Rihanna Wears The First Durag On British Vogue

Rihanna does it again! She has graced us with an amazing British Vogue cover and this one makes a major statement for black culture. On this cover Rihanna wore the first durag to ever be featured on the cover of British Vogue.

The durag is a staple in black beauty for both men & women. It is a piece of fabric that has become so focal in current fashion and Rihanna rocks it proudly. The styling for this shoot is so on point. The stylist Edward Enninful states on Instagram, “

The May 2020 issue of @BritishVogue portrays @BadGalRiri for a new decade – non-conforming, authoritative and exuding style.

He featured designers like Maison Margiela and Rick Owens who are known for pieces that be can appear very unisex. Using structured pieces and mixing them with more form-fitting pieces is so amazing to me and something that I use in my personal style today. Rihanna has always been able to step outside of boundaries that normal standards stand by. Let’s use this cover to show that the culture is taking steps and breaking boundaries that most people wouldn’t think we would.

Gimmie That Look: Elisa Johnson

Hi readers! As many of you know the world is at a weird place right now and with everyone doing self-isolation I have been thinking of ways to enhance the blog and more creative things to post, so I can up with “Gimmie That Look”.

The idea around “Gimmie That Look” is that I will different outfits from different celebrities and/or influencers and then I will find dupes for their outfits for cheaper and more accessible. Many of us want to enhance our closets or look chicer and this is a way to find cute outfits for when all this mess is over and done with.

First up is Elisa (of course). I love Elisa’s style and I have picked 3 outfits that I love and will find dupes.

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OUTFIT #1

In this first outfit, Elisa has on a custom corset top from a NY based brand BANDE NYC and jeans from Y/Project with a pair of black booties and a black purse. So in this recreation, I decided to pick some budget-friendly pieces that won’t break our pockets. The corset top is from Dolls Kill and I styled it with these tailored straight-leg pants from ASOS and a black leather bootie and a mini bag from ASOS as well.

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OUTFIT#2

This second look is Elisa at the Lanvin grand opening back in 2019. Her button-up dress is Lanvin and she paired it with a Maison Margiela trench. Her shoes are from a brand named Paris Texas based in Italy and mini yellow bag. The recreation I found was a little difficult. I found this white button-up dress from PrettyLittleThing and paired it with a black trench from Zara. Now I could not find an affordable pair of dark green crocodile boots, but I did find this black pair from PrettyLittleThing and they look so cuteeee and I found this yellow bag from FashionNova.

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OUTFIT #3

This last outfit is something that I would personally wear tbh. Elisa has on a Harley Davidson tee with an Alexander McQueen corset waist belt. The jeans are from RE/DONE and her shoes are Alexander McQueen as well. In my recreation, I found a different graphic tee from Urban Outfitters and paired it with a waist belt from ASOS. The light-washed mom jeans are from Zara and the black booties are from Zara as well.

This is going to be something I continue each week. Make sure yall go follow Elisa on Instagram and get some more fashion inspiration. If you have any person you want me to recreate next leave a comment or DM via Instagram

How to Handle Nonpayment As A Freelancer

So you’re a freelancer and getting booked. You’ve worked hard on the project, turned it in on time with no complaints. 30 days go by……no check, no direct deposit. What do you do now? Well you’ve come to the right place.

I’ve been a freelancer for almost one full year and I have ran into a few issues that I feel should be touched on because I couldn’t find advice on any of the topics that helped me. Today we are going to touch on payment as a freelancer. Before I touch on how to deal with nonpayment first lets talk about what you can do to make sure this doesn’t happen.

Communication:

-Always make sure to keep a steady line of communication with whomever is cutting your check. Make sure to touch on making a contract and if no contract is made make sure to lay down terms via email (so you have references)

Contract:

-DON’T DO WORK WITHOUT A CONTRACT. I have made this mistake many times and I have always ran into so many issues. Use a contract to define your payment terms.

Now lets hit some main points to know how to handle nonpayment.

First, you need to make sure you have waited 30 business days before inquiring about an outstanding invoice, unless otherwise stated in your contract. After 30 days follow up with a email and attach he invoice to each email so they know which one is being referenced.

If they haven’t respond to your emails I would suggest going forward with a demand letter which can be found here via The Freelancers Union.

The Freelancers Union is a great resource for all freelancers based in New York. You can file complaint forms through their email and they will help try to get your invoice paid. They can also help with advice if you do have to go to court.

I used their website during the times I had nonpament issues and things have gone fairly well.

Lastly, remember that you are the only freelancer to have to fight for their payment (unfortunately), so just remain calm and professional and everything will turn out in your favor.