Source: Jeff Spicer / Getty The Brit Awards have officially touched down in London, and H.E.R., Winnie Harlow, and more celebrities and music stars hit the red carpet at 02 Arena to celebrate the British Phonographic Industry’s annual pop music awards. Rita Ora, Drake, Cardi B, Janelle Monae, Beyonce and Jay Z, and Ella Mae are just a few of the nominees who will battle it out to take home a trophy this time around. Take a peek at the stars who slayed the carpet before the show!
Source: Tom Williams / Getty Former First Lady Michelle Obama is serving up a serious lewk on the December issue of ELLE Magazine ! Rocking a Dior Poplin shirt, pleated-voile skirt and leather corset, our #ForeverFLOTUS looks like a stunning queen. Just take a look for yourself: Amazing! The Harvard and Princeton educated lawyer was interviewed by none other than iconic journalist and talk show host Oprah Winfrey . In a deeply personal and enlightening interview, the two discussed a range of topics including her memoir, overcoming her marriage issues with counseling and how Donald Trump’s birther conspiracies impacted her family. When asked was she scared about sharing so much of her personal life with the public, Mrs. Obama surprisingly replied that she wasn’t. “Actually, no, because here’s the thing that I realized: People always ask me, ‘Why is it that you’re so authentic?’ ‘How is it that people connect to you?” And I think it starts because I like me. I like my story and all the bumps and bruises. That’s what makes me uniquely me.: Adding, “So I’ve always been open with my staff, with young people, with my friends. And the other thing, Oprah: I know that whether we like it or not, Barack and I are role models.” On how she had to learn to love differently to keep her marriage intact: “I had to learn to love differently, I feel vulnerable all the time, and I had to learn how to express that to my husband, to tap into those parts of me that missed him — and the sadness that came from that — so that he could understand. He didn’t understand distance in the same way. You know, he grew up without his mother in his life for most of his years, and he knew his mother loved him dearly, right? I always thought love was up close. Love is the dinner table, love is consistency, it is presence. So I had to share my vulnerability and also learn to love differently. It was an important part of my journey of becoming. Understanding how to become us…I share this because I know that people look to me and Barack as the ideal relationship. I know there’s #RelationshipGoals out there. But whoa, people, slow down — marriage is hard!” On Trump’s dangerous rhetoric about former President Obama: “Because I don’t think he knew what he was doing. For him it was a game. But the threats that you face as the commander in chief are real. And your children are at risk. In order for my children to have a normal life, even though they had security, they were in the world in a way that we weren’t. To think that some crazed person might be ginned up to think my husband was a threat to the country’s security; and to know that my children, every day, had to go to a school, and soccer games, parties, and travel; to think that this person would not take into account that this was not a game—that’s something that I want the country to understand. I want the country to take this in, in a way I didn’t say out loud, but I am saying now. It was reckless, it put my family in danger, and it wasn’t true. And he knew it wasn’t true.” On no longer living in the White House and the simple freedoms that come with that: So here I am in my new home, just me and Bo and Sunny, and I do a simple thing. I go downstairs and open the cabinet in my own kitchen—which you don’t do in the White House because there’s always somebody there going, ‘Let me get that. What do you want? What do you need?’—and I made myself toast. Cheese toast. Then I took my toast and I walked out into my backyard. I sat on the stoop, and there were dogs barking in the distance, and I realized Bo and Sunny had really never heard neighbor dogs. On holding up Barack and combatting the pressures that came with the being the first Black family in the White House: “Trying to be the calm in his swerve. You know, when the leaves are blowing and the wind is rough, being a steady trunk in his life. Family dinners. That was one of the things I brought into the White House—that strict code of, You gotta catch up with us, dude. This is when we’re having dinner. Yes, you’re president, but you can bring your butt from the Oval Office and sit down and talk to your children. Because children bring solace. They let you turn your sights off the issues of the day and focus on saving the tigers. That was one of Malia’s primary goals; she advocated throughout his presidency to make sure the tigers were saved. And hearing about what happened