SKIN CARE Plus: The Unbridled Beauty Culture of - The Real Housewives, the Power of Protective Hairstyles
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THE BEAUTY EXPERT
Beauty’s
newest founder,
Pharrell Williams
DIVES Into SKIN CARE
Plus: The Unbridled Beauty Culture of
2 0 2 1
The Real Housewives, the Power
2 0 2 0 /J A N
of Protective Hairstyles, and the
Tyranny of “Good Teeth”
D E C
DECEMBER 2020
/ JANUARY 2021
45
ALL EYES
Ellie Goldstein
was born to be
in the spotlight.
Molly Goddard
hat. Wolford top.
BEAUTY
REPORTER
13 Cultural appreciation
16 Editors’ Favorites
18 Hair loss and stress
20 Next-generation
temporary tattoos
22 The future of
sustainable packaging
24 Face sculptors •
Three editors test-drive
Olay Regenerist
Retinol24 Max Night
VICKI KING
Serum
2 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021
TODAY’S FORECAST:
100% CHANCE OF
HYDRATED SKIN.
Clinically proven to lock in hydration
with Hyaluronic Acid.
Skin so supple and hydrated,
it bounces back.
© J&JCI 2019
DECEMBER 2020 / JANUARY 2021
Statement Required by 39 U.S.C. 3685 showing the Ownership,
Management and Circulation of ALLURE, published Monthly, with combined
issues in June/July and December/January (10 issues) for October 1, 2020.
Publication No. 006-904. Annual subscription price $16.00.
1. Location of known office of Publication is One World Trade Center, New
NEWS & TRENDS York, NY 10007.
2. Location of the Headquarters or General Business Offices of the Publisher
32 Background Beauty. is One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007.
3. The names and addresses of the Chief Business Officer, Editor and
Y’all Means All. You can let Managing Editor are: Chief Business Officer, Susan Plagemann, One World
loose at this Austin nail salon. Trade Center, NY, New York 10007. Editor in Chief, Michelle Lee, One World
Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. Director of Editorial Operations, Amanda
36 Open Wide. Smile Meigher, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007.
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Nation. How pearly whites its Condé Nast division, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007.
Stockholder: Directly or indirectly through intermediate corporations to
became a commodity. the ultimate corporate parent, Advance Publications, Inc., 950 Fingerboard
Road, Staten Island, NY 10305.
45 Talking Beauty With 5. Known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders owning or
Ellie Goldstein. This British holding 1 percent or more of total amount of bonds, mortgages or other
securities are: None.
model has a message 6. Extent and nature of circulation
Average No. Copies each issue during preceding 12 months
for the industry about the Single Issue nearest to filing date
importance of inclusivity. a. Total No. Copies 1,217,728 1,213,416
b. Paid Circulation
50 Real Housewives. (1) Mailed Outside-County Paid 903,122 942,389
Subscriptions Stated on
American Women. A peek
ON THE
PS Form 3541
behind the mascara- (2) Mailed In-County Paid 0 0
Subscriptions Stated on
and Botox-fueled scenes of
COVER
PS Form 3541
the famous franchise. (3) Paid Distribution Outside the 11,115 8,977
Mails Including Sales Through
58 Gift Guide. Home for the Photographed by Ben Hassett. Dealers and Carriers, Street
Vendors, Counter Sales, and
Holidays. Editor-approved Fashion stylist: Cactus. Other Paid Distribution
gifts for everyone on your list. Hair: Johnny Castellanos. Outside USPS®
Skin: Bo. Set designer: Sasha (4) Paid Distribution by Other 0 0
Classes of Mail Through
FEATURES Wyroba. Production: Select the USPS
Services. c. Total Paid Distribution 914,237 951,366
64 Going With the Flow. d. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution
Pharrell Williams is (1) Free or Nominal Rate 258,172 234,765
Outside-County Copies
diving into a new venture. Included on PS Form 3541
By Brennan Kilbane REGULARS
(2) Free or Nominal Rate 0 0
In-County Copies
74 How We Live Now. Almost 8 Michelle’s Most Wanted Included on PS Form 3541
(3) Free or Nominal Rate Copies 0 0
a year into a pandemic, Mailed at Other Classes
10 Editor’s Letter Through the USPS
we examine its impact on 6,770 2,353
our everyday lives. 30 Dream Kit. Activist
Jaha Dukureh shares 264,942 237,118
82 Give Me Strength.
her bag of tricks. 1,179,179 1,188,484
A celebration of 38,550 24,932
protective hairstyles—as 40 Beauty by Numbers 1,217,728 1,213,416
77.53% 80.05%
armor and works of art. 90 One More Thing 14,525 15,876
928,762 967,242
1,193,704 1,204,360
77.81% 80.31%
13
GLOBAL
PERSPECTIVES
When brand founders
create products through
the lens of their culture,
magic happens.
Live Tinted Hueglow
in Dusk.
.com or call 717-505-9701, ext 101. For reuse
JOSEPHINE SCHIELE
4 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021
OF BEA
T
S
UT
BE
Y
AW
2020
R
R
E
A
D N
WIN
MICHELLE LEE
EDITOR IN CHIEF
EXECUTIVE BEAUTY DIRECTOR JENNY BAILLY NATHALIE KIRSHEH
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Always on set.
Elnett Satin Hairspray is
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Long-lasting hold.
Disappears at the
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W A N T E D
WHILE I WAS GROWING UP, MY MOM WAS A BEAUTY MINIMALIST. BUT SOME
OF HER HABITS (AND PRODUCTS) HAVE BECOME MY STAPLES.
M O S T
For years, my mom
M I C H E L L E ’ S
gave me (center)
and my sister 1
these blunt-bangs
haircuts at home.
1. HARRY JOSH PRO
TOOLS DRYER 2000.
My mom has always had
the silkiest hair. Her tool
of choice? This powerful
Allure Best of Beauty
Award-winner. $249.
