When Selena Gomez released her inaugural fragrance for Rare Beauty, it quickly became one of my breakout favorite scents of 2025. Truthfully, I didn’t think she could outdo herself less than a year after such a successful first foray into the perfume world, but then she did just that earlier this month. Her sophomore scent, Rare Beginnings (which arguably makes a better name for a debut, but alas, I digress), is a departure from the dessert-like gourmand profile of Rare Eau de Parfum, breaking new ground in the world of fruity florals.

With notes of tart pear, sweet gardenia, and warm vanilla bean, Rare Beginnings sounded right up my alley on paper. (And it doesn’t hurt that the bottle is utterly gorgeous — a sage-green version of the original — not to mention an accessibility win, thanks to its wide, rounded top that’s easier to press.) I came of age in the 2000s and know my way around more than a few fruity scents; what I couldn’t have predicted, however, was just how much of a compliment magnet this would be. 

Rare Beginnings Eau de Parfum, $78

My first impression of Rare Beginnings was that it immediately reminded me of a grown-up version of Victoria’s Secret PINK body sprays (the ones in those rectangular-prism-shaped bottles). It has the same flirty, juicy sweetness of my beloved teenage splashes, but with the undertones of “she has a 401(k).” And speaking of grown-up, I’m calling it now: This is a great option for the office (or, if you’re controversial, the gym), since it’s light and fresh. When I hugged a friend at a recent happy hour, she told me I smelled amazing. Night made!

The OG Rare perfume also launched with a set of fragrance-layering balms designed to melt into the skin with body heat and enhance certain notes when layered under the perfume. With the arrival of Rare Beginnings, two more balms have joined the lineup: Fruity Pear and Sweet Marshmallow. 

At $78 for the full-size bottle (and $30 for the travel spray — the same as the original Rare), this is an expensive, gorgeous fruity scent that’s also something of a shapeshifter. When peared with the Fruity Pear balm, which smells delicious on its own, the succulent notes of pear nectar and lotus blossom really shine. With Sweet Marshmallow, which has a creamy, almost powdered-sugar-like quality, I found that the sneaky gourmand notes — candied pink sugar, nutty pistachio, and cozy vanilla bean — really come alive. In terms of longevity, I found that this one doesn’t linger quite as long as Rare, but I wasn’t totally surprised: Fruity notes tend to pull a disappearing act within a few hours of application, but I did find that Rare Beginnings tended to cling onto clothes much better than skin. 

Ultimately, I’d say lightning has struck twice with Rare Beginnings. Like its predecessor, it has a sweet, nostalgic quality, but with the polish of a proper eau de parfum — and, best of all, it works just as well at the office as it does on date night without missing a beat. Add in the layering balms for a little fragrance versatility, and you’ve got the beginning of your newest signature scent era. 

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Kitten Scents Are Fall's Cutest Fragrance Trend

7 Weird Perfume Habits That Make Me Smell Amazing

These 16 New Fragrances Are Made For Late Summer

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/FD59nqB
via IFTTT

On August 7, I turned 34. Birthdays have always made me reflective. During my new season, I take some time to think about where I am, where I thought I would be, what I’ve accomplished, what I still want, and how much of my childhood continues to influence the woman I’ve become. This year, though, turning 34 felt different. For the first time, I found myself really sitting with the fact that I am firmly in my mid-thirties, old enough to look backward with perspective and forward with a different understanding of time.  

Then, nine days later, I woke up with a strange pang in my chest. I checked my phone and learned that Hayden Panettiere, one of my favorite child actresses and a driving force across film and television throughout the 2000s, had died at 36. Details are still emerging but early reports say that Panettiere passed away from a cardiac arrest, possibly due to an overdose, and that there was no evidence of foul play. She was only two years older than me, and for a moment, I couldn’t process it.  

Panettiere wasn’t simply an actress I admired. She was part of my childhood. Like so many millennial girls who grew up in the late 1990s and early 2000s, I watched her grow up on screen. I knew her from Remember the Titans, Ice Princess, Raising Helen, Bring It On: All or Nothing, Heroes and, later, Nashville. She was one of those young actors who seemed always to be there as we moved from childhood into adolescence and, eventually, adulthood. So, when the news of her death spread, it didn’t feel like the death of a celebrity I’d never met; it felt like the loss of someone I knew, like a childhood friend I’d lost touch with. I opened TikTok and watched montage after montage of the Golden Globe-nominated actress and mother, her death leaving most TikTokers in disbelief.   

Many of the young performers who helped create [the millennial] cultural landscape never got the chance to grow old alongside us. 