with what school friend. Immersing yourself in the reality and the beauty of your children and your family. Plus, on the East Wing side, our motto was, we have to do everything excellently. If we do something—because the First Lady doesn’t have to do anything.” On the importance of remaining optimistic in these tumultuous times: “Yes. We have to feel that optimism. For the kids. We’re setting the table for them, and we can’t hand them crap. We have to hand them hope. Progress isn’t made through fear. We’re experiencing that right now. Fear is the coward’s way of leadership. But kids are born into this world with a sense of hope and optimism. No matter where they’re from. Or how tough their stories are. They think they can be anything because we tell them that. So we have a responsibility to be optimistic. And to operate in the world in that way.” Just amazing and inspiring! Read the ELLE cover article in its entirety here . RELATED NEWS: Michelle Obama Opens Up About Past Miscarriage And Fertility Issues In New Book Michelle Obama Launches ‘When We All Vote’ Initiative With The Help Of A Few Famous Friends Watch: Mama Tina & Michelle Obama Are “On The Run” In Paris [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”2982135″ overlay=”true”]
Agency: Self Represented Instagram: @ gabriellabernard_ Claim to Fame: The beauty was a contestant in what might be considered the most controversial season ever of Caribbean’s Next Top Model . When Gabriella Bernard started connecting with professional photographers and catching the eye of reality show casting judges she thought all of her childhood dreams were coming true. In an exclusive interview with HelloBeautiful she opened up about what was on the other side of her childhood ambitions. “From a really young age I always wanted to be a model, ” said Bernard. Her aspirations were inspired by an aunt who saw her as a shoo-in. “She said you know you’re so slim and you have long legs and you’re gorgeous , you should be a model.” A toddler at the time Bernard asked, “What’s a model?” It wasn’t until she was watching Wendy Fitzwilliam be crowned Miss Universe that the power of representation would allow her to see herself as someone could take control of the spotlight. “Seeing Wendy Fitzwilliam win Miss Universe as a black woman , as a Black Trinidadian woman it made me believe in myself, that I could get up on a big stage and become a successful model,” she said. More than a decade later after convincing her mother that she could balance her university studies and follow her passion Bernard was fully ready to embrace her fate. However, she was disappointed to find that the experiences she was subjected to weren’t as empowering as the life she had envisioned for herself. Instead of a space where she could exercise her creativity and challenge herself she found the Caribbean modeling world to be a series of unbalanced power dynamics where people unlearned common courtesy as soon as they crossed the threshold of success. Discomfort and disillusionment were practically job requirements and as someone who was determined to speak up for herself Bernard was unqualified. “Sometimes people know that they’re doing the wrong thing and because you are speaking up against it and you are speaking up for yourself they will tell you that you’re being unprofessional you can’t be in this industry if you want to be like that. To me in Trinidad it’s like a power move that they do, that because ‘I’m such and such you need to do what I say’,” she said. Throughout the #MeToo movement women have claimed the label ‘unprofessional’ was lobbied as a threat by offenders. “That happens with photographers and designers ,” She continued. During a shoot with a photographer who touched her inappropriately she was told that she was “ruining” the shoot by shielding herself from his touches and speaking about feeling uncomfortable. “I got my makeup done for two hours and then he put a welders mask on my face and the first thing I said was ‘Why are you putting a welders mask on my face? I just spent two hours doing my makeup, like that doesn’t make any sense.” While this choice seemed strange she remained cooperative even when the photographer refused to acknowledge her questions. Moments later she had to speak up to protect herself. “I was in a bikini and a welders mask and I’m posing and then all of a sudden I feel his hands on my breasts and I jumped and I took off the mask and I’m like ‘What are you doing?’ he’s like ‘No, no you ruined the pose!’ I was like “No, but you’re touching my breast and he was like ‘Yeah but that’s because I’m fixing your top it had a crinkle’ and I was like, ‘Are you crazy?!” She credits her mother with making sure that she had a firm foundation before being placed in such a trying situation. When she wanted to start modeling at 12 her mother pleaded with her to wait out of concern for her personal safety. “She really shielded me from the industry and being in it for some time. I see why because there are perverts and had I been younger I don’t know that I would have been able to handle myself accordingly because these men use some very underhanded tricks to try and get you to sleep with them.” She understands why people don’t report such incidents but she has hope that increased transparency will lead to more women coming forward. “I think that the more that we stand up and speak up about it the more support that other people have because the fear is always ‘I don’t wanna come out and then people don’t believe me’ or ‘I don’t wanna come out and then people bash me’.” She thinks that “by all of us having a voice every single voice adds to our strength.” She was able to stand firm with predatory practices from independent entities but unfortunately, she didn’t feel as empowered on the set of Caribbean’s Next Top Model where Fitzwilliam the woman she had once idolized was now one of many people passing judgment on far more than her appearance. Constantly aware that she was there to be evaluated, and that every interaction on camera and off was apart of the competition, she was forced to try and be agreeable even when she felt like some things happening during filming were unjust. “I did experience colorism and a hint of prejudice and discrimination behind the scenes,” she said. “The first time I spoke up about it we had a whole two hour conversation about it, it was back and forth and I ended up having to apologize to the person because I saw that it wasn’t going anywhere again I was the one in the competition not them,” she continued. In a clip from the show that went viral viewers can see her losing the composure she worked so hard to develop and sobbing when being told that she had to relax her natural hair to remain in the competition. She was then even more shocked with Fitzwilliam berated her for crying because it was unprofessional even though she eventually gave in and taped a scene where she pretended to be happy so that the judges wouldn’t be upset. The producers showed her crying in contrast to other contestants crying about their boyfriends to equate the two things in viewers eyes infuriating Bernard. “I feel like the motive of the entire episode was to humiliate me on reality television.” The identity that producers and judges wanted to challenge by straightening Bernard’s hair was difficult for her to build up after years of denying herself to try and “fit in”. “I told them how important my hair was to me not just for cosmetic reasons but it was self-love reasons too because growing up I had predominantly white friends and I wanted to look white. I wanted to fit in so I would use high flash on my camera and all sorts of weird things just to not have my features . It’s crazy I would put ice on my lips to try and get them smaller just small crazy things that I look back at now and I’m like ugh.” Despite giving in on set she isn’t letting the experience defeat her. In fact she went home inspired to get involved in production and contribute to change in the media landscape. She developing a short film called “ Black Hair ” to encourage others to have their say and not be intimidated by outside voices even if they are in a position of power. She says, “Aside from all that drama because I’m not even trying to focus on that I just want people to know that they shouldn’t be afraid to be who they want to be however that looks. They should be comfortable in their skin if they want to have a weave, they can have a weave, if they want to have their hair natural, they should have their hair natural. You should do whatever you want to do with your body and be comfortable in your skin and live out of fear of being discriminated against and I think that that’s something that we should all work towards.” DON’T MISS: MODEL MONDAY: Lashira Moné Looks Past The Struggle MODEL MONDAY: Iesha Hodges Is A New Kind Of Blonde Bombshell MODEL MONDAY: We Can’t Get Enough Of Yvette Corinne’s Cool California
Source: HotNewHipHop.com / HotNewHipHop.com An expected effect of XXXTentacion ‘s shooting death on Monday (June 18) was certain to be that fans and the curious would turn to his music. As a result, the 20-year-old rapper shattered Taylor Swift ‘s single-day streaming record on Spotify with 10.4 million streams Tuesday (June 19) for the “SAD!” track. Billboard writes : On Tuesday, the day after XXXTentacion was fatally shot at the age of 20, the singer-songwriter’s “SAD!” broke the single-day record for Spotify streams that had been held by Taylor Swift, a source tells Billboard. “SAD!” amassed 10.4 million streams on Spotify June 19, according to Spotifycharts.com; Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” racked up 10.1 million streams on the service the day it was released, August 25, 2017. Helping XXXTentacion’s single break Swift’s record were about 15 million new paying subscribers: Spotify counts more than 75 million subscribers now, up from about 60 million at the end of July 2017. Spotify’s free user base has ballooned as well. Spotify, which initially removed “SAD!” and other tracks from its curated playlists, including Rap Caviar, restored the track and even published a tribe playlist to the rapper. — Photo: HotNewHipHop.com