2. FRESH BLACK
TEA BODY CREAM.
My parents used
drugstore lotions for
years. One day, I
stocked them up with
this special treat. $68.
3. CHANEL NO. 5.
As a kid, I would sneak
a whiff of this on my
mom’s dresser and feel
so fancy. $80 for 1.2 oz.
4. RAINCRY SMOOTH
2.0 BRUSH. Super high-
quality bristles for an
expert at-home blowout.
$64 for the medium size.
5. OLAY
PORTRAIT: COURTESY OF MICHELLE LEE. HARRY JOSH, RAINCRY, FRESH, ELTA MD, TWEEZERMAN, AND
MOISTURIZING
3 LOTION. As the child of
a life-long Olay devotee,
this light cream is
still one of my drugstore
must-haves. $8.99.
6. AMIKA VAULT
CONDITIONER.
5 I introduced my mother
AMIKA: JOSEPHINE SCHIELE. OLAY AND CHANEL: COURTESY OF BRAND
to this shade-preserving
formula this year and
now she’s hooked. $16.
7. TWEEZERMAN
SLANT TWEEZER.
My mom warned
me in the ‘90s not to
overtweeze. I didn’t
listen. So now I use these
precise, all-time favorite
pincers wisely. $23.
8. ELTAMD UV DAILY.
Back in the day, our
family would tan. Today,
we practice safer sun
7 8 with this dermatologist-
loved face sunscreen. I
reapply every few hours
and it never pills. $29.50.
8 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021MACYS, NORDSTROM, SEPHORA & ULTA
THE NEW
FRAGRANCEE D I T O R
down to a science
T H E
As someone who considers herself relatively skin-care
obsessed, I’ve been a devoted daily user of sunscreen for
many years. But I’ll admit, I haven’t always been diligent
F R O M
about reapplying throughout the day, unless I was at the
beach in full sun. Until now.
Over the past two months, executive beauty director
Jenny Bailly and I have been diving into some fascinating
topics for Allure’s new podcast, The Science of Beauty.
L E T T E R
Unsurprisingly, nearly every skin-care conversation—dark
spots, melasma, pores, wrinkles—comes back to sun protec-
tion. It’s why we decided to make our pilot episode all about,
you guessed it, sunscreen.
While recording our first six episodes, I learned so much
about other topics too. Here are some of the tidbits that
have really stuck with me:
• Botulinum toxin (a.k.a. Botox) owes its origins to contam-
inated sausages. (We talked to one of the two doctors—
they’re a married couple—who discovered the toxin’s
incredible skin-smoothing properties in the 1980s.)
• People talk a lot about collagen loss in the face, but bone
loss also plays a role in wrinkle formation.
• Yes, you need to reapply sunscreen every two hours, even if
you’re indoors all day, because you may encounter UV light
through windows. Plus, more and more dermatologists say
that skin needs protection from all kinds of visible light—
like the blue light emitted by our computer screens. (Oh,
and don’t forget the tops of ears and the back of the neck.)
• It’s not just a coincidence that I’m prone to hyperpigmenta-
tion and keloid scarring. Our skin’s melanin factories (a.k.a.
melanocytes) have far-reaching powers.
• A protein called albumen can help temporarily tighten
pores and remove excess oil, if you happen to have an egg
white on hand.
When you better understand the science behind why
things work—or don’t—you can make more informed deci-
sions (e.g., why it’s generally not a good idea to layer retinol
over vitamin C). Science has definitely motivated me to head
to my medicine cabinet for regular SPF refreshes.
Skin care is a major part of the culture of beauty, which
is the theme of this issue. Our cover star, Pharrell Williams—
super-producer, musician, and ageless wonder—has also
been exploring the world of skin-care science with his inclu-
sive new line, Humanrace.
As obsessions go, a preoccupation with skin care is
pretty positive, and I’m glad to share it with one of the great
creative minds of our day. Now, if only I could sing.
COURTESY OF MICHELLE LEE
Come and nerd out with us on Allure’s new Science of Beauty
series, streaming now wherever you get your podcasts.
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*Surface Cells, In Laboratory Studies ©J&JCI 2019ALLURE PRESENTS
A NEW PODCAST HOSTED BY
MICHELLE LEE, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, AND
JENNY BAILLY, EXECUTIVE BEAUTY DIRECTOR
Join Allure as we explore the inextricable link between science and beauty —
and don’t be surprised if you discover your next favorite serum, hair mask, or
scalp treatment along the way. If you’ve always wondered what a wrinkle actually
is and how retinol can make it go away, or why your hair is curly and which
polymers will give it the most spring, come get nerdy with us!
L I ST E N & S U B S C R I B E TO T H E S C I E N C E O F B E AU T Y W H E R E V E R YO U G E T YO U R P O D CAST S
T H I S P O D CAST M A D E P O S S I B L E BY
&B E A U T Y R E P O R T E R
i
,
Founder of
Elaluz
,
Founder of
Uoma Beauty
i
,
Founder of
CAMILA COEHLO: RAUL ROMO. SHARON CHUTER: JARED SCHLACHET. DEEPICA MUTYALA: ANUJ GOYAL. NIGELLA MILLER: KAT MORGAN.
Live Tinted
dream
weavers
ig
i ,
Founder
of Afra
WHEN BEAUTY ENTREPRENEURS PULL
FROM THE RICH TAPESTRY OF THEIR
CULTURAL EXPERIENCES, YOU GET GOLD
HAIR JEWELRY REMINISCENT OF AFRICAN
RELICS, SKIN CARE FROM THE DEPTHS OF
THE AMAZON, AND A SPECTRUM OF EYE
SHADOWS TO FLATTER EVERY SKIN TONE
OF THE WORLD. BY PAIGE STABLES
DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021 ALLURE 13DEEPICA MUTYALA,
FOUNDER OF LIVE TINTED
“Growing up, I didn’t see base
R E P O R T E R
colors that worked for my skin
tone, partly because shades didn’t
exist but also because in Indian
AFRA, ELALUZ, TINTED PRODUCTS: JOSEPHINE SCHIELE. UOMA PRODUCTS: COURTESY OF BRAND.
culture fair is considered beautiful.
