How Nostalgia Conquered the Beauty World

“It is hard to overstate the talent and impact of a hairstylist like Nikki Nelms. In this feature written by longtime beauty journalist (and dear friend) Jihan Forbes and photographed by Adrienne Raquel, Nelms masterfully bridges the gap between past and present Black hairstyles, and the whole result is just chef’s kiss. ‘What I love about these looks is that they were so… normal to us,’ Nelms says. ‘When we wanted to give it, it didn’t need to be for a special occasion. We are the special occasion.’” -Sam Escobar

SE: “Barbie is everywhere. Everywhere. Every brand on planet Earth, it seems, has done a licensing deal with Mattel—and reader, I am here for it. (Seriously, I bought Barbie-branded Crocs not too long ago and I couldn’t contain my juvenile excitement when they arrived.) Personally, though, I’m not a huge head-to-toe pink kind of person, so I found this guide from writer Marie Lodi genuinely useful.”

SE: “Gabi Thorne, an Allure writer and our resident anime expert, spotted anime nail art all over social media. To help inspire other fans to create their own colorful, fun manicures, she assembled this strikingly comprehensive collection of anime- and manga-inspired designs, featuring straightforward looks with Fullmetal Alchemist and Hello Kitty characters, as well as subtler nail art, like a set of numerical, Bleach-inspired nails.”

SE: “Vanilla fragrances get a bad rap, but in my opinion, there’s no reason for this. Fortunately, the tastemakers of scent and smell have encouraged a revitalization of this classic ingredient—with some updates, of course. No sugary-sweet, breath-taking (in a bad way) top notes here.”

SE: “As a longtime Matrix enthusiast and former emo kid, I was thrilled to see that (faux) leather trench coats and all-black outfits had finally returned to the mainstream.”

SE: “I am a huge, huge fan of Cyberpunk 2077. (Yes, its launch was marred with dysfunction, but in my opinion, its developer has since redeemed itself; regardless, none of that is relevant to the excellence of the original tabletop. I’ll say no more on the matter!) While this interview with Mike Pondsmith by Matthew Gault for WIRED isn’t focused on beauty, it is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the aesthetic sparked by Pondsmith’s original creation and its subsequence renaissance as a video game.”

SE: “Okay, I have a small confession. I try not to make fun of most trends, but there are exceptions that I feel fine about mocking a bit, provided that I was a guilty party in participating or perpetuating said trends. One such example: the heavy, ultra-intense brows that hit the scene circa 2016, when we all stumbled upon brow pomade and said to ourselves, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to look like a Sim?’”

SE: “Would I follow Ryan Gosling’s lead on just about anything? Yes…yes, I would. Even frosted tips.”