Month: May 2017

Reed debuts BaYou With Love beauty collection

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A new line of beauty products are about to pass your sustainability test.

According to InStyle, actress Nikki Reed’s lifestyle brand BaYou With Love debuted a brand-new and sustainable beauty collection with Anthropologie. Made in the United States, InStyle says the collection includes “a plant-based perfume oil, a skin balm, an all-natural cheek and lip tint, and an aromatherapy candle, all housed in a chic pale blue recycled plastic clutch.”

The eco-friendly set, which retails for $98, is currently available online and in Anthropologie stores.

 

Macy’s secures Anna Sui capsule collection

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High fashion is coming to Macy’s this fall, and this is one collaboration you won’t want to miss.

According to Fashionista, Anna Sui will be releasing a capsule collection with Macy’s this September, creating a limited-edition line in collaboration with INC International Concepts (a Macy’s house label). The move comes in an attempt to increase the retailer’s exclusive options, reports Fashionista, which aims to remedy their branding strategy.

While the Anna Sui x INC collaboration attempts to bolster Macy’s offerings, make no mistake: the signature style of Anna Sui will remain just as fashionable as ever.

Fashionista says Macy’s GVP of Private Brand Marketing Strategy Tim Reid said in a release announcing the collection that shoppers can “expect for Sui’s ‘signature whismy and eclectic edge’ to be well-represented, with what the release describes as ‘feminine prairie accents and hints of glamour with lace details, fringe and embroidered florals.'”

The collection will be available in early September, says Fashionista, with 25 Macy’s stores and Macys.com carrying the line of men’s apparel, as well as women’s apparel, shoes, handbags and jewelry.

 

Missy Elliott is fierce on ‘ELLE’ cover

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The original queen of rap is taking the cover of ELLE magazine by storm, and with her cover comes a few life lessons from a career well-versed.

According to HuffPost, Missy Elliott used her place on the June cover of ELLE to share how her music and adjoining music videos helped her to express herself uninhibited. For  example, in her 1997 music video for “The Rain,” HuffPost says the rapper explained her “black plastic bag suit” was a way to make her feel powerful.

“To me, the outfit was a way to mask my shyness behind all the chaos of the look,” she said. “Although I am shy, I was never afraid to be a provocative woman. The outfit was a symbol of power. I loved the idea of feeling like a hip-hop Michelin woman. I knew I could have on a blow-up suit and still have people talking. It was bold and different. I’ve always seen myself as an innovator and a creative unlike any other.”

Even in a career marked with hits, the “Work It” rapper said that she’s never wanted to do anything to compromise who she is; in fact, HuffPost reports Missy Elliott offered that changing herself to fit in is something she’d “never do.”

“I’ve been through so many stumbling blocks to build a legacy, so I wouldn’t want to do something just to fit in. Because I never fit in.”

Read the full interview here.

Mowins to make EPSN history

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There’s a first for everything and this fall, ESPN will have a first of their own.

According to HuffPost, Beth Mowins will “become the first woman in 30 years to call play-by-play for an NFL regular season game” when she gets behind the mic of the Sept. 11 Monday Night Football game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Denver Broncos.

After joining the network in 1994, HuffPost says Mowins has been broadcasting college football games since 2005 and has recently been the go-to person for the Raiders’ preseason broadcasts.

The last woman to take the mic for a regular season NFL game was Gayle Sirens, who called a Seahawks-Chiefs game for NBC back in 1987, according to HuffPost.

Vittorio De Bartolo, executive producer of broadcasting for the Raiders, told Sports Illustrated (who originally reported the story) that he is ready to see what Mowins will do with her history-making moment.

“I am more than confident Beth can call an NFL game for a national audience.”

And so are we.

Minaj makes a charity for student loans

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Last week, Nick Minaj made headlines by offering to pay her fans’ student loans and tuition on Twitter. Now, the rapper is making headlines again for looking to make a habit out of the payments.

According to The Cut, Minaj not only shared the receipts from her recent giving spree on Instagram (which topped $18,000), she also wrote that she is going to launch her efforts as an official charity.

“This makes me so happy,” she wrote in reference to the initial payments she made, The Cut reports. “I’ll do another impromptu payment spree in a month or 2 but pls know that I’m launching my official charity for Student Loans/Tuition Payments VERY SOON! You’ll be able to officially sign up! I’ll keep you posted!”

Official details have yet to be announced, says The Cut, but we will certainly be keeping an eye out!

