Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2018 i Allure

Call it the cover conundrum (or, more appropriately, the Lupita Nyong’o Looks Good in Everything Law of Nature), but often the most difficult part of a shoot occurs long after wrap. For our March cover, we had Nyong’o in braids with dazzling jewels and Nyong’o heaped with voluminous curls. Two works of hair perfection, but only one cover. What’s an editor to do? This, it turns out, was exactly the kind of problem hairstylist Vernon François had in mind when Nyong’o, a close friend, gave him free rein at the shoot. “Lupita and I wanted to show that coil-y or kinky hair has many strengths and can be worn in lots of different ways, celebrating its beauty and versatility,” said François. “Loving your true texture is important.” In the end,…

200 The approximate number of women who appeared in Breck Gold Formula Shampoo ads between 1936 and 1976. $4 The price of a bottle of Finesse, Kendall Jenner’s go-to shampoo. $300 The price of Ten Voss, a limited-edition shampoo, conditioner, and water bottle trio released by Alterna and Voss Water in 2007. (In the companies’ defense: Proceeds helped fund a clean-drinking water initiative.) 1975 The year Donna Alexander became the first African- American woman to appear in a Breck Shampoo ad. At the time, she was a veterinary science student at the University of Pennsylvania. 1903 The first year you didn’t have to make your own shampoo. Schaumpon, a violet-scented powder created by Berlin chemist Hans Schwarzkopf, became available in German drugstores. 2017 Year hairstylist Eugene Souleiman sent models down…

If you keep picking the wrong shade: Wait 20 minutes. “Foundation colors tend to change with your body’s heat in that time,” says makeup artist Stephanie Flor. She recommends swatching new formulas not only on your jawline but also on the inside of your wrist—the thin skin in this spot is similar in tone to your undereye area. If you have problem skin: Try a different texture. Creamy and liquid formulas are better for dry skin, while powders are better for oily skin. (If you love liquid formulas but tend to get shiny, dust on translucent powder afterward.) And you don’t have to put on pancake makeup to get a decent level of coverage. The newest generation of full-coverage liquid foundations look densely pigmented but feel thin. Try Bobbi Brown…

It started—as most things do—with evolution. Warmth. Protection. Perhaps even camouflage. Since then our hair has become a signifier of religion. Of political status. Of gender. Of race. A reflection of who we are. The way we treat and style our hair can speak to where we come from as much as a language or an accent or a total lack of patience on a subway platform. That’s partly because we nurture and celebrate our hair with the tools at hand: red ochre hair dye in Africa, a kaleidoscope of colored flowers in India, rain-forest-foraged ingredients in Brazil. And it’s partly because, perhaps more than any other beauty conventions, hair rituals are passed down through generations. We asked women from four corners of the globe to share some of the…

Two cotton threads are all she needs. No bevy of detailing tools, no special lights and magnifiers, no legion of trained assistants—just Natasha Dahiya, her threads, and the rogue hair on your forehead. After moving to Washington, D.C., from New Delhi in 2000, Dahiya got her start applying brow techniques she’d learned in India on her friends, and their friends, and their friends, before opening Dupont Threading in 2008. She tells me why so many people prefer threading to waxing: “It’s delicate and accurate. And you’re not pulling the skin like you would if you waxed. It’s really very simple.” She might also be referring to the shop itself, tucked between two town houses just off Dupont Circle. The floor is washed wood; the walls are plain white, with a…

“WE CAN’T SEE IT FROM THE STANDS— MAKE YOUR HAIR BIGGER.” I’m going to need more carbs. Probably some refined sugar. My last three meals (soup, two boiled eggs, a salad) haven’t gotten me even a quarter of the way through styling my hair before my hands start shaking. My biceps seem to have left for a vacation. I am here for one purpose only: to get my naturally fine hair to defy gravity—and reason. And I never considered my upper-arm strength a liability. Until now. My tutors, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders alum and choreographer Michelle Keys and Hunter Blackwell, both former Dallas Mavericks Dancers, rush to my side with a water bottle and a 52-ounce plastic tub of peanut-butter-stuffed pretzels. This is not their first rodeo. “In the South, football…