Panettiere was only 36; we grew up with her, and she was so young. This doesn’t feel real. Between pouring over those TikToks, I realized that my grief wasn’t only about her. Panettiere’s life and now her death force my generation to confront the entertainment industry that raised us. Because millennials are old enough to remember these stars as children and now see them as adults, we’re seeing the aftereffects of growing up in the industry, and that perspective changes everything.  

We were too young to understand what it meant for a child to become a working actor. We saw the red carpets, the television shows, the magazine covers and the premieres. We saw talented young people seemingly living extraordinary lives. We didn’t see the pressure, the exploitation or the ways that childhood stardom could follow someone long after the cameras stopped rolling, and the pitfalls that come when the adults responsible for protecting them care more about money than their wellbeing.

And in Panettiere’s case, we didn’t understand how profoundly growing up inside Hollywood affected her until she began telling us herself. That’s when I started looking at child stardom differently. I remember growing up in the late 1990s and early 2000s surrounded by a generous array of “kid-friendly” entertainment programming. Nickelodeon’s All That, Disney’s That’s So Raven, Glee, made-for-television movies like Life-Size, and so much more filled our screens. These programs gave us characters we loved, actors we admired, and stories that became part of the fabric of our childhoods.  

But many of the young performers who helped create that cultural landscape never got the chance to grow old alongside us.   

Some passed away before they made it to their 40th birthdays (Cory Monteith died from an accidental heroin overdose at 31). Others have openly navigated addiction (Lindsay Lohan has been open about her struggles with substance abuse), mental illness (Amanda Bynes’ mental health battles have been highly publicized), and the difficult realities of transitioning from childhood fame into adulthood.  

That realization has become part of a larger millennial reckoning. Many of the child stars we grew up watching are no longer with us, like Michelle Trachtenberg, Brittany Murphy, Lee Thompson Young, and Aaron Carter. Their stories are not interchangeable, and Hollywood cannot be blamed for every tragedy. But collectively, they raise an uncomfortable question: What responsibility did the adults and institutions around these children have to protect them — and why did they so often fail?  

In Panettiere’s case, the answer can be found in what she revealed about her childhood. In her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, Panettiere wrote that she was introduced to drugs at 15 when a member of her public relations team allegedly gave her “happy pills” before red carpets and interviews to keep her focused and energetic. In a recent interview on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast and in her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, Panettiere revealed how, at 19, she finally confronted her mother, Lesley Vogel, about their complicated relationship. While filming Heroes, Panettiere summoned the courage to end their professional relationship, telling her mother in her trailer during lunch, “I don’t want us to work together anymore. I just want you to be my mom.” Vogel cared more about the business than their relationship and told Panettiere that she “owed” her. Panettiere clearly didn’t receive the emotional support that a child is owed from her mother.

For the sake of our entertainment, these children sacrificed their freedom… and fell victim to opportunistic, preying adults. When children become commodities, who is responsible for protecting them from a system built to profit from them?

Panettiere also described the intense pressures of being raised in Hollywood from infancy and being managed and conditioned from a young age. That conditioning extended to encounters with powerful adults. Panettiere recalled in her memoir that an “important executive at NBC” kissed her on the lips at a party in 2008 while she was starring on Heroes. She also described an encounter at 19 in which an “Oscar-winning actor and director” allegedly cornered her and exposed himself.  

One of the most disturbing incidents occurred when she was 18. According to Panettiere and her memoir, an actress friend took her to a yacht party in the South of France and ushered her into a cabin where a famous British singer-songwriter in his 30s lay naked in bed.  

“I want you to get in bed with him,” the friend told her. Panettiere wrote that she panicked but had spent her life trusting the people managing her. “Being ‘managed’ was routine, to the point where I lost faith in my intuition,” she wrote.  

Her account speaks to something larger than one disturbing encounter: for the sake of our entertainment, these children sacrificed their freedom, lost trust in their own instincts, and fell victim to opportunistic, preying adults. When children become commodities, who is responsible for protecting them from a system built to profit from them? Panettiere later spoke openly about addiction to opioids and alcohol and her battle with postpartum depression. In a 2022 PEOPLE interview, she said, “I was on top of the world, and I ruined it.”  

That framing deserves reconsideration. Panettiere didn’t “ruin” her life; she was a young woman trying to survive circumstances she had been taught to normalize. She had to navigate fame and a relentless industry with no support or supervision. The only thing ruined was the sanctity, safety, and innocence of her childhood, which everyone has a right to.  

What’s most heartbreaking is that recently, it seemed as if Panettiere was finally entering a new chapter. On the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast, Panettiere said, “I finally feel like I have shaken off all of this darkness and this negativity.”  

That makes her death even more devastating. She was rebuilding and reclaiming her story, while bravely speaking openly about what had happened to her. And now, she is gone. We cannot know whether different interventions would have changed the course of Panettiere’s life. Her story was complicated, and it would be reductive to suggest Hollywood alone caused everything she endured.  

