Leandra Medine's Blog, page 98

You Look Moist: The Secrets of a Trader Joe’s Beauty Aisle Addict

Welcome to You Look Moist, a regular column wherein Man Repeller asks cool people with glowing visages how they achieved their supreme hydration (amongst other things). Today’s installment features Siraad Dirshe, Social Content Manager at Flamingo.

How would you describe your skin?

I would say my skin is pretty great—actually really great! At the moment, I’ve reached optimal dewiness, it’s clear, and my complexion is the deep brown just-got-back-from vacation-shade I love. That being said, I do put quite a bit of effort into my skin and have since I was about 16 (I was a super early adopter of sunscreen and retinol).

It’s easy to disconnect your skin from your overall health, but skin is our body’s largest organ. That’s why my skincare routine includes being conscious of what I eat, working up a good sweat a few times a week, swimming in the ocean weekly, and drinking at least a gallon of water a day. Oh, and I sleep a ton—anywhere from seven to 10 hours a night. I used to be obsessed with trying the latest products (and still am) but have switched my skincare routine to be more focused on total body care.

How would you describe your skincare approach in general?

I am proudly high-maintenance when it comes to my skincare routine! While I’ve pared down quite a bit (I used to be a beauty editor and it was literally my job to test products), I still do at least 5-6 steps in the AM and PM, and then do masks several times a week. But I’m also very aware of all the things that impact how my skin looks and feels that I can’t buy in a bottle. At the end of the day, I really believe those are what will have a longer impact on my skin; the products are just nice, fun add-ons.

Which skincare products are integral to your routine for achieving your ideal, glowing, well-moisturized complexion, and how/when do you use each of them?

This is a really hard one because I love so many products, but because my skin is currently in a really great place, my must-have products are the ones I’ve been using for the past two months or so. Here they are in order of application…

1. Then I Met You oil cleanser (it’s a part of this set: I’ll use this mainly at night to take away the day’s dirt and grime, but if I work out in the morning I’ll also start with this product. Not only is it the happiest-looking beauty product I own, but the texture also helps remove anything that’s on your face.

2. Ko Gen Do Cleansing Spa Water: Ko Gen Do is one of my favorite makeup brands! It’s Japanese and everything they make is great. They don’t have many skincare products, but this cleansing water is a favorite. I love that it has a pump top so I can easily use a cotton round to cleanse my face after the oil cleanser.

3. Dior Capture Youth Water: This is essentially a toner. I pour the smallest amount into the palm of my left hand (it’s expensive and I gotta conserve it!), then gently press it into my skin.

4. Hyper Clear Brightening Vitamin C Serum: A good friend of mine, Desiree Verdejo, is launching a skincare brand next month. She gave me a sample of the vitamin C product to test, and oh my goodness has it completely changed my skin. I apply it while my skin is still damp from the youth water. I literally just texted her to tell her that I’m on my last drop and trying to make it last until the product launches.

5. Trader Joe’s Vitamin E Oil: I’ve been a huge fan of Trader Joe’s beauty aisle for years but have only used the vitamin E oil on my body. However a few months ago I started using it on my face and feel like I’m GLOWING. A few drops go a really long way and give me the perfect, dewy, slick look I love. The best part is that it’s literally $4 and lasts for so long. Hands down a favorite!

6. Morning only: Supergoop Unseen Sunscreen: I always use sunscreen during the day–no matter the season. Not only do I want to make sure I’m protecting the huge investment I make with my skincare routine, but using things like vitamin C and chemical exfoliants can also make skin photosensitive, so it’s extremely important to protect it.

7. Evening only: Hanahana Shea Butter: Most nights I’ll stop after the vitamin E oil, but if I’m feeling a bit dry I’ll slather on a small amount of shea butter. My friend Abena has an amazing line that gives the prettiest sheen and makes me look super moist.

Honorable mentions:

1. LANEIGE Lip Sleeping Mask: I apply this like my life depends on it. While it’s called a sleep mask, I use it at any and all points of the day.

2. Drunk Elephant Baby Facial: Literally a game-changing product. It’s super intense but I’m also a freak who likes my skincare products to sometimes burn a bit (don’t judge me!). I use this 1-2 times per week in the evening so I can wake up looking very glowy.

See All 8

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new week, same me.

What It’s Like to Live Without Mirrors

On the day I was set to begin my no-mirror challenge, I spent the morning appraising myself in my mirrored wardrobe. It was a humid Friday morning and I picked a sheer floral dress I hadn’t worn in years. It looked good, kind of retro, and I left the house buoyed by the universal appeal of feeling stylish. When I got to work, I took a selfie in the office mirror and put it on the internet. This is what I might call a rough start.

I finally remembered to cover my mirrors around 6 p.m., when I saw the day-old reminder on my phone with a gulp. The impetus of the directive was research. I hoped that abstaining from my own reflection for a week would help me understand a group of people I’ve always been captivated by: the mirrorless. The Mirrorless (name mine) are a group of individuals who have only one mirror in their home—usually the small one above their bathroom sink. Whether by choice or by accident, their choice represents something rare and interesting to me: the refusal to revel in their own image.

Consider Lydia, 35: “For me, there is no need for a mirror as I know exactly which clothes I can combine and therefore I don’t need to check if it looks good,” she says. “Also, my gut tells me exactly if I don’t feel like a certain outfit. A mirror wouldn’t help or add anything to my life.”

