Look good enough to eat in the trendy lettuce hem style

In case you are wondering what this trend is all about, no, it has nothing to do with lettuce fruit. What it does have to do with is when the sleeves, neckline, hem, or trimmings of a blouse, gown or skirt are sewn and frilled to look like the edges of a piece of lettuce. This style has been in existence since God-knows-when, but recently, it has resurfaced again in the style scene with celebrities and fashionistas giving us fashion goals in lettuce hem jumpsuits, trousers, blouses, skirts and romps on high profiled events.

The lettuce hem looks girly, playful and at the same time, exudes sophistication. Ready to integrate some lettuce hems into your wardrobe?  Take inspirations from  Lilian Esoro, Chika Ndiobi, Temi Otedola, Tade Alade and Dela Aleigh on how they slayed the look.

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The ‘melanin on fleek’ movement:  a new take on ‘black is beautiful’

If you are an Instagram user and follow celebrities like: Moet Abebe, Mercy Johnson, Omoni Oboli, Beverly Naya, Chioma-Chukwuka Akpota, Genevieve Nnaji and the rest of other dark skinned nollywood A-listers, you will notice that lately, they have been posting their stunning pictures on Instagram with the caption “melanin on fleek” and you are wondering what it means, wonder no more. It is a modern twist on “black is beautiful”.

It is no longer news that most men prefer fair skinned ladies to dark ones.  This preference has also permeated the movie industry, whereby fair skinned ladies are chosen over dark ones. They are selected to play lead characters; many homes have been broken because of married men chasing after fair skinned ladies and ‘wifing’ them up. This has pressured most naturally dark ladies to resort to bleaching their skin.

Also called pigment, melanin is a substance that gives the skin and hair its natural colour. In humans, those with darker skin tone have higher amounts of melanin. By contrast, those with less pigment have lighter or fairer skin colouring

How to get your dark skin to be ‘melanin popping’

• Eat healthy and drink at least eight glasses of water each day. A healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, proteins will keep your skin glowing from the inside out.
• Protect your skin from the sun with a daily sunscreen cream. Just because your skin is dark does not mean that the sun is harmless.
• Massage your face with coconut or olive oil before going to bed. Black skin tends to be on the dry side, so, allowing oils to soak into the skin overnight can contribute to glowing skin in the morning.
• Apply a homemade, natural face mask once or twice per week. Just mash one ripe banana with one egg white and coat your face, neck and decolletage with the mixture. Leave the mask on for 15 minutes, then rinse it off with warm water.