Millennials grew up watching Hayden Panettiere become a star, and unfortunately, now we are watching what that stardom cost her.

But we can acknowledge what the industry asked of Hayden Panettiere. It asked a child to become a professional before she was old enough to understand the power dynamics surrounding her. It asked her to perform, remain marketable and, at times, suppress her own instincts in service of a career adults were building around her.  

And when that child became an adult struggling with the consequences, the conversation too often became about what was wrong with her.  

In 2015, Panettiere openly spoke about her postpartum depression (PPD) and mental health struggles after giving birth to her daughter in 2014. That same year, she was dropped by cosmetics company Neutrogena after a 10-year partnership, a decision she believes was connected to her decision to speak publicly about her postpartum depression. Years later, in 2018, she made the painful decision to sign over full custody of her daughter to her then-partner, Wladimir Klitschko, so she could focus on recovering from severe postpartum depression and addiction. 

“I wouldn’t take [speaking about PPD] back, but…of all the things that I had been caught doing, that being the thing where they drew the line was shocking to me,” Panettiere told Shetty. She added that it was “heartbreaking” that their 10-year partnership ended without anyone from the company reaching out to her. 

Her problems became plotlines on Nashville. That is the part millennials should reckon with. We grew up consuming these stars’ childhoods without understanding the machinery behind them. Now we are old enough to look back and ask whether the adults were protecting the children — or protecting the machine.  

When I turned 34 this year, I found myself thinking about time differently, how childhood moves quickly into adulthood, what I want in this next chapter, and about the people I grew up watching. But Panettiere didn’t get to see 37. Her story allows us to reconsider what we owe the next generation of young performers. A child should not have to become the breadwinner before the adults around them decide to protect them. And even then, the money often still doesn’t buy them the love, security, and support they deserve.  

Millennials grew up watching Hayden Panettiere become a star, and unfortunately, now we are watching what that stardom cost her. Her struggles shouldn’t be the end of her story. Instead, her legacy should start a harder conversation about what Hollywood owes the children it turns into stars, and whether we are finally ready to demand better.  

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Has The Ariana Grande Body Discourse Gone Too Far?

How We Failed Britney — & All Child Stars

How Brenda Song Survived Child Stardom

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/wvRjqKH
via IFTTT

Before Sephora tweens were even born, Drunk Elephant had already made a name for itself with buzzy skincare formulas that inspire fervent fanbases. And after more than a decade (and one $845 million acquisition deal later), the brand is finally giving its community a bucket-list product: foundation. (Sort of — more on that later.)

Drunk Elephant isn’t exactly a stranger to the makeup-skincare hybrid category. The brand’s viral bronzing drops (along with the lesser-known B-Goldi highlighting drops, which I actually prefer, not to mention O-Bloos Blush Drops) helped usher the concept of cocktailing complexion products into the mainstream, so it was only a matter of time before tinted complexion drops entered the chat. Meet Kamo Triple-Peptide Cover Drops.

“Kamo is a natural extension, perhaps evolution even, of our color drop family,” Drunk Elephant founder Tiffany Masterson says of the launch. Like its predecessors, it’s designed to be used in myriad ways: worn alone for the most comprehensive coverage, mixed with moisturizer for a sheer, skin-tint-like result, or combined into liquid illuminators (like Rhode’s Highlight Milk, for example) for a glowy finish.

In addition to a 4% concentration of skin barrier-supporting peptides, Kamo (available in 25 shades and retailing for $42) is infused with marula and green tea seed oils and squalane to moisturize skin and provide antioxidant benefits against pollution and UV damage. Ahead, three Refinery29 editors put the innovative drops to the ultimate summer wear test. 

Drunk Elephant Kamo Triple-Peptide Cover Drops, $42

Shade(s) tested: Fair 4N 

“Makeup alchemy isn’t usually my thing. Rather than mix my products to perfection, I prefer to use a dedicated foundation or concealer as a base, but lately, nothing has been sitting right on my skin. It’s a combination of the unprecedented heat in London and using tretinoin (don’t worry, I’m diligent with sunscreen!), which has left me with flaky patches and uneven texture. With that in mind, I’ve been wearing more moisturizer, and the fact that I can mix these drops with my go-to (currently Prequel Half & Half Fluid Moisturizer — I love the ceramides!) has been a godsend in the soaring temperatures. 