Summer is here! And if you are like me, I like to wear less makeup in the summer because I don’t like it sweating off (makeup slipping is the worst). Being in the heart of the heat (New Orleans), I met up with pro makeup artist Sheria Williams. Williams’ was confident we could achieve a light look that would have my skin looking flawless and use products that would not slip to sweat and heat. Real talk: this look lasted me from the afternoon all the way through the evening. I was in that NOLA heat, I went dancing…and I only had to apply some more transluscent powder as a touch up around 9PM. Source: Amanda Edwards / Getty A natural, light beat has been trending on the carpets for the past few years now. Yara Shahidi is a big fan of the look, known for a dewy glow and a glossy lip. Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful Follow our steps below and learn how to achieve this look! Start with clean skin. You wouldn’t start painting a picture on a dirty canvas, so why would you do this with your face? I had my oil and moisturizer on from the morning, so Williams’ used Neutrogena Makeup Remover Hydrating Cleansing Towelettes ($5.39, Target.com ) to take off everything from my face. The towelettes have hydrators and soothing cucumber and aloe extracts to help your skin feel extra moisturized. I like it! Foundation and Contour. Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful While I normally use a primer, Williams’ did not. I thought my makeup would slip without this, but surprisingly it didn’t (you’ll find out why at the last step). She did contour my face, even though I have high cheekbones and a defined face. She explained that contouring helps bring depth to your face. She used LA Girl HD Pro Concealer ($2.38, Walmart.com ). This concealer is cheap and a favorite of many. Williams’ purred, “It goes on sooo creamy!” Even Real Housewives Of Atlanta star, Kandi , loves it and keeps it in her bag ! She used MAC Studio Fix SPF 15 Foundation ($30.00, MACcosmetics.com ) for the rest of my face. To me, it wasn’t even the foundation she used but how she applied it. She stippled my face. Stippling is when you pat the foundation on your face instead of rubbing it in. It also allows your foundation to stay pigmented and give you maximum coverage. I’m confident this is what gave it the airbrushed look. Powder. After she applied the foundation, she set it with Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder ($38.00, Sephora.com ). I believe this is the best setting powder on the market and worth the almost $40.00 investment. All of #TeamBeautiful loves this setting powder. In the Summer, I also love Too Faced Peach Perfect Mattifying Setting Powder ($32.00, Sephora.com ). Don’t be detered by the light color, it blends well into all skin tones. I like this setting powder because it has an extra oomph in preventing shine. Brows. Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful She gave me a natural brow (because, summer) and used Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz Pencil ($21.00, Ulta.com ). Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful The major key to natural brows is first brushing your brow hairs up (pictured above), then following your natural brow line and using short strokes to emulate hair. How to do your brows are an entire tutorial on their own, and we have one for you here . Eyes. Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful For my eyes, she used Milani Waterproof Liner Pencil ($6.97, Walmart.com ). You can use your favorite natural eyeshadow palette for a look. Try Maybelline The Nudes ($8.09, Target.com ) that has beautiful browns, golds, and nudes suitable for every Black woman. Add some lashes for oomph! Williams’ used Salon Perfect Be Natural Multi Pack Lashes ($8.44, Walmart.com ). For under $9.00, this gives you five sets of lashes in the pack. What a deal! You can also try Ardell Natural Lash – Black 110 ($4.99, Ulta.com ). Lips. Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful For my lips she lined my lips with MAC Cosmetics Lip Liner in Cork ($18.00, MACcosmetics.com ). This is a great shade for brown girls, you can also try Chestnut , if you are darker or want a bit more of an intense brown. For my lipstick, she used Milani Amore Matte Lip Cream in Adorable ($7.97, Walmart.com ). Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful Beauties, tag @HelloBeautiful or your Style and Beauty Editor (me!) @TheIslanDiva if you try out this look. I want to see it on you! Source: Danielle James / Hello Beautiful See more of Sheria Williams’ makeup looks or to book an appointment in NOLA (heyyy, Essence Festival is right around the corner), here . You can find her company RI-Make Faces Artistry, here . DON’T MISS: LET’S MAKEUP: How To Achieve A Natural Brow Just In Time For Summer LET’S MAKEUP: Naturi Naughton’s Shares Her Must-Haves And Launches New Lip Line LET’S MAKEUP: Here Are The Beauty Products You Need For Dewy Skin Like Chloe x Halle [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”3002466″ overlay=”true”]
