Consider the look of forgotten legend Nina Mae McKinney, who was known as the Black Garbo back in the 1930’s. Flawless. Timeless. Click here to read my Black Voices homage to her.

And behold, my forever inspiration, Josephine Baker. Drink in the stunning photo I found on the amazing Flickr site Discover Black Heritage. To me, Josephine is the definition of gorgeous. I wrote about her for Vogue Black this week, and they’ve posted some amazing photos of her to accompany the article. Click here for that.

If Nina Mae McKinney had any one beauty trademark, it’d be a flawlessly manicured brow. I just got mine whipped into perfect shape at the B Bella Salon. It was one of those perfect walk-in afternoons, and Rosa threaded and waxed my brows into amazing shape! Two thumbs up for B Bella!

Lately I’ve been using MAC’s Brow Set gel to keep the brow situation under control. I hate an over manicured, over darkened, thin, harsh looking brow. That’s how they did it back in the day, but in my opinion, it doesn’t work in today’s day and age. Brow Set in Beguile perfectly matches the color of my eyebrows, and gives me definition without making my brows cartoonishly dark.

When I want a really defined cat’s eye for everyday, I love a bold, strong eyeliner. Right now Avon’s Glimmersticks Eye Liner is giving me everything I need. Rich pigment that doesn’t smudge, lasts for hours AND it’s on sale, so it’s less than $4! Score!

You can’t do Twenties glam without a delicious, dark lip. Right now I’m practically obsessed with Bobbi Brown’s Pot Rouge in chocolate cherry — it’s a deep red brown that manages to not be too bricky. And I just got my hands on Three Custom’s uber hot new Noir Sheer lipstick, and it’s just as gorgeous as I expected. This lippie looks black when you open it, but when you slick it on, it’s more of a deep burgundy plum that is sheer but buildable. It looks super pretty on, regardless of your skin tone — I’m here to testify that this lipstick is glorious on brown girls, but Twenties glam doesn’t have to end with us! According to Gouldylox, Noir looks equally pretty on pale Irish lasses, just so you know.

Twenties glam also calls for uber long lashes – so look out for a lashtastic post next week!

Got any makeup recommendations for Twenties glam, my bellas? Share with me!

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Every year I like to celebrate by hosting a giveaway. This year I’m a day late, but I’m truly psyched about this one. Bellas – allow me to introduce you to Fairwinds, a unique jewelry collection by Rachel Roy. The collection is a collaboration between Rachel and Fairwinds Trading. Every item has been hand-crafted in Africa by a female-owned business.

This clutch was made in Tanzania, using local fabrics.

These gorgeous earrings were made in Rwanda, featuring beads made in a paper layering process.

This bracelet is made from shredded woven paper, using traditional Rwandan techniques.

Right now, Rachel Roy’s Fairwinds collaboration is available at rachelroy.com and select Macy’s stores and macys.com, and the collection compliments Macy’s Rwanda Path to Peace collection of amazing baskets — which is also made by Fairwinds Trading!

I reached out to Rachel to learn more about the collaboration.

Afrobella – What inspired you to collaborate with Fairwinds? Was this a kind of collaboration you’d dreamed of for a while?

Rachel Roy: One of my goals has always been to help women achieve better lives through financial freedom and independence – that, to me, is about creating job opportunities. Partnering with Fairwinds was a natural choice and to be able to provide and sustain jobs in Africa is essential – the work that Fairwinds does is inspiring and it was a natural partnership.

Afrobella: So far there are three beautiful items from this collaboration – what’s next in store?

Rachel Roy: We will continue to offer seasonal items integrated into all product categories: Sportswear, Jewelry, Shoes and Handbags. Materials used will include handcrafted beads made from varnished paper and woven materials from recycled fabrics and cloth indigenous to different regions in Africa.

Afrobella: What are your hopes for the women of Fairwinds, and for this fashionable collaboration?

Rachel Roy: My hope is that this collaboration and my work with the organization will not only support these women and their families but raise awareness for women in Africa as well as the larger issues – nutrition, education and health care.

I’m delighted and honored to offer an exclusive giveaway of Rachel Roy’s complete Fairwinds collection — clutch, earrings, and bracelet!

All you have to do is leave a comment and let me know — which is your favorite Fairwinds item, and how do you plan to rock it? — comments will be open until March 12!

Good luck!

Oh and click here to join my Facebook fan page. And are you on Twitter? Click here to follow me!

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“When we look at you, we see a true American Cinderella, on the threshold of a brilliant new career. Precious is but the first of many adjectives coming your way. And they are all great. Congratulations, Gabby Sidibe.”

