Maria Grazia Chiuri's September 2016 Dior collection didn't just signal her debut at the storied French fashion house — it launched the now-ubiquitous T-shirt heard 'round the world. Printed with the phrase 'We should all be feminists,' a quote taken from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Beyoncé-sampled TED talk, the sentiment hit a nerve with those both in and outside the fashion industry. And though the garment itself was a bit divisive — 1) coming from an elitist world that propels questionable representations of women; and 2) being a product made for profit (Dior later announced proceeds would go towards Rihanna's non-profit, The Clara Lionel Foundation) — it reinvigorated conversations about fashion's role in protest, and vice versa.

A new exhibition at London's Fashion and Textile Museum explores this relationship, charting the T-shirt's evolution from conception, through Vivienne Westwood's outspoken slogans, to the feminist messages we see today. With over 200 iconic archival pieces on display, T-Shirt: Cult — Culture — Subversion, which opens February 9, shows how writing a message on a tee can bring about social change or cause shifts in culture.

Although it's one of the earliest 'fashioned' garments in history, the word 'T-shirt' was only coined in the 1920 F. Scott Fitzgerald novel This Side of Paradise. (It was added to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary the very same year.) In the '50s, movie stars like Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire and James Dean in Rebel Without a Cause popularized the piece, and helped shift its reputation as underwear to outerwear

Fast-forward to the '60s and, thanks to the invention of the multicolor screen printing machine, T-shirts became cheaper and easier to produce. Because of the change in accessibility, the tee became a signifier of your cultural associations: From the tie-dye-wearing Woodstock hippies to the rock 'n' roll fans who wore the now-iconic tongue and lips tee created by John Pasche for The Rolling Stones, the garment was no longer just functional — but a way to make a statement.

Of course, those statements weren't just related to pop culture, but politics, too. Designer Katharine Hamnett has been making slogan T-shirts since the '80s, when she infamously greeted Margaret Thatcher during London Fashion Week wearing her "58% don't want Pershing" tee, to let the then-prime minister know how the majority of the UK felt about the relocation of US missiles to UK soil.

"It was huge, I had no idea it was going to become so iconic," Hamnett tells Refinery29 of the moment. "The power of the slogan T-shirt is that it's on your body, so it becomes a part of you. There's no filter." But despite the fact that the encounter became one of the most memorable political protests in modern history, Hamnett discourages us from thinking that it starts — and ends — with a worn slogan. "While these T-shirts are always relevant, whether it's anti-nuclear or anti-pollution, it's not going to save the world. You need to get out there. Jeremy Corbyn said, 'The only thing that changes a politician's behavior is something that threatens their ability to get re-elected.'"

She still, however, has some faith in the statement T-shirt — her most recent creation, which reads 'second referendum now,' centers on the Brexit vote. Because even if fashion labels themselves can't veer too close to the political, or don't get it right, as many don't (with the exception of Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney, she notes), clothes created outside the industry are often able to influence the decisions made within it. (Think: PETA's '90s anti-fur T-shirts, or last summer, when Frank Ocean wore a design by 18-year-old Kayla Robinson which read, 'Why be racist, sexist, homophobic or transphobic when u could just be quiet?') And that shows the true power of wearing protest on your chest.

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When you think of French girls, you probably envision flawless red lips and perfectly-imperfect lobs. We praise French girls for their effortlessly-chic style and carefree approach to beauty, but let's be real, Black French girls are rarely included in that narrative — until now.

"Thanks to the internet, blogs, Instagram, and YouTube, women who were once ignored have the power to redefine what French girl beauty is," Scheena Donia says. She's among the Parisian influencers who are showing an alternative side of Gallic beauty — and it's so refreshing to see. Contrary to what the media might have led you to believe, not every women walking down Rue Bonaparte is a carbon copy of Jane Birkin in style or attitude.

Instead, natural curls and kinks, royal blue lipstick, and locs are popping up on the feeds of our friends in Europe — and the women who possess them have a strong sense of inner-beauty, too. "We must learn to love ourselves in the first place and not wait for people to validate our well-being," Donia adds. "If you feel beautiful and confident, you can accomplish everything!" Of course, a mean skin-care routine doesn't hurt, either.

Ahead, five French Black girls share the products that they swear by to express themselves in the city of lights.

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From the Speed trainer to the Triple S, Balenciaga has been blazing the trail for "ugly" It-sneakers with a pretty price tag — so much so that despite the steep investment, you can hardly even get your hands on a pair. But they're already on the feet of every style star you follow on Instagram. So what's next?

The buzzy Archlight sneaker by Louis Vuitton, which debuted last Paris Fashion Week, is available for purchase as of Thurdsay at a special pop-up shop in New York City ahead of its worldwide launch on February 23. Located in Soho at 122 Greene Street, the space will run through March 10 and, in addition to stocking the worldwide colorways, it will also offer an exclusive shade of the Archlight: the all-black.

On the runways, these stompers were styled with everything from bright-white suits and satin shorts to T-shirt dresses and metallic trousers, so even if they may seem intimidating, the brand's already proved their versatility. The price tag, however, may be a bit more difficult to swallow: Coming in at $1,090, these will likely be the most expensive sneakers you own if you do take the plunge. But, hey, no one ever said swag — or bragging rights — come cheap.

Click ahead to scope out the shoes for yourself, and be sure to stake your ground at the pop-up sooner rather than later if you're planning to hop on-board the chunky designer sneaker trend once and for all.

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If everyone but your PJs are on the receiving end of getting some love and care this month, it's time to rethink your sleepwear choices. While we're not knocking our go-to nightly mix and match of old college tees and boxers, sometimes we could use a step up in the pajama department.

On Thursday, & Other Stories is sliding a new capsule collection into your shopping carts just in time for Valentine's Day. And whether you're in need of a little solo pampering at home or slacking on those V-Day gifts for your S.O. or friends (or mom!), the new offering is dreamy (pun always intended). Featuring an array of luxe sleepwear from matching sets to velvet dressing gowns, the entire drop is set to make you bring out your inner glam — even when you're just binge watching in your bed with a bag of cheese puffs.

Though the collection is explicitly nightwear, our continuing love affair with PJs as streetwear means we're eyeing also some of these for our everyday wardrobe, from a silky white romper ready to be layered over a few long-sleeve knits to a pair of pom-pom slippers we wish we could grab in time for New York Fashion Week. The 17-piece selection will include items from ready-to-wear to accessories with prices ranging from $85 - $125. Get a sneak peek at the pieces ahead before you can shop the collection at stories.com on February 8.

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Kylie Jenner returned to Snapchat this past Monday, one day after the surprise announcement that she had given birth to her daughter, Stormi. After swiping through the first six Snaps, we noticed a pattern. Some of us went back for screenshots so we could more closely examine the situation, while others turned to texts or tweets to try and make sense of it all. What it looked like from these 10-second flashes was that flowers were taking over Kylie Jenner’s home.

Anyone well-versed in the habits and luxurious quirks of the Kardashian-Jenner clan, knows they love flowers. When entertaining, even just for their weekly family dinners (see Khloé’s most recent Snaps), they decorate with precise arrangements. However, with multiple births and pregnancies to celebrate, lately there have been more flowers than ever before blasted across the Kardashian-Jenner social media accounts.

Each arrangement during this period of heavy floral concentration has, of course, been, well, extra. We’re not talking about a crystal vase with a few dozen stems. We are talking about full on living sculptures. Most of the displays have been made of roses, which are then shaped into letters, hearts, paw prints, and the weirdest so far: a skull. We could no longer consume Snap after Snap featuring another new extravagant arrangement without asking some questions. And, of course, the number one thing we wanted needed to know was: How much might one of these arrangements might set you back?