I do not understand Lydia, but want to.

Part 1: The Disorientation

The first challenge of living without mirrors was figuring out how to cover mine. My aforementioned wardrobe spans the entire length of my and my boyfriend’s small bedroom (we needed storage); we chose the mirrored doors “to open up the space,” a design that’s proven effective with the unforeseen consequence of forcing us to gaze at ourselves constantly. We covered these with two white fitted sheets, which did not open up the space. Our two other mirrors were also put to bed: with a blanket and pillowcase respectively. And then our home was officially asleep: no way to escape into our own dumb eyes.

The evening that followed was disorienting, as all glances at myself (while undressing for the shower, while changing into PJs, while performing my skincare routine) proved fruitless. I was nowhere to be found. I didn’t know whether my face looked puffy or my bangs looked greasy and, humblingly, it did not matter.

When I reached out to The Mirrorless population (via Instagram), many acknowledged feeling free from these small but persistent opportunities for self-assessment:

Liz, 23: “Without being confronted very often by my own reflection… I think about it less. I wouldn’t say I care less because of it, but my appearance face-wise isn’t at the front of my mind.”

Emily, 27: “I think getting some space between me and the image of my body constantly reflecting back at me has helped me move toward recovery [from body image struggles]. Plus, you can’t trust a mirror—they are often distorting.”

Healy, 23: “It has made me a much less looks-focused person…. Also, as someone who struggled with cystic acne for 10+ years, I feel like it has been groundbreaking in taking the focus off my face and a lesson in just letting things be as they will.”

After night one, I saw how this could be true. I went to bed in what felt like a shabby fitted-sheet-artist’s closet, nary a thought of my bangs.

Part 2: Blind Confidence

The next day, not having a mirror proved potentially punitive. Was my hair sticking up like Alfalfa à la Little Rascals? Was there breakfast in my teeth? I decided to institute a rule that I could use my phone for infrequent face/hair checks lest I embarrass myself.

This did not prove helpful for getting dressed though, for I quickly learned that, contrary to Lydia, 35, I do not know how all my clothes look on me; in fact, I get dressed every morning as if I’ve never seen any of them in my life. How could this be the case? Has my mirror become a cheat code, keeping me from gleaning an intimate and tactile understanding of my wardrobe?

My first blind outfit entailed jean shorts, a T-shirt, and Birkenstocks. I wasn’t positive I was achieving the proportions I imagined (yes, I imagined proportions for an outfit most people paint in), but without objective confirmation, I had to assume I was, which was kind of nice. But it did come at the potential cost of misjudgement, which begged the question: Which was worse—facing self-criticism at home or later, accidentally, in a shop window? Or is that a false binary that assumes self-criticism is constant?

Getting dressed is a divisive topic among The Mirrorless:

Vicky, 28: “I suffered from outfit [indecision] for so long and it always made me late to everything…. Now I just plan an outfit I’m excited about in my head and confidently head out…. It’s helped my confidence and outfit-making abilities!”

Maria, 22 (ex-mirrorless): “I didn’t really like [not having a full-length mirror]. It’s not practical. I like to experiment with clothes and so not having a mirror hindered my creativity.”

Brittany, 26: “I like fashion, but used to get obsessed with how it fit my frame. I would deliberate endlessly with body dysmorphia, the devilish voice in my ear. Now I design and sew my own clothes and, although it’s hard to design fit without a full-length, it has forced me to think about comfort before fit.”

Amandine, 25: “When I can’t verify how I look, I am forced to imagine it looks good.”

Maisie, 21: “The strangest result of not having a mirror is that I don’t know what I look like during my day…. [It’s] led me to wear some very bad clothes and I always get a shock when confronted with myself in a public place… It has been an interesting two years at a more or less complete remove from myself visually, but I wouldn’t want to do it again.”

Emma, 26 (ex-mirrorless): “That period of not having a full-length mirror did a huge amount for both my body confidence and style because I wasn’t staring at myself picking everything about my body and outfit apart.”

On another occasion, when I was heading to dinner (in white pants, a white t-shirt, and black sandals), I, again, wasn’t sure how I looked, and realized that through this experience I was forfeiting two potential emotions: the disappointment of not connecting with my appearance or the pride of the opposite. I wondered, not rhetorically, if that felt like a win or a loss.

Later, I noticed I’d stopped trying to catch glances of myself around the house. I folded laundry and didn’t notice my wardrobe was covered. I tidied the bathroom without trying to sneak peeks at my pores. One evening I realized I hadn’t considered what I looked like all day and noted, neutrally, how unusual that was.

Part 3: The Final Word

On the last day of the challenge, things took a sour turn. I was in the mood to experiment with my clothes and didn’t feel I could do so without mirrors. In the end, I chose something that bored me. At this point, I was unsure whether the upsides of forgoing mirrors had been worth the costs.

One thing that unites The Mirrorless is their belief in the power of courting—or rather, not courting—your own image:

Emily, 24: “What started as a frustration slowly developed into a sort of ‘blind’ confidence. I’ve grown to value my opinion of myself as a person more than the opinion of others.”

Nicolette, 24: “I spend less time scrutinizing myself and more time learning to love myself.”

Yael, 21: “I really believe having limited mirrors helps me focus on myself as a whole rather than just my reflection.”

