Exclusive: Della x Urban Outfitters Collaboration

For their latest collaboration beginning May 1st, Urban Outfitters has teamed up with socially conscious, LA-based fashion line Della. Della works with a community in Hohoe, Ghana to create handcrafted products while providing jobs, education and skills training to women in Ghana. I've come to adore companies that not only put out unique and original pieces but also add social responsibility into the fold. Proceeds from the collection will go toward providing employment, education and financial stability for poverty-stricken women and men in Ghana.

The folks at Urban Outfitters were nice enough to send over a sample of one of the pieces they will be debuting for the collection - this super cute wallet/mini-clutch.

I'm in love with the print and the fact that it's versatile enough to be a wallet or a small clutch for a night on the town

Operating under the motto "Carry Change", all of Della's products are made by hand from completely vegan and sustainable materials by seamstresses in the village of Hohoe.

"The purchase of each Della product supports dozens of women in the Volta Region of Ghana who are working for a positive change in their life," says Founder and former fashion stylist Tina Tangalakis, who turned a volunteer trip to Ghana into a lifelong mission to better the livelihood of the local women.

The exclusive diffusion line features eight styles crafted from traditional Ghanaian textiles including a printed bralette top, $44, printed shorts, $44, a printed romper, $54, printed bomber jackets, $69 and accessories including a woven headwrap, $24, a 5-panel hat, $29, a backpack, $49 and an iPad case, $42.

Will you be purchasing a piece from the Della x Urban Outfitters collaboration?

LBS Exclusive [VIDEO]: Braxton Family Values Season 3 Premiere

On Wednesday night here in NYC, chic downtown venue STK was packed with celebrities, fans and of course, the larger-than-life Braxtons. You guys know from our last interview with the sisters that their our favorite group of reality sisters. Toni, Traci, Tamar, Towanda and Trina along with Mama Evelyn, hosted a party in celebration of their 3rd season of Braxton Family Values that aired last night at 9pm on WEtv.

Check out our exclusive video below:

DJ Kiss, currently our favorite female DJ, didn't let us down one bit. She played all the right tunes as guests sipped on signature cocktails while waiting for The Braxtons and other celebrity guests to arrive.

Related: LoveBrownSugar Interviews The Braxtons

Everyone from Queen B (Lil Kim) to Angela Simmons and even Basketball Wives star Jennifer Williams were in attendance to support the sisters. Once the Braxtons arrived, we wasted no time hoping to get a taste of their spunky, over the top personalities.

Tamar who just the day before revealed that she is pregnant, dished on what we all were wondering. What does her pregnancy means for her music? 

"Let me clear something up. Just because I have a love on top, does not mean my album is not coming out. It’s still coming out this year,” explained Tamar Braxton.

Another bit of juice came from Traci Braxton, who WEtv has confirmed is no longer "the wannabe" but instead the “wildcard.”

She chatted with us about what we will see from her this season and let’s just say, she’s riding two wheelers. She said “You’re gonna see me with my motorcycling club!” Given what we've seen from Traci in the past, she'll have us laughing something serious for sure.

We love the Braxtons because they're so relatable and like any sisters, Towanda says “There are some days we don’t like each other, but we do love each other.”After last night's premiere, it's obvious we’re in for another crazy season.

- Makisha Timothy

Video shot & edited by Sharifa S. Daniels

Did you tune in to the premiere? Do you love the Braxtons? Soundoff below!

For more info on Braxton Family Values, check out their page on WeTV.com 

LBS Exclusive: Tracee Ellis Ross Talks New Website, Self-Esteem & More

So those of you who know me, know that I consider Tracee Ellis Ross one of my biggest style & beauty inspirations. From her amazing head of natural hair to her impeccable taste in fashion, I’ve been a dedicated STAN since her “Joan” days on Girlfriends.You guys were there when I first met her this time last year at the Reed Between The Lines premiere party (yes, same night I met Kanye). And you were there when I gushed about seeing her again at the Optimum Hair Care event in August (and she remembered me! *squeals*)

So I considered it an immense honor that Tracee chose myself and a handful of other bloggers to hop on a call with her yesterday to discuss one of her proudest accomplishments to date - the launching of her very own website and online community TraceeEllisRoss.com! Tracee chit-chatted about some of her personal style icons, what we can expect to see on the site (from video content to guest appearances and inspiration posts), and what she hopes to accomplish in building her own community online. Get into our chat & be inspired:

What inspired you to create this new site?
I think this has been a lifetime journey if you want to know the truth. I think social media has really changed the definitions of what you can do with a website. Keep in mind that when Girlfriends was on the air, social media did not even exist! So up until recently, I had no real way of connecting to people who connected to [the characters]. So the last year I really spent growing in my relationship with social media. At first I was very uncomfortable with it. I come from a public family so I inherently am very private. But what I came to realize was that people were responding to alot of the same things that I respond to and that I was interested in. So that spawned the thought that it could become more than just me interacting with people via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. The desire to create a lifestyle website was there from the start. And my hope is that it eventually moves away from being just TraceeEllisRoss.com and it becomes a world and a tribe of other like-minded people.

Will you share educational pieces about natural hair on the site?
I am not an expert, just an individual who has had quite the hair journey. The overall theme of the site is just to use myself as a springboard. My hair is a huge part of my life so I can't say that it will be educational, but I will be sharing my journey and what works for me. My point always is to stress that there isn’t just one way to do it, or one way to treat your hair. And that’s the theme of how I will use that section of the site.