I mix one drop (trust me, that’s all you need!) of Kamo into the milky lotion on the back of my hand, dunk my brush in — or what Katie Jane Hughes likes to call “priming” the brush — and apply all over. A single drop is enough to blanket breakouts and post-pimple staining. It’s even high-coverage enough that I can comfortably skip concealer under my eyes. It provides excellent coverage with a barely-there feel, but because one drop packs so much pigment, it really sticks around. I top mine off with setting spray, and I’m good to go from 8 a.m. until I come home in the evening.” — Jacqueline Kilikita, Beauty Director

Shade(s) tested: 11N, 12W, 12N

“I love light, customizable coverage, so the concept of tailoring my complexion product was right up my alley. I liked being able to mix it into my day cream of choice (but never sunscreen, as this can disrupt the integrity of each formula, resulting in lower SPF protection than advertised) to create my own tinted moisturizer. A one-to-two ratio yielded a skin tint-like finish, while equal parts basically mimicked a medium-coverage foundation. 

My preferred method, however, ended up being really similar to our Beauty Director; after applying a tinted sunscreen (my go-to is EltaMD’s UV Clear in Medium), I dispensed a pump of Kamo (and as she mentioned, a little truly does go a very long way with this stuff), worked it into the bristles of a fluffy, medium-sized brush, and “airbrushed” any imperfections away. This resulted in glowy, hydrated skin that looked even, but not like I was wearing a makeup mask. Just for curiosity’s sake, I also tried wearing Kamo alone (which required about two pumps for my entire face), but that ended up looking a bit heavier than I like. That said, I’m not mad that it’s almost too concentrated; even with a relatively small bottle, I doubt I’ll finish it anytime soon.” —Karina Hoshikawa, Senior Beauty Writer 

Shade(s) tested: 23C, 25C, and 24N 

“Matching shades turned out to be an adventure. The Drunk Elephant team sent over 23C, 25C, and 24N after I let them know I fall into the rich category, but I probably should have been a bit more specific to land my exact match. I usually lean toward neutral undertones like 24N, but with a deep summer tan, I debated between 24N and 25C. When testing, I started with 23C on the back of my hand expecting a lighter swatch, but the color payoff has way more richness and depth once dispensed than it appears in the bottle.  

Even though 23C was deeper than my natural tone, just one drop blended out seamlessly across the outer areas of my face for a sheer, sculpted, bronze finish. Trying 24N proved even deeper, so 23C ended up being the sweet spot. The formula itself feels less like a traditional foundation and more like blending a weightless, nourishing serum into the skin.

I wish I had 22N in my arsenal (I think that would be my true perfect match), but either way, the ultra-blendable formula melted seamlessly into my skin. With just a light layer, it evens out hyperpigmentation while leaving my skin looking like, well, skin. Not caked-up or heavy at all. This is strictly for the girlies who want an effortless, no-makeup makeup look. I gave it a test drive on Sunday before church, and a woman on the elevator stopped me just to compliment how fresh-faced I looked. Honestly, those are the absolute best compliments.” — Alexis Bennett Parker, Director of Shopping Partnerships

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Kitten Scents Are Fall's Cutest Fragrance Trend

Why Did Drunk Elephant Change Babyfacial?

7 Weird Perfume Habits That Make Me Smell Amazing

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/TvQ5dyi
via IFTTT

Kevin “KevOnStage” and Melissa Fredericks are the hardest-working couple in independent media. The pair has turned their natural humor and 20+ years of partnership and parenting into a creative empire. Military brats who spent their childhoods traveling the globe, the pair met in high school and quickly became friends. Both athletic and churchy, with a special love for FUBU, Kev and Melissa began dating and never looked back. Kev and Melissa joined Naked Beauty to talk about their early connection and how it has grown into the partnership loved by their audience of millions. During the conversation, they talked about what moving around so much taught them about adaptability and how it prepared them for the flexible creative careers they have now. They dived deep into 90s style, and what they remember most about their high school selves.

No conversation with the Fredericks would be complete without hearing them discuss their process for chasing their ambitions across the country. Trading in a stable life and career for an uncertain future is no easy task, but the pair reminds us that there is no reward without risk. Kev and Melissa walk through the details of their journey to Los Angeles and how they decided together when and how to make the cross-country move. Clearly that choice was the correct one as they’ve built television shows, a media app, joint and separate podcasts, and creative content that is always flowing. They cover the most surprising accomplishments and how they celebrate every single win, despite their busy schedules. The group even played a fun game of “guess that beauty product,” and learned that Kevin definitely pays attention to Melissa’s makeup routine. Kev and Melissa are incredibly funny and talented individuals, but together, they are powerful.

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/1m3axJk
via IFTTT

JoJo remembers her rise to fame with remarkable clarity — particularly the ferry ride into New Jersey to record her self-titled debut album, JoJo — because of how it smelled. A brand-new CD case. The papery scent of album liner notes. The warm, aromatic pull of the sandwich shop across the street from the studio. Those memories are embedded in her, as permanent as a signature scent.