Lauren, 30: “Looks don’t really intrigue me as a quality so I don’t give them much credence…. I can still be vain and arrogant, it’s just more directed toward intelligence. And if I’m being totally honest, I think my true disinterest in ‘looks’ gives me a slight sense of superiority—which is its own form of vanity.”

Mary, 21: “I don’t think I’ll ever purchase another mirror, my confidence has grown too much without them.”

Joana, 28: “[Mirrorlessness] doesn’t mean in any way I don’t care how I look, but it means I care more about how I feel.”

At the outset of this challenge, I assumed I might reach some of these same conclusions. But as I un-taped all the sheets and blankets from my mirrors at the end of the week, I felt happy to reunite with my physical form. Relieved, even. At first I questioned this—after years of self-esteem struggles that turned my mirror into a battleground, perhaps I’d just developed a toxic dependence. But the more I considered that, the more it struck me as an old, outdated story. In fact, what I’d missed during the challenge was pride in my self-presentation. In the strange joy of drawing a crisp connection between what’s in my head and what’s on my body.

Barbara, 23: “I have a friend who always asks: ‘If you don’t have mirrors in your room, how do you admire yourself?’”

I’ve spent a lot of time over the past few years examining my and our culture’s relationship with vanity, and I’ve been told by many to chill the fuck out. But in the conclusion of this challenge, I noted a possible payoff: My mirror no longer represents a source of constant hand-wringing or exhaustion. It’s become a convenient nice-to-have. An occasional mood booster. Which isn’t to say I think I’m perfect or never criticize myself, but that I’ve reached a place of neutrality—one that’s enabled my affection for styling myself to evolve away from making me feel ashamed, obsessed, or shallow. And while I’m sure that neutrality will wax and wane over the course of my life, returning to my reflection with casual pleasure felt like a tiny, singular triumph.

It’s much easier to say that vanity is a distraction than is to say it can be, but doesn’t have to be. I’ve spent so long feeling torn between my interest in the aesthetic and the harmful overemphasis of it in popular culture (and historically, my head), that I’ve struggled to believe the two could be entirely mutually exclusive. But I’m starting to believe they can. We don’t live an invisible, gaseous world, which means that physical properties have meaning, and how we present ourselves does, too. We can choose to remove ourselves from that narrative, as The Mirrorless do with admirable aplomb. But the opposite choice, if thoughtfully made, doesn’t have to stand in moral contrast to that, does it? Maybe a gaze can just be gaze. A heady little preamble to whatever comes next.

Collage by Emily Zirimis.

The post What It’s Like to Live Without Mirrors appeared first on Man Repeller.

Trust Me Try It: The Ultimate Jack-of-all-Trades Accessory

I have discovered the secret to living a better life. Specifically, a better life in New York City.

Contrary to what my younger self would have believed, this secret has nothing to do with such glamorous life upgrades as a washer/dryer in-unit, central air conditioning, or even one of those little dogs that looks like a stuffed animal on percocet. Or percocet.

No, the thing that has drastically improved my life is incredibly simple. It’s a hanky.

Yes, I’m talking about a handkerchief. Like the kind parents tie around kids’ heads when they’re hitting a piñata. Maybe that’s why it took me so long to realize this simple tool’s unbelievable utility: I associated it with that once-a-year ritual of violently hitting a paper mache pirate. And with cowboys, James Dean, grandparents, and women fainting dramatically in old movies.

But that’s all in the past. What’s important now is that I’ll never leave my house without a handkerchief in my bag. It’s the all-purpose tool of this city, a thing that weighs nearly nothing and can do pretty much everything. It’s a napkin. It’s a koozie. It’s a headband or a jaunty neck accessory. It’s a seat-wiper, a subway-pole-holder, a nose-blower, a tear-dabber, and a smell-avoider. It’s a conversation starter (“I like your…hanky?”).

But its most crucial use—the reason I worship at the altar of this little piece of fabric—is the sweat rag.

See, I’m a Sweaty Person. And in New York City, sweat is seasonless. During the summer, I walk around looking like I just stepped out of the Equinox pool I do not have access to. In the fall, I am too easily convinced by the sight of Non-Sweaty-People in sweaters, only to remember once it’s too late that 60 degrees is never cold enough to wear anything fuzzy. And in winter, it only takes a few blocks of walking in a blizzard wearing six layers for the area under my coat to become a swampland.

On a hot June day five years ago, I pulled up to my first New York apartment, lugged three extra-large suitcases up four extra-narrow flights of stairs, and knocked on the door. My Craigslist-found sublet-host, who might also have been a prophet, gave me one look and said: “Always leave enough time that you can saunter to your destination. You don’t sweat as much when you saunter.”

Wiser words have never been spoken. But unfortunately, in addition to being a Sweaty Person, I am also a Late Person. A Late Person with Late Person-anxiety. I’ve come to terms with the fact that I will never saunter, I will never not be anxious, and I will never stop sweating. But I can do something about those things. I can carry a hanky.

It’s important to note, of course, that the hanky cannot do all of its aforementioned duties at the same time. Every superhero has limitations. But a hanky is cheap enough that you can buy multiples, durable enough to withstand repeated trauma, and at the end of a long day of wiping your sweat or dabbing your nose or protecting your white pants from park bench bird poop, it can go straight into the washing machine. So you can focus your attention on more pressing matters, like getting one of those in your apartment.

