Photography: Underground NYC
Wardrobe Stylist: Marcus Blassingame
Hair & Makeup: Kelsey Adams
Mermaid Gown: Samantha Samuels
"New York is calling me, it's on the phone."
In the depths of the concrete jungle, I have fallen madly in love with the spirit of New York City. The fashion, the culture, the people, the food, the energy, the hustle, the subway performers, the blue bottle coffee, and those fresh croissants that flake off a little when you bite 'em.
Shooting with Underground NYC is always such a pleasure. He really knows how to capture the true essence of this beautiful, crazy, cool city. For this collaboration we shot the brand new subway station in Upper East Side Manhattan at 96th St & 2nd Ave. The walls are coated with vibrant blue porcelain tiles and floating white paper decals by artist Sarah Sze.
My wardrobe stylist, Marcus Blassingame, pulled this elegantly-layered gown made by designer Samantha Samuel at Fashion Sixty4, is adorned with sequins following the hourglass cut and criss-cross halter neckline. Consistent with one of this season's "it" trend, the deep-V opening on the chest accentuates the sensuality any woman should feel.
The waterfall movement of this neoprene piece moves fluidly as you walk. Another simple, yet stand-out, detail is the back zipper that goes all the way to the bottom of the fluted skirt.
"The waterfall movement of this neoprene piece moves fluidly as you walk."
From time to time I like to do my own hair and makeup for editorials and for my blog. I kept my look fairly simple since my gown is so extravagant. I prepped my skin with Korres Vitamin E Face Primer, followed by MAC Pro Longwear in NC42. My skin tone isn't even, so I corrected the darker spots with the red/orange creme in the Graftobian High Definition Color Palette. I also used the same palette for my highlight and contour tones. I set these cremes with my favorite Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder. I completed this look with lashes, a cat eye, soft tones on my lids, and pumped up the color with my Urban Decay Rouge À Lèvres matte lipstick from the VICE collection.