“I was bullied in school because I was always very eccentric,” she says, recalling belting out Christina Aguilera songs on the jungle gym as a kid. “When Christina came out with her fragrance, it was such a concept to me — that maybe if I wore her fragrance, I could sound like her. Maybe I could turn into her,” JoJo recalls.

Not long afterwards, she burst onto the scene with her debut single, “Leave (Get Out),” becoming the youngest solo artist ever to top the Billboard Pop Songs chart at just 13 years old. What followed was a string of hits — “Too Little Too Late”, “Baby It’s You” and “Say So” — as well as a starring role alongside Emma Roberts and Sara Paxton in the 2006 teen fantasy movie Aquamarine. “That was such a moment,” she says. “All of us girls were inspiring each other and sharing beauty products like lotions and sunscreen and just looking out for each other.”

If she had to bottle that chapter of her life today? It would smell like EOS Beach Waves 24H Moisture Body Lotion & Body Mist and Toasted Marshmallow 24H Moisture Body Lotion & Body Mist. Equal parts tropical, sweet, and comforting. But what does the future smell like to JoJo? “Let’s see,” she muses. “The next 12 months smells like ascension. It smells like expansion. Jazz. Golden hour. New York City. Europe.”

Listen to the full podcast episode, where JoJo joins Nose Dive host Asia Grant — an NYC-based independent perfumer and creative director — for a conversation about opening for Usher, making her first album, her favorite celebrity fragrances of the ’00s, channeling confidence through scent, and so much more.

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Gap Just Brought Back Its '90s Fragrance Line

7 Weird Perfume Habits That Make Me Smell Amazing

Are We All Sleeping On Zara Perfume?

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/2QXaGiK
via IFTTT

R29 babes, this week acts as a bridge between eclipses, giving us a chance to process what the Leo Total Solar Eclipse awakened before the next wave of change arrives. During the first half of the week, the First Quarter Moon in Scorpio brings us deeper into our emotions and reveals the first challenges, decisions, or plot twists connected to whatever began around last week’s eclipse.

First Quarter Moons ask us to take action on what was initiated during the New Moon, and with Scorpio squaring off with the final degrees of Leo Season, we may have to confront fears, control issues, jealousy, or self-sabotaging tendencies that make us question whether we’re actually ready for the next level we asked for. Pay attention to what feels emotionally activating without letting every feeling run the show. The eclipse opened the door; this Scorpio Moon asks whether you’re willing to walk through it even when doing so requires leaving an old version of yourself behind.

Then, on August 22nd, the sun enters Virgo and Virgo Season begins, bringing some much-needed grounding energy as we continue moving through eclipse season. With the Pisces Lunar Eclipse arriving on the 28th, we’re still very much in a period of accelerated change, but Virgo energy helps us focus on what we can actually organize, simplify, and tend to in the present moment. Clean your space, answer the emails, get some rest, make the appointment, look at your schedule, and break the overwhelming goal into smaller steps. You don’t need to understand where every eclipse plot twist is taking you yet. Use this week to create enough order around you that when the Pisces eclipse brings its revelations and emotional release, you have a solid foundation to land on.

Read your horoscopes for your Sun and Rising signs for the most in-depth forecast.

Aries Sun & Rising:

Aries, this week asks whether you’re ready for the deeper responsibilities that come with the exciting new chapter you just stepped into. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your realm of intimacy, merging, outside resources, and transformation, one week after the Leo eclipse lit up your fame, creativity, romance, and fate zone. A dream may be gaining momentum, but now questions around money, trust, vulnerability, debt, funding, or who you’re willing to build with could surface. Handle the practical or emotional conversation you’ve been avoiding, ask for support if you need it, and pay attention to where fear of losing control is making expansion harder than it needs to be.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and shifts your attention toward your health, work, habits, and daily routine, giving you exactly the grounding you need between eclipses. The next month is about creating systems that can actually sustain everything you’re calling in. Simplify your schedule, clean up your sleep habits, organize your workspace, and decide which responsibilities genuinely deserve your energy. The glow-up is happening, Aries; now make sure your everyday life can keep up with it.

Taurus Sun & Rising:

Taurus, this week may reveal exactly what your relationships require from you as your life continues changing. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your partnership and marriage zone, one week after the Leo eclipse initiated a major fresh start around home, family, and your emotional foundation. A partner, best friend, collaborator, or even an ex could bring up a conversation that forces you to clarify your boundaries and what commitment means to you now. You may also realize that creating the home or future you want requires greater compromise with someone you love. Address what’s coming up directly instead of digging your heels in and hoping the other person eventually reads your mind.