Photos by .

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Timothée Chalamet Got a Bowl Cut (And Other Things I Discovered on Instagram This Weekend)

It’s Monday!!!!!! Which is, in my opinion, actually one of the most invigorating days of the week. I know that might be controversial, but let me ease you into the thought with a soft scoop of mint chocolate chip-tasting lessons I learned from Instagram over the past 72 hours or so. I personally guarantee that after reading the below news items, you’ll be feeling much more buoyed with joy and enthusiasm for the possibilities held by the week ahead. If you don’t, I’ll give you your money back plus a coupon for free digital winks, so go forth and scroll with abandon.

1. Meghan Markle Makes History (Again)

 

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A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Jul 28, 2019 at 2:26pm PDT

Meghan Markle is officially British Vogue‘s first-ever guest editor in the magazine’s 103-year history! Markle is not featured on the cover herself (she said doing so would have been “boastful”), instead choosing to highlight a number of “changemakers” who inspire her, from Laverne Cox to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Their faces, along with those of 13 other women, will be laid out in a grid on the issue’s cover. There is a 16th box empty on the cover which will be printed in reflective material like a mirror. It’s meant to represent that anyone reading the magazine can also be a force for change, with the added (albeit likely unintended) bonus purpose of helping you check your teeth for kale on the subway.

2. Lizzo’s Tiny Desk Concert Is Worth a Lunch Break Listen

 

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A post shared by Lizzo (@lizzobeeating) on Jul 28, 2019 at 4:42pm PDT

“No one else has ever walked into their Tiny Desk Concert and turned just three songs into a sermon, a word, a masterpiece until Lizzo,” writes Vulture of Lizzo’s now-viral Tiny Desk performance on NPR. After lovingly mocking the “tiny-ass desk” at which she stood and requesting a heartfelt “amen!” from the audience, Lizzo launched into her performance, accompanied by a three-piece band. Though the singer is (rightfully) famous for her incredible choreography and elaborate stages, it was a real treat to reacquaint myself with her goosebump-giving vocal talents.

3. Timothée Chalamet Has a Bowl Cut

 

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A post shared by The Cut (@thecut) on Jul 26, 2019 at 6:01am PDT

Timothée Chalamet, the man whose stallion-esque swoop of hair spawned an endless stream of internet crushes, has recently found himself the victim of a bowl cut. The new hairstyle is for a character he is playing on Netflix’s upcoming movie The King, a period piece drama in which Chalamet stars as Henry V. Opinions on the dramatic change are, understandably, divided. While some find it sensual, others are comparing it to Claire’s haircut in Season 2 of Fleabag. 

4. Amy Schumer Is Returning to TV

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Don’t call it a comeback @mugsykane @kimcaramele and I are coming to @hulu

The Best Shoes on The RealReal Right This Second

I have a footwear shopping problem I think we might share: the design of a lot of new shoes is often just a little bit off from what I really want. What I really want, it seems, is the original style they’re referencing. Take these classic Gucci loafers, for example. They’re the perfect loafer. No other loafer I find has the exact little lip, or the chunky sole, or the squarish toe I’m after. In general, reinterpretations of designs can be cool, but with footwear, I find that the original tends to take the cake. That’s why I’ve been focused on collecting second-hand versions of some of my favorite classic styles on The RealReal lately, where they’re a fraction of the original price. And hmm…. while we’re on The RealReal… what about these toe-cap Chanel flats? Yet another style that’s inspiring today’s footwear. Beyond the shoes I’ve obsessed over, The RealReal also has styles I didn’t even know I wanted. And then price tag shocks me (Manolo’s for under $100, anyone?!).

As ever, I am overwhelmed and excited by all the options. So I’ve channeled my energy into breaking down the best of what’s out there right now—by shoe size, for your shopping ease.

Size 5 and 5.5

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Size 6 and 6.5

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Size 7 and 7.5

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Size 8 and 8.5

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Size 9 and 9.5

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Size 10 and 10.5

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Size 11 and 11.5

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Size 12 and 12.5

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Me? I have six pairs of shoes in my cart now. If you get something, tell me what you score because I. Must. Know. And one more question: How the heck are these Dries shoes $135 with an additional 20% off?! 

Feature photo  by Edith Young.

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I Asked 16 Creative Geniuses for Unexpected Wedding Planning Tips

A wedding is one big convention composed of a hundred small conventions: centerpieces, family portraits, wedding dresses, flowers and bouquets, rings and suits, makeup, hashtags, photo booths, registries, invitations, cakes, wine, hors d’oeuvres, and dinner, to name a few. How can a couple in the midst of wedding-planning steel themselves against a day that can skew dated, formulaic, and at times impersonal?

Audrey Gelman’s nuptials were the first I ever digitally browsed that felt as if the various conventions had been co-opted and customized to her, rather than vice versa. By mixing the traditional with the eclectic and displaying a firm sense of aesthetic self-awareness, elements of the wedding looked like none I’d ever seen before: Gelman’s bridesmaids wore bespoke J. Crew, her invitations (designed by a friend) hinted at the future of The Wing’s distinct brand identity, and her dress complemented her tattoos rather than hiding them.