You're a fashion icon and you inspire many women with your style. Will you be incorporating more stories about empowerment through body image on your site?
Of course! I touched on that with my “A Culture Confused by Fake Boobs” story. I will say that I’m incredibly uncomfortable with having the word “icon” anywhere near my name. It makes me SO uncomfortable. Probably because I’m the offspring of a REAL icon and I don’t feel like I’m anywhere at that place in my life though I’m so humbled by that. Body image is huge for me. Acceptance of ourselves is so important. We are all stunning and beautiful because we are all children of God. So that message will always be a part of anything I do because it is a core belief of mine.

Where do you get visual inspiration from?
Oh God, it comes from anywhere! I could get style inspiration from a flower. Since I was young, I’ve always called my closet my "happy place". I moved to Paris when I was about 12 years old with my family. Then I went to boarding school in Switzerland and there are many things I got from living abroad. One of them being that I came to understand that I was a child of the world and not just the US. From an emotional standpoint, I really gained a connection to the “outer” of clothing and how it related to me in an "inner" way. This idea that clothing started as an armor and a way that I protected myself and now has become a way that I express myself. I truly find inspiration in many different places, but mostly it’s about how I feel, which is why I thinks style is truly from inner to outer.

Will you be including your celebrity friends like Kanye, or style expert besties like Chuck Amos on the site as well?
Eventually I hope to share all aspects of my world. I have alot of people in my world who you might not know but they are the shiznizzle, let me tell ya! My best friend - I want her to have a whole section! I think the people around me are way more exciting then I am. So yes, if Kanye wants to do that or if my best friend wants a section, I hope that this is a place for them to do so. And by the way, that's not only for people I know, but I hope that eventually I end up meeting some people I didn’t know before and being able to introduce them to my community though the website. That is the beauty to me, is that this is a way to connect and become a community - not just a way for me to be seen. So yes, that will happen!

Any favorite blogs or websites?
Recently I have been discovering a ton. Usually my interests online have to do with style and a bit of politics. I really love the Street Style photographers, like I just discovered Jak and Jil. But I will be honest, I’m not really a web surfer. That’s one of the reasons I love Twitter and Pinterest. I go there and they send me places, like an already edited selection of links. I really like Pinterest. It’s like magic!

Who are your personal style/beauty/inspiration icons?

The list could go on and on! I mean, obviously my mother has influenced my style. From a real practical sense because I take ALL her sh**! I mean I have been known to shove stuff down my shirt when she’s said “No you cannot take that.” I have left with bracelets in my boobs! (Laughs) My mom will see me and be like “That is so pretty, I have something like that!”. So obviously my Mom is one. Love Katharine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Diana Vreeland, I love the 70’s as an era, Cher, Daphne Guiness - I love her boldness, Nina Simone, Kate Moss has style that makes me want to fall over, Cristy Turlington has incredibly beauty. And I LOVE noses. I love a strong nose. The kind of noses that make people uncomfortable and make them possibly want to get a nose job.

Love this woman! Intrigued? Mmm hmm I know you are. Check out Tracee’s website HERE! You also should be following her on Twitter @TraceeEllisRoss and keeping up with her on the Facebook.

Will you be following? I sure will!

LoveBrownSugar Interviews The Braxtons

Tonight marks the return of the “snaps, crackle and pops” better known as The Braxtons. The ladies along with Miss Evelyn return to Wetv for the continuation of season 2, now known as season 2.5 of Braxton Family Values. Yesterday at the London Hotel in New York, LoveBrownSugar.com sat down with Towanda, Traci, Tamar, Trina and Miss Evelyn to discuss where the season picks up and continues. They laid it out for us, with lots of laughter and personality to boot.

On season 2.5, Tamar Braxton claims “This 2.5 you really get to see a lot of everybody else.” For everyone who wants so much to “stan” for Traci, according to Towanda, “you get to see more of Traci in her marriage and her being a mother and a business woman.” Yes, finally we can strip her of being “the wannabe” because according to Tamar, “she is far from that.” And I agree!

Towanda, the glue that holds the sisters together, seems to have a rocky relationship with the father of her children Andre. But according to her, “I’m the girlfriend whose relationship you don’t know much about, but you just know it works for her.”

Trina’s role as wife and partyer has overshadowed the singing career that she has been working on with her band. She now has her first single out, “Party or Go Home,” which has been getting lots of play on the party scene. Trina will be releasing an EP very soon. When asked about what we can expect to see, she explained “In the near future, you’re not gonna have any ballads. I think it’s really important for me to establish who I am as a solo artist before I delve in to all those other genres of music because I don’t want to confuse my fans.”

We all want new music from Tamar, but she and Vince are conceiving their “love on top,” as she refers to her future baby bump. According to Tamar, a little one is “in the works.”

The Braxtons are some beautiful women, so of course I had them share their beauty secrets:

Tamar said, “right now everyone’s on Make Up Forever and Black Opal. And we use Dove soap because we have crazy sensitive skin and those products are very sensitive to the skin.” Who knew Dove Beauty bars work great on the face?

And who do you think they all said in unison was the most fashionable sister? "TAMAR!" Well, 3 snaps in a Z snap to that! Season 2.5 continues tonight on Wetv at 9pm.

- Makisha Timothy

Check out our exclusive video below:

Kisha chit-chatting with The Braxtons

Will you guys be tuning into Season 2.5?