Here's the thing: For as much as America’s royal family loves to show the world the molded arrangements that show up at their homes, it’s near impossible to uncover specific details about them. First, we reached out to Jeff Leatham, the celebrity florist who is close friends with the family — Kris Jenner officiated his October wedding to Colton Hayes — and also happens to be their go-to florist. When we got Leatham on the phone to see if any of Kylie’s recently shared floral gifts had come from his studio, he explained that because he’s a friend of the family and they are his clients, he could not provide us with any information. We get it, you can’t exactly cross someone who has communed with God on behalf of you and your S.O., especially if that someone is Kris Jenner.

Next we reached out to around ten florists in the Los Angeles-area to see if they could share an expert opinion. Sohee Choo, the general manager of Empty Vase in West Hollywood told us that the business had worked with the Kardashian-Jenner family in the past and had signed an NDA, so she too was unable to help.

After even more digging, it became clear that even the florists who had never worked with the Kardashian-Jenners did not want to speculate about their flower proclivities. Finally, we tracked down one California florist who was willing to give us some price estimates, but asked for anonymity to be included in our piece. After we spoke on the phone, they contacted us again via email to reiterate the anonymity request. The rejections and anonymity requests may seem extreme, but we get it: Discretion reigns supreme for celebrities, and all of the florists we spoke to (or didn't speak to) were protecting their clients.

By looking, at the photos on social media, our mystery florist estimated that the large round ball of white, light pink, hot pink, and red roses sent to Kylie and Stormi by Kim and Kanye cost around $5,000. The large vases of roses, which we believe were from Travis Scott or whoever “my [heart emoji]” is, probably cost around $1,500. From what we've seen on social media, Kylie alone received around a dozen such arrangements; if you do that math, that's anywhere from $18,000 to $60,000 worth of flowers. Based on wholesale rose prices, and the fact that Kylie stated the exact number of roses in one particular arrangement (443, for the time Stormi was born), that second price estimation checks out.

We also asked how these elaborate arrangements are set up. They confirmed the studio would have sent someone into Kylie’s home to put it together, especially with something cascading and sculptural like what Khloé sent. The florist revealed that even when there aren’t baby girls involved, the Kardashian-Jenners tend to gravitate towards pinks, whites, and pale colors with their flower arrangements.

Our journey to find out how much money had been spent on flowers for Kylie Jenner since she gave birth left us with two key takeaways. First, we learned that Kim and Kanye may have spent more on one congratulatory flower arrangement for Kylie than they did on their newsworthy see-through crib. Second, no one can strike panic in the hearts of florists quite like the Kardashian-Jenner family.

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A cook’s intuition is something you either have or you don’t. Kind of like 20/20 vision, or an inclination toward kindness. Some people can, with a shrug of Parisian casualness, combine ingredients in a way that reminds others what their mouths are for — not just for sustenance, but for pleasure. Others burn down the house while trying to boil water.

For the record, I did not mean to set a kitchen towel on fire while I was boiling water for spaghetti. But kitchen choreography never came naturally to me. After that incident, I hung up the apron and my cooking ambitions. The spontaneity that cooking seemed to require — the way my mom confidently threw things in a pot with the assumption they’d taste good together — terrified me.

So it was out of a sense of earnest desperation that I tweeted at Antoni Porowski, the cooking expert of Netflix’s Queer Eye reboot, to help me figure out a kitchen like he helped the flailing gents in the show’s trailer. To my surprise, Porowski responded, “Let’s do it.” We set a date, and the next thing I knew, I was meeting Porowski at the Tribeca Whole Foods in Manhattan to gather ingredients for a baked feta dip. He promised it would be so easy even amateurs like me could make it.

Picking out lemons in the produce aisle, we immediately find something in common: We are both easily distracted in grocery stores. He is distracted by the recipe ideas that ricochet in his mind (he never goes shopping hungry). And I ramble through Whole Foods with the same wide-eyed wonder as I do at a Michael’s craft store. I want to expertly string the colorful components lining the aisles into a cohesive whole, but don’t know where to start. They are words in a language I haven’t yet mastered.

Luckily, Porowski knows how to speak food, and after days of Queer Eye press, he’s happy to be back in his element. He plops multicolored olives in a bucket, and parses the different brands of feta, from Bulgarian sheep’s milk to Green dodoni, before selecting the kind he wants. He has a favorite brand of olive oil. I am out of my league.

But I’m also in good hands. On Queer Eye, Porowski tailored cooking tutorials to the specifics of each episode subject’s lifestyle. He taught a father of six to make an army’s worth of chili, and a man who lived alone how to string together a charcuterie plate that would impress his friends. Most of his recipes are simple — Porowski saves the elaborate boeuf bourguignons for Sunday nights, when he cooks for his boyfriend and his boyfriend’s parents.

Essentially, Porowski installed kitchen training wheels for each episode’s subject. As well as teaching basic skills, Porowski tried to erode the mental blocks these men might’ve built up around cooking. After starting with homemade guacamole, the men could work their way up to elaborate French stews. Now he was here to cure me of my own blocks. We’d start with a baked feta dip.

After spending two minutes with him, I realize that if anyone is going to chip away my deep-seated inhibitions about cooking, it is Antoni Porowski. When recalling a pork chop he ate in Mykonos, Porowski’s sentences run together, like he can’t quite keep up with the excitement. He speaks about cooking like it is the key to a good life – and he makes me believe him.

He’s confident that anyone (even me!), can develop an ease in the kitchen, no matter how they grew up. “Even if you weren’t raised with it, that curiosity is there. It just has to be sparked,” Porowski tells me.

Porowski is uniquely well-suited to sparking that curiosity. He’s entirely self-taught, and, up until Queer Eye, made a point of never cooking professionally. So he approaches cooking with the unabashed enthusiasm and passion of an amateur — if he can do it, so can you. “I never wanted food to become part of my professional career. It’s always something that I kept very sacred and personal, and that’s why I’ve been able to enjoy it so much,” he says as we cook. In New York, Porowski worked as a waiter, an actor, and, after meeting him at a book signing, as a personal cook for Ted Allen, the cooking expert on the old Queer Eye.

Porowski hesitated to apply for Queer Eye in the first place, because he didn’t want to turn cooking into something professional. “Is this really what you want, Antoni?” Allen asked Porowski, when he told Allen of the opportunity. Porowski wasn’t entire sure it was, but felt he needed to audition.

Porowski approached Queer Eye with trepidation, and the feeling was mutual. The producers were also hesitant to hire an amateur, but were soon won over by the same enthusiasm that struck me. “They wanted real professionals, people who were masters of their domain in a given field. I think they asked me, ‘What would your last meal be?’ And I went on a whole manic rant that lasted about ten minutes, describing it, and they said, oh – you’re for real. You know what you’re talking about,” he recalls.

Watching him talk about his passion for French stews while slicing olives into perfect, even pieces, I can’t understand why anyone would doubt his abilities for a split second. We tear the filaments from the marinated peppers, lay them on the baking pan, place blocks of feta on top. We sprinkle the layers with olives and salt, and place the baking pan into the oven.

During the cooking process, our conversation diverges away from Queer Eye and into his other interests. Books — he’s read A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara twice this year, and considers himself a Willem type. His boyfriend, Joey — they’ve been together for seven years. Italian — it’s his fourth language, and he’s taking private lessons now.

Soon, everyone in the room is joining in on the conversation. Essentially, what happens is the very embodiment of what Porowski loves about cooking: The genial warmth of people coming together. “Food is how I interact with people,” he says. We dip the toasted bread into gooey warm feta, and don’t need to say anything else.

On the three block walk back to the Refinery29 offices, Nicolas Bloise, the photographer who captured the experience, and I gush as though we can’t wait to get back into a kitchen. “He made me feel like I could cook,” Bloise said. I couldn’t agree more. With time and practice, I can learn to avoid setting a fire in the kitchen. Porowski provided me something more important than technical expertise —he made me want to learn.

Here’s how to make the baked feta dip that I’m going to try making for my Oscars party:

Antoni Porowski's Baked Feta Dip
Serves 4

Ingredients
1 block feta in water
Olive oil, preferably Greek
1 package or jar of your favorite olives (Kalamata and green are a nice mix), pitted and thinly sliced
1 jar marinated roasted red peppers
Fresh oregano
1 lemon
Pita
Small baking dish (4x4 or 4x6)

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. In a shallow baking dish, apply thin layer of red peppers. Top with thick slices of feta.

