego with Jaff, has also experienced “backlash and confusion” when telling people how much she loves living in Mexico. These negative reactions are so extreme that new acquaintances have been surprised to see Jaff’s personal photos of a bustling Mexico City, a place brimming with culture, that the 30-year-old has called home for six years.
And, things have only gotten worse. “Over last two years, we have been very insulted, and we’ve been getting a lot of hate and discrimination because of those negative comments. This [show] is sort of like, ‘Well, that’s not who were are,’” Jaff explained, referencing how Donald Trump’s rhetoric has inflamed the negativity she has long experienced. “It’s not that the whole country is a ‘bad hombre ’ or violent or criminal or all of these negative things that have been said about Mexicans. [With the show,] we’re going to be able to prove that wrong.”
Made In Mexico works hard towards that goal, with the first few episodes involving a trip to an art gallery, a massive charity event, and a look at the inner workings of Jaff’s own immigrant and refugee-focused NGO, The Jaff Foundation. Eventually, season 1 will give us an exploration of Mexican holiday Dia De Los Muertos, which Trujillo hopes will change viewers’ perspectives of the well-know but little understood celebration.
The creation of Made In Mexico has already expanded at least one person’s outlook on its titular country: co-executive producer Lauren Volonakis. Volonakis, who formerly produced both The Real Housewives Of New York and The Real Housewives Of New Jersey, is a Long Island native who had never visited Mexico City prior to filming, just beach towns like Cancun.
“Mexico and Mexico City don’t get a fair appearance in the media, from TV shows and also in politics,” Volonakis told Refinery29, pointing out that in reality there’s a “museum on every corner” in her series’ city. “It was really easy to show another really cool, really aspirational side of Mexico City because it actually is amazing. I didn’t expect it to be what it was — and it was awesome.”
Made In Mexico ’s eye-opening ability for someone like Volonakis speaks to why Trujillo, one of the blonde, blue-eyed, American members of the cast, claims talking about “skin color” in regards to her Netflix show is the most “shallow” conversation around the series.
“We should be talking about a show actually talking about anything that’s not Narcos or involved with drugs about Mexico,” the blogger and former House Of DVF contestant, who has a Mexican father and Spanish mother, said. “It’s crazy to me that people are so closed-minded and so judgemental about skin color or attributes … It’s really an eye-opener more than anything to have a cast of nine people who are maybe a little bit more light-skinned than what you would imagine for ‘A Mexican,’ and I want people to look at the show and be like, ‘Wow, all of these people live in Mexico City?’”
While Trujillo’s side steps why so many are hurt by how Eurocentric the Made In Mexico cast appears — for a show about Latinx representation set in the self-described “diverse” country of Mexico, it’s sorely lacking people of color — the reason for her frustration is obvious: she is tired of people not believing she’s Latinx. “I’m blonde and blue-eyed and I definitely identity towards Mexican and Spanish more than I do American because neither one of my parents [are from there]. Having that question [around my identity] my whole life was kind of insulting,” Trujillo said, adding the rhetorical question, “Do I question your background because you have brown eyes and brown hair?”
Trujillo’s Mexico co-star Columba Díaz, a model and It-girl sure to be season 1’s breakout star, does have brown hair (and green eyes) and still feels the need to asset her Latinx bona fides. “People are saying everybody is white, but I’m sorry — I’m more Latina than anything, and I cannot be anything else. It’s in my blood,” the 24-year-old fashionista stressed. “I am Mexican. I was born in here, my parents are Mexican, and that’s it.”
Yes, Díaz and Trujillo are Mexican, and we can only hope their genuinely fun Housewives -ish romp will net another season. Not only will that mean another delightful television trip to Mexico City, but it will give Made In Mexico the chance to add cast members from the other side of the Latinx spectrum — it’s not like they’re not there.
When asked if Mexico City’s high society simply isn’t letting darker skinned individuals into its ranks, Hanna Jaff was aghast. After all, if these people aren’t allowed to exist, you can’t add them to your reality show, right? “No, of course [we do]. It’s not like that at all,” Jaff replied, pointing out she is half-Kurdish, and a part of aforementioned baptism bad boy Robby Checa’s family hails from Lebanon. Checa’s brother, Pedro Checa, is also married to Mexico ’s leading lady Kitzia Mitre.
“We’re a very diverse country,” Jaff added. “Of course we have darker skinned friends, family, relatives. It’s not one or the other. We’re all combined.”