Even though Gabourey Sidibe didn’t win Best Actress tonight at the Oscars, I am sure she was thrilled to bits just because of what Oprah said. What an incredible moment.

And I didn’t see The Blind Side — so I’m unwilling to cast judgment on a film I haven’t yet seen. But I thought Sandra Bullock’s speech was everything an Oscar speech should be. Gracious, funny, touching, respectful, memorable. Well said, Sandy.

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This was an epic Oscar night for black actresses, and an epic Oscar night for plus size women. Before the ceremony much ado was made of Gabourey Sidibe’s Oscar dress possibilities — blisteringly and brilliantly covered by Erica Kennedy, author of the funny, fierce Feminista and Bling: A Novel. The phenomenal Kate Harding outlined Gabby’s red carpet history and her prospects. And tonight she came through in blue Marchesa festooned with diamond-like appliques.

I didn’t love the dress, but I think Gabby was resplendent and her MAKEUP was to DIE for. Whoever did the makeup, holla at a bella because I want the deetz!

Mo’ Nique also looked resplendent in blue. She wore blue as an homage to Hattie McDaniel — to read a beautiful tribute to Oscar’s first African American winner, read Rita Dove’s poem, via 55 Secret Street. And when she won, the tribute she gave to Hattie McDaniel was truly stirring. Mo’Nique had her face as beautifully beat as evah, and she rocked the hell out of that ruched dress.

The one-shoulder trend was big (I’m not a fan, IDK #shrug). Mariah worked it.

As did Queen Latifah — and I liked the blinged out baby pink look – Queen is always so regal. She just makes me smile whenever I see her on the red carpet!

Anika Noni Rose looked adorable and fresh faced as always, something about her personality just seems so approachable and endearing to me! She looked super pretty and worked the night’s other trend — strapless, with a lush, full skirt.

I MUST say, Zoe Saldana may have worn my second most favorite dress of the night. I am a fool for purple and that dress absolutely took my breath away when she came down the stairs during the ceremony. Look how excited she is to be wearing it!

For Oscar night, I love a little over the top drama. Which is why I loved Nicole Richie’s dress.

She looked fierce. Sleek. A little severe. Very Hollywood. Gorgeous!

But my FAVORITE dress of the night was worn by Rachel McAdams. Look at her. She knows she looks amazing. Beyond gorgeous!!

Who wore your favorite Oscar look of the night?

** all photos from Oh No They Didn’t

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Yes, I was BIG into cassettes. I’ve still got quite a collection.

Anyway, at this particular kiosk I got everything I wanted. All of the music I saw on cable TV and in my Sassy magazines, the music they totally weren’t playing on the radio in Trinidad. I bought albums by Green Day and Bjork and Soundgarden. And I got every Nirvana album from Bleach to Unplugged, all on cassette. I practically burned a hole in those tapes, rewinding songs just to hear Kurt Cobain’s yowl, so filled with pain and emotion.

I remember his death very clearly, even though I was somewhere hot and bright, so far away from bleak Seattle. I was at my friend Carys’ house. My brother called, because he’d seen it on the news and he knew about the posters on my wall and my tape collection. I cried for Kurt, and I wanted so much to be in a place where fellow Nirvana fans were sharing their grief.

That was in 1994. Today, February 20, would have been Kurt Cobain’s 43rd birthday. To give tribute to him, I present my top 5 favorite Nirvana songs.

5 — In Bloom.

This was one of Nirvana’s most amusing videos, and gave a glimpse to a side of the band that was less angry and tormented. Dave Grohl hamming it up in costume was just a foreshadowing of Foo Fighters videos to come. And the song is everything I love about the band — biting lyrics, rock n roll attitude, unexpected harmonies, and great songwriting.

4 — Dumb.

If you’re allergic to hard rock, yowling vocals and screeching guitars, you’ll probably love Nirvana’s Unplugged album. In my opinion it is hands down the greatest Unplugged album out there. The band took the opportunity to intersperse their original songs with some truly inspired covers. It’s a must have for any music collection. Click here to treat yourself. This is one of my favorites, stripped down to beautiful effect. “I’m not like them, but I can pretend…”

3 — Lithium.

Behind Smells Like Teen Spirit, this is one of those quintessentially popular Nirvana mosh pit type of songs. Their traditional quiet-loud song structure is in full effect, and the lyrics are classic Nirvana. Dark and introspective and troubled.

2 — Love Buzz.

My first Nirvana album was Nevermind, and then I absolutely had to get everything they’d made. First I got Incesticide, then I got Bleach. Early Nirvana was so primal and quirky, less despondent than some of the later material on In Utero. Love Buzz rocks. Point blank, period.