My mother would put a lighter-tone
powder on me because in her mind
Nigella Miller, FOUNDER OF AFRA
that was the standard of beauty.
By 16, I wanted to have my own
“When I was a child, my cousins and I would fall into these moments of doing each beauty line to change that
other’s hair while spending time together—we didn’t realize it was so precious. Hair narrative. I promised myself when I
plays a huge part in Black culture and my family’s hair routines were a big part of started Live Tinted [it was a digital
B E A U T Y
my everyday life. That family time and those Black hair moments still inspire me community before evolving into
today. I wanted to re-create iconic Black hair culture staples, like beads I wore, a product line] that it was going to
and steer away from mass-produced plastic. I wanted to launch a Black-owned stand for something bigger than
collection of regal hair accessories that tie my Guyanese culture to my African- me. It was for anyone who hasn’t
American culture. Afra, [a line of gold hair jewelry], is a merge of all my worlds. been represented in the beauty
It’s fashion-meets-beauty-meets-lifestyle-meets-art-meets-Black-hair-meets-Afro- industry, which as a South Asian
Guyanese-meets-Black-culture, which sounds insane, but I did do it. And it’s not woman, I know includes us. To ‘live
only for Black people; it’s for celebrating Black culture. We don’t know what it was tinted’ is to embrace your skin
like when Africans wore gold in their hair (we are so far away from those roots), but tone. We posted discussions
there can still be something we have today that fits in our modern world. When you around topics that resonated with
see one or two real gold beads in someone’s hair, it’s a shocker, and it’s amazing. me, like avoiding the sun because
[And when you wear them], you feel like royalty.” we didn’t want to get too dark, and
people from all different
backgrounds—Asian, Black,
Latinx—would leave comments
about similar experiences. And we
all had the same number-one
beauty concern: dark circles. So it
her. She had an incredible ability
was a no-brainer: We made
to shine light on those around her
Huestick, a color-correcting crayon
[Elaluz is Portuguese for ‘she’s
that can also be an eye, cheek, and
light’]. As a Brazilian launching my
lip color, and the line grew from
business in the United States, it was
there. We all have more in common
important to me that I incorporate
than we know and I wanted to
my culture into this brand, starting
celebrate that and unify people.”
with the name. I wanted people
to know Brazil is not just about
soccer and carnivals; Brazil has so
much history and rich agriculture.
In every single product, there are
CAMILA COELHO, Brazilian ingredients. The Beauty
FOUNDER OF ELALUZ
Oil, for example, is a mix of oils like
“I grew up wanting to be just like my cacay, buriti fruit, and cupuacu. I
grandmother. To me, she was the most grew up eating cupuacu chocolate
beautiful woman in the world because balls and never thought I would
of her inner beauty and confidence. be using it in a beauty product.
Elaluz [a line of makeup, skin care, Now, every time I use my products,
and hair care] is largely inspired by they take me back to Brazil. ”
Sharon Chuter, FOUNDER OF UOMA BEAUTY
“Sundays in Nigeria were like fashion week. If you looked at a Sunday service from a bird’s-eye
view, it was a kaleidoscope of traditional yoruba dresses in every color you could imagine. At
Uoma, we talk about being colorful. Our eye shadow palettes are inspired by three Nigerian
mythical goddesses and their color stories revolve around their characteristics. Allure is for
the goddess Oshun (she fertilizes the earth), with yellows, golds, green; Savage is inspired
by Oya (our warrior goddess), with flashes of silver and fiery reds; and the Poise palette is for
Yemaya (the mermaid goddess), with lots of blues and cool tones. We also talk about being
Afropolitan. It’s the idea that ‘African’ is not one thing. Afropolitan encompasses the culture
changes, diaspora, immigration, and shifts over the last 400 years. All of this comes from my
upbringing, and I’m now sharing that with the world.”
14 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 202135 Years of
Classic Vanity Fair Profiles,
Essays, and Columns by
Women About Women
“A celebration
of women’s
voices”
—VOGUE
“Dazzling” Available
in paperback
—NBC NEWS this fall
“These
essays pack
a feminist
wallop”
—KIRKUS
REVIEWSR E P O R T E R
EDITORS’
F AV O R I T E S
ALL THE PRETTY PICK-ME-UPS
GETTING US THROUGH 5. Loeffler Randall
THE LONG WINTER NIGHTS. Josie Feather Hair
Comb Pink. Less
springy than flowers
and more daytime-
B E A U T Y
appropriate than
crystals, a feather-
festooned accessory
may be just what your
hairstyle is missing.
Est Belle x Sara (Tuck it in at the top
of a low ponytail for an
easy upgrade.)
LANCÔME AND EU’GENIA: COURTESY OF BRAND. ALPYN BEAUTY, L’ORÉAL, TOM FORD, BREAD BEAUTY, UZ EYELINER, AND LOEFFLER FEATHER COMB: JOSEPHINE SCHIELE.
created by Pakistani
6. Tom Ford Balm
artist Shakeel. The
Frost. ”Frost” can
be a scary word in
brings her signature
a beauty context. But
sparkle to a limited-
this shimmery balm
edition bottle of this
imparts a delicate
jasmine-spiked classic.
crystalline shine, not
a heavy layer of snow.
2. Neutrogena
Rapid Tone Repair 7. UZ Eye Opening
20% Vitamin C Eyeliner. It’s
Serum. Vitamin C can scientifically proven
be more finicky than that you can’t be
a hangry two-year-old. in a bad mood when
But these single-use wearing a flick of
capsules prevent the light-pink, baby-blue,
ingredient from being or lemon-yellow liner.
exposed to air until the (Yes, the studies
very last second for a said even in 2020.)
dark spot diminisher as
strong and stable as a
well-fed grown woman.