3. Bake at 400°F until light bubbles on cheese become to appear, about 10 minutes. Change oven setting to broil and watch carefully. Remove when cheese is nicely browned/charred.

4. Remove dish from oven. In a small bowl, toss sliced olives, torn oregano, and olive oil. Top the mixture over cheese, liberally.

5. Enjoy with either crudité, pita chips or pieces of baked pita tossed in olive oil and salt.

6. Take pictures, then dig in!

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Valentine's Day comes but once a year, and while we may be beyond the years of passing out cringe-y cards and nervously flirting with our homeroom crushes, we're still happily on board for any holiday that gives us an excuse to practice a little self-love. (I mean, who better to spoil us than ourselves, r ight?)

While it's obvious we know our wants and needs better than our latest right-swipe (or let's be honest, even our long-term bae), we're also of the camp that it never hurts to look to the stars to find extra guidance — whether we're in need of relationship pointers or a stellar new face mask. So no matter if you're single, taken, or swiping, these cosmic-approved beauty gifts are bound to be a match. Who needs a star-crossed lover when you can pamper yourself to a shiny new vanity staple, anyway?

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Anyone with color-treated hair knows that the dyeing process is not always a quick one,  especially if you're going from brunette to blond. In fact, the latter is more like a journey — of which you are required to give the time, patience, and multiple salon visits to properly tone, lift, and lighten your dark base color. But if your name happens to be Jessica Biel and you've got places to be, perhaps you are the exception. At least, that was the case this time the actress went cream soda blond.

My assistant @katmariesamson and I Have been slowly taking @jessicabiel lighter, but last night she wanted to go really blonde! We only had an hour to do her! I felt like I was on a game show, and I had to beat the clock. It took me 1 hour and 15, while Kat was diffusing the ends and I was pulling highlights...didn’t want to keep @hairbyadir , @karenkawahara & @tombachik waiting for too long! We used @redken USA #flashlift + 30 vol with a 1/4 oz of #olaplex, and then I #balayaged it with 40 vol and Olaplex at the same time. After, we rooted it with #shadeseq 7N + 7NB, and around her hairline we used 9N + 9NB for 5 mins. #beforeandafter #brunettetoblonde @olaplex #saloncentric @traceycunninghamsalon

A post shared by Tracey Cunningham (@traceycunningham1) on Feb 7, 2018 at 2:25pm PST

To state the obvious: Biel's blond is print-out-and-bring-to-your-stylist good, but that's not even the best part of the Instagram revelation. The most impressive aspect of the buttery color is the fact that Redken celebrity colorist Tracey Cunningham did it in one hour. To find out how, we went straight to the source.

"Jessica was already two highlight services in, so luckily we weren’t starting with her natural base color," Cunningham explains to Refinery29. "This time I used Redken Flash Lift to give her a full head of foiled highlights and balayaged the ends to take her as blonde as she wanted to go." She also managed to work at lightning speed thanks to her color assistant, Kat Samson: "I had a second set of hands so we could work quickly and efficiently. I don’t think I could have done it this fast without her help."

The moral of the story: Don't go into the salon thinking your colorist can take you from Selena Gomez-brown to Selena Gomez at the American Music Awards. Because in that case, you'll be sitting down for eight hours longer than Biel — and wouldn't you rather dedicate that time to sleeping?

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What is it about teeny-tiny products that are so irresistible? Nevermind that the contents amount to less than a single use — if a face wash, fragrance, or shampoo comes in fun size, we want it (if only for a day). The latest Honey-I-Shrunk-The-Kids beauty item that's triggering our cute aggression? Marc Anthony's hair treatments. The brand says they're inspired by K-Cups, but we're not seeing it: They look like old-school Play-Doh jars and we want to collect all the colors and combine them immediately.

The lightweight, miniature tubs fit in the palm of your hand and only cost $3 a pop, making them perfect for travel, multi-masking, or as a weekly treatment. There's one for frizz, one for curls, and one for growing out a bad haircut. Each one contains enough for two uses, less if your hair is long, thick, or curly.

Since I recently bleached my hair, I tried the one made for frizz for some much-needed damage control. If my regular conditioner is a glass of water after four tequilas, this is two Gatorades and a baconeggandcheese. Like a reset button for my ends, this stuff made every inch of my head nearly as soft as it was before I soaked it in peroxide. Was there a world of difference from any other hair mask I've tried? Not really. Was it rich, creamy, and cute enough to squeeze to a pulp? Definitely.

Marc Anthony Mini Miracle Treatments, $2.99, available March 2018 at Walgreens.

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Life can put us in a seemingly never-ending state of panic: commuting to and from work, squeezing in social engagements, and somehow finding time to pick up groceries in between it all. It’s surprising we’re even able to get by on the days we forget to grab a cup of coffee.

That’s why self-care is so important — taking time out of each day, even if it's just 30 minutes, to distance ourselves from the chaos and focus on our mental, physical, and emotional health. Enter: our commitment to imparting 10 self-care practices into our daily lives. Along the way, we'll treat ourselves in many forms, from organizing our lives in a Bullet Journal to paying it forward at the coffee shop. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Inspired by Brita’s “The Filtered Life” campaign, which is all about small steps people can make to filter out the bad and get to the good in life, here are 10 self-care actions to take for a better tomorrow, starting today. Click through, and get ready to Zen out.

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Welcome toMoney Diaries , where we're tackling what might be the last taboo facing modern working women: money. We're asking millennials how they spend their hard-earned money during a seven-day period — and we're tracking every last dollar.

Today, as part of Your Spending In Your State: a communications manager who makes $45,000 per year. This week, she spends some of her money on groceries for a potluck and family dinner.

Occupation: Communications Manager
Industry: Nonprofit
Age: 28
Location: Glendale, CA
My Salary: $45,000
Husband's Salary: $85,000
Paycheck (2x/month): $1,300

Monthly Expenses
Housing Costs: $1,500 to rent a small two-bedroom house. My in-laws own the property; they wanted us to live closer to them because of my mother-in-law's declining health. They are letting us stay there for the same amount we paid for our previous apartment.
Loan Payments: $0. We paid off the remainder of my college loans shortly after getting married.

All Other Monthly Expenses
Utilities: $300
Car Insurance: $380
Cell Phones: $213
Internet: $45
Health Insurance: $50 for dental, medical, and vision (covered by my company)
Pet Insurance: $30
Coffee of the Month Club: $35
Netflix: $12
Hulu: $12
Internet: $45
Savings: $300/month in HSA for our baby, and 15% of my husband's paycheck in a Roth IRA. Whatever money is left over after bills gets split between vacation and house savings accounts.
401(k): $600/paycheck for him and $375/month for me

Day One

7 a.m. — Even though it's the weekend, we're up early with our puppy. I eat a bowl of oatmeal and make eggs for my husband while he brews our coffee and feeds our dog. (I haven't been able to stomach the smell of her food since becoming pregnant eight months ago.) A couple of years ago, I gifted my husband a subscription to a Coffee of the Month club as a birthday present. We loved it so much that we kept it. The first week of every month, we get two pounds of fair-trade coffee beans delivered to our house from our favorite roaster in Northern California. We also invested in a grinder (which we bought using my husband's Amazon rewards credit so it was technically free), a scale, Chemex, and kettle. In the long run, the cost comes out to about $1 per cup of delicious coffee — way cheaper than what we would pay at a café.