Tackling topics like colorism and representation might not be what the Mexico cast expected at this point in their series’ infancy. They seem to simply be happy to be starting conversations about the city they love and the Latinx identity they all claim. As the series’ coolest member, Colu Díaz, said, “At the end of the day when you’re talking about the show, and if you’re talking about the show, it’s good.”
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It’s 2018 and there’s a new standard for inclusivity and diversity in the beauty aisle (finally!). Hair, makeup, and skin-care brands are expanding their product selections to work with many different skin tones and hair types. But there's another level of diversity that we care about when we shop. We think it's also important to support the Black entrepreneurs who are creating products specifically for minority customers, because they were doing it long before the rest of the industry caught on.
Now there are more Black-owned beauty brands around than ever before. These founders offer highly-pigmented cosmetics and natural hair solutions that work, and each product is formulated with dark skin and Afro hair in mind. Many of these brands have huge followings on Instagram before breaking into mass retailers like Ulta Beauty, where the products sit on the shelf alongside old-school brands that have been around for decades. And that's a BFD if you ask us.
Ahead, we’ve rounded up six brands that you must try out during your next Ulta haul — no matter your ethnicity.
If Beauty Bakerie looks familiar, it's probably because you've seen its kitschy, dessert-themed products on your favorite influencer or on Instagram. The brand was founded by Cashmere Nicole in 2011 and features a ton of liquid lipsticks, highlighters, and 40 diverse shades of foundation. Nicole recently took to Instagram to announce that Beauty Bakerie will be arriving in 350 Ulta Beauty doors soon.
Beauty vloggers couldn't stop raving about Juvia's Place when it emerged on the social media scene. Chichi Ebru founded the Intagram-famous line, which features a hearty mix of high-impact eyeshadow palettes and lipsticks. And now, 17 products are exclusive to Ulta.
Founded by Richelieu Dennis, Shea Moisture dabbles in everything from makeup and skin care to fragrance and men’s grooming. Its hair products (hello, Coconut Hibiscus range) are some of the most popular formulas in the natural hair category. In 2017, Unilever acquired Sundial Brands, Shea Moisture's parent company, but Dennis is still heavily involved in the development of the brand and its products.
This sustainable skin-care and body-care line is exclusively available to shop at Ulta. Nyakio carries everything from a rich Kenyan Coffee Body Scrub, that exfoliates with shea butter and baobab oil, to a powerfully potent Marula & Neroli Brightening Oil with vitamin C.
Since the early '80s, founder Lisa Price has grown Carol's Daughter into one of the most celebrated natural hair-care companies among people of color. L'Oréal became the parent company of the household favorite in 2014. And now, Ulta carries 26 products from the Carol’s Daughter collection with a few exclusives, like the Cactus Rose Water Volume Spray, which works wonders at adding volume and body to strands that need a boost.
When Gabrielle Union gives us skin-care tips, we drop everything and listen. Same goes for her hair-care secrets. The actress put her years of experience in the hairstylists' chair into developing her own product line called Flawless. It's available at Ulta Beauty, and the retailer currently carries 11 stand-out items including the Hair Repair Masque, which is formulated with argan oil, marula oil, and pea protein. If you're after flawless Gabrielle Union hair, then you should definitely add these products to your cart.
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Cardi B is (no surprise) taking Fashion Month by storm. The “Bodak Yellow” rapper started the spring/summer 2019 show season in New York City — sitting front row at Tom Ford and Jeremy Scott, and making headlines when she allegedly threw her shoe at Nicki Minaj at the Harper's Bazaar Icons party. And she dropped in on Milan to attend the Dolce & Gabbana show and performance at Domenico Dolce's 60th birthday. But it was in Paris, the spiritual home of luxury fashion, that Cardi B took things to an entirely new level.
On Wednesday, Cardi B attended the Mugler show already wearing a custom new season look from designer Casey Cadwallader’s debut collection for the house. The day before, she emerged — during daylight hours — in a dramatic floor-length gown, slashed up to the hip and down to the navel, with a custom matching hat from the Gitana collection by Michael Costello. It’s like a rap world sequel to Celine Dion’s totally extra Paris couture moment last year.
But it was the purple suit and matching hair situation she debuted on Tuesday night, for a performance at the Etam presentation, that flew around the internet. Cut low in front and worn with cascading diamond earrings, the suit was wrapped in a dramatic spray of dyed purple ostrich feathers. The creation of young British designer Christian Cowan (who is based in New York), the suit is an early preview of the controversial trend for feathers that looks set to run through party season.