1 — About a Girl.

One of their earliest songs — originally released on Bleach — stripped down and made acoustic on what would turn out to be the band’s final album. If you remember MTV in the Nineties, this song may be as engraved on your mind as it is mine.

RIP, Kurt Cobain, and happy birthday. You left this world too soon.

Were you a Nirvana fan? What are your favorites?

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This week it was confirmed that Alexander McQueen took his own life. He left behind a note, the contents of which are yet to be revealed. It’s hard to imagine the kind of psychic pain he must have been in, the kind of heartbreak he must have been feeling, to decide to end a life so full, so fabulous, so inspiring to so many.

Celebrities have given their condolences through interviews and through Twitter. Naomi and Kate paid tribute in his dresses. Lady Gaga dedicated a performance to her fashion mentor, at the Brit Awards.

The fashion world is still reeling. His passing came at the onset of New York Fashion Week, and led to a scrambled cancellation of his McQ presentation. London’s Fashion Week just kicked off, and a memorial wall to McQueen is proving to be a sort of mecca for fashionistas there. Right now it seems like everyone wants to leave a note or a flower outside his store. Everyone wants a McQueen item in their wardrobe.

The business world waits for no one, and offers no grace period for grief. Gucci will continue Alexander McQueen’s label, the tributes will continue for a while, and inevitably scandalous speculation and criticism will begin (see Toby Young’s piece for example).

And the fashion world keeps turning. It’ll remain to be seen if his fashion line will retain or increase its success in his wake. It’s hard to imagine the landscape of contemporary fashion without him.

RIP, Alexander McQueen. You will be missed, you will be celebrated, you will never be forgotten.

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All the news channels were reporting on, had to do with the upcoming Tiger Woods press conference — you can read the highlights here. And now that it’s over, all the news channels are reporting on STILL has to do with the Tiger Woods press conference. Literally, right now CNN Headline News is replaying the whole statement in its entirety.

I am SO OVER THIS NON-STORY. And I really really want to know why, and when this became stop-the-press news.

I am a news junkie. I love knowing what’s happening, as it happens. But somewhere along the line, celebrity updates became part of the news. It is endlessly frustrating to me that Sarah Palin’s every pop-culture related Facebook rant, Heidi Montag’s every plastic surgery revelation and Tiger Woods’ descent into a downward spiral of sex and shame has become headline news that is more reported on than the two wars we’re currently in. I’m mad that stories about trivial things become the headlines, while stories like this go largely unreported.

Rant over. Off soapbox.

What do you think?

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From Jezebel: “What does “Young Hollywood” look like? According to Vanity Fair, it’s pretty, thin, female and white.”

From USA Today: “Where are any women of color? Gabourey Sidibe, for example, who just got an Oscar nomination for Precious? Or Freida Pinto from Slumdog Millionaire?”

From Dr. Boyce Watkins at News One: “The recent Vanity Fair cover reminds us that the minds of Hollywood haven’t changed all that much. There is still an image of the hero and superstar, a person with virtues that are pure, honest and brave. That person is usually white.”

My take: what did we expect from Vanity Fair and Graydon Carter? (On a purely superficial note, I must admit an ongoing amusement/fascination with the name Graydon. Graydon could either be an elderly taxi driver from Tobago, or be Mr. Burns’ secret middle name. I digress).

My memory is young, so please correct me if I’m wrong…but isn’t Vanity Fair kind of known for being out of touch, and frequently exclusionist? Didn’t they just post that telling cover photo of Tiger Woods? Does this magazine not thrive on bouts of controversial, usually photography-inspired chatter? Isn’t this kind of thing to be expected?

Nothing about this Vanity Fair hubbub is surprising, or new to me. And I do believe, by being mad, we’re giving Graydon and company exactly what they want — controversy, which they hope will manifest itself as newsstand sales.

And sadly, I wasn’t surprised by the reaction I’ve been noticing around the web. When author Joanna Douglas covered the Vanity Fair topic on Yahoo blog Shine, she got more than 18,000 comments. Sprinkled among those were death threats. And many, MANY of those comments expressed outrage that anyone would question the lack of diversity of VF’s photo shoot. The typical commenter seemed to be angry that magazines like Ebony and Essence, and channels like BET can feature all-black celebrities with no protest, but Vanity Fair can’t. Many commenters also seemed to think the Fair of Vanity Fair meant they were a magazine meant for Caucasian readers. And people are on there saying things like “seriously, this diversity crap is getting really annoying!”

Almost all of the commenters never considered why a magazine like Ebony or Essence may have come to be — to highlight and feature beautiful, talented women of color. The kind of women who have so often been excluded from magazines…like Vanity Fair.