Wondering about how best to subvert and improve tired traditions, I asked 16 imaginative minds how they would, or did, put a spin on the customary run-of-show. This group of food stylists, boutique owners, sommeliers, editors, designers, and cartoonists proved that limitations often encourage optimum creativity.

On Getting Dressed

Ruby Redstone, Writer, Stylist, & Art Historian 

“I think I had the easiest wedding-dress shopping experience ever: I tried on a single dress at Dover Street Market, and I ordered it in white the next day. Part of this is due to the fact that before I went out hunting in the wild, I approximated roughly what I would want: something true to my love of Victorian clothing, big sleeves, enough room to show off some accessories, and short! I tried not to put too much pressure on myself to think ‘WEDDING’ and instead put together an outfit that just made me feel beautifully and quintessentially myself. There’s really no such thing as a timeless dress—in a couple decades, some aspect of whatever you choose to wear will look dated. Focus instead on what will make you feel happy and confident on the big day, because that’s when you’ll actually be wearing it! Also, others have certainly said this before but: Ready-to-wear designer dresses in white or pastel colors tend to be much less expensive and much more stylish than anything available at designated bridal stores.”

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*visits @newyorkjosie once*

A post shared by RUBY REDSTONE (@rubyredstone) on Mar 14, 2019 at 4:14pm PDT

Diana Kim, Owner, Stand Up Comedy

“Neither of us could commit to a ring design in the traditional timeline (i.e., pre-marriage)—lifetime interpersonal commitment, yes! Lifetime commitment to jewelry representing that lifetime commitment? No! We opted for custom lockets by Arielle de Pinto instead. Each held a photo of the other, plus another image that felt representative of our relationship in our own way. Later, we each swapped out for a pic of our daughter. We are now, at close to 10 years, about to dive in to the rings, which will be made by Quarry.

I wanted to get my husband a wedding gift, so I commissioned one of our best friends, the artist Aaron Flint Jamison, to make a piece of furniture. It turned out to be a small vitrine, so that my husband can display different artifacts or sketch out ideas for exhibition in a very intimate way. The night I presented it to him, I woke up to find him alone in the living room just staring at it. One of my best memories.”

Liana Finck, Cartoonist

On the Open Bar

Helen Johannesen of Helen’s Wines, Beverage Director for Joint Ventures Restaurant Group 

“We do Helen’s interactive wine bars at weddings all the time: the wedding has two bars but wine and booze are separate, which allows guests to choose from 6-8 different wines including orange wine, pet nats, champagne… ranging from the usual to the unique, instead of being trapped with the typical tableside, shitty red or white. Good wine doesn’t have to be expensive.

At the end of the wedding, bust out a Sicilian tradition: serve everyone Spaghettata, pour magnums of a chilled light red, and then tell everyone to get the fuck out.”

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@meinklang_farm & WENZEL @animalrestaurant ! Schnitzel is here too

Is This the Only Realistic Makeover Montage in Movie History?

The 1997 romantic comedy My Best Friend’s Wedding is filled with memorable scenes (an ensemble performance of I Say a Little Prayer in a lobster shack; Cameron Diaz singing karaoke, terribly, while wearing a baby pink twinset). But there’s one in particular that gets at the heart of what makes the Julia Roberts’ character, Julianne, so oddly appealing—despite being the kind of asshole who spends a large portion of the film’s 95 minutes trying to break up a happy couple.

The scene opens in Julianne’s hotel room. It’s the morning. She rolls out of bed to the sound of someone pounding on the door. The camera pans over the minibar (fridge wide open, shelves pillaged) and her bed (littered with half-eaten chocolate bars and empty airplane bottles of Absolut). In the background, the TV is on, playing an old movie at low volume. As she opens the door to her friend George, who has swooped in from New York to save her from herself, it is unceremoniously revealed that last night’s clay mask is still plastered to her face.

 

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The 4 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now (& 2 Ways to See Sharon Tate)

So, I think I may have Quentin Tarantino FOMO. This past month, I’ve mostly been home in Korea, where the latest Tarantino film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, has not yet been released. I’ve seen some reactions online in my peripheral vision, while trying my best to avoid lengthy plot descriptions. The basic premise is that it’s a comedy drama set in 1969 Los Angeles and I also know Margot Robbie plays the tragically murdered ’60s It Girl Sharon Tate. (Another thing that’s been in my peripheral vision: the shirt Tarantino’s been wearing, which looks like Gucci at first glance, but is actually just a 69 shirt? I still can’t decide whether I love it or hate it or if I…want it?)

I absolutely do not have FOMO as it relates to the discourse around him at the moment. I briefly checked Twitter while on vacation in Japan this week, and saw a flurry of takes about how he makes movies for only the “white film bro,” and everyone had something to say about that. I promptly decided to log off and steam my face over a bowl of shoyu ramen.

I know getting excited about a new Tarantino movie sounds like stereotypical film bro-iness, but I am neither white nor male, and there are many of us who still want to engage with his work in a meaningful manner without simply brushing him off because we all know at least one guy who had a Reservoir Dogs poster in his college dorm room.

So, until I’m able to update you all with my Once Upon a Time reaction, I can recommend some good streaming accompaniments: On August 1, Netflix is bringing back Jackie Brown, one of Tarantino’s best (if not the best?) movies, starring the legendary Foxy Brown herself, Pam Grier, in her middle-aged comeback as a flight attendant caught between her bad boss (Samuel L. Jackson) and the feds. I think it’s better than Pulp Fiction—and the subdued violence (for Tarantino), makes it even more witty and thrilling. Tarantino made the movie for Grier, breaking a long hiatus after her ’70s Blaxploitation era, and the way Jackie Brown mirrors her real-life anxieties about being past her prime is unexpectedly heartfelt.