Ciara and her husband, Russell Wilson had a date night while in London. The singer posted a photo on Instagram of the pair stepping out looking fresh. Both Mr. and Mrs. Wilson looked fresh in their date night ‘fits rocking Tom Ford . Ciara stood out in an all pink ensemble that popped beautifully against her melanin and gave us some serious 70’s glam. Source: Victor VIRGILE / Getty Her hot pink blazer was modeled by Joan Smalls on the runway. So fire! Source: Victor VIRGILE / Getty The whole ensemble Ciara wore was modeled as she sat front row for Tom Ford’s Spring/Summer 2018. Source: David M. Benett / Getty She sported a dramatic brow, a golden eye, and capped it off with a nude lipstick. However, it was her new hairdo that was the star of the show. Ciara, known for sleek hair or beachy waves, gave us a mid-length black curly look with bangs. A new hairstyle can make one feel like a brand new person and Ciara is working it! Beauties, we have to know: are you loving her look? Take our poll below and sound off in the comment section. Take Our Poll DON’T MISS: GET THE LOOK: Ciara’s Date Night Look With Russell Wilson Is Really Affordable Ciara Clarifies Her Past #LevelUp Comments: “Act Like A Queen To Be Treated Like A Queen “ #BlackLove: Russell Wilson Shuts Down A Museum For Special Date Night With Ciara [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”2965051″ overlay=”true”]
Source: Planet Observer / Getty Hurricane season officially began June 1 and will be here to stay until Nov. 30. As we descend into a super-hot summer, we have so far experienced some super heavy downpours, but can Atlanta get hit by a hurricane ? According to GEMA the answer is yes. The Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico pose as a natural threat to Georgia during these months, as they provide the prime conditions for hurricanes to develop. When warm moist air rises cold low-pressure systems begin to develop underneath. This causes the high-pressure air systems surrounding the original system to be drawn in as and rise up to the surface. Eventually things begin to swirl about and boom you have the perfect storm. Warm waters along the equator make ideal conditions for hurricanes to develop. Related: How Many Streets In Atlanta Are Named Peachtree? There is no doubt the United States’ coastline is completely prone to being hit by hurricanes, and even though the city of Atlanta is landlocked the state of Georgia is not. Most of the time hurricanes tend to hit areas like Miami and New Orleans often leaving a line of destruction behind them, but on the contrary Atlanta has experienced hurricanes before. In 1995 Hurricane Opal hit Atlanta early October leaving thousands of people powerless for days. Fallen trees and powerlines covered the city as it remained closed for clean-up leaving businesses shut down. Source: Marilyn Nieves / Getty However, we haven’t necessarily had a hurricane hit us directly like Hurricane Opal , we have certainly felt the effects of hurricanes recently. When Hurricane Nate made landfall, the entire region experienced nothing but rain and strong winds for the next following days which of course caused down powerlines which meant power outages. Hurricane Irma’s effects left a similar mark with some power outages lasting so long local school systems modified their school calendar to make up for the missed day. Predicting hurricanes is not a simple task, but in Atlanta’s outlook hurricanes may not be such a direct threat for us, but we should never let our guard down when tracking these intense storms. Mother Nature is always in control and we never truly know when that perfect storm is going to be headed our way, so stay alert this hurricane season and don’t get caught in the rain! Words by: Sydnee Evans