Virgo Season begins this weekend in your fate, true love, creativity, and inner child realm, bringing a much lighter energy into the picture. After all the emotional excavation, you’re being encouraged to reconnect with what actually makes you happy. Date, create, play, return to a hobby, take yourself somewhere beautiful, or make one tangible move toward a dream you’ve been overthinking. Virgo energy helps you turn inspiration into something real, one intentional step at a time.

Gemini Sun & Rising:

Gemini, the recent solar eclipse may have filled your head with possibilities, and this week asks you to figure out which ones deserve a place in your actual life. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your work, wellness, and routine zone, one week after the Leo eclipse opened a powerful new chapter around communication, writing, learning, and sharing your ideas. Now comes the follow-through: the deadline, schedule, practice, health habit, or boring-but-necessary detail that turns an exciting idea into something sustainable. Look at where your time is actually going and cut down on the distractions that keep making you say, “I’ll do it tomorrow.”

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your home, family, and roots realm, encouraging you to ground yourself before next week’s eclipse brings another wave of change. Declutter, spend more time at home, have the family conversation, reorganize your space, or simply give yourself permission to be less available socially. Your mind has been moving fast, Gemini, and your next breakthrough may come once you create enough peace around yourself to actually hear yourself think.

Cancer Sun & Rising:

Cancer, this week asks you to get serious about what you want without sucking all the joy out of it. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your fate, romance, creativity, and inner child realm, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo opened a major new chapter around money, security, and self-worth. You may now realize that greater financial stability requires taking a creative risk, believing more deeply in your talents, or investing time into something you genuinely love. Scorpio energy can make you intensely focused on the outcome, so avoid obsessing over whether something will “work” before you’ve even given it room to grow. Take one actionable step toward the idea, person, or passion that keeps pulling you in.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your communication and learning zone, helping you organize everything eclipse season has been bringing to the surface. Write things down, make the call, send the email, have the conversation, or turn the million thoughts floating through your head into an actual plan. You’ll also become more selective about what deserves your attention and what is simply mental clutter. With another eclipse arriving next week, clarity is your superpower right now.

Leo Sun & Rising:

Leo, last week may have changed how you see yourself, and this week asks whether your foundation is ready for the person you’re becoming. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your home, family, and roots sector one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo initiated a major personal rebirth. A family dynamic, living situation, childhood pattern, or emotional trigger could challenge some of the bold decisions you’re making about your future. You may love where you’re headed while simultaneously realizing that certain parts of your private life need attention before you can fully enjoy it. Clean up your space, address the family conversation, create stronger boundaries, or simply give yourself enough privacy to process how quickly you’re changing.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and shifts your attention toward money, self-worth, and security, helping you ground all that eclipse-fueled confidence into something tangible. Look at your numbers, reassess your rates, create a savings goal, or decide what you want your next income milestone to be. After weeks of being encouraged to dream bigger and take up more space, Virgo energy asks you to become intentional about how you sustain that growth. Main-character energy hits differently when the bills are organized, too.

Virgo Sun & Rising:

Virgo, something you’ve been processing internally may finally be ready to become a conversation. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your communication, learning, and mindset realm, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo initiated a deeper chapter of healing, solitude, and subconscious transformation. A realization you had privately may now require an email, boundary, confession, journal entry, or conversation that makes it real. Scorpio energy encourages honesty, so pay attention to what you keep thinking about repeatedly; there’s probably something underneath it that wants to be acknowledged. You don’t need to tell everybody your business, but you do need to tell yourself the truth.

Then, on August 22nd, Virgo Season begins and the sun enters your sign. Happy birthday season, Virgo! After weeks of processing, releasing, and doing so much behind-the-scenes emotional work, your annual reset is officially here. Start thinking about what you want this next year of your life to feel like, update your goals, refresh your appearance if you’re craving it, and give yourself permission to become more visible again. With another eclipse arriving next week, you don’t need your entire solar return year figured out yet; start by choosing yourself more intentionally and let the rest reveal itself from there.

Libra Sun & Rising:

Libra, this week asks you to look at whether your resources are keeping up with the future you’re creating. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your money, security, and self-worth realm, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo opened a major new chapter around friendship, community, social media, and your long-term dreams. An exciting collaboration or opportunity may now require an investment, a financial decision, or greater confidence in what you bring to the table. Instead of spiraling over what you don’t have yet, look at what you can actually work with. Review your budget, negotiate your rate, ask the question, or make one strategic investment in the vision that’s starting to take shape.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your spirituality, solitude, and healing zone, starting the quieter final stretch before your birthday season. Give yourself more space to process how quickly eclipse season has been rearranging your priorities. Sleep more, journal, clean up emotional loose ends, spend time offline, and notice which obligations have been draining you simply because you’ve gotten used to saying yes. Next week’s eclipse can bring another major revelation, so use this bridge week to hear yourself without everybody else’s opinions in the room.