To me, braiding is St. Louis, Missouri. That’s where, as a kid, I’d sit at my aunt’s feet as she braided my hair for the summer. My sisters and I got box braids, typically with just our natural hair, but if our mother was feeling the urge to splurge, we’d throw some weave in there, too. My aunt lived in an apartment down the street from our duplex. We’d walk over not long after sunrise and stay until dark. My sisters and I would alternate sitting at her feet, sucking down mouth-staining ice pops during the day and Uncle Ben’s Ready Rice Red Beans & Rice at night. Despite the occasional pain (pulling too tight on my scalp), the braids were a welcome break from my rest-of-the-year hot-comb life. (That’s…

NEDJETTI HARVEY, “THE WINDING ROAD,” PAGE 92 Hometown: “Queens.” Three words that describe the hair culture you were born into: “African goddess coils.” Three words that describe the hair culture you live in today: “African, be you.” On-set playlist: “Sade, Erykah Badu, India.Arie.” Kit staple: “SoftSheen-Carson Hydra Steam conditioning spray.” (Harvey is an educator for the brand.) The most unexpected item in your kit: “Kitchen garbage bags for collecting used towels.” First job: “Burger King.” Hair icon: “My mother, Shirley Pettigrew Harvey, who taught me to braid and cornrow when I was seven.” DAVID COLVIN, “THE LONG OF IT,” PAGE 110 Hometown: “Atlanta.” Three words that describe the hair culture you were born into: “Blonde, big, fringy.” Three words that describe the hair culture you live in today: “Cool, easy, textured.”…

In life, as in poker, they say you have to play the cards you’ve been dealt. And if that’s the case, we’re dealing ourselves a royal flush by way of Dolce & Gabbana. This hair comb, featuring the likes of Cleopatra and Joan of Arc, appropriately set off with ruby-red crystals, may be the most opulent accessory we’ve ever seen. You can’t slide it through your hair without feeling like things are going to swing in your favor. Call it stacking the deck. Keep a fancy comb in place without an updo by concealing a small horizontal French braid with loose hair above it, as hairstylist Mustafa Yanaz did here. Model: Inga Krohn.…

Frequent fliers and commitment-phobes (but maybe not sustainability activists): Listen up. We’re here to introduce you to the phenomenon of the one-dose hair product. L’Oréal Paris EverPure Hair Sheet Masks are single-use bonnets that come pre-smeared with a deep-conditioning treatment for smoother hair in the shower, while The One by Frédéric Fekkai One to Go Individual Dose Crème and Ouai’s coconut-oil-coated Anti-Frizz Sheets can sleekify (that’s a word, right?) dry hair absolutely anywhere. And if rich oils are the last thing your hair needs, IGK’s Swipe Up Charcoal Dry Shampoo Hair Blotting Tissues will mop up style-deflating grease come late afternoon. MINI ESSAY SHAMPOO FOR THE 0.1% “It’s a great entry-level price point,” a brand representative tells me, brandishing a tube of Sisley’s new $75 shampoo. Full disclosure, reader: $75…

My late father, Fred Luster Sr., was a barber in the ’50s in Chicago. This was early in the life cycle of the Afrocentric barbershop, and products were not easy to come by. You had your “easy-comb” water-based sprays to soften and detangle, and sheen sprays to make hair look rich and healthy. My father wanted to create something that did both—so he set up shop in his basement. He collaborated with product salespeople he’d met to make new formulas and tested them on his family, friends, and clients. He ultimately came up with Pink Hair Lotion, a hair moisturizer with natural oils, lanolin, and beeswax; it made hair easier to comb, added shine, and kept it hydrated all day. It was initially for men, but as he began to…

AT LENGTH Yuka Mannami and Wataru Shimosato go way back. The two friends are both models and both Japanese, and both have long hair as kind of an accident: “When I came to the U.S., I had no idea who to ask to cut my hair, so I started growing it,” says Shimosato. “Then I just decided not to cut it.” GOING THE DISTANCE Two things keep long hair from looking anemic, says hairstylist David Colvin: 1) extra-nourishing shampoo and conditioner with proteins (we like Herbal Essences Smooth Lisse) and 2) a blow-dry cream (try R + Co’s Park Ave Blow Out Balm). MANE-TAINED For every thousand ardent words in long-hair forums, maybe two will be a product name. Most members use WO—forumspeak for a water-only routine. Mannami is less…