With fur thankfully trending towards catwalk extinction — no designers using fur at London Fashion Week this season, and bans are in place at Gucci, Versace (and its new owner Michael Kors), Burberry, Armani, Stella McCartney, Vivienne Westwood, and Tom Ford — animal rights are on a high they haven’t seen since the ’90s supers proclaimed they’d rather go naked than wear fur. But the ethics of using feathers in fashion are a little more complicated, and far less well-known.
The ostrich feather trade used to be considered one of the more ethical examples of animal products used in fashion. In a report earlier this year, Fashionista managed to dig up an 1888 article from a magazine for nature-lovers, which explains that ostrich feathers “are taken without suffering to the bird, and form an important article of trade,” and that “these, [as] with…feathers of all birds killed for useful purposes, may satisfy the natural desire to make our dress as pretty and artistic as possible.” The method of removing feathers without killing the ostrich is still around today.
“We cut [ostrich feathers] like you cut your nails,” Saag Jonker, a South African ostrich farmer, explains in the Fashionista report. “When they reach a certain stage of being ripe then it’s like a fruit when it ripens then after a certain time and then it falls off the trees.” Saag’s partner Hazel Jonker, a member of the Greens party in SA, likens the process to “wool, and sheep shorn for wool”: “The feathers are harvested, the birds grow new feathers again.” The Jonkers add that they abide by South Africa’s animal rights laws, and industry regulations. But that isn’t the whole picture.
At least 70% of all the world’s ostriches live in South Africa, according to the National Department of Agriculture. The largest birds on earth, they are farmed for their meat, feathers and distinctive, pock-marked (from being plucked) skin, with 90% of these ‘products’ being exported out of the country. And not all farms are like the Jonkers’. A PETA US investigation in 2015 found that baby ostriches were removed at birth (in the wild, they stay for up to three years with their parents, who co-parent), repeatedly plucked alive, and slaughtered (in front of each other) at one year old. In the wild they can live to 40, and are considered to be very intelligent. In a PETA video, workers at the farms can be heard saying they supply to luxury brands including Prada and Hermès, carnival costume designers, feather boa and feather duster stockists, and more.
While small operators trading in moulted feathers only do exist, they can’t generate anywhere near as much ‘product’ as industrialized farms. And anyway, ostriches don’t moult. “Finding and collecting feathers that have fallen from birds in nature sounds nice – but it isn’t a viable business model to supply designers with the volume of feathers they demand,” PETA’s Yvonne Taylor told the Guardian. “Peta has found that whenever parts of animals are used in the fashion industry, corners are cut and abuse is commonplace,” she explains, noting that because all feathers look the same, “there’s simply no fail-safe way to ensure that ducks, geese, chickens, ostriches and emus haven’t suffered for feather items.”
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Fall is like Mother Nature's friendly way to ease us in to cold-weather dressing. Instead of hopping straight to wool and cashmere, fall is for playing around with light cotton sweatshirts and open-knit sweaters. Instead of bundling up right away in our warmest beanies, we can experiment with wide-brim hats, paperboy caps, and cute berets. And instead of immediately covering every inch of exposed skin with a giant blanket scarf, we can break out the neckscarves and skinny scarves while the temps are still mild.
It's also the perfect time to incorporate one of our favorite pieces: the cropped jacket. These styles say, "Hey, cold weather, we see you coming, but we've still got time to play it cool." They're practical enough to protect us from the fall chill, but not as serious as our long wool coats or as cumbersome as our go-to winter puffers. Not to mention, when paired with a high-waisted jean or trouser, these cropped silhouettes create a universally flattering look we can't seem to get enough of.
Click on to shop some cropped jackets that are sure to complete all of your fall looks. With these guys, we're taking advantage of this in-between season for as long as we possibly can.
At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.
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After my first job at MTV working as a music programmer, I can't stop trying to matchmake people with music they might like. So, I wrote a book calledRecord Collecting for Girlsand started interviewing musicians. The Music Concierge is a column where I share music I'm listening to that you might enjoy, with a little context. Follow me on Twitter or Facebook, or leave me a comment below and tell me what you're listening to this week.
Robyn "Honey"
Could this be Robyn's sexiest song thus far? All that dripping honey in the lyric video is certainly ladden with meaning, as are the subversive double entendres that make up the song. It's most certainly going on my cuffing season makeout playlist and driving up my anticipation for Robyn's October 26 album — she's been gone far too long. Glad to have her back with a driving beat and a little honey.
Pistol Annies "Got My Name Changed Back"
Oh my damnnnnnnnnnnn. If you were searching Miranda Lambert's last solo album for hints about how she's feeling after her divorce from Blake Shelton, you may have been looking in the wrong spot. It may have happened in 2015, but this track from her girl group with Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley sounds like she's not done with getting out of that relationship just yet — or maybe she's totally done with it, because she took her name back. The shadeeeeeeeeeeee.
