009: Mailbag Alert & Best LDW Fashion

WELCOME BACK FRIENDS 🌱

In our last summer dispatch, we’re rounding up the best of your questions before we head into what is sure to be a jam-packed fall. Consider joining as a Founding Supporter and invest directly in championing diaspora creatives.

Wishing you an incredible long weekend ahead.

DISPATCH 009 —

This week, we’re sharing our pick of niche beauty brands hyper-focused on their target customers, incoming news from London Fashion Week, and how to get your own LM Stool in New York. But first, mailbag alert…

MAILBAG ALERT

You asked and we answered!

BEST LABOR DAY WEEKEND FASHION FINDS?

We’ve had our eye on this long sleeved top from Wales Bonner ever since Solange Knowles wore it in her Apartamento interview, now on sale at Net-A-Porter. If you missed a chance to score Bianca Saunders, Bergdorf Goodman has a matching set that could easily find its way into a getaway weekend. Diotima crystal mesh dress on Moda Operandi is the ultimate balance of modesty and sex appeal.

WHERE TO GET MY NEXT JEWELRY PIECE?

If you’re in the self-gifting mood, we love fine jewelry finds from Mateo New York (like this 14k rainbow sapphire tennis bracelet), empowering made-to-order pure silver pieces from emerging label Legacy founded by top model Adesuwa Aighewi, fanciful beading from Don’t Let Disco, and if in need of a classic silhouette, you probably cannot go wrong with Bernard James.

WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO?

Truth be told, there is a lot to look forward to this fall season. With fashion weeks across the globe, there will be an outpouring of creative expression from newcomers and established brands alike — we are keen to see the latest from UK labels Casely-Hayford and Duro Olowu, Lagos brands Abiola Olusola and IAMISIGO, and US designers Theophilio and Luar.

NICHE BEAUTY

Perhaps it is part of a broader shift away from the mainstream, but more and more brands are launching with a hyper-specific focus on serving the discreet needs of their chosen consumer base.

In the beauty space, which can feel both intimately personal and a signifier of one’s participation in a collective, these brands are taking a novel approach to sharing lesser known stories with a consumer who truly cares. Take a look!

MAYA NIJE

Maya Nije is a gender neutral fragrance brand inspired by Swedish and West African influences. “Perfume can be elitist,” Nije recently shared with the Financial Times regarding her eponymous brand’s efforts to democratize fragrances for a new generation. The release of a limited edition fragrance is a highly anticipatory event for the brand’s clientele — each scent has a personal anecdote, a photograph, and a color palette to help bring this daily ritual to life. www.mayanjie.com

THIS HAIR OF MINE

Founded by hair stylist Cyndia Harvey, This Hair of Mine launched a texture-first scalp serum leveraging a suite of plant-based ingredients, pioneering research, and sustainable best practices. Scalp care is a sub-category within the haircare space that had historically gone overlooked. By focusing on specific ingredients including pomegranate enzyme, moringa, and peppermint, which may not be in one’s regular rotation of products, the brand’s careful selection of these elements make the use of this product such a special treat. www.thishairofmine.world

KOBA SKINCARE

KOBA Skincare is a clean, vegan skincare brand made with safou oil, a vegetable oil derived from the safou fruit commonly found in Central and Western Africa. Congolese founder Therese M’Boungoubaya developed KOBA’s first product as a foot cream due to the gap in the marketplace. With its growing roster of products, the brands’s core priority is all about boosting hydration for its consumer base. www.kobaskincare.com

ON OUR RADAR

T-15 to London Fashion Week! Our eyes are on Mowalola with their fourth fashion week showing for SS24 entitled crash. (Link)

Solange Knowles and her multidisciplinary collection Saint Heron celebrated the launch of a new glassware collection Small Matter: Form Glassware 001 at the home of pioneering architect Paul R. Williams. (Link)

Liz Johnson-Artur’s roundup of Carnival is in a word supreme — you might miss it. (Link)

Tickets are on sale for the annual The New Yorker Festival this October. A conversation between Simone Leigh and Thelma Golden is on the docket and we’re eagle eyes for whatever session Hilton Als is moderating. (Link)

Five fresh color ways of the LM Stool by nmbelloStudio are now available and shipping within New York. (Link)