Schumer talks body acceptance with R29

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Being in the public eye isn’t easy, especially when there’s heavy expectation to look flawless at all times. But for Amy Schumer, feeding the public’s unreal expectations isn’t on her agenda. In fact, she accepts her body the way it is and wants everyone else to, as well.

Addressing the negative comments surrounding her swimsuit-clad InStyle cover, the Snatched star told Refinery29 in an interview that she doesn’t try to transform herself into what others think she should be, according to HuffPost.

“I shot that InStyle cover and I was really feeling myself that day,” she said. “I think that sort of acceptance… when I see myself in this movie, in a bathing suit, I’m fine. There’s nothing for me to get over. This is my body. This is my face. This is it. I don’t strive for this other version.”

What she does think, however, is that other people need to accept her body — “Or not!” Schumer offered, according to HuffPost. “People need time to decide how they feel about my body. I don’t think about my body. I want to be healthy.”

There’s nothing like owning who you are; thanks for showing us how it’s done, Amy.

France outlaws frail models

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A new law is going into effect in France that protects models from becoming too frail.

According to HuffPost, the law — passed in 2015 and enacted this year — not only bans “excessively thin fashion models,” it also requires models to get a “doctor’s certificate to prove they are healthy.”

BBC also reports that the newly-enacted law will specifically focus models’ Body Mass Index (BMI) in an effort to “fight eating disorders and inaccessible ideals of beauty.”

But models aren’t the only ones subject to new regulation; HuffPost says that any and all photos of models that are “digitally-altered” have to be labelled as a “retouched photograph,” a demarcation that is required on all altered photos starting Oct. 1.

What happens if modeling agencies don’t comply with the new health standards? HuffPost says they can face up to $82,000 in fines and six months of jail time.

American Girl unveils first Korean-American Doll

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Young girls of all backgrounds can now find a doll that looks a little more like them, thanks to the newest American Girl doll.

According to Refinery29, the famous doll company just unveiled their first-ever Korean-American doll named “Suzie “Z” Yang.” Available starting April 27, the doll’s backstory aims to inspire new ambitions in young girls as well as to represent diverse ethnicities, says Refinery29.

“Z (short for Suzie) is a Korean American hailing from Seattle, and is the latest addition to American Girl’s new series of contemporary characters and stories designed to speak to more girls’ interests, backgrounds and experiences,” American Girl said in a release. “Through Z, girls get to learn more about this creative young filmmaker who loves staying connected with friends and sharing a good story through her stop motion videos.”

The move to release a Korean-American doll follows a statement from American Girl spokesperson Julie Parks, who Refinery29 reports told NBC News back in February that “the one thing we’ve heard loud and clear is a desire for more—specifically more characters and stories from today—with more experiences, more diversity and more interests.”

Way to go, American Girl.

 

Biles knows smiles don’t ‘win gold medals’

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Smiling is all fine and good, but when you’re a champion, you have to keep your eyes on the prize — just ask Simone Biles.

After receiving some criticism for her performance on Dancing With the Stars on Monday night, HuffPost says the Olympic gold medalist tried to mask her frustration. In her first performance, espnW says she was criticized by judge Carrie Ann Inaba for smiling too much, and in her second performance, host Tom Bergeron wondered why she didn’t smile after receiving some compliments from the judges.

“I was waiting for you to smile at some of the compliments, you didn’t,” said Bergeron, according to HuffPost.

Biles countered with, “Smiling doesn’t win you gold medals.”

Well said.

Lovato launches new collection with Fabletics

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Athleticwear by Fabletics is getting a philanthropic twist, thanks to Demi Lovato.

According to Billboard, Lovato is teaming up with the Kate Hudson-owned sportswear line to produce a collection of clothing that will benefits the United Nation’s Girl Up initiative. Specifically benefiting SchoolCycle, Billboard says proceeds from the line will help “give girls bicycles, spare parts and maintenance training to provide a quick and safe mode of transport to school.”

Set to launch mid-May, Billboard reports that the Demi Lovato for Fabletics collection will  have “an array of leggings and tops, followed up by a full performance line of tops, jackets, exercise bras and leggings which are set to release in August online and in-stores nationwide.”

Lovato said in a statement that the collaboration not only allows her to work with a brand that shares the same values she holds dear, it also gives her a chance to support girls around the world through fashion.

“Being involved in the creative design process while being able to have a daily impact on young girls’ lives around the world is so rewarding to me, making this initiative very dear to my heart.”