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Nostalgiacan be a powerful force in beauty, for better andfor worse.
Photographed by Jonny Marlow. Hair: Alexander Arm. Make-up: Renee Loiz. Styling: Bryon Javar.
But other times, going back to the old works extremely well.
The show has received much buzz for its humor and casting.
But to many of us, Brunson’s name has been recognizable for years because of her stand-up comedy.
Brunson as Janine and Tyler James Williams as Greg onAbbott Elementary.
I don’t quite recall when I first became a fan of Brunson.
I think it’s really cool.Allure:Were you expecting such a massive response?
It’s really incredible to see.
So I’m just happy that it’s reached this kind of a social impact.
Brunson as Janine and Tyler James Williams as Greg onAbbott Elementary.
She’s at the beginning of a journey to figure out her style and what she likes.
So I guess it was intentional.
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Allure:I know youtransitioned from relaxed hairto your natural hair a few years ago.
It was an incredible journey.
You know what I mean?
So it feels like I’m getting to protect my own hair that way.
That’s something I’ve worked out with my hairstylist.
Blow-drying as much as we can and then gelling down instead of flat out straightening my hair.
I get gifted stuff often, so I put it to the side for months.
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Then one day, I needed some oil and I used [theHair Oil Everyday Gloss].
But I really, really liked it.
It smelled good and I liked the consistency.
Now, they’re in my arsenal.
I’m never without them.
I see to it I always have those three products in my hair drawer, no matter what.
I think it works really well with my hair.
That was another one I was gifted to try.
I went back toBlue Magic greaserecently.
It’s very dry.
It’s very rough.
It’s not the same as the East Coast where there’s a bunch of moisture in the air.
It really changed the game for me.
It’s a lot, so I cannot use it often.
But when I do get to use it, it’s a very nice experience.
He’s really incredible a great stylist.
He also doesAngela Bassett’s hair and SZA’s hair.
I don’t know how I got so fortunate to get him as my main, but he is.
So I go to her and she’s very good.
She always has been.
I really grew up wanting for nothing as a young Black girl.
They were doing hair when I didn’t want my hair done.
I’d be like, “I’m good.
So my hair was always fly.
I love [box]braids, and I wear them a lot.
But I can’t wear them all the time because wearing them for too long can be damaging.
I was thinking about micros recently.
Weirdly, those girls pretty much always have micro braids.
Yes, like bring that back for me.Allure:I’ll see what I can do.
I’ll chat with the children.
Brunson:Thank you.
Braids being a go-to is a very Philadelphia thing to do.
And I’m sure [for] many other cities and cultures.
But for me, braids were an inherent go-to for the summer.
I still feel that way.
That’s how my summers went in Philly.This is a fun question because I was thinking about this recently.
In Philly, growing up, and I think still, it’s a big lip gloss city.
Girls will not wearlipstick, but they will wearlip glossall the livelong day.
I’m still like that to this day.
I don’t really like lipstick, but I love a good gloss.
Sometimes that’s a little corner store gloss.
Sometimes it’s a super hyper-expensive brand.
I know it’s true because now I have little cousins and nieces who are doing the same thing.
My niece is 14 now, and I’m like, “Look at your glossy lips.
These glossy ass lips.”
It feels like a staple of the city.
They have a good clear one and a tinted red one.
I think they’re incredible glosses.
They’re nice, sticky, and glowy, just