12 p.m. — My morning is spent watching This is Us on Hulu, washing and putting away the first six months' worth of baby clothes we received at our shower (what does one do with all the tiny socks?!), cleaning the house, and munching on potato chips with homemade hummus. There's no food at home so we decide to go to the farmers' market for lunch and groceries. Before ordering lunch, we buy what we need/want from the market: red fife sourdough bread which has only three ingredients, apple spice jam, persimmons, and mandarins. $30

1 p.m. — We share three pupusas for lunch from one of the booths at the farmers' market. I try to convince my husband to get dessert at a bakery nearby but we both resist the temptation. $9

1:30 p.m. — After the farmers' market, we head over to Trader Joe's to do our weekly grocery shopping. This week, we're making beef and bean chili and Southwestern chicken salad so we get ingredients for those, plus food for our dog, cereal, milk, eggs and snacks. $84

7 p.m. — I spend the rest of the afternoon nesting, cooking chili, and baking spice cookies that are similar to Russian ones I've been craving but don't have all the ingredients for. Time for dinner! I can only eat a small amount before getting full on account of my stomach being squished. After dinner, my husband suggests watching a Christmas movie to which the answer is always "Yes!" We turn on the lights of our tree, have tea and cookies, and watch A Christmas Prince. It's incredibly cheesy, but that's to be expected. The spice cookies are good but don't totally satisfy my craving.

9 p.m. — We get ready for bed and read parenting books until we fall asleep. I'm currently reading Simplicity Parenting about “using the extraordinary power of less to raise calmer, happier and more secure kids.” Three years ago, we donated about 75% of our possessions using the KonMarie Method and earlier this year, I switched over to a capsule wardrobe. Babies and kids have a tendency to attract a lot of stuff, but we want to stay mindful of what kinds of toys, clothes, etc. we keep for him. My husband is reading a book on meat smoking; he bought a smoker a couple of weeks ago, which I suppose is like his baby until the human gets here.

Daily Total: $123

Day Two

5:30 a.m. — The puppy wants to go outside to do her business and my husband has work security training at 6 a.m. I guess it's time for me to get up, too. I eat oatmeal for breakfast and get ready for work. Before leaving for work, I pack a lunch of bread from the farmers' market, cheese and veggies, plus a couple of fruits. My husband has made us coffee so I take mine to go. Before work on weekdays, he drops our dog off at his parents' house so she can play with their two dogs. He heads out around the same time as I do.

10 a.m. — I have a meeting now to discuss and finalize the marketing strategy for an upcoming fundraising event, but I sneak a couple handfuls of popcorn and trail mix into my mouth as my coworker walks in. My coworkers have gotten used to me eating pretty much all day, which is a great perk of pregnancy.

12 p.m. — I get a Facebook message from my husband about a miscommunication with his lunch meeting at work today. Apparently, he's having lunch with his coworker tomorrow instead so now he needs to buy something else to eat. They have a cafeteria at his office so he gets a chicken pico de gallo wrap. $8

5 p.m. — There are only 30 more actual work days left before I head off on maternity leave. With so much to do and not enough time, it feels like a race against the clock. Before I realize it, the day is over and it's time to go home. I stop by the library my dad works at to pick up Creativity, Inc. by Edwin Catmull and Amy Wallace. I'm trying to get in as much reading as I can before our baby arrives. The last time I visited my dad at the library, they had donuts. No such luck tonight.

6 p.m. — As soon as I get home, I put the chili on the stove to heat up and eat a snack of potato chips and hummus until my husband gets home. Then, we have dinner together and take the pup for a walk. I love how excited she gets even if we take the same route every time.

8 p.m. — Time for tea, cookies, and relaxation! I decide this is a good time to look through my baby shower photos and pick the ones I want to print to send with my thank-you cards. Shutterfly wants my email address and they send me a gift of free 50 prints and a sheet of address labels. An hour later, the battery on my laptop is running low and the charger is nowhere to be found. We've been having construction done to our house, including getting a dishwasher installed which will be so helpful with a baby. The problem is that random things have been getting moved or lost. While I lose my mind trying to find my laptop charger, my husband orders me two replacement chargers. I swear pregnancy brain is not to blame for this one! $36

Daily Total: $44

Day Three

6 a.m. — A fun way to wake up is to get punched in the bladder from the inside. I highly recommend everyone try it sometime. On the bright side, the puppy hops into bed for morning cuddles. For breakfast, my husband and I eat cereal. I finish getting ready for work and pack the same bread, cheese, veggie, and fruit lunch as yesterday. A couple of days ago, I used older coffee beans to make a batch of Mexican cold brew coffee (by adding a cinnamon stick to the coffee grounds and water) so we both take a cup of that to go. It tastes amazing and was so easy to make. My husband's company is treating him to lunch today.

10 a.m. — I take a break from work to munch on popcorn and trail mix and finish placing my Shutterfly order. I can't decide between two designs of address labels so I buy both (but only have to pay for one). I also have to pay for shipping. $17

12 p.m. — Someone heated up Italian food in the kitchen and now I really really want pasta. But alas, I shall stick with my own lunch.

4 p.m. — I leave work a little early today because my husband's company is treating everyone and their plus ones to see the new Star Wars movie together. We both meet up at home then drive to the theater together. I was hoping we could have dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant but we don't have enough time. Chipotle bowls will have to do. $16

9:30 p.m. — On our way back home, the gas light of my car comes on and my husband stops at the station to fill it up for me. The closest one to us is also very expensive so he doesn't fill it up all the way. $30

Daily Total: $63

Day Four

6 a.m. — It's my husband's birthday! He's at the gym so I let our puppy outside and start making oatmeal for breakfast. I wanted to make something more festive, but we don't have the right ingredients. He gets back a couple of minutes after I start making breakfast. We eat breakfast together and I give him his birthday present (a watch I bought from Nordstrom during my 10x points day in early December) to open before we get ready for work. I made sure all of our Christmas shopping was done in late November/early December because I'm a Gemini and don't mess around with Mercury retrograde.

9 a.m. — Once a month, the Champions for Change program has a meeting at our office to discuss ways we can improve the food systems in the low-income neighborhoods we serve so that residents have access to healthy, affordable food options. While it's not required to attend, I sit in on these meetings with my intern because it's something that I'm passionate about. After the meeting, the leader gives out the Local Flavors cookbook with recipes using farmers' market ingredients. A few of the pages that I quickly glance look delicious and I can't wait to try them out.

12:30 p.m. — There is leftover lunch from a departmental meeting and I scan the buffet to see if anything looks appetizing. The dietary restrictions that come with pregnancy can get frustrating, like when lunch is catered and the only options are deli meat sandwiches or salad with blue cheese. I settle on a couple of bread rolls and potato to supplement the leftover chili I brought, which makes for quite the hearty lunch. My husband is getting treated to lunch yet again. Lucky duck!

4:30 p.m. — I leave work and drive to the historic core of downtown to meet my husband and in-laws for his birthday dinner. I have about an hour to kill before our reservation so I decide to stop by The Last Bookstore. Parking is a hassle because I used up all my cash at the farmers' market but I finally find a lot nearby that accepts credit cards. $8

6 p.m. — Resist the urge to buy all the books. I want to buy something to support the bookstore because it's one of the last ones left in the city, but it's too difficult to decide under pressure since my husband will be here at any minute. He's decided to pick me up so I don't have to walk to the restaurant in the dark and the rain. We go to Little Sister, an Asian fusion restaurant. The waitress recommends ordering two dishes per person so we get fried beef meatballs, two types of spring rolls, shaking beef, black rice with seafood, pork confit noodles, and spicy lemongrass fried chicken. She warns us that we've ordered one or two dishes too many but we're planning on eating leftovers for tomorrow anyway. Plus my unborn child counts as a fifth person, right?

8 p.m. — We are stuffed but ready for dessert. Bottega Louie is across the street so we walk over. We order a hazelnut brownie, tiramisu, and a Napoleon for dessert. I sneakily ask the cashier to put a candle on the tiramisu so we can sing "Happy Birthday." It was all so delicious and my in-laws generously treated us to both dinner and dessert.

Daily Total: $8

Day Five

7 a.m. — It's been cold lately (by L.A. standards) so our dog hasn't wanted to go outside as early. I let her out and make oatmeal for myself and my husband while he prepares breakfast for our dog. We eat in bed with the dog for family cuddle time. (Also because there are covers to keep us warm.) When I get to work, there are chocolate-covered strawberries! The holidays and pregnancy are a pretty good combination because I feel no guilt.