8. Eu’Genia
Essence of
3. L’Oréal Paris Lavender Shea
Air Volume Mega Butter. Looking for a
product that can
Mascara. Some
7
soothe itchy elbows,
high-impact mascaras
restore cracked
make your lashes feel
cuticles, and hydrate
like tiny dumbbells.
dry patches from head
But this whipped
to toe? Found it! Just
formula delivers the
pop open this tin of
same dramatic look
sustainably sourced
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lavender-oil-infused
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4. Alpyn Beauty
Wild Huckleberry 9. Bread Beauty
8-Acid Polishing Supply Hair-Oil.
Peel. If the only Because hydrated
Huckleberry you’re curls are healthy curls,
familiar with goes rake this silicone-free
by the last name Finn, safflower and kakadu
it’s time to try this plum oil blend through
antioxidant-packed hair between washes.
ingredient. Here, it’s Or, for some serious
paired with naturally shine, apply it
derived brightening post-shower as a
acids for a lasting glow. leave-in treatment.
16 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021PURE Derm-proven retinol,
RETINOL a high-quality retinoid
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R E P O R T E R
it
B E A U T Y
As dermatologists across the
country began reopening their
offices this summer, many reported
a surge in patients with sudden
and dramatic hair thinning. “I
didn’t go an hour without seeing
a hair loss patient,” says Papri
Sarkar, a dermatologist in Brookline,
Massachusetts.
Many of these patients are
experiencing a form of hair loss
called telogen effluvium, a temporary
condition in which excessive hair
shedding is caused by “a shock to
the system,” says Nazanin Saedi, an
associate professor of dermatology
at Thomas Jefferson University in
Philadelphia. It may be triggered by
unexpected furloughs, knockdown
fevers, or abrupt upendings of daily
routines. And it can translate into
hundreds of hairs falling out every
day; for some, it can be upwards of
double, even triple, the amount of
hairs they’d normally lose, according
to Joshua Zeichner, associate
professor of dermatology at Mount to baseline. “I deliberately tell my The vitamins: If you have lab
Sinai Hospital in New York City. patients, ‘Don’t count [the hairs] that abnormalities, a targeted dose of
“We don’t understand why this fall out,’” says Hausauer. That merely nutrients (like iron or vitamin D) in
occurs, but it’s likely because stress heightens anxiety because there is supplement form is more effective
interferes with the [hair] follicles’ no benefit to fixating on hair loss. than a multivitamin, says Hausauer.
ability to function optimally,” says “If you see a big clump in the shower The leave-in treatment: Topical
Zeichner. When confronted with a or in your hairbrush, I’m a little less minoxidil (in Rogaine) “dilates blood
major physical or emotional stressor, worried about that than if you’re vessels to encourage the optimal
the body eventually responds by seeing hairs on your pillow [when delivery of oxygen and nutrients to
pushing more hairs than usual into you wake up], or on the counter and hair follicles to get all of the hairs
the telogen—or resting—phase of in your food when you’re cooking,” into the anagen phase,” Zeichner
the hair cycle. Over time, this signals she says. Anytime you apply tension says. But it’s not without drawbacks:
them to stop growing, and months to your hair—while shampooing Irritation is common for the first week
later they fall out simultaneously. or styling, say—some strands will or two. If redness, flaking, a rash, or
“The rapid shedding is alarming and naturally give way. Unprovoked a burning sensation persist after 10
FRAUKE FISCHER/BLAUBLUT-EDITION.COM
can lead to temporary but significant shedding, however, may warrant a days, consult your dermatologist,
hair thinning,” he says. call to your dermatologist, who will says Sarkar.
So, just how temporary? “Once likely send you for blood work to The shampoo: Some experts
the stressor is mitigated, shedding check thyroid function (abnormalities pooh-pooh the notion of wash-off
can last three to six months, and then in thyroid hormone levels can cause products, but Saedi says KeraFactor,
you’ll start to get regrowth [as] the hair loss) and parse lab results for a shampoo containing a proprietary
hairs transition back into the anagen nutrient deficiencies (iron, vitamins D peptide complex, started regrowing
[or active growing] phase,” says and B12 “play a role in building strong her hair after a month of use.
Amelia Hausauer, a dermatologist in hair,” says Hausauer). If all checks “I’ve been diligent about using
Campbell, California. But hair growth out, dermatologist-recommended the solution daily and it’s made a
is a very slow process, so it can take treatments help jump-start growth. difference. My ponytail feels fuller
up to a year for hair to get back A few to consider: and looks shinier.” —JOLENE EDGAR
18 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021the choice is
R E P O R T E R
B E A U T Y
Thirty percent of Americans have
at least one tattoo. For the rest of
the population, there’s been the A temporary
option of a temporary version for at sleeve of Tattly
least a century. But it’s just recently tattoos. Below:
Mariah’s
that fleeting tattoos have become
“Scorpio”
a varied and nuanced art form much design for
like their permanent counterparts. Inkbox.
Many companies now collaborate
on designs with the most sought-
after tattoo artists—and are bringing
impressive technology into the mix.
One standout is Tattly. Founder
Tina Roth Eisenberg has worked
with tattoo artists and illustrators,
including Instagram-favorites like
Tea Leigh and Jess Chen, since the
brand launched in 2011. Now, even own design, or create one from a
real-tattoo-havers are eager to find library of fonts and thousands
a spot for these highly detailed of images); every tattoo lasts one
designs, like fanciful lavender and to two weeks. Mariah says her
baby-blue flowers in Chen’s Petite clients often order them to figure
Garden. On average, the vegetable- out the placement for their real tats.
based ink lasts two to four days. The downside: Mariah has seen
Mira Mariah—a.k.a. @girlknewyork, her Inkbox tattoos used as “stencils”
a.k.a. one of Ariana Grande’s go-to by other artists.
tattoo artists—has done three But you can take the artistry into
PORTRAIT: COURTESY OF TATTLY. PRINKER: COURTESY OF BRAND. ILLUSTRATION: MIRA MARIAH.
collaborations with a site called your own hands ethically: Freehand
Inkbox. It has over 4,000 designs to Ink (available at Inkbox) comes in
choose from (Mariah’s “Glorious” traditional black and a shading color
moon is a fan favorite), plus (a lighter black)—it’s a straight-up
customizable options (upload your ink bottle with a tiny tip that enables
you to draw directly on your skin,
with results lasting up to two weeks.