Hair is powerful. It can define moments in our lives and help to shape our identity. It can boost confidence—or destroy it. Globally, we spend billions of dollars each year to wash it, smooth it, curl it, regrow it, deep-condition it, and balayage it. It’s a part of each of us that’s deeply personal yet can connect people on a larger level as well. When it comes to hair color, style, and texture, we’re all influenced by culture in more ways than we know. Last spring, I moderated a panel about skin color and diversity with six prominent women of color. The discussion eventually veered to the topic of hair, which struck a nerve for the whole group, particularly model Ebonee Davis. Her voice cracked. Tears pooled. She explained how…

Concealer is in the business of masking—perfect for obscuring a zit, but using it on a little bit of redness is like using a power hose to fill a water glass. Fine-tune with a tinted primer instead: a dot of seafoam to temper pinkness around the nose, a dollop of a pearly neutral to brighten all over, a swipe of rose to lift sallowness in the cheeks. They really work—and, like the best cover-ups, go unseen. SOFT SELL Next up in a beauty game we like to call Do I Need This?: new low-tech face-cleansing brushes that feel softer than a chinchilla’s belly. Can something so plush—and so unplugged—actually do anything for my skin? you might wonder. In short: yes. “When you use a cleansing brush, you’re getting everything off—makeup,…

EUREKA! ON THE BALL See that little orb up there? It’s an antiperspirant. True story. Secret has put its sweat-stopping, stink-reducing stuff into a screw-top ball that will fit in your purse (or even your minaudière—because what’s more anxiety-sweat-provoking than black tie?). And the design even has an advantage outside of its portability: When you’re in the market for a midday under-the-shirt touch-up, it easily sneaks through the smallest armholes and tightest sweaters. —L. S. PRODUCT REVIEW Sky High There is not a mascara on this earth that checks all the boxes for me: no clumps, no flakes, see-’em-across-the-room thickness. Benefit must know this because it cleverly looked to outer space for its latest formula. Its new BadGal Bang replaces the powder traditionally used in mascara with one as light…

There are vacations south of the border that are made for excursion-filled days and tequila-fueled nights. A journey to Punta de Mita, Mexico, is not one of those vacations (although, by all means, enjoy a few margaritas). This place is a tranquil postcard of a peninsula comprising white sand, aquamarine water, and personal fulfillment. On the Pacific coast of Mexico, it also just happens to have some of the best surf breaks you’ll find in this hemisphere. Then again, it’s pretty nice for us nonsurfers, too. REAP THE REWARDS After you take our Readers’ Choice survey, you’ll automatically be entered for a chance to win one of three prizes.* THE ULTIMATE GETAWAY: A three-night trip for two to the W Punta de Mita in Mexico, worth approximately $4,049. You and…

“IF YOU’RE GOING TO HAVE PINK HAIR, IT’S GOING TO LOOK LIKE YOU WERE BORN WITH PINK HAIR.” “The first thing I ask is ‘Why?’” says colorist Alaina Manibog when I ask her to describe the process of transforming a brunette civilian into a pink-haired fairy wood nymph in the space of a few hours. “A lot of people don’t know why they want hair color.” Maybe they just saw her Instagram, which commands a modest cult following, or maybe they saw a specific, inspiring shade of pink, or maybe they were in the mood for a change. Whichever it is, I can guarantee you: Manibog is here to play. Manibog mixes her pigments deep within the warm, wainscoted corridors of Benjamin Salon in West Hollywood—a space that is at…

GABRIELLE UNION,ACTRESS AND FOUNDER OF FLAWLESS BEAUTY BY GABRIELLE UNION “One of my first memories is of seeing Bo Derek with braids and beads. I got those braids. They didn’t quite look like Bo Derek’s, but I was so happy. I remember the clacking noise that the beads made and feeling like Wonder Woman. I can remember looking at National Geographic and seeing women in Africa with much more intricate braided styles and thinking it was so cool—these strong, powerful women that were on the cover of a magazine. I felt super proud in that moment. But there’s this Eurocentric beauty ideal that’s given the biggest spotlight. For young people who have low self-esteem and who desperately want to get a little shine and attention, you gravitate toward it. For…