For actress Novi Brown, her second season at New York Fashion Week wasn’t about chasing every trend. Instead, she leaned into looks that made her feel grounded, confident, and ready for the whirlwind. “I opted for ease, but still a statement,” she tells ESSENCE.
That philosophy came through in her hair choices. The Sistas actress had recently discovered Brazilian Wool on Pinterest, where she found an inspiring style from a braider in Ghana. Insert: thick knotless braids with a texture she had never seen before. “I wanted that look but with knots on the end,” she says. Longtime braider Nene Gibbs brought her vision to life, giving her a bold, sculptural style that carried her through the first half of the week.
For the second half, she switched gears with a kinky straight blowout—“flirty and full, almost effortless,” she says. This style gave her flexibility: whether worn loose or tied up in a bun. “These two styles were easy for me to manage with all the running around,” she explains. “I even kept a bandana in my bag for reinforcement!”
When it came to makeup, Brown decided to take matters into her own hands. “I opted to do my own makeup this time around,” she says. After taking a few lessons from makeup artist Marquis Ward, she felt confident enough to perfect a soft beat on her own. Skin prep was key—hydrating masks from Neutrogena and Korean sheet masks with collagen or retinol kept her complexion plump before application.
For the base, she reached for LYS foundation and Fenty Skin Tint, adding concealers from WYN, blush from Rare Beauty, and bronzers from Milk and Danessa Myricks. Her powder of choice was Hourglass, with lips defined by MAC Chestnut liner and glosses from MAC (Oyster Girl) and Milani. The final step? A spritz of LYS setting spray.
Still, she wasn’t afraid to strip it back. “There were three days I opted for barely any makeup—just blush, lipgloss, and mascara,” she admits. “It was so hot, I didn’t feel like sweating.” For her, confidence came not from how much product was on her face, but how well she felt inside.
“Being healthy makes me feel the most confident ahead of big events,” Brown shares. Leading up to fashion week, she underwent what she calls a massive health transformation, complete with vitamin C drips, vitamin D supplements (“so important for anxiety and depression, especially in Black people”), colonics, and food allergy testing. “No outfit was going to change how I felt about myself on the inside. That’s where the work always needs to stem from,” she says.
Self-care also played a major role, even if it was hard to prioritize during the chaos. “Silence is necessary because the social battery is on 1,000+,” she explains. Time spent with her mom, best friends, and even a bike ride around Central Park the day before shows gave her clarity. A massage before heading to New York didn’t hurt either.
And of course, no glam routine was complete without music. “I love Apartment Life or other dope DJ sets on YouTube,” she says. Singing off-key, dancing around, and grabbing a slice of pizza before heading out kept her in high spirits. “Getting ready is just as much about joy as it is about beauty.”