Some looks are too powerful to emulate and I know this is one I’ll just have to appreciate on-screen.
It’s no Pam Grier Summer Kangol look but… here I am before a movie at MoMA, wearing a Laulhère beret, Marc Jacobs skirt, hand-me-down shirt from my mom’s friend, and a dark green trench I thrifted from an L.A. flea market. MoMA bathrooms are usually crowded, but on the rare chance you get it all to yourself, do take advantage of the excellent selfie lighting.
If You’d Rather Groove to the Free-Loving ’60s Vibe…

The real Sharon Tate can be seen in all her glory in The Valley of the Dolls, which is quintessentially ’60s in its high-ponied, pastel looks. Tate, Patty Duke, and Barbara Parkins star as three young women who navigate romance and try to make it big in show biz. Along the way, they hit some lows (“valleys”), and pick themselves up with “dolls” (read: pills). It is capital-C Camp and Elle Fanning paid perfect homage to it at this year’s Met Gala. The Valley of the Dolls is available to rent on a bunch of different platforms (iTunes, Google), but if you’re in New York, head over to the Quad Cinema next month to catch it during the “Beach Reads: From Sand to Screen” series, which includes many adaptations of “guilty pleasure” novels (if you even believe in the concept!). They’re not all beachy movies, but they’re perfect A/C-fueled escapes.

The Criterion Channel (have I mentioned it’s my favorite streaming service?) has also highlighted three movies released in the summer of ’69, the summer of the moon landing, Stonewall, Woodstock, and, of course, the Manson murders. These movies, including Midnight Cowboy and Easy Rider, leave July 31 so get on them ASAP, but I suggest prioritizing Paul Mazursky’s Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice, an infidelity comedy about two couples who want to loosen up and try their hands at spouse-swapping—to hilariously awkward results.

Orgies seem stressful, but this movie has made me want to dress in lingerie as fanciful as my outerwear.
Let’s Skip Forward to the Summer of 1970

Pull on a pair of jorts and tie a colorful, oversized summer blouse over them, because Now and Then is also coming to Netflix on August 1. In Lesli Linka Glatter’s coming-of-age cult classic, four female friends reminisce about their teenage selves during one unforgettable summer in 1970. It always makes me think of my carefree childhood days, biking around and stopping for ice cream with my buds. I used to wear thick, stretchy headbands like Gaby Hoffman does, though Mallory mentioned Devon Sawa might be the real style hero of this movie and… wow, she’s right. I am so inspired by this subtle stripe coordination of his jacket collar to shirt collar to socks.

For Even More Sister Acts…

August is a great month for sororal bonding over at Netflix. Joining Now and Then is The House Bunny—you know, that Anna Faris movie about an ex-Playboy Bunny who takes a group of nerdy sorority sisters under her wings (ears?), including one about-to-breakout Emma Stone. I haven’t seen this movie in 10 years, but I do distinctly remember practicing that demonically deep voice Faris uses to help her remember names (I stand by my long-held belief that she is an underrated comedic genius). I also just realized that within the decade of not having watched this, I’ve aged a year past 27-year-old Shelley (Faris), who gets kicked out of Hugh Hefner’s mansion for being too old….

On a slightly different plane of sisterhood are Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda—yes, the first Sex and the City movie is also coming to a Netflix carousel near you. As someone who loves the show through its sometimes awkwardly-aged politics, the movie feels cheap to me. Cheap—not literally, because holy shit that penthouse Mr. Big casually buys for Carrie is actually insane. What I mean is cheap in all its clichés and basest appeal to fandom. Like that scene where Carrie tries on all her old clothes including that infamous tutu? It’s fun in the moment, but it’s nothing more than a “previously” recap filling out the 2.5-hour runtime. Also, I’ll never forget how everyone in this movie has relationship problems except Charlotte, so they make her literally shit her pants in Mexico?? I mean?! (Feel free to get “carried away” in the comments if you agree or disagree with me on this one.)

Okay, admittedly, Charlotte is very relatable in this scene. I would absolutely say this to any man who hurts my friend this badly.
Squeeze in a French Fling This Summer

Since I’ve been in Korea for most of the summer, I’ve replaced my usual rotation of NYC repertory theaters for Cinematheque Seoul Art Cinema, which showcased a bunch of great summer movies by one of my favorite directors, Éric Rohmer. A couple weeks ago, I went to go see the 1987 comedy Boyfriends and Girlfriends (another movie about partner-swapping), which makes a great case for summer minimalism with its bare interiors and simple, color-blocked outfit coordination.

The Cinematheque Seoul Art Cinema bathroom has Hollywood-style dressing room mirrors. I wore this Reneevon dress to mimic the bright colors of ‘Boyfriends and Girlfriends’ and I think the netted quality of the outfit was subconsciously inspired by a mesh tank top worn by a man in a different Rohmer movie.
From Rohmer’s ‘The Green Ray’ (1986). Another strong summer look.