And Prinker, a South Korea–based
company, released a smart temporary
tattoo printer at this year’s Consumer
Electronics Show. Upload your own
design to its companion app (or pick
one from its massive catalog of user- COVID-19 pandemic temporarily shut
and artist-generated options) and down much of the tattoo industry,
the device will print the design onto “we noticed there was a huge interest
your skin using cosmetic-grade ink [in our tattoo printer],” Przygonska
that washes off with soap. The brand adds. Around the same time,
intentionally made these tattoos easier Mariah debuted her second Inkbox
to remove than traditional press- collaboration, a stay-at-home-themed
ons: “We have a really conservative collection, which she hoped would
situation here in South Korea. If you “help people get their tattoo fix.” Stay-
show up [to work] with a [temporary] at-home seems to be a running theme
tattoo, your coworkers and boss in our lives, so we may all be curating
might be really surprised and you our own temporary sleeves for the
The Prinker printer (above) merges inkjet
printing technology, cosmetic ink, and cloud might just get strange looks,” says foreseeable future. —KARA McGRATH
computing to deposit designs right on skin. Magdalena Przygonska, who handles
global marketing at Prinker. When the
20 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021w
fight climate change,” says
Renaud Piazzetta, a forest
engineer and director of
the nonprofit research
R E P O R T E R
group Mediterranean Cork
Institute. On average,
cork trees can live between
150 and 200 years, but
some may be several
hen you think of cork, centuries old. Miraculously, Lush’s Cork Pot “sequesters over 33 times its weight in carbon
if you do, you probably “cork trees are not highly dioxide,” says Nick Gumery, a creative buyer for Lush.
think of wine stoppers, or combustible. The cork bark
maybe dartboards. But protects [other] parts of
cork jars and compacts? the tree, enabling them to
Those are new. They don’t sequester carbon dioxide material advocacy group By now you’re probably
B E A U T Y
exactly glisten in a shelfie, even when wildfires GreenBlue. Birkenstock, wondering: Why aren’t all
but some sustainability decimate a forest,” says which uses cork for the of my lipsticks packaged
experts are banking on Piazzetta. footbed of its shoes, even in cork? Well, fungi can
cork to help shrink the Lush claims that its Cork released a line of suberin- grow on cork and might
beauty industry’s carbon Pot (currently available based skin-care products make a product go bad.
footprint—a Herculean task in the U.K.), for storing in the U.S. earlier this year. Though it is effective for
considering that, in 2018, shampoo bars, is carbon- (Suberin, a waxy substance single-use purposes, like
almost 7.9 billion units of negative—harvesting the that is part of cork’s cell sealing wine, after it’s
rigid plastic were created cork removes more carbon walls, may smooth skin.) used, cork expands. But
for beauty and personal- dioxide from the air than The line’s packaging Corpack is developing
care products in the U.S. is emitted in producing includes cork caps and new blends of cork and
Cork offers a renewable the pot. This is just one of 100 percent recyclable other biodegradable
way forward: It is natural the big advantages cork materials like aluminum. materials. “More and more
and biodegradable (it gets has over other sustainable And cork can be brands are approaching us
broken down by insects packaging solutions: Cork upcycled. Munich-based about cork and cork-blend
over several years). Cork is far lighter than glass, Corpack manufactures packaging,” says Corpack
is harvested from the cork which leaves behind a cosmetics containers CEO Jean-Paul Corbeil,
oak tree (quercus suber) sizable carbon footprint in using a blend that who is working with
found in the western shipping. Plus, “cosmetics includes cork powder brands like Kneipp. “We’re
Mediterranean and along containers are often made left over from wine cork just at the very beginning.”
the Atlantic coast, in out of a type of glass that production. —EUNY HONG
seven countries (including recyclers do not want,” says
Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Nina Goodrich, executive
and France). And cork director of the sustainable
the
can be cut from a layer
of bark without harming
trees. Much as a shorn
sheep regrows wool, cork
future of
regenerates—though a lot
slower (a 25-year-old cork
oak tree can be responsibly
PRODUCT: COURTESY OF BRAND. STILL LIFE: PAUL JUNG/THE LICENSING PROJECT
stripped of its cork once
sustainable
every nine to 12 years).
The cork cell is about
90 percent air, making it
light and insulating to
beauty
the point of being virtually
nonporous, which is why
cork seals wine in bottles—
and why it’s capable of
is… cork?
packaging serums without
sucking up precious
product or letting it leak.
But the most
persuasive argument
for cork packaging may
be this: “Harvesting
cork ‘forces’ the tree to
remanufacture its bark,
and therefore to use
photosynthesis and carbon
dioxide from the air,
[which] helps to mitigate
greenhouse gases and
22 ALLURE DECEMBER/JANUARY 2020OUR MOST POTENT RETINOL.
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R E P O R T E R
IN AT LEAST ONE RESPECT, THE FUTURE IS ANALOG—
FACE-SCULPTING ROLLERS OF ALL SHAPES, SIZES,
AND MATERIALS. (APOCALYPSE BONUS: NO ELECTRICITY
REQUIRED.) BY BRENNAN KILBANE
P R O D U C T
R E V I E W
OLAY: COURTESY OF BRAND. REFA CRYSTAL: COURTESY OF BRAND. SKINOWL THE GLOW STICK, RANAVAT KANSA WAND, BIOLOGIQUE RECHERCHE CRYO-STICKS: JOSEPHINE SCHIELE
B E A U T Y
POWER PLAYER
The emphasis is on “Max” in
Olay Regenerist Retinol24 Max
Night Serum: It’s made with 20
percent more of the brand’s
retinol complex than the rest
of the Regenerist line. Three
Allure editors put it to the test.