Source: Planet Observer / Getty Hurricane season officially began June 1 and will be here to stay until Nov. 30. As we descend into a super-hot summer, we have so far experienced some super heavy downpours, but can Atlanta get hit by a hurricane ? According to GEMA the answer is yes. The Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico pose as a natural threat to Georgia during these months, as they provide the prime conditions for hurricanes to develop. When warm moist air rises cold low-pressure systems begin to develop underneath. This causes the high-pressure air systems surrounding the original system to be drawn in as and rise up to the surface. Eventually things begin to swirl about and boom you have the perfect storm. Warm waters along the equator make ideal conditions for hurricanes to develop. Related: How Many Streets In Atlanta Are Named Peachtree? There is no doubt the United States’ coastline is completely prone to being hit by hurricanes, and even though the city of Atlanta is landlocked the state of Georgia is not. Most of the time hurricanes tend to hit areas like Miami and New Orleans often leaving a line of destruction behind them, but on the contrary Atlanta has experienced hurricanes before. In 1995 Hurricane Opal hit Atlanta early October leaving thousands of people powerless for days. Fallen trees and powerlines covered the city as it remained closed for clean-up leaving businesses shut down. Source: Marilyn Nieves / Getty However, we haven’t necessarily had a hurricane hit us directly like Hurricane Opal , we have certainly felt the effects of hurricanes recently. When Hurricane Nate made landfall, the entire region experienced nothing but rain and strong winds for the next following days which of course caused down powerlines which meant power outages. Hurricane Irma’s effects left a similar mark with some power outages lasting so long local school systems modified their school calendar to make up for the missed day. Predicting hurricanes is not a simple task, but in Atlanta’s outlook hurricanes may not be such a direct threat for us, but we should never let our guard down when tracking these intense storms. Mother Nature is always in control and we never truly know when that perfect storm is going to be headed our way, so stay alert this hurricane season and don’t get caught in the rain! Words by: Sydnee Evans
Microblading one’s eyebrows have become the perfect solution to not having to fill in your brows every day. Uneven brows? Microblading to the rescue! So what happens when you are a Black or Brown girl that wasn’t blessed with freckles but want to change your look? Yes, you guessed it, you can microblade freckles too! Bi-racial beauty, Meghan Markle is known for her freckles and apparently has led to beauties of all races to consider this semi-permanent trend. While, to our knoweldge, the Duchess’ freckles are 100% real…there are women paying to get them tattooed on their face. Source: Andrew Toth / Getty This treatment costs on average about $200 and results can last up to three years and even longer on your nose with no touch up (because the lack of fat in the area). They can take up to four months to completely heal. When you first get them done, they might look like they resemble blackheads (like the video above). However, they will lighten and fade. I didn't put on foundation or concealer so you can see my micro baby freckles. Probably not in the lighting tho pic.twitter.com/i9RA7BnPKC — Birthday Mami D.D.S. (@LOUD_besos) January 27, 2016 The internet was in a buzz about women tattooing freckles on their faces. Many judging the practice, while some Black women admitted to getting theirs done and it turning out fine. ppl is really doing anything! y’all paying for micro freckles?! Love y’all self wtf. Paying for all these unnatural alterations I just don’t get it — tierra navia (@tierranavia) June 11, 2018 People are really getting micro freckles to look like real life filters? Insecurities are running rampant I see. — Ms.Lovely (@AyeeMsLovely) June 11, 2018 If you getting micro freckles keep away from me clearly you hear the devils voice — The Audacity’s Nerve (@DapaDon) June 11, 2018 Everybody tagging me in the post on baller alert saying it’s my fault I did not put micro freckles on this girl I just reposted it…..I’ve been through this she’ll be ok. — PARI$ HEELTON (@ImTheBombDotCom) June 11, 2018 Personally, I would never do this; however, what I have done before is fantasy freckles . Their a fun (and colorful!) way to get a freckled look…without the permanancy. Aspiring YouTuber, Makayla , showed us how she did fake freckles for a realistic (and much less permanent) look. So even if you aren’t into the permanency, you can still get this trend. Beauties, we have to know. While some of our favorite Black women, including Sade and Nia Long both have natural freckles…would you be willing to get your face tattooed to get the look? Take our poll below and sound off in our comment section! Take Our Poll DON’T MISS: GET THE LOOK: Will You Be Trying Fantasy Freckles? LET’S MAKEUP: Pat McGrath Launches A Collection With The MET FAB FINDS: 15 Black Beauty Influencers And Makeup Lovers At Beautycon Share Their ‘Must Have’ Beauty Products [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”3002444″ overlay=”true”]