The Green Ray is one of my annual summer re-watches (it’s basically the movie version of “Summertime Sadness”), as is La Collectionneuse, about a girl who “collects” men during a summer stay at a beautiful French villa. Both are available on the Criterion Channel and make me feel moody and wistful, even on—especially on—vacation.

If this ain’t a mood….

A current highlight on Criterion right now is a collection of films starring the late Jeanne Moreau, who is my favorite French femme fatale. The French New Wave icon took on a lot of complicated, edgy roles, and wore the history of her characters on her face (especially in her very seductive, charismatic eye bags). Any movie starring Moreau is worth watching, in my opinion, but her best-known (and probably a good place to start) is Truffaut’s Jules and Jim, in which two male friends become enamored with her.

Jeanne Moreau’s breakout came with Louis Malle’s Hitchcockian noir, Elevator to the Gallows, also available on the Criterion Channel.

This year has seen a few great French films as well. I highly recommend A Faithful Man, currently playing selected theaters. The hunky Louis Garrel directs himself in a comic yet tragic love triangle (I guess actually a rectangle) involving his ex (Laetitia Casta), who left him for his now-dead best friend years ago, only to crawl back when a younger woman (Lily-Rose Depp) starts pursuing him. It is a very, very French affair and very entertaining. Another French romance film from this year, the gay 1993-set drama Sorry Angel, has recently been added to Netflix. It is as blue as the film’s nearly monochromatic hue, and one of my favorite releases of 2019 so far.

Globe-Trot Over to China

Have y’all seen Lulu Wang’s The Farewell yet? It’s one of the best movie tickets you could spend your hard-earned money on at the moment. Remember when I said Always Be My Maybe felt like an Asian-American Vox explainer? Well, The Farewell, which stars Awkwafina in her first leading role as a Brooklyn-residing Asian woman who flies back home to China to covertly say goodbye to her dying grandmother, is the opposite of that. It totally nails that first-generation immigrant feeling in such a poignant and well-humored manner.

I wore a cheongsam gifted by my good friend Alexandra to Metrograph’s second anniversary party last year. Is it problematic to wear this even if I am Asian? Perhaps I am…In the Mood for Drama.

In a Chinatown slightly closer to my place of residence, New York’s Metrograph theater will be showing a bunch of women-directed movies from Hong Kong’s Shaw Brothers Studios, the massive production company famous for popularizing the kung-fu genre (from August 23–September 1). I’ve been meaning to brush up on my Asian cinema so I’m stoked to discover these rarely-screened, little-seen movies that range from murder mysteries to ghost hauntings to lesbian love stories. If you’re not in New York, many of these movies may be hard to find online, but Ann Hui’s Love in a Fallen City is on Amazon Prime.

And Speaking of Female Auteurs…
Before ‘Carol,’ there was the sweaty, sizzling romance of Donna Deitch’s Reno-set ‘Desert Hearts.’ Yee—and I cannot stress this enough—haw.

Brooklyn’s BAM theater is chasing their currently screening “Millennials on Film” series with a truly incredible lineup of movies directed by American women in the ’80s: Desperately Seeking Susan, Losing Ground, Variety, and Desert Hearts, to name a few. They’re all so good that I don’t really know where to start with recommendations. Maybe just dedicate your entire August to working your way through these movies (most of which are available to watch online). It’ll feel like spending your summer hanging out with all the adventurous friends you’ve ever dreamed of having.

Feature photo by ©New Line Cinema via Everett Collection.

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3 Months, $378, and Infinite Feelings Later: Crystal Anderson’s Outfit Anatomy

Welcome to Outfit Anatomy, a new series on Man Repeller that aims to break down what we wear by answering questions like: How much did that cost? Where did you find that? Why did you buy it in the first place? Up today: Man Repeller’s production manager, Crystal Anderson, breaking down an outfit she wore to work last week.

I’ve been toying with the idea of proportions for the summer. It’s so easy to dress in fall and winter when I want to be creative and kooky, but clothing-wise, summer is the minimalist season of my maximalist nightmare (that said, #LoveSummerHateEverythingElse), which explains why I’m wearing this shirt: I wanted a big-ass blousy tee for summer but couldn’t find one in a store, so I went on Amazon and found this men’s one in size 5XL. It cost a grand total of $11.99 with shipping. Then I had the airbrushers at MR-Nival kick it up a notch, Emeril-style, with the black-girl slogan of summer 2019: “Hot Girl Summer.” Originally I thought I might wear it as a dress but…

The pants! 

I’m not sure if I believe in reincarnation, but if I do come back as anything, it’ll damn sure be these Natasha Zinko double-waisted pants. They are stupid, in a good way. I’ve been on the hunt for them on sale because they are expensive ($660) and I didn’t want to invest so much in such a niche item. Then I found them on Yoox for $130! And just got them in hand earlier this week. I expected them to be super tight and originally thought I’d wear them with a little bralette, but they arrived and were really baggy—not at all what I expected. This would piss off most people, but I like a good challenge (I consider myself something of a gay fashion MacGyver—MacGAYver, if you will), so I looped two vintage belts through both sets of loopholes. (In case it wasn’t clear, this is actually a single pair of pants.) I wore them to talk my friend Marjon was hosting with Dapper Dan; if ever there were a time to go full throttle, this day was it—and I’m happy to announce that Dap was tickled by my entire outfit.