“I am, admittedly, just
starting to incorporate
retinol into my routine. I like
how this one isn’t yellow-y
or tacky (I’ve been surprised
by how many others are),
and it’s hydrating, so I
don’t have to ‘sandwich’
it (that’s derm speak for
SKINOWL THE GLOW STICK layering retinol between
I don’t know what to make of the claim basic moisturizer to head
that the 30 embedded germanium off irritation).” —SARAH HAN,
stones “rebalance ions” in my face, but SENIOR COMMERCE WRITER
15 minutes of vertical gliding along my
cheekbones produces an awareness of “The dropper grabs
my bone structure that Timothée the perfect amount of
Chalamet must feel all the time. product—a good control
measure for someone with
sensitive skin like me, who
might otherwise get a little
retinol-happy and wind up
with redness or flakes. I
applied a few drops before
bed and when I woke up
the next morning my skin
definitely had a brighter,
more radiant look. I can’t
wait to keep using it and
see what it does for my dark
spots.” —DIANNA MAZZONE,
SENIOR BEAUTY EDITOR
it in tiny, circular motions is said to
“I’m in my early 40s and I’ve
My cheeks flush for an hour, after
noticed significant changes
in my combination skin—
mostly forehead lines and
sun damage on my cheeks.
This serum has definitely
made my skin look healthier.
I haven’t seen any miracles
yet, but I’ve been waking up
to a plump complexion with
(powered by an hour in my fridge) no sleeping lines and overall
felt like bathing my bones in ice water— brightness. And my cheeks
and made my eyes less puffy for the rest feel so smooth that I never
of the day. (For those on a budget, regret not following up with
chilling your stainless steel cookware a moisturizer.” —MARCI ROBIN,
produces a similar sensation.) CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
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Times Nine palette [2] and my car. I make sure
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L’Oréal Paris Infallible will never be without it.”
Pro-Last Eyeliner [1].”
30 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021L I M I T E D E D I T I O N P R O M OT I O N
Where Art Meets
Fashion
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y’allmeansall
CUTE NAIL STUDIO KEEPS AUSTIN BEAUTY CULTURE WEIRD, INCLUSIVE,
AND DOUSED IN GLITTER. BY ASIA ROSE PHUA
photographed by beth garrabrant
32 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021B E A U T Y
Cute’s staff,
Tucked among the paradoxical like “priestess
extremes of Austin’s East Side, where of aesthetics”
modular yuppie condos share street Elyse Villarreal,
B A C K G R O U N D
corners with gritty hipster bars, stands always cover
their faces.
one rainbow-painted house plucked
Other safety
straight from the cover of your favor- measures
ite Lisa Frank binder from fifth grade. include limited
Meet the Cute Nail Studio. seating,
“[We wanted a place] where you temperature
can come in, be yourself, ask for checks, and
whatever. And we’ll celebrate what- “sanitizing
ever your idea of beauty is and just the hell out
go hard in that direction,” says Jason of everything
between
Darling. He and Maria Darling are
clients.” Below:
the marriedpreneurs behind this
Eye-catching
dreamy, self-proclaimed “queer as nail art is the
fuck” salon, and arguably the most main attraction.
interesting parents on Zoom PTA
meetings. Currently, Jason has an
immaculate black-line art manicure
featuring varying nail lengths and of Cute’s own cuticle oil pens (the and validation that makes you want
shapes. He holds his hand up to the in-house vegan line also includes to call your regular nail salon and
camera during our Zoom call and a rose quartz-infused body scrub, ask if they ever even loved you. This
flares each digit like an accordion and polishes with names like Matte place offers to hold my baby while
fan: “We call them party fingers—util- Le Blanc). But there’s more to Cute’s I’m getting my nails done, and I don’t
itarian and sexy.” Meanwhile, Maria, kaleidoscopic allure than just aesthet- even have a baby! It’s no surprise
face framed by a shag of dark curls, ics. A pink letter board hangs behind Cute’s clients were counting down
is the punk rock version of a Botticelli reception that reads proudly, BLACK the seconds until the salon reopened
girl with dyed armpit hair. The love LIVES MATTER, WASH YOUR HANDS, after two COVID-19 closures (the first
they have for each other and the safe VOTE. lasted three and a half months and
space they’ve cultivated on an other- “We’ll say shit a nail salon really the second, less than a month later,
wise drab downtown Austin street is shouldn’t be saying if they want to was two weeks long).
revolutionary—stepping outside gen- stay in business, but somehow we Mastin, whose museum-
der beauty norms is still a tenuous keep staying in business, which is worthy nail designs include the iconic
notion in the South. really cool,” Jason says. “People have rug pattern from The Shining, a char-
“I’ve been getting my nails done been like, ‘Don’t [mix] business and cuterie board, and odes to Harry
at salons since I was 23 or 24,” Jason politics,’ but every dollar you spend Styles, says, “I have a lot of clients
says. “And every time, most places is political.” where Cute is the only place they’ll
would be like, ‘So, you just want a Every Cute product is formulated [venture right now].” It’s that level
buff?’ And I’d be like, ‘No,’ and get to be safe for people undergoing any of devotion from Cute’s community
a lot of side-eye or people trying to sort of hormone therapy. (Who knew that provides a hopeful glimpse into
pull me away from getting, like, a a lychee-scented body scrub from the future of this small business—a
really slutty red.” Texas would be the newest trans future in which Cute will continue to
It’s safe to say none of the nail ally?) Each element at Cute is consid- do what it does best: celebrate open-
techs at Cute are in the business of ered with a level of care, creativity, hearted, unapologetic beauty.
swaying patrons from living their
slutty-red truth. Their inclusive, wel-
coming energy is felt immediately
through your mask as you step
into the pastel pink salon. Cute is a
clear-eyes, full-heart, can’t-believe-
what-the-hell-is-going-on sensory
experience. It transports you into
a “kawaii disco nightmare,” says
nail artist Kendall Mastin (kawaii is a
Japanese term for cute).
Maybe part of the draw is just the
contact high you get when breathing
in the eerily crisp air, which is a stark
and intoxicating departure from the
smells of polish and acetone synony-
mous with most nail salons. Instead,
a faint aroma of strawberry wafts
throughout the space, the scent
DECEMBER 2020/JANUARY 2021 ALLURE 35PRADA.COM
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O P E N
GETTY IMAGES
THE BIG, BRIGHT AMERICAN SMILE HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED INTO
A COMMODITY OBJECT—AND A SPARKLING BEACON OF INEQUALITY.
BY BRENNAN KILBANE
36 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020
2020/JANUARY 2021It
into an economy of scale, and the straight, white, American
smile into a bankable commodity.
Now 37 years old, etched porcelain veneers are one of
the youngest art forms on earth. (At 37, etched porcelain
veneers are also, technically, millennials.) And like many art
forms, they’ve needed time to evolve. The fake smiles of
the late ’80s and early ’90s skewed large and impossibly
white. “It was kind of like shoulder pads,” says Jon Marashi,
a cosmetic dentist in Los Angeles and a former student of
happens every day and usu- Calamia’s at NYU. “A bad fashion choice.”
ally more than once: When a Marashi is an emphatic speaker, and his every word is
person wishes to signify greet- underlined by the sharpest jawline known to man. Last win-
ings, gratitude, admiration, or ter, at a conference room in lower Manhattan, he reached
otherwise good or chill vibes, into a Louis Vuitton duffel bag and produced a white and
they peel back their lips and gold box labeled “The Marashi Collection” in beaming let-
reveal two rows of about 32 ters and containing six shades of premium porcelain: Sassy
mineral-coated nerve fibers, Smile reflects the worn-in ideal of a wellness scion who for-
embedded in pink tissue, merly chain-smoked; Undeniably White, well, is. It is as if
coated with threads of saliva. when Charles Pincus died in the mid-’80s, his restless spirit
Made up mostly of hydroxyapatite, a relatively weak gem- of aesthetic innovation haunted the streets of Los Angeles
stone, teeth begin to rise from gummy ridges inside the until it found a host in Marashi. His work reflects the cos-
mouth when a baby is around six months old. Those teeth metic dentistry zeitgeist through the Hollywood lens, with
hang on until about the first grade, when they start getting the charmingly perfect smiles of Ben Affleck and Renée
replaced by larger, forever teeth. In various cultures, baby Zellweger, and perhaps many other celebrities you did
teeth are alternately buried, thrown, or exchanged by spir- not realize had the very best in dental renovation. Marashi
its for money, and the incoming teeth herald a child’s arrival originally fixed Joaquin Phoenix’s teeth, unfixed them for
at perhaps the weirdest time in young life. his role in 2019’s Joker, and then refixed them for the press
Things just get more challenging from there, teeth-wise. tour. His clientele also includes people who have not won
Human teeth grow jagged and yellow with time and use, Oscars, such as a robust international contingent who will
but contemporary beauty standards favor teeth that are fly to Los Angeles for the opportunity to smile like they just
neatly arranged and in a shade of white. I know it seems won an Oscar.
like I am writing from the perspective of some kind of alien Marashi doesn’t love the stereotypical Hollywood smile.
robot, but precision is very important in cosmetic dentistry. Don’t get him wrong—some people love it, and those
A leader in the field once told me that he could tweak the people are beautiful and special in their own way. But
masculine-feminine interpretations of my genealogy just the cosmetic dentistry vanguard is obsessed with toiling
by changing the shape of my canine teeth. I thought about in secrecy on teeth that look like they could have sprung
this for days. And then I called more dentists. forth from the mouth of their wearer, even if they were
I learned that America is the number-one exporter of placed there by hand.
smiles in the world—smiles typified by bigness and white- Stephanie Dumanian is a fashion-y New York City den-
ness and straightness. tist in a rising class of fashion-y dentists who retain pub-
GETTY IMAGES
Humans have had teeth for as long as they can remem- licists and fastidiously maintain a presence on Instagram.
ber and have been whitening them for just as long using She describes this as a more “East Coast” approach to
basically whatever objects were lying around, probably to teeth design, using words like “natural” and “harmonious.”
emulate optimum health. There is a reproductive survival In the 21st century, it is no longer fashionable to appear as
argument for white teeth, perhaps, but we’re not going though you’ve had cosmetic dental work done, presumably
to get into that right now. We’re here to talk about “good because it would anger the American proletariat.
teeth,” a concept first embedded in human consciousness The big, straight, white American smile is as much an
in the years before and after World War II. That’s when Hol- indicator of good oral hygiene as a tiny waist is of diges-
lywood dentist Charles Pincus popularized tooth caps for tive health. “People want to have a healthy smile,” Duma-
movie stars like Judy Garland (whose smile was dotted with nian says. “But realistically, you don’t need your teeth in
gaps) and James Dean (who lost two front teeth reportedly order to survive.” A healthy smile could look fleshy, wet,
after a “trapeze accident”). Pincus made a transitional set and pink, to indicate good circulation, but it is not the look
for Shirley Temple between the loss of her baby teeth and most people are going for. Instead, a smile is a beacon of
the arrival of her adult teeth to avoid costly filming delays. economic power, another thing for the Haves to have that
Walt Disney and Bob Hope were Pincus clients, as was Joan the Have-Nots have not. Even among American adults with
Crawford, who renovated her face in the 1930s by adding private health insurance, only half have dental coverage for
a set of Pincus’s caps. Her new teeth “made her lips look basic oral hygiene appointments; in a recent survey, one-
fuller, her teeth longer and whiter, and helped give her a third of Americans had not seen a dentist in the past year.