Yaeji "One More"
Confused. Angry. Betrayed. Those emotions inspired Yaeji, who is a triple threat as a vocalist, producer, and visual artist to write "One More." The dreamy, dark track is a meditation on feeling lost in your own life after an unexpected event. In it, Yaeji marries synth elements from KPop with European indie rock and emo sentiments to create something entirely her own.
Phantoms feat. Vanessa Hudgens "Lay With Me"
The Queen of Coachella got together with an L.A.-based electronic duo to create a song that will sound absolutely amazing at Coachella next year. But Vanessa Hudgens' legendary reputation when it comes to the West Coast's tastemaker music festival isn't how this track came about. Weirdly, the guys in Phantoms knew Hudgens when they were all young, and hadn't hung out since they were all around 16. A chance encounter at LAX changed all of that and birthed a pretty sweet electro-pop gem.
Aida Victoria "Dope Queen Blues"
Aida Victoria describes the time in her life when she wrote "Dope Queen Blues" as "a hazy, wild, debaucherous time," and wow are those the exact words I'd use to describe the vibe of this track. It has a little magic spread on it courtesy of The National's Aaron Dessner, who produces (and whose mind has to be responsible for that signature heavy, deep piano part). I've never heard someone sing "we are lost in vain" and sound so gleeful. Thankful to hear those Morphine-influenced horns on this track too, someone needed to bring that sound back.
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Adulting may get a bad rap in memes, but in practice, it’s one of the best things ever. Take exhibits A through C, to start: We call the shots — whether that means eating popcorn for dinner, dousing our living room in hot-pink paint, or, after years of trial and error, finally landing on a skin-care routine that works. But that grown-up life also means that when the random bout of redness, flakiness, or hyperpigmentation pops up, we’re often caught off guard and underprepared. Exactly where did these skin woes come from (did the popcorn-for-dinner thing have something to do with it?), and — more importantly — what can we do to walk them back?
For answers, we turned to New York-based dermatologists Sejal Shah and Dendy Engelman. They offered up some expert advice on how to take down various skin concerns — from zits and acne (acne-fighting retinoid Differin Acne Gel Treatment can help) to sudden skin sensitivity (for which botanicals are a blessing). The best part? Not a single one of their fixes requires a prescription. Ahead, get their tips for how to maintain radiant skin, no matter what kind of complexion-messing curveball comes your way.
The Flare-Up: Redness
The Takedown: We’re hard-pressed to find something wrong with beach days and rosé — that is until we talked to Shah, who filled us in on a little secret. For some, seemingly innocuous factors like a bit of sun exposure or sipping a glass of wine can cause residual redness. One of the quickest ways to recapture your natural skin tone? Creams or serums loaded with a shot of caffeine, which works to minimize the appearance of redness by constricting blood vessels. However, if redness occurs with regularity, you may want to schedule a visit with your dermatologist as rosacea may be the culprit. “For these individuals, ingredients that reduce inflammation and help repair the skin barrier are beneficial,” she notes.
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
The Flare-Up: Acne
The Takedown: If it can happen to celebrities and supermodels, it can happen to anyone. We're talking about acne. And according to research by dermatologist Joshua Zeichner, one third of total acne office visits are made by women over 25 years old. Those of us for whom breakouts didn’t stop in high school are well aware that the key to dealing with zits is not just treating them after they surface but also preventing them before they take shape. An acne-fighting retinoid, like adapalene, found in Differin Gel Acne Treatment, does both. “Retinoids help acne by increasing cell turnover and minimizing the growth of skin cells that can clog the pore,” Shah says. In fact, Engelman notes that the ingredient can be such a workhorse, it may be best paired with gentle skin-care products. Look for a moisturizer loaded with proven hydrators that don’t tend to irritate skin, like hyaluronic acid and ceramides.
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
The Flare-Up: Flaky Skin
The Takedown: Time to debunk another skin myth: Flakiness isn’t just a cold-weather thing. Thanks to reactions to some skin products, aggressive cleansing, and sun exposure — among other factors — our complexions can turn scaly just about any time of year. “Flaky skin often indicates dryness, so moisturizers are key,” Shah says, suggesting a trifecta of healers to hydrate skin back to health: ceramides (which help repair and strengthen the skin barrier), hyaluronic acid (which helps draw moisture to the skin), and niacinamide (which has been shown to increase ceramide and fatty acid levels in the skin).