Scorpio Sun & Rising:

Scorpio, this week could feel intense, but that intensity may be exactly what pushes you toward your next move. The First Quarter Moon takes place in your sign, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo activated your career and legacy sector. You may suddenly become hyperaware of the gap between where you are professionally and where you know you’re capable of going, or an opportunity could require you to show up with more confidence, visibility, and authority than you’re used to. Since the Scorpio Moon squares the final degrees of Leo Season, fears around being judged, failing publicly, losing control, or taking on greater responsibility could surface. Use the discomfort as information. The pressure you feel can become momentum once you give it somewhere to go.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your friendship, community, social network, and future-goals realm, reminding you that your next professional level may require more collaboration. Reach out to the person you’ve been meaning to contact, reconnect with your network, ask for an introduction, or share what you’re working toward instead of trying to mastermind every step alone. Virgo energy helps you become more strategic about who belongs in your ecosystem and which connections actually support your growth. The right conversation this weekend could make the career challenge from earlier in the week much easier to solve.

Sagittarius Sun & Rising:

Sag, this week may bring up something you thought you were already over, especially as eclipse season stretches you toward a much bigger future. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon moves through your spirituality, solitude, healing, and subconscious zone, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo opened a fresh chapter around travel, entrepreneurship, and expansion. As exciting as that new horizon may feel, an old fear, regret, attachment, or self-sabotaging tendency could temporarily make you question whether you’re ready. Give yourself enough quiet to identify what’s actually bothering you instead of outrunning the feeling with another plan or distraction. Rest, journal, meditate, cry if you need to, and then decide whether that old story deserves any authority over where you go next.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your career, reputation, and legacy sector, helping you turn last week’s big eclipse vision into a practical professional strategy. Think beyond inspiration and ask yourself what needs to happen next: Who needs the email? What needs to be submitted? Which skill needs strengthening? What deadline would keep you accountable? Your natural instinct is to see the whole horizon, Sag, but Virgo Season wants you to build the road that actually gets you there.

Capricorn Sun & Rising:

Capricorn, this week asks you to get strategic about who actually belongs in the future you’re building. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your friendship, community,
social media, and future-goals realm, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo opened a major new chapter around intimacy, shared resources, outside funding, and transformation. You may realize that reaching your next level requires asking for help, making a new connection, or becoming more intentional about the communities you invest your energy in. A friendship or collaboration could also reveal where expectations need to be clarified. Send the DM, ask for the introduction, follow up on the opportunity, and pay attention to who consistently shows up when you let yourself be supported.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your travel, education, publishing, and expansion zone, helping you zoom back out after an emotionally intense start to eclipse season. You may feel inspired to plan a trip, return to school, teach something, expand your business, or finally take a bigger vision out of your notes app and give it some structure. Start researching, budgeting, applying, or mapping out the first few steps. You don’t need the entire journey planned yet, Capricorn; you just need enough of a plan to start moving.

Aquarius Sun & Rising:

Aquarius, this week could bring the first real test of the relationship chapter that last week’s eclipse opened for you. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your career, reputation, and legacy sector, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo initiated major changes within your partnership realm. A relationship or collaboration may now intersect with your professional ambitions, or you could find yourself questioning how much compromise you’re willing to make while pursuing your own goals. A career challenge could also reveal where you need stronger boundaries or more support from the people closest to you. Have the conversation, make the professional move, and resist shrinking your ambitions just to keep everyone comfortable.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and takes you into your intimacy, transformation, and shared-resources realm, giving you a chance to look beneath the surface before next week’s eclipse. Money you share with others, debts, investments, trust, sex, and emotional reciprocity may require more attention. Get specific about what you owe, what you’re owed, what you’re willing to share, and where you need clearer boundaries. Eclipse season is changing your relationships, and Virgo energy helps you make sure those connections work practically as well as emotionally.

Pisces Sun & Rising:

Pisces, this week asks you to take one of your big eclipse-season visions seriously enough to actually do something about it. The Scorpio First Quarter Moon activates your travel, higher education, spirituality, publishing, and expansion realm, one week after the recent Solar Eclipse in Leo opened a fresh chapter around your health, work, and daily routine. You may realize that the lifestyle you want requires learning a new skill, changing environments, taking a trip, pursuing a certification, or simply believing that your current circumstances aren’t the limit of what’s available to you. Pick one possibility and research it, apply for it, book it, or start building toward it. Your intuition can point toward the destination, but you still have to take the first step.

Virgo Season begins this weekend and activates your partnership and relationship zone, bringing other people into sharper focus right before next week’s eclipse in your sign. Pay attention to how your closest relationships actually function day to day: who follows through, who listens, who reciprocates, and where expectations need to become clearer. Have the conversation you’ve been avoiding and let people show you what they’re capable of through their actions. With such a personal eclipse approaching, the relationships that can grow with the person you’re becoming will become much easier to recognize.