Now before I get to the shoes and purse, lemme explain how the whole look came to be. Once I got the pants and learned that they were different from what I expected, I had to rejigger the outfit I planned and decided to lean into the dream outfit of my 90s teen self, hence the space buns on my head. I worried that it might look like a costume but once I had it all on, I got to see myself as the teenager that my teenage self so badly wanted to be. And that was fucking special.

Now, the shoes. The shoes! I have been whining about not having these Nike x Sacai sneakers for ages. I remember when they showed at Paris Fashion Week, and how impatiently I didn’t want to wait a year for them to go into production. When they launched, I was guns blazing on the SNKRS App, ready to give them all my money and they legit sold out in 30 seconds.

I appealed to anyone who would listen but had no luck until a college friend’s wife hit me up and told me she had an extra pair and would sell them to me at retail ($180). I went all the way to the Upper West Side and waited at a coffee shop for her to appear with the “goods.” It was like a legit backroom drug deal—nondescript brown bag, hushed hello, my awkward offering to buy her a smoothie (she said no) and then me off in the crowd, “goods” in hand.

I tried them on immediately and they fit perfectly and I felt cool. I’m probably a terrible hypebeast because I don’t believe in keeping my hard-to-get shoes in pristine condition; I like for them to look loved-in (not to be confused with lived-in)—to hold my secrets and look like they’ve gone places. I wore them to move into the first house that my partner and I got together, they deserved to be part of the memory.

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Last: the bag. It’s difficult to wear and not at all practical, but hi, I’m Crystal, I don’t give a fuck about utility. When my mom was visiting, I wanted to take her to BAM‘s African Street Festival, which is basically just rows and rows and blocks of beautiful black people selling their handmade stuff. It was hot as hell the day we went, and we were getting ready to leave when a little stand caught my eye and I saw the bag. It’s handmade from old soda bottle caps from the hometown of the African man who makes them. I had a feeling it was going to be more expensive than I could afford, but I asked about the price anyway. The shopkeeper told me it was $60 and I was psyched. I had no cash, though, so my mom had to pay for it. I asked about their Instagram and the woman who sold it to me laughed and said, “No, we don’t have that.”

She told me the man who makes them doesn’t concern himself with those things and that he sells when he feels up to it, which made it even more special in my view. It also came with a little purse inside, hand-sewn by him, made of kente cloth scraps. The bag made me feel close to a place I’ve never been, but that holds the joy of my ancestors. I’ll never get rid of it.

In sum: I rarely have on an outfit of entirely new things, but nothing I’m wearing here has been in my possession for longer than three months. The total cost of the outfit is $378, and I gotta say, the money went far. Yes, each piece is sort of “Instagram-y” but I’m not one of those people who won’t re-wear a look because the world has already seen it. Trust me, you’re gonna see this one again and again (and again), and I can guarantee you that I’ll feel a different feeling every time I wear it.

Outfit Anatomy Identity by Madeline Montoya.

The post 3 Months, $378, and Infinite Feelings Later: Crystal Anderson’s Outfit Anatomy appeared first on Man Repeller.

Look at My Beautiful Fucking Hands

Elegant.  Sophisticated.  Velvety smooth.  Shockingly large.

These are just a few ways my magnificent and truly exceptional hands have been described by others. I love my hands. Yes—I appreciate them for their functional capacity which, combined with my very long arms, often saves me from having to move from a spot where I’m sitting to pick up something I want. But today I’m celebrating them for their purely aesthetic value.

My hands possess a grace, elegance, and refinement the rest of my body and personality do not. Do you know what it is like to be both inspired by and in constant competition with your own hauntingly lithe appendages? It is an exquisite agony. One that I wouldn’t trade for the world. While I can barely walk two steps without knocking something over, my hands can easily cover an octave on a Steinway, always poised to delight, dazzle, and tinkle the ivories with puckish grace. I stubbornly and unfairly hold them back with my inability to actually play the piano.

If my hands were ever finally set free from the rest of my body, as I know is their only wish, they would take the city by storm. They’d be on the board at Alvin Ailey. They’d discover new artists and quietly support them, not wanting to become a topic of discussion in the art scene themselves. They’d go to different tea shops for different types of loose leaf teas. They’d own and play a Djembe in a drumming circle in a park. They’d have a secret beach. They’d look good in hats.

They’re not perfect, which is part of what makes them so appealing. They seem perfect, but they’re flawed, just like the rest of us. Sometimes when my nails are long, which isn’t often since my nail beds are so large that manicures look striking even when my nails are short, dirt and debris gets caught under them. That’s it. That’s the one flaw.

But my hands aren’t objects of exquisite, almost ideal form on their looks alone. They’re also so very soft. Once, my friend Molly grabbed my hand at a holiday party and was so taken aback by how delicate and richly silken my hands were (like a chocolate mousse, delicate yet decadent at the same time) she made everyone touch them. I like to think my hands reminded everyone about the spirit of the holiday season that night, the memory of my gossamer-spun skin warming them as they trudged home through the falling winter snow.

For all this, I’d like to thank my hands and, in turn, thank myself for being bold enough to share them with you all this afternoon. I hope you take as much joy and inspiration from them as I do, and when you are lost in this world, feel free to look to my delicate fingers, perfectly sized palms and exquisite nail beds to be a beacon in the dark.

*Dramatic wave goodbye*

Photos by . Styled with Mondo Mondo rings.

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