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
The Flare-Up: Dull Complexion
The Takedown: As the days grow longer, a laissez-faire attitude spills over into just about everything we do — including our approach to skin care. With less frequent exfoliating, our skin’s natural glow starts to fade to a point that even highlighter can’t revive. The quickest way to get back on track? Cleansing with an exfoliant (which sloughs off dead skin cells) and nourishing with vitamin C, an antioxidant that helps neutralize free-radical damage that can lead to dull skin, according to Engelman.
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
The Flare-Up: Suddenly Sensitive Skin
The Takedown: Even skin that barely registers alpha and beta hydroxy acids with so much as a tingle can feel irritated and inflamed from time to time, thanks to a wide range of triggers like allergies, seasonal changes, stress, lack of sleep, or a poor reaction to a product. Instead of beating skin into submission with the usual host of actives, try a little tenderness. Shah suggests reaching for creams stocked with gentle ingredients like chamomile, aloe, turmeric, green tea, or colloidal oatmeal, which can soothe and bring skin back to a balanced state.
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
The Flare-Up: Hyperpigmentation
The Takedown: Though dark spots on the skin can stem from skin injuries (including those related to acne), one of the biggest culprits is the sun, which can trigger estrogen and progesterone in our bodies to overproduce melanin. What’s more, the sun doesn’t discriminate: Whether your skin is fair or deeply toned, UV rays can spark an overproduction of melanin, which can result in the formation of dark spots. Of course, the first step in minimizing dark spots is helping prevent sun exposure with clothing and SPF. Beyond that, Engelman suggests reaching for skin-care products made with a pair of botanical skin brighteners: kojic acid and licorice extract. Both of these prevent a melanin-making protein from over-producing, which limits and treats the formation of dark spots on the skin, Engelman explains. This protein-stymieing effect not only helps prevent new dark spots from forming, but it also helps break down existing ones to even out overall skin tone.
Illustration by Maria Ines Gul
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By now, your browser's probably filled with countless shopping tabs of boots to buy with sandal season is officially over. While we'd like to have them all (cowboy, hiking, white, black, lace-up, the list goes on and on), fact is, boots aren't all that cheap. We're lucky to get one, maybe two pairs without going way over budget. But how to choose? We figure there's room for one everyday boot and one that's just a little out there. You know, for balance. So after too many hours spent adding and re-adding boots to our shopping carts, it's been decided: we're going all in with the over-the-knee boot.
This season's sky-high boots bare no resemblance to the micro-suede styles we slapped over leggings back in 2012. They're now available in a variety of styles ranging from Matrix approved patent leather to a new, sexier spin on the cowboy boot. We just hope the painful memories of their last spike in popularity hasn't ruined them forever because we're a little over the moon about the new over-the-knee boots, and you should be too. To help you start re-introducing this boot back into your wardrobe, we rounded up 17 pairs to try out this fall.
At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.
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I learned at a very young age that Halloween costumes are expensive. The moment you realize that you can thrift for your own Carmen Sandiego outfit (instead of dropping $70 on a polyester version in a half-opened pouch), the game changes. I stopped trolling Party City's catalog, and redirected my attention to the power of makeup instead.
Revolving your entire look around an intricate display of cosmetic talent can be tricky, but well worth the process. On the downside, the top-trending looks for this season will most likely take you a lot longer than throwing on some red lipstick and calling yourself Marilyn Monroe. But the pay-off will collect more compliments than Selena Gomez's Instagram account.
According to Pinterest, this is the year of originality — and a wave of pop culture icons, mystical creatures, and... animals? The best part: We bet you could master most of these looks with beauty products you already have. And if you're truly makeup challenged, a local counter should be able to accommodate your request with a few of the inspiration images we've collected here.
Click ahead to check out this year's most popular Halloween looks on Pinterest.
Cheetah / Leopard
Last year, it was all about the giraffe. This year, it's the cheetah (or leopard, depending on your preference). One makeup artist combined two trends in one (with optical illusions, but more on that later) for this hypnotizing look.
Not enough time to paint your body in gold and brown spots? Concentrate the details on one side of your face and top it all off with an dramatic cat-eye.
Spiderweb Eyeliner
Sorry makeup newbies, this one is not for you. Spiderweb eyeliner has been a popular spooky trend for years, but perhaps 2018 is finally the year you put your skills to the test.
Oily eyelids? Focus your handiwork on the bottom half of your eye. Pro artist Juliet Capati chose to keep her Halloween look affordable by using Nyx's Liquid Suede Cream Lipstick to create her creepy look.