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Leo Season Is Here

Mars In Cancer Is Here

The Lion’s Gate Portal Is Here

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/knzlwVH
via IFTTT

As a beauty editor, I’m used to investing a lot of time in my getting-ready routine. But as a relative newcomer to the run community, I quickly learned that running a half marathon requires a whole different kind of getting-ready prep. For Lululemon’s SeaWheeze Half Marathon in the brand’s hometown of Vancouver, Canada, I had to think about everything from sweat-wicking fabrics and chafe-proof shorts to where I’d stash my gels, lip balm, and other race-day essentials. (And, naturally, I also wanted to look cute while doing it!)

Ahead, here’s the full ‘fit check of everything I wore before, during, and after 13.1 miles, from my pre-race 5K warm-up to the post-run massage. 

Pre-Race Warm-Up

The day before the half marathon, I joined the Lululemon team and fellow editors for a short-and-sweet 5K. I brought along my tried-and-true Energy Bra (Lululemon, please never discontinue this style!), which I love for its medium support and pretty, streamlined silhouette thanks to the thin straps. On top, I wore one of my many Swiftly Tech Short-Sleeve Shirts, a go-to for any sweaty activity thanks to its odor-resistant silver fibers and soft, airy fabric that moves with you.

I also opted for my new favorite running shorts, the Fast and Free Mid-Rise Split Short 3″. This reimagined take on a Lululemon classic features a new 360° waistband storage system (a huge deal when you’re running!) and an updated performance brief liner that is exceptionally comfortable. The shorts themselves are breezy and lightweight, while the petal-shaped side panels are actually very cute and flattering—a welcome bonus when you’re spending several miles in running gear. 

Race Day 

Even though we were in beautiful Vancouver, PNW summer is still summer—which meant I was keeping my race-day kit light and breezy. The hero piece of my outfit was, without a doubt, the Fast and Free Short-Sleeve Shirt, which I wore in a brilliant Yves Klein blue. The fabric is the airiest, most breathable material I’ve ever felt, and it barely showed sweat even when I crossed the finish line. It’s also made with specialized, body-mapped zones of open-knit mesh (aka built-in AC) to ventilate your sweatiest areas—specifically, the back and sleeves. My bra of choice was the Nulux Strappy-Back Sports Bra, B/C Cup (which is currently part of Lululemon’s We Made Too Much section!), which offered medium support with plenty of breathability thanks to its strappy-back design.

My shorts of choice were the Shake It Out High-Rise Running Short, also in the same brilliant blue. I love high-rise, flowy shorts, and this one allowed for unrestricted movement in a flattering, tiered drape that looked so cute on. Maybe my millennial side is showing, but I personally love a high rise: I feel secure and held in, and I don’t have to worry about my waistband riding down while I’m going for a personal best. The shorts also have zippered side pockets, which let me keep a few extra gels on hand without adding bulk—aka potentially slowing me down.

In lieu of a running vest, I opted for the Fast and Free Running Belt, which comes in several fun colorways. (Mine is black, since it goes with everything.) Even though this is probably the slimmest running belt I’ve tried, it was stretchy enough to fit my iPhone 17 easily, along with my mini emotional-support lip balm and glitter shadow (you know, typical running essentials!). The waistband is adjustable, so you can get a snug fit across your hips without it feeling too tight, and it stayed secure without bouncing with every stride. I honestly loved it and am already debating getting another colorway for my next race. 

Post-Run Recovery 

Immediately following the race, I showered and changed into my cozy uniform—which was waiting for me on my hotel bed. (Thank you, Lululemon; you think of everything.) Up top was the French Terry Oversized Crew in an elevated neutral beige, which feels like a 2.0 version of the OG Perfectly Oversized Crewneck. I wore my heather gray Little Ribbed Tee underneath, which I’ve been wearing nonstop. It’s Lululemon’s take on a baby tee, but in a soft, ribbed fabric that looks just as good with denim as it does with a silk midi skirt. 

And because I love a matching set, I paired my cozy ‘fit with the French Terry Mid-Rise Short 3.5″, which are made from the same sturdy, matte French terry fabric. Think of them as a fancy, decidedly-not-grubby pair of sweats that wouldn’t look out of place at a luxe hotel spa—which is, conveniently, where I wore them for a post-race massage. 

Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?

Blurred Lip Liner, Hair Serum, & More August Faves

This "Everywhere" Bag Lives Up To Its Name

The Very Best Sunscreens Worth Your Money In 2026

from Refinery29 https://ift.tt/mKZ02AV
via IFTTT