1 p.m. — For lunch, I eat leftovers from dinner last night. Peanut butter cookies have magically appeared on my desk. During my break, I also place a large Amazon order of nursing bras, a birthing ball, an aromatherapy diffuser with essential oils (all of which I plan to pack in my hospital bag), and a baby tub and hamper for the nursery. $205

4 p.m. — After work, I stop by Whole Foods 365 to pick up a rotisserie chicken for dinner and ingredients for the dish I'm making for our office holiday potluck tomorrow. It turns out we need way more random stuff than I anticipated. I end up also buying broth, ground allspice for those Russian spice cookies I've been craving for weeks, cornstarch and bananas (for banana pudding that I've also not been able to stop thinking about), and avocados. The cashier asks me when I'm due and if I know what I'm having. We somehow have a five-minute conversation about gender stereotypes. $77

5:30 p.m. — When I get home from the grocery store, I munch on Trader Joe's white truffle potato chips (which are incredible) while I start making a savory goat cheese, corn and herb pudding for the potluck. I found the recipe in the farmers' market cookbook I got a couple of days ago and wanted to try it out. While shopping, I thought that macerated balsamic berries would be the perfect addition to this dish. It all tastes good to me but my husband tells me not to subject my coworkers to weird pregnancy food combinations. I decide to save the berries to eat at home. While the pudding is cooking, I make Southwestern chicken salad by heating up a can of refried beans from Whole Foods, shredding the rotisserie chicken and adding those, avocado, and harissa salsa, to the top of organic shredded cabbage slaw from Trader Joe's.

8 p.m. — After dinner, we watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas while eating a dessert of macerated balsamic berries topped with granola. And by "watch," I mean I fall asleep 20 minutes into the movie while my husband endures a film he had no intention of watching in the first place.

Daily Total: $282

Day Six

6 a.m. — Most days, like today, I am in awe of how lucky I am. My husband is making us giant pancakes and coffee while I cuddle in bed with our dog. I love him! We top our pancakes with the berries I made last night and watch Hell's Kitchen while eating breakfast. It's the blind taste test episode in which contestants have to guess what herb or spice they're tasting (with mashed potatoes as a base) while blindfolded. The red team is doing extremely poorly to the point that I scream at the TV that they should get their “chef license” taken away. The irony of judging cooking show contestants from the comfort of my own couch doesn't escape me.

8:15 a.m. — Since it's the Friday before Christmas and we have a half day at work, I am able to show up to the office a little later than usual. I gather my potluck contribution and head out.

11 a.m. — It's time to go to the potluck and I have successfully completed no work today. Everyone is in a very chatty mood. There is so much food and my coworkers keep insisting I cut in front of them in the buffet line because "the baby needs to eat" — even when I go back for seconds. I enjoy half a slice of pizza (I split a slice with my coworker), two types of salad, fried chicken, a tamale, potato chips, a chocolate peanut donut and a glass of Martinelli's sparkling cider. After lunch, I get to go home and roll back into bed.

6 p.m. — My parents and brother have come over so we can go to dinner for my husband's birthday together. It's another shared plates type restaurant so we order a ton of food: two types of toast, one with burrata and persimmons and another with taleggio and caramelized onion, farro salad, brussels sprouts, Moroccan-spiced fried chicken and fries, pork and veal braised meatballs, pork cheek ragu with pappardelle and black pepper cavatelli with kabocha squash. To our surprise, we finish everything. The desserts look delicious as well so we order a chocolate hazelnut tart and apple cinnamon cake to-go. This restaurant was quite pricey for only five people so we split the bill with my parents. $118

10 p.m. — My family spends the rest of the night playing Cards Against Humanity, laughing hysterically, and eating dessert with tea. It's such a lovely end to a wonderful day and an even better start to the holiday weekend.

Daily Total: $118

Day Seven

8 a.m. — I slept surprisingly well last night despite being ridiculously full when I went to bed. I can't decide if I'm hungry yet, but I eat a small bowl of Raisin Bran cereal anyway. It helps to keep things moving along if you know what I mean, and I can use all the help I can get right now in that department. My husband lets our dog out.

8:45 a.m. — Our puppy (who is a white Husky Lab mix) wants to be let back inside but I discover that she has been having way too much fun digging. Her entire face and her legs up to her stomach are covered in mud. On top of that, we have to get ready to go to brunch. We cajole her into the shower and wash her before showering ourselves. By some miracle, we are out of the house in time to make it to our reservation at Redbird in Downtown L.A. Since my husband's birthday is so close to Christmas, we usually do one big activity to celebrate, like kayaking in San Diego or taking a winery tour. Being pregnant doesn't allow for much craziness, so we decided to have a fancy brunch date at a place we've been wanting to try for a very long time.

9:45 a.m. — We make it to the restaurant in record time. The roads are gloriously empty because the L.A. transplants have gone back home for the holidays. The valet is $12 but we find street parking instead. $4

10 a.m. — We walk the half block to the restaurant and are seated right away. I've kept a list of dishes I want to try for at least a month so ordering is a cinch. We get coffee, a brioche donut, biscuits with red-eye rabbit gravy, Basque baked eggs, and a waffle for dessert. The staff was so sweet and put a candle in the waffle for my husband to blow out. $84

11:15 a.m. — After brunch, we stop by Trader Joe's to get groceries for the Christmas dinner we're hosting for our families. My husband has been obsessively researching barbecue recipes and he's excited to take his meat smoker for a spin. We're going to make ribs with a cherry BBQ sauce, baked beans, and mayo-less potato salad with lemon, red onions, and parsley. My mother-in-law is planning to bring a regular salad of some sort and my brother is baking rolls or cornbread. I'll figure out something for dessert tomorrow depending on what I'm craving. For dinner for seven people (and hopefully leftovers), we did pretty good cost-wise. $120

12 p.m. — We've only been gone for two hours but our puppy got so bored while we were away that she tore up all of the mail that was delivered, which appears to have included a holiday card. She looks so proud of herself that we can't even be mad. I spend the next few hours playing with her, putting away laundry, and sorting through my Amazon deliveries.

4 p.m. — My husband and I take our dog for a walk so she doesn't get restless. When we get back, he serves her dinner while I make ours. I make a pasta sauce by cooking down the rest of the organic cabbage slaw and adding rotisserie chicken, tomato sauce, marjoram and thyme. Then I boil some whole wheat penne, pour the sauce on top and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. I also make garlic toasts with the last few slices of bread from our farmers' market haul earlier in the week. This impromptu dinner turned out much better than expected. The fresh herbs make all the difference.

7 p.m. — After dinner, we play with our puppy outside for a bit. Then I make myself a cup of red raspberry leaf tea and read on the couch with the dog while my husband plays some video games. Alone time is going to be so much more difficult to come by once the baby is here. I use this time to set up a meeting with our doula, research ridiculously expensive childbirth classes, and fill out my 2018 planner with to-do items and due dates. With a baby on the way, I feel like I need to work extra hard to stay on top of everything. My husband joins me on the couch shortly after and we talk about the prenatal class and our first family vacation. I read him the most notable parts of the parenting book while he cuddles my belly. My heart feels so full.

Daily Total: $208

Money Diaries are meant to reflect individual women's experiences and do not necessarily reflect Refinery29's point of view. Refinery29 in no way encourages illegal activity or harmful behavior.

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We've all been in a salon chair, ridden with nerves about getting a fresh new 'do. No matter if we were cutting off an inch or foot, someone almost always attempted to ease our minds with one well-intentioned reminder: "It's just hair." But that's definitely not true. Even if our transformations weren't nearly as drastic as those you'd see on America's Next Top Model, there's still a lot of power behind a big haircut or color change. And Selena Gomez might be the best example of that.