Pumpkin
This isn't your childhood Halloween costume. Yes, it will require several hours more than it would take to run to the Spirit superstore for an itchy tangerine one-piece, but imagine the kind of awards you'll win at your office party this year!
Not prepared for a midnight clean up of all that orange body makeup? Try creating a mini masterpiece on your lid with matte eyeshadow and a super-fine liquid liner.
Fairy
Ever since we first saw Peter Pan, we've been wondering exactly what it would be like to be a fairy — even if for just a few hours. Luckily, copying this mythic look isn't as hard as it looks. All you need is a trip to Michael's and body glitter.
Fairies don't have to be extra. Makeup artist Bo Senesomxay created this glowing, natural makeup with plenty of strobing cream for a wearable, spritely look.
Optical Illusion
These dizzying beauty looks were all over Instagram earlier this year. Now, the off-putting tricks are fit for the spooky holiday.
Beware of making one of these disorienting designs a last minute option. Our suggestion: Do your research on YouTube first and set aside several hours to get it right.
Galaxy
Back again for another round, Pinterest says that galaxy makeup is still one of its most-searched Halloween trends. In fact, interest in the term has grown nearly 160% in the last year. We're here to confirm that the unique look is still out of this world.
Leave the constellations on your eyelids, or cover your entire face in the intergalactic freckles.
Sally from TheNightmare Before Christmas
The fantasy-meets-macabre musical came out two decades ago, but according to Pinterest, fans are still going nuts over one character: Sally. Committing to being the Tim Burton rag doll means investing in a lot of blue body paint and patience. It also means you'll need a red wig, falsies, and the ability to draw on fake stitches.
This cosplay artist's Sally rendition is not child's play. In fact it's so realistic, we bet by midnight you'll find your own Jack Skellington.
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Would you ever believe that nostalgia was once considered to be a curable disease, like the common cold? People suffered so much from a misplaced, sentimental longing in the 17th and 18th centuries, that it was largely dealt with as a medical mystery for hundreds of years.
Fast forward to today and we know that nostalgia isn't fatal and we don't need a Z-pak to treat it. It's an outdated concept to consider nostalgia a malady, but it's not entirely untrue that the random, wistful affection for something is hitting hard right now in Hollywood. An academic once said that anything can trigger nostalgia — love, masturbation, landscape, even unusual food — but in 2018, it's something else: '90s headbands.
If you haven't noticed, the retro hair accessories are everywhere — mostly on Kendall Jenner. Last summer, she was spotted traveling the world in a stretchy black headband (yep, the same one you buy at CVS and use to push back your hair to wash your face) and wrote about her love for it on her website, boasting that she even rocked one on the Chanel runway in Paris. Chic and cheap!
Now, the trendsetting model has graduated to yet another '90s drugstore hair accessory, and it's one we never guessed would make a comeback: the comb headband. Keep clicking for our favorite ways to try the trend, all over again.
You may not be in Paris strutting your supermodel street style like Kenny, but you can copy part of her look for $4 with this accordion tortoise-shell headband.
Conair Conair Basic Stretch Combs, $3.99, available at Target
Stretchy comb headbands made their first re appearance at last year's Prabal Gurung show. At $8, this particular accessory is the most expensive of the group — seemingly for no other reason than that it's sold at Anthro.
Anthropologie Comb Headband, $8, available at Anthropologie
Want more color options for your multipurpose accessory? Try this three-pack that offers three shades — black, yellow, and clear — for the Soul Cycle to Spring Studios set.
When you want to keep the rogue hairs out of your face, but avoid tugging out the fussy knots, try a headband that slips right on and right off. But nostalgia trigger warning: you'll need to find an Icing store, first.
Icing Wood Grain Comb Headband, $3.99, available at Icing
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There comes a time in everyone's life when they realize — slowly at first, then suddenly, and all at once — that the things their younger selves once thought of as weird and lame might actually have been cool all along. Reba McEntire, whose albums your mom would sing along to when she was white-wine drunk? Cool. Tucking your shirt into a pair of high-waisted jeans? Cool. Shag haircuts? Cool. Staying in on a Saturday night with no one but the TV and your dog to keep you company? There is literally nothing cooler.
Also extremely cool, highly underrated, and often written off as boring or, worse, basic: tinted lip balm. No longer the province of people who just don't have the balls to wear real lipstick and make a real statement, tinted lip balm is experiencing a renaissance. It is making a statement, and that statement is, "Fuck your Kylie Lip Kit."