‘femme fatale’ smile,” according to dentist Timothy Gogan, It’s not always easy to tell who those Americans are, until
who studied under Pincus. the moment they open their mouth, and then it becomes
Pincus’s veneers, a mix of powdered plastic and porce- very easy. Because orthodontia, regular cleanings, and the
lain, snapped onto the teeth of his clients and clung there occasional whitening only result in teeth that look unmem-
for anywhere from a few hours to a few days before requir- orable and basically fine.
ing replacement. Then, in 1983, John Calamia, a cosmetic A casual sleuth could estimate an American family’s
dentist at New York University, helped invent the contem- economic caste simply by looking at their teeth in photos:
porary veneer by creating a better fit that could reliably stay The average set of braces costs more than a Fendi bag, but
put for many years: the snowflake-precise, etched porce- nevertheless is a painful rite of maturity for many children
lain veneer technique. This, plus an extensive body of pub-
lished work on the topic, probably turned custom veneers Right: a handful of American smiles
38 ALLURE DECEMBER 2020
2020/JANUARY 2021of the American middle class, an investment in their per- have gorgeous smiles? How many people have straight,
W I D E
sonal and professional futures. Parents might choose to white teeth? And now that I’m thinking about it: What are
finance the several-thousand-dollar hope that nobody pay the odds that their teeth naturally look this good, their
too much attention to their kids’ perfectly average mouths. lips hovering just so above the gumline? That their teeth
And then there are teeth that you might notice, but in naturally appear to be displayed on shelves, rather than
the most positive way. “Think about the best-looking peo- suggesting that they break down food into ingestible bits
O P E N
ple in our society: your Beyoncés, your Julia Robertses,” before it can begin a path through the human digestive
says Rhonda Kalasho, a cosmetic dentist in Los Angeles. system?
“They don’t look like they have giant white teeth. They have The odds are extremely low. Over the past few decades,
smiles that fit their faces.” And for that, we are no longer an aesthetic dissonance has grown between humans
talking about the cost of a Fendi bag, but the cost of reup- seen in the corridors of our daily lives, i.e., at the check-
holstering your entire life in gorgeous Italian calfskin. out counter and the kitchen table, and the ones who live in
“Let’s say I’m watching the Oscars,” I ask Dumanian. our televisions and smartphones. Some people have nice
“What percentage of all-natural teeth am I seeing?” teeth thanks to a genetic win or, far more likely, thanks to
Dumanian closes her gold-dusted eyes for five ponder- the superhuman discipline required to continuously wear
ous seconds before offering her estimate: “I would say... a retainer from age 16 until death. Most people, though,
20 percent?” have just fine or somewhat crooked or otherwise unre-
That is much higher than I’d thought. I turn on my tele- markable natural teeth, which is probably why uncrooked,
vision and see nothing but the brilliant pottery of manu- better-than-fine teeth have become mythologized to repre-
factured smiles reflected back at me. It is amazing that sent success. Cardi B famously bought a bag and fixed her
the HBO series Game of Thrones takes place in a quasi- teeth; Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did too.
medieval fantasy universe, but concubines and kings alike The president of the United States has some of the most
sport two tidy rows of plaqueless white teeth. The cool recognizable teeth of the era: Two rows of searing pearl
teens of Euphoria must have all undergone serious ortho- that leap forth from a jerkied complexion. False teeth are
dontia in middle school—they arrive at the events of season so entrenched in the lore of the American presidency that
one with heartbreaking smiles. children are taught in school about George Washington’s
It’s a fun game to play while scrolling through Instagram, wooden set. (The wood thing is a myth; his dentures were
browsing on Netflix, or otherwise visiting the natural habi- composed from a serial killer’s grab bag that included loose
tats of those who are paid to look good: How many people metals and a combination of human, and probably cow and
horse, teeth.)
Teeth and imagery have been inextricably linked since
The smile is another 1840, when the first dental college in America was estab-
lished in Maryland, and also when the first camera was
thing for the Haves
patented—by a dentist. “Photography and professional den-
tistry were born at precisely the same moment in history,”
writes journalist Mary Otto in Teeth: The Story of Beauty,
to have that the Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America. Otto
traces the American smile through the advent of the photo-
Have-Nots have not.
graph—and the newfangled capability of capturing a “per-
manent self”—to the office of Charles Pincus, to the silver
screen, to the hearts and minds of Americans. “And den-
tists would learn from Hollywood, Pincus predicted,” Otto
writes. “They would shape the American smile.”
Pincus died in 1986, at which point the concept of good
teeth had grown into a society-wide demand for them. A
dental care market that began in the 1950s, borne out of
the invention of toothpaste that contained fluoride, a min-
eral discovered to have miraculous potential for preventing
cavities, has now mushroomed to include far less studied
innovations like CBD toothpastes, charcoal flosses, and
other things people hope will make them feel good, but
more importantly, look good.
After speaking with dozens of cosmetic dentists, I’ve
noticed something that sets them apart from other pro-
fessionals I have encountered: So many of them are quick
to describe their work as uniquely, intensely, almost mag-
ically gratifying, in a way that ER nurses and firefighters—
and even, in my experience, dermatologists and plastic
surgeons—simply do not. “I am redefining how my patients
see themselves; I am giving them confidence; my patient
did not love himself until today; she was ugly until I made
her beautiful; I am changing lives, not for the better, but
for the best.”
I wish they were being hyperbolic, because that would
be funnier to me personally, but unfortunately they are not.
Among the first things you notice about a person are the
contents of their mouth. It happens every day and usually
more than once: A person smiles, displaying two sets of
teeth...and so much more.You can also read
