August 24, 201311 yr Ghubar Magazine (Interview) SD : Tell me about your daily beauty routine. JM : First thing waking up, I say thanks for what I have and all my blessings. it's part of the inner beauty process. It may sounds very cliché but a beauty routine starts from inside, as we - women - will always have to adapt and change our beauty products, the essential substance must come from inside : Self love, good and healthy food, a lot of water, an active life, sleep, and positive thoughts...Then lastly beauty products. I drink a lot of water in the morning as I get ready for my day, it helps flushing out all the toxins before leaving the house for the day. When I am not working, I never wear make up on my face, just SPF and a light day cream since my skin easily catches the sun. In humid environments like New York in the summer, Carribean and Africa, I usually put a bit of pure coconut oil on my face and it works wonderfully for me. My hair is natural so I shampoo and condition every 3 days, and in between let it breathe and let it be. I might put a bit of coconut oil at night on my ends. I braid my hair at night before a job or big casting so my curls unfold beautifully in the morning. Before going to bed, I shower and scrub the impurities of the day ; I usually use a mild cleanser (that amazing Trader's Joe 'all in one' facial cleanser), and the 5% Glycolic Night cream from Reviva . Do you work out? To be honest, I'm not really a gym person. Still, when I am in New York I like running outside, and hiking when I'm in LA. The only indoor exercise I do is Yoga Bikram and swimming (in winter, mostly). But I try to stay as much active as I can. When I cannot do any of that, I jump the rope. It's a really good thing to stay in shape. SD : 3 products you can't live without? JM : Hmmm... Any Good Day time SPF, Glycolic Serum at night, and Strawberry Labello . SD : Your ultimate beauty secret ? JM : Acceptance of myself . According to you, the most important thing for a woman is... ? JM : Tons of self love, then the rest is easy. SD : Your favourite quote? JM : "One is loved because One is loved. No reason needed for loving" Paulo Coelho .
October 18, 201311 yr Recognize her? This isn't the first time you've seen her naked Gorgeous, intriguing, exotic… Jessi M’Bengue. You’d have to have been living under a particularly sound-proof, pop-culture-proof rock not to have at least heard of Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines video, the one that put Emily Ratajkowski‘s name onto everyone’s lips. M’Bengue’s name may not be as well known but it was always her toned, dark shoulders I was admiring while she played the banjo like she meant it alongside a peppy Pharrell Williams. Hair cropped and lips bereft of any lipstick, M’Bengue looks different – but no less captivating. Possibly more so. Her exotic looks are the gift of her parents: a French Algerian mother and an Ivorian-Senegalese father. And in his short fashion film of M’Bengue, director Alexi Papalexopoulos plays perfectly to her body and her beauty. Mirror images, plays with shadows and use of silhouettes – coupled with a soundtrack of Bonobo’s electronica-jazz – make the film feel like a long lost James Bond title sequence. Papalexopoulos’ aim was to create something “timelessly sexy”, something with substance. “I am fascinated by mysteriously seductive characters,” he tells me, “and a lot of my photo work has those elements in it.” Mysteriously seductive? Yes. Worth watching in full? Most definitely. You can see all of Jessi M’Bengue by Alexi Papalexopoulos (apdirector.com) by hitting play below.
October 28, 201311 yr Sheila's Shawls Judith illustrates the colourful shawls by designer Sheila Johnson.
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