In fact, one might even see the emerging trend — with best-selling brands like Pat McGrath, Giorgio Armani Beauty, and Origins getting in on it — as the backlash to the popularity of the impenetrable matte liquid lip, which has been a long time coming. Tinted lip balm is here to remind us that effortlessness is also cool, and that a razor-sharp liner and a pointed concealer brush are not prerequisites for wearing lip color. So queue up "You Lie" and get swiping... no mirror necessary.
Lick. Pucker. Drool. Chew. The shade names aren't the only thing about this balm that's inherently suggestive: The plumping, your-lips-but-sexier glaze it leaves behind is also pretty hot — as is the newly-expanded shade selection, which ranges from a pale peach to a deep merlot.
Flesh Beauty Fleshy Lips Lipstick, $18, available at Ulta Beauty
What looks like bold color in the tube actually translates to eight sheer, easy shades, all with a finish that's not just glossy, but straight-up juicy, thanks to a buttery blend of flower waxes, hydrating oils, and honey that cushions and plumps lips as it moisturizes.
Origins Blooming Sheer Lip Balm, $20, available at Origins
The newest addition to the cult-classic Sugar lineup, this effortless rosy-beige shade is impossible not to love — or look really, really good in, for that matter.
Fresh Sugar Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15, $24, available at Nordstrom
With a smooth, almost gel-like texture and a formula packed with antioxidant-rich caper oil, this balm is meant to enhance your natural lip color rather than just tint it, thereby creating the illusion that you just so happen to wake up every day with your lips that flushed and dewy. (Rest assured: It smells nothing like actual capers.)
Giorgio Armani Beauty Neo Nude Ecstasy Balm, $34, available at Nordstrom
Could it be — the most luxe lip balm ever? Packed with shea butter, which deeply hydrates and smooths dry lips on contact, and spiked with just the right amount of sheer pigment, this formula is both satisfyingly creamy and surprisingly long-lasting.
Pat McGrath Lip Fetish Lip Balm, $38, available at Sephora
This color-adjusting glow-up-in-a-tube does all the things that eight hours of sleep, a cup of coffee, and a liter of water is supposed to do — which is to say, make you look fresh-faced and youthful in a way you haven't since you were actually fresh-faced and youthful.
Straddling the line between proper lipstick and tinted balm is this good-for-you favorite. The pigments are 100% natural, the nourishing ingredients are plentiful, and if you're looking for the perfect middle ground between hydration and full color potential, congratulations — you've found it.
Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner, $28, available at Ilia
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Echoes of "we believe survivors" rang up and down the Senate office buildings on Friday, as lawmakers clashed on whether to delay the vote on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
On Friday morning, Sen. Kamala Harris and other senators including Mazie Hirono and Richard Blumenthal walked out of the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting, refusing to vote. After that, they held an impromptu press conference, encouraging the gathered crowd of hundreds to continue exercising their right to speak up.
"I couldn't sit there any longer," Sen. Harris told reporters as survivors approached her thanking her for her "brilliant questioning" of Kavanaugh. "There was no fair process, people weren't being heard, they were pushing it through without an ability for people to even be able to express their objections. It was a travesty, frankly."
Speaking with Refinery29 about Kavanaugh's explosive testimony on Thursday, Sen. Harris answered why she thought he made a reference to the Clintons and the 2016 election, despite being considered for an impartial, nonpartisan position. "From the beginning, it has been my position based on his record that he is a political operative," she told Refinery29. "He's showed that. Under pressure, he didn't have the benefit of having the kind of façade that he had created during this hearing. Under pressure, he revealed himself for who he really is. And that is a political operative."
Hundreds of protesters lined the hallway of the Hart Senate office building, with several being arrested as they participated in an act of civil disobedience. Some sounded rape whistles, which were taken away by police, as they sat outside of the room where room where the Judiciary Committee was convening. Security ushered out protestors and reporters, threatening them with arrest if they are to stay in the area.
Melissa Shaw, from New York City, told Refinery29 that she had traveled to D.C. for the hearings in order to show her solidarity with Dr. Ford, just as hundreds have.
"After watching the extremely credible testimony from Dr. Ford yesterday and the hysterics of Judge Kavanaugh, I would like to say that I was hoping the committee would call for a full FBI investigation," she says. " Roe v. Wade is in terrible danger, and so are other Supreme Court cases that have helped build the fabric of what the United States is." She had two other words for Republicans who believe Democrats are playing dirty politics with the Kavanaugh nomination: Merrick Garland.
The Judiciary Committee voted 11-10 to advance Kavanaugh's nomination, but Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake joined the Democrats in calling for a one-week delay in the floor vote to wait for the results of an FBI investigation. The committee asked the White House to reopen the investigation. On Friday evening, President Trump approved an FBI probe that, as the Senate requested, "must be limited in scope and completed in less than one week."