These are the kind of people that come out of the woodwork on Black Voices and Black Atlas and leave thousands of hideous comments. They Google articles and websites that are dedicated to black readers, and they make them the target of online ire. They are incensed with rage that there are websites and magazines and television channels for black people, that exclude white people. And when the pot gets stirred, they will leave the nastiest, most incendiary comments you can imagine.

Kate Harding did a marvelous post on this at Salon where she underlined the obvious. “Not thinking about realistic representation is incredibly easy for white people to do — and I absolutely include myself in that — but you know what helps? People pointing it out. People saying, hey, in America in 2010, putting nine white people on a cover meant to represent the future of our film industry is backward and unreasonable. You don’t even need to go as far as “offensive,” a word that sends some people into such a “Gah, the p.c. police are after me!” tailspin, it’s hardly worth saying even when it’s true. In this case, we can just go with “illogical” or “nonsensical” or “utterly divorced from reality.” Like, what planet are you living on, where white people are the only ones worth mentioning?”

Well, we’re unfortunately sharing the same planet that those Yahoo commenters live on. These are the same people who perpetuate lies about the President — the same people Keith Olbermann spoke about in his amazing President’s Day special comment. These folks are quick to speak out about black progress, and how angry it makes them. They feel the earth shifting under their feet and it frightens them. And right now Vanity Fair is their pick for print publication of the year — despite the fact that Vanity Fair doesn’t speak to their demographic either.

I have yet to read a response from Vanity Fair itself, but finally folks in the media have started asking the girls who have been suggested for the cover, how they feel about being excluded.

Zoe Saldana, who was featured on the inside cover of
VF’s 2008 Hollywood issue spoke eloquently to NBC on the subject.

Just last night on Access Hollywood, Shaun Robinson interviewed Gabby Sidibe about all of this. And she was awesomely flip about it.

“At first I thought…hmmm, shouldn’t I be there? And then I very quickly got over it. I think if I were a part of that I would have felt a little left out anyway. Whether I should have been there or not doesn’t matter because I wasn’t on it. And I’m excited to be mentioned anywhere, and it doesn’t matter to me where I’m not mentioned.”

Shaun continued: “Do you realize that you’re such a role model for young girls who don’t see themselves on the cover of the magazines?”

“And I’ve been there, I’ve been in class with the other girls, and the teacher would say oh – to another little girl — oh, you can be a model, and you can be an actress… and Gabby, thank God you’re so smart. And it’s like, really?? It’s hard to grow up and not see images that remind you of yourself.”

Meanwhile, Gabby Sidibe is nominated for an Oscar. Zoe Saldana starred in one of the biggest Hollywood releases in history. And Vanity Fair is gonna keep on being Vanity Fair until the wheels fall off. I won’t be buying it, and I know many other who feel the same way. I’m pretty sure most of those 18,000 commenters on Yahoo won’t be subscribing to VF, either. Will any of these articles and blog posts and angry comments change anything? Probably not. And that’s unfortunate.

This is the kind of post that doesn’t have a conclusion, per se. So I ask — what are your thoughts, bellas?

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On days when it gets to me, I tend to do as my mom suggests and shroud myself in prayer, or to reread the Desiderata — the poem that basically outlines the way I try to live my life. Or — as I told fellow blogger Game Well and Truly Over for his 2010 Music Project — I listen to a song that makes me feel protected.

Yesterday I found solace in the poetry of Maya Angelou. And this is probably a poem we’ve all read before, but it helped me out in a time of trouble this week. So I hope it does the same for you.

Still I Rise

I rise.

I had the privilege of seeing Maya Angelou speak and perform her work once, when she came to the University of Miami. What an aura she has. Such poise, such presence. I can only admire and aspire to be like that someday. Her words already speak volumes, but when you hear her perform her poetry, it resonates with even deeper meaning.

That particular poem speaks to my soul right now. And maybe it speaks to an experience you’re going through, too. For those who would wish you ill, shrug off their negative vibes and ill wishes. And know that in the path ahead you’re going to encounter slings, arrows, and snakes in the grass. And still, despite all of that, we’ll rise.

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I interviewed Measha back in 2007 when she was touring with the Cleveland Orchestra. It was such a pleasure to see her on NBC, singing before an audience of 3.2 BILLION people!!

In case you missed her performance, click here to see the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics, and to hear Measha’s Olympic hymn. Her hair, her makeup, her dress — all looked AMAZING. Click here to visit her official website, and click here to read my interview from 2007!

Measha, you continue to make Afrobellas everywhere very proud! Keep shining!

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