Whether it's a bob, bleached blond hair, or curtain bangs, the singer has done it all. In fact, Gomez has tried every last one of those looks in a matter of four months — the latter of which she revealed less than a week after reportedly completing treatment for anxiety and depression. Which has left us wondering: Is there a deeper meaning behind all of her epic hair changes?

Not every haircut is as cut-and-dry as a "breakup" haircut, but we can learn something from the meaning behind getting one. As Dr. Sanam Hafeez,clinical neuropsychologist and professor at Columbia University, told Refinery29, "Changing your hair can be a big statement. It may mean you announcing something without announcing it or signify a metamorphosis. It's an instant statement that may actually make you feel like a new person." In other words: A haircut can be a harbinger to something else that you aren't even aware of yet. And if parts of your life feel somewhat out of your control, changing your hair is an easy way to get that power back.

Now, does that mean Gomez's new wispy layers indicate anything more than a bang trim? Maybe not. But is there something to be said about a haircut being a form of self-care? Absolutely. Gomez is doing what she needs to do in order to focus on her well-being, and whether that's hanging with her four-year-old sister, going to church, or switching up her hair — that sounds like a positive thing to us.

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No matter how much money you're willing to invest in your own beauty routine, occasionally there are moments where you'll start to question what, exactly, you're doing with your hard-earned cash. Historically, this has been known to happen when the numbers on the cash register at the Sephora checkout hit three digits, or when you can't pick up a prescription without picking up a whole skin-care routine while you're at it.

A guilty conscience isn't necessarily a bad thing — in fact, it's proof you're not a sociopath! That's a good thing. But nothing ameliorates the creeping guilt of spending $200 on a face cream like knowing your purchase benefits those truly in need, not just in need of a new jar of Sisley Black Rose.

Shopping from Olivela is the perfect way to do that: The luxury e-commerce destination's new beauty section stocks all of your favorite high-end brands, and a portion of proceeds from every purchase goes directly to causes that affect young women and children. Just creating an account on the website gets one girl in need a day of school through the Malala Fund — and for the month of February, all purchases help to provide health essentials for young girls through Too Young to Wed. Ahead, our top picks to shop at Olivela right now. They're our favorites — and soon they'll be yours, too. It's a win-win.

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Just months after going back and forth over whether it should stop offering birth control coverage in its health plans, the University of Notre Dame will make two big changes to its healthcare policy.

The switch was announced in a letter sent by Father John Jenkins, the school president, on Wednesday. According to Jenkins, Notre Dame has decided to ban third-party providers from including coverage of "abortion-inducing" contraceptives in its insurance plans and the school will also start offering coverage for "simple contraceptives" in its self-funded health plan.

The arrangement is an effort to reconcile Notre Dame's Catholic values with its commitment to diversity within the university community. While Jenkins called the decision "complex" in an interview with The Atlantic, the ambiguity of his letter has left students like senior Emily Garrett confused and frustrated.

"I can see how they thought, 'We need to appease both sides.' But in appeasing both sides, you also leave this gaping hole in the middle of what does that entail," she said. "Where is the line drawn when it comes to actual contraceptive access on campus?"

Garrett believes that birth control is a crucial component of women's healthcare. (She is the co-founder of the student group Feminist ND, but spoke with Refinery29 on her own behalf and not in an official capacity.) She said that it's also unclear why the school decided to switch positions again on the issue and why it's doing it in February of all times.

Until we have comprehensive access to contraception on campus with our health insurance, we're still going to be frustrated and a little angry.

It's not the first time the private Catholic university in Indiana has been at the center of a debate surrounding birth control. For the past couple of years, the school offered co-pay free contraception through a third-party system for religious employers that was implemented by the Obama administration in 2012. But it had also long sought to drop birth control coverage entirely, engaging in various lawsuits challenging the Affordable Care Act's contraception mandate.

And last fall, the school announced in a letter to its faculty, staff and students that it would cover contraception only in cases where it was used as medical treatment and not for pregnancy prevention. At the time, Notre Dame was believed to be the first major institution to take advantage of the Trump administration's decision to roll back the Obamacare contraception mandate. But after pushback from the campus community, the change was reversed and the school moved on from the birth control debate — until now.

About 17,000 people — a group that includes faculty, staff students, and their respective family members — are covered by the university's health plans. According to Jenkins' letter, more details of the policy change, including a list of which contraceptives will be covered, will be available in March. He also said the changes will be implemented for employees on July and for students in August.

Refinery29 reached out to the Notre Dame administration to ask what drove the school's decision and what that would mean for those covered under the school's health insurance plans. A spokesperson replied: "Father Jenkins' letter to the campus community speaks for itself." No other details were offered.

Students like Garrett, who want access to contraception to be easier, were disssapointed by Notre Dame's move. But so were other parts of the student body, who feel the use birth control is in direct violation of Catholic teachings.

As a Catholic University, Notre Dame is called to uphold Church teaching and promote a culture of life.

According to the student newspaper The Irish Rover, the campus club Students for Child-Oriented Policies released a statement saying that while it applauds certain parts of the policy change, students were also troubled by the fact "that the university has made the shocking decision to even more closely entangle itself in and become the primary agent of the provision of contraceptives."

Sophomore Colleen Ballantyne agrees. She told Refinery29 that she is proud of attending Notre Dame, but she was also disappointed by the new policy. (Ballantyne is the vice president of the student group Community Outreach for Right to Life, but spoke with Refinery29 on her own behalf and not in an official capacity.)

"Had this policy been enacted at a secular institution, I would not be as disappointed as I am with this new policy because Notre Dame is not a secular institution," she said. "As a Catholic University, Notre Dame is called to uphold Church teaching and promote a culture of life. This new policy fails to do this on our campus."

Ballantyne went on to say that the policy change also made her confused over where Notre Dame stands when it comes to contraception. She added it would greatly benefit students if the university provided more institutional support for parents.

"In my opinion there are not adequate resources that promote a culture of life for students that find themselves in unplanned and crisis pregnancies. The entire Notre Dame community is called to support women through pregnancy no matter the circumstance and I would love to see more resources on campus to effectively do this," she said. "I would especially like to see better child care options for parenting students and more housing options for pregnant and parenting students, especially undergraduate students."

Meanwhile, Garrett felt that the language in the letter showed some progress in the university's position, but the actual changes to the policy were a step backwards.

"We're very glad that they recognize that people make the choice to use contraception, but not always need contraception for health conditions. That they voluntarily, ethically, morally make this choice," she said. "But then, they go on and kind of defend the Catholic faith by saying, 'We're not going to support these abortifacients' — which don't really exist."

"Abortifacients" — or "abortion-inducing drugs," as described by Jenkins — are terms used by conservative groups to describe certain types of contraception, including IUDs and the morning-after pill. Their opposition to these contraceptives rests on the claim that a pregnancy begins at fertilization, instead of at implantation (as recognized by physicians and even the federal government). So, these groups argue, if a contraceptive interferes with the fertilized egg's ability to implant to the uterus, that's actually an abortion. (An article in the New England Journal of Medicine on August said these claims are "alternative science" and false.)

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives such as IUDs and implants increased five-fold among women of reproductive age between 2002 and 2013. And due in large part to expanded access to these highly-effective types of contraceptives, the rate of unintended pregnancies in the U.S. is at a 30-year low.

"So many of my friends have gotten an IUD or want to get one. There's people that want that type of convenience, to know that you're covered without having to remember to take a pill," she said. "This policy will take away those options for a reason that is not medically-proven. That's a restriction of choice."

Garrett added, "They are saying, 'We'll pay for your choice to do this, but you can only choose the options that we still believe in.' So until we have comprehensive access to contraception on campus with our health insurance, we're still going to be frustrated and a little angry."

This story has been updated to include comments from Notre Dame sophomore Colleen Ballantyne.

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Well, folks, it looks like we won't be escaping winter's icy grip anytime soon. Aside from Punxsutawney Phil seeing his shadow on Groundhog Day, it's still snowing on the east coast, too, which doesn't really give us much hope for April flowers bringing May showers any time soon. At any rate, the chillier weather gives us more time to play with protective styles. Of course, any season is appropriate for braids, twists, and cornrows — but because it's too cold to air dry (or perhaps we just get too lazy for a twist-out, sue us), it makes perfect sense to dial your braider up now.

Feed-in braids, which are closer to the root than cornrows, also have a more natural finish. And they're so damn versatile as well... just ask Solange. You can rock them undecorated (because 600 beads can be a bit much, tbh), or for an even easier take, give Dutch braids a try by working with two larger sections instead of sectioning them off in smaller ones. The trick to keeping your plaits seamless is to add more hair as you go along and braid under, not over. Easy enough, right? Watch the technique above — and get a handy tutorial on how to do stitch-braids, too.

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Regardless of what products you use, most of us were taught to wash our hair the same way: shampoo (rinse, lather, rinse, repeat) then conditioner. And unless you're a co-washer, doing anything but that probably seems a little strange.

But, hair-care brands have started rolling out lines that ask us to do the complete opposite: condition before shampooing. And, according to them, it's a pretty easy trick to achieving a killer mane. "Conditioning before you shampoo is great for adding nourishment to fine hair without weighing it down," says Nina Dimachki, artistic director for Kérastase. "It also promotes a longer lasting blowdry and primes the hair before cleansing, allowing shampoo to distribute easier and more evenly."

Thin hair types aren't the only ones to benefit from swapping their bottle order. Dimachki says hair that is highlighted, tangles easily after shampooing, or is prone to greasiness is also a prime candidate for a pre-shampoo conditioner.

There are some best practices to keep in mind if you're going to start this regimen. While we'd typically only use our conditioners from our ears down post shampoo, Dimachki says to saturate all your hair from root-to-tip if you're conditioning before you cleanse. "You will be cleansing it after, so your hair won't be weighed down or oily," she explains. If you typically lather up twice, she says to scrub the conditioner into your hair like a shampoo instead, equating it to an oil cleanser for your face.

Extra hydration sans-weight is never a bad thing, but it's especially amazing in the summer when our hair takes a hell of a beating. So, instead of trying to find a miracle formula to quench your thirsty strands, maybe just change up your roster order. Aren't the best answers always the simplest?

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It all started with a broken promise.

At a public question-and-answer session last spring, Rep. Randy Hultgren told his constituents in the 14th District of Illinois that he wouldn't support a version of the Affordable Care Act repeal that excluded protections for pre-existing conditions. Lauren Underwood, a registered nurse and former senior health adviser for the Obama administration, thought the Republican meant it. The fight to save Obamacare was personal for her: Not only had she worked on implementing the legislation, but she also has a heart condition known as supraventricular tachycardia, which qualifies as a pre-existing condition.

But then, Hultgren went ahead and voted for the bill anyway.

"I wasn't angry because of the vote itself, necessarily. I was upset that he didn't have the integrity to be honest the one time he was planning to stand before our community, because it's not like he was planning to come back and explain himself," Underwood told Refinery29, alleging the congressman hasn't held any other public events since then. (Hultgren's office has not responded to Refinery29's request for comment.)

She continued: "In that moment I decided: It's on. I am running."

The 31-year-old didn't really see herself throwing her hat in the ring this election cycle. After President Obama's time in the White House ended, she moved from D.C. back home to Naperville, IL. And when she heard rumors that Democrats were looking for someone to challenge the Republican incumbent, she wanted to support whoever ran for office. But then, Hultgren went back on his word.

As a progressive woman of color, Underwood is not who the Illinois 14th District is used to. She is the first Black woman ever to run for the seat. "I'm running against six middle-aged white men in a district that has never elected a woman, ever in history," she added. "I'm the youngest person in my field running; I'm the only person of color."

Heading to the @MomsDemand kickoff meeting in Geneva this afternoon. Yesterday I was honored to speak with the Naperville group. So delighted to support this grassroots movement across the #IL14 to prevent gun violence. #ExpectUs pic.twitter.com/FwPMqDuHxj

— Lauren Underwood (@LUnderwood630) January 14, 2018

The community, which is about 85% white, has swung Republican pretty consistently, except for a brief Democratic stint between 2008 and 2010. According to the Cook Political Report, which rates congressional races, it's likely to remain red in 2018. But none of those factors have stopped Underwood, who wants to serve the community she's been part of all her life. For her, it's empowering that women of color like her and New Jersey's Tamara Harris are running in districts that are not predominantly Black.

"For so long, African-Americans have only had elected representation from those traditional districts that are historically Black, maybe urban," she said. "But not all of us live in all those majority-minority districts."

She continued, "Now we are able to step forward and say, 'Hey! I grew up in this predominantly white area and my family has been here for years. I'm a leader and I have ideas.' The community rallies around [me] not because I'm Black, and not despite my race and heritage, but just because I'm a dynamic, compelling leader who shares [their] values. That's what I get excited about."

It's not a surprise that Underwood's public service path has led her to become a candidate. If anything, it's a natural progression for someone whose love for healthcare and public policy began at a young age.

When she was diagnosed in the third grade, she said she got "excellent care" from her providers and was inspired to become a pediatric cardiologist, "because I had to see mine so frequently," though she switched to nursing later. Then, while she was attending Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, the school launched a program allowing students to serve on local boards and commissions.

Underwood joined the Fair Housing Commission and was exposed to reviewing cases, some involving discrimination against people who depended on Section 8 vouchers, and was able to make recommendations to the City Council. Heading off to college at the University of Michigan, she was unsure how to combine her interests of medicine and politics — until she took a class about nursing and health policy during her freshman year. It blended her interests, so she decided that would be her path. Over the next years, while her classmates interned at hospitals, Underwood was interning on Capitol Hill and working in government.

After finishing her undergrad and getting a graduate degree from John Hopkins University, she joined the Obama administration. She believes her experience working with health issues at the federal level — besides working on Obamacare, she also helped create responses to the Ebola epidemic and Zika crisis — has prepared her to work on, the issues her district is facing.

The community rallies around me not because I'm Black, and not despite my race and heritage, but just because I'm a dynamic, compelling leader.

Her platform has three main components: jobs, healthcare, and family. This translates to her support for job creation and economic development; improving the Affordable Care Act and tackling the opioid epidemic; investing in local public schools and making higher education more affordable; and providing access to reproductive health services and affordable child care.

"I'm so honored to be able to speak on all these issues at this time, in particular with the Trump craziness," she said. "And obviously, [with] this congressman who doesn't share our values."

Of course, the Democrat has faced pushback, too. She said that she was aware she might experience racism, but nothing really prepared her for the barrage of sexism she would encounter. "This is obviously me being naive," she said, while explaining that since nursing is a heavily female field , she has always been supported by women and hasn't dealt with male bosses or coworkers undercutting her. Since she announced her candidacy last August, she's experienced everything from people having low expectations of her because she's a young woman to encountering a man who tried to physically intimidate her when he found out she was aiming for Hultgren's seat.

"The intersection of being a woman, a young woman, and a young woman of color running for office is something that just can't be discounted," she said. "So I tell my team every day we have to be excellent. It's not okay to be good. We don't have the luxury of really being 'okay' because people doubt us every day."

But as more women, but particularly women of color, run for office and get elected at every level of government, they'll have the chance to prove the doubters wrong. And that's something that fires Underwood up.

"We can have the opportunity to maybe have equal representation in these bodies. Not just 19% or 20%, but getting close to 50% or god forbid a majority? [Imagine] the impact that could have on our country!" she said. "We're at this point now where women are really stepping forward, finding success, and seeing that leadership potential within ourselves. I think it's wonderful."

2018 will see an unprecedented number of female candidates in ballots across the country. More than 500 women are currently running for the House, Senate, or governorships — and that's without taking into account the number of candidates vying for local and statewide seats. Refinery29 is committed to spotlight female candidates, but particularly women of color, who have risen up to the challenge to say: "It's our turn."

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From kale and turmeric to green tea and goji berry, superfoods have already become stalwarts of our beauty routines. Now, we're adding one more to the list: moringa, sometimes referred to in traditional herbal medicine as the "miracle tree." The fast-growing, drought-resistant plant is historically native to the Himalayas of northern India, but it can now be found throughout the tropics and parts of Africa, too.

The seed's leaf, which tastes peppery (not unlike a forkful of arugula) and is often sold in powder form, sits in the same family as kale and broccoli. With anti-inflammatory and free radical-fighting properties part of its appeal, moringa has long been a staple of Ayurvedic medicine, and for good reason: As Imane Laasri, The Body Shop 's global marketing director for bath & body, moringa is one of the most nutrient-rich plants in the world. Its leaves alone contain more protein than soy, more vitamin C than oranges, and more potassium than bananas.

And beyond the dietary benefits of the tree, there are also the antioxidants and youth-boosting benefits. Rich in vitamins A, B, and C, moringa is a fantastic ingredient to look for if you're after a glowing complexion — and thanks to its omegas 3 and 6, it's full of fatty acids to retain skin's moisture, perfect for the dehydrated among us. It's also a natural anti-pollutant that fights skin aging, which is all the explanation you need for its "miraculous" reputation.

People have been reaping the skin-care benefits of moringa for hundreds of years, so it's far from a "new" beauty ingredient — but ingredients sourced from the legendary tree are appearing in more and more beauty products hitting the market right now. Ahead, the best products we've found that incorporate every aspect of the so-called miracle tree, from plant to pod to seed...

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Beginning Tuesday, February 13, Carolina Herrera, founder and designer of her namesake label, will take on a new role. Immediately following her fall/winter 2018 show, set to take place on Monday during New York Fashion Week, Herrera will be stepping back from her position at the helm of the brand and installing Wes Gordon as creative director of the storied American brand. Herrera will stay on board with a newly minted title as Global Brand Ambassador.

“I am thrilled with the evolution of the company over the past 37 years,” Herrera said in a press release. “Our success has been tremendous and a true dream. There is still so much opportunity and I look forward to continuing to represent this house and our projects all around the world. I am so pleased Wes is now part of the Herrera house — he’s the right one for this position to further build on our great momentum.”

But Herrera isn't done just yet. “Just don’t say I’m retiring,” she tells The New York Times. ““I am not retiring! I am moving forward.” She adds, however, that she now won't have to “wake up every day worried about where to put the sleeve, or whether the skirt should be long or short.”

In her 37-year-long career, Herrera has dressed everyone from Caroline Kennedy on her wedding day to countless celebrities on the red carpet (including Renée Zellweger who wore her gowns to the Oscars in 2004, 2008, and 2013), cementing her coiffed aesthetic's popularity with the society pages.

Gordon, who once ran his own namesake label, is a two-time finalist for the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund. He had been acting as a creative consultant for Carolina Herrera since last March, and will present his first collection as creative director next year with resort 2019.

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Getting dressed for a busy workday is a whole new ball game when you’re pregnant or have a little one in tow. Still, it was a challenge that stylist and social media sensation Angela Fink was excited to take on with the arrival of her daughter Lola. In the process, she proved to herself and her devoted followers that being a mom and a fashion star comes down to clever planning and staying true to your unique personal style.

Born in a small Texas city, Fink became passionate about expressing herself through fashion at an early age. “I had the kind of mother who dressed up for every occasion, complete with matching shoes and bags,” she says. Add to that a “grandmother who made me whatever I could dream up,” and a degree in fashion, and you’ve got a perfect formula for a sartorial powerhouse. The L.A. transplant has come a long way since her childhood days of pulling together whimsical outfits. When she’s not busy posting for her 100K Instagram followers, the bona-fide fashion force (she now has 15 years of styling experience under her belt) creates one-of-a-kind red-carpet and on-camera ensembles for top celebrities.

And as a new mom to an adorable 1-year-old, she’s an uber-successful example of what it takes to balance motherhood and a career while staying effortlessly chic, too. (Here’s a hint: A great backpack like the one from TUMI is perfect for storing bottles and making a street style cameo.) Just ahead, Fink shares her tips for creating a uniform to get you through pregnancy, why a crossbody is key for women always on the move, and how some clever planning can set you up for a very stylish week.

How would you sum up your personal fashion philosophy?
"If you don't feel good in it, don’t wear it."

How has your style changed since you’ve become a mom?
"Naturally, with any change like having a baby comes more change. We evolve and we cut out things that don’t work for us. I have really cleaned out my wardrobe this past year. I realized that so much space was being taken up by pieces that didn't feel right anymore. I felt a new sense of confidence that I had never felt before, and I wanted my clothes to reflect that."

What tips do you have for staying stylish while pregnant?
"The keys to remaining stylish when pregnant are to embrace your body at every stage and buy into a couple of strong styles that can carry you through. A slip dresses is a great example. It looks great with a sweater or a jacket over it, but it also allows for growth."

Style wise, when it comes to balancing a career and being a mom, what’s key?
"Build out a uniform. Find out what looks good and functions well when jumping back and forth in between motherhood and work. It’s a trial and error process, but once you have it down and you know what works for both situations, then you can start buying more pieces that fit within that framework. Before you know it, getting dressed and feeling confident all day will be effortless."

What are some of your personal fail-safe formulas that always get you out the door fast and looking good?
"In my closet I have a space for pre-made looks — full looks grouped together on separate hangers. I have done this since I was in school. I love putting looks together, and it's so nice to open your closet and grab an entire outfit that you already know will work. I usually have a day where I put together about five looks for the week, depending on what I will be doing. When it comes time to get dressed, I don't waste too much time fussing over what to wear. And if I don’t get to them all, I simply leave them for the following week. I'm a visual person. I get inspired by social media, the runway, editorials, or just people on the street — then I run to my closet to put something together and 'store' in my looks section."

Do you have any favorite tips that you’ve learned from your years of being a stylist? Any good ones you can share for someone looking to hone a personal style?
"I truly believe that you should wear things that you feel 100% great in. If you are uncomfortable all day or don't feel confident about a look, don't ever wear it again. You don't have to wear all the trends. Find what works for you. "

Are there any trends that you are excited about working into your wardrobe this winter or upcoming spring?
"We have seen a lot of suiting for the past couple of seasons, but now it's about a more feminine take, which I'm excited about. The suits are still powerful, but what makes them fresh are the soft colors and strong details. And I'm also all about the return of the head-turning dress. A dress that stands alone definitely makes a statement and can be worn multiple ways for different seasons. Pair it with some boots and a puffer or, in the spring, with flats."

How important is a good bag?
"The bag needs to flow with my look and work for whatever I've got going on. I change bags a lot. For example, if I'm on the go, hopping from business meetings to pulling clothes, a satchel that holds all my essentials is key — whereas if I have the day off, I opt for an easy and lightweight crossbody to throw my wallet, keys, and lip balm in. This approach requires a bit of energy, but if you keep in mind that you are buying for a certain look, then when it comes time to switch a bag, it's just like picking a pair of shoes. I am very selective with what comes into my home. I don't buy just to buy."

What’s most important in a handbag now that you’re a new mom?
"A hands-free bag, like a crossbody or fanny pack. The idea is to grab your baby and go without your bag getting in the way or falling off your shoulder. When traveling with Lola, I usually bring my oversized tote. Inside the tote are little bags with her stuff and mine inside. I like that I don't have to dig around, I can see everything all at once and easily grab whatever I need at that moment. It saves time and looks put together."

When it comes to baby bags, it can be a tricky landscape out there between the utilitarian but not necessarily flattering and the chic but impractical. What’s your take on that?
"A diaper bag is no different than the bag you carry every day — it should fit your style and make sense for all the baby gear. Right now, I love a good, stylish backpack — with pockets on the side for bottles, it's fashion meets function. The key is to play down your look when wearing a backpack. Keep it simple and allow the effortlessness of the backpack to shine through."

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