Kavanaugh said he will continue to cooperate with the FBI.
This story was originally published at 2:20 p.m. It has since been updated.
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To borrow an analogy from Maslow, the skin has a hierarchy of needs. The core building blocks are cleansing, exfoliating, and sun protection — you know, the necessities. That's followed by things like antioxidants and peptides, the reparative basics. Right at the top of the pyramid is what one might refer to as "add-ons": fun things like masks, and facial massages, and sticking cucumber slices on your eyes. Adding those things regularly into your routine has its benefits, but determining where professional facials might fit within that hierarchy — and how much you should spend — is a little more challenging.
Cosmetic physician Sarah Tonks says that there's no hard-and-fast rules in terms of how often you should get them done. "If you're going for an acne-specific facial with extractions and a light peel, and you have active acne, every six or eight weeks could be good," Dr. Tonks says. "If your primary concern is melasma or pigmentation, every three months or so is fine."
Also of note is that the sheer number of treatments on the market at wildly different price points can be mind-boggling; knowing where to start navigating the jargon is basically a language in itself. But Dr. Tonks says that facials can largely be broken down into a few categories. "You have your proper clinical facials, where you'll be getting extractions, maybe an LED mask, a professional-strength peel, something like HydraFacial or an oxygen treatment maybe added on," she says. "That could be anywhere from $100 to $200." Three digits is a lot, but Dr. Tonks explains that you're paying for the cost of the machines (a salon-grade LED machine, for example, can cost up to $15,000), as well as for a highly-trained therapist who may come from a medical background.
Then there’s your relaxing facials. Usually — though not always, depending on the spa or studio — found at a lower price point, these facials are more about aromatherapy, applying a few masks, and having something of a mindful experience. "There’s a few more massage-type facials I enjoy having," Dr. Tonks says. "They don’t necessarily make the most visible difference to my skin, but they do force me to relax and not do anything for 40 minutes, and that is a beauty treatment in itself."
There are some places that sit between the two, price- and results-wise: national or regional chains of salons that offer facials at good prices, often with laser or microdermabrasion. "These places operate at a high volume, so it’s much safer to go to a chain like that for a laser treatment rather than a lesser-known independent clinic if price is an issue," Dr. Tonks says.
But for the most part, if it comes down to price and you've only got $80 to spend, putting that money toward cosmeceutical-grade skin care (brands like SkinCeuticals, iS Clinicals, and SkinMedica, for example) rather than a middling facial might just be your best bet. At-home skin care is better than ever, so why pay to have people apply the same stuff you might have kicking around in your bathroom cabinet? High-end clinics will have some professional-grade products, like peels, but on the whole, a mud mask is a mud mask.
"If you want laser, radiofrequency, microdermabrasion, or anything like that, I would encourage you to save up a little if you can and go to a reputable, pricier clinic," says Dr. Tonks. "It's rare, but you will see some horror stories from time to time of people being injured or scarred by botched facials. If someone is offering you a real bargain-basement price for a treatment, you might end up paying in another way."
For most people, the correct answer is to do what works for you: Nobody necessarily needs a facial, but if you enjoy them and can afford to indulge — whether that's once a month or once a year — then by all means. There are a few things that professional estheticians can do that you can't at home, but as far as taking good care of your skin, and keeping it clear and healthy, that comes down to what you want to do... and, in some cases, what your dermatologist tells you.
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Most of us have been guilty of dashing into a CVS in the middle of a downpour only to overpay for a mediocre umbrella. While there are plenty of things you should save for a rainy day, buying gear to keep you dry shouldn’t be one of them. Avoiding the hefty $15 price tag for an umbrella that’ll be good for one use only (maybe two if you’re lucky) is as simple as doing some pre-planning. And with the rainy season on its way in (really though, when isn't it?), we’re going to want to get a jump start on stocking up on the necessities.
As with most scenarios in our lives, we’re turning towards the love of our lives reliable Target for help. If there’s any store who’s sure to stock rain gear essentials we'll actually want to use, this is it. Cute anoraks, affordable rain boots, bucket hats, it’s got everything you need to conveniently pick up during your next weekly Target visit. From a chic trench coat to a sturdy bubble umbrella that can withstand multiple storms (take that, sad drugstore version), here are eight rainy day picks to grab from Target.
At Refinery29, we’re here to help you navigate this overwhelming world of stuff. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy something we link to on our site, Refinery29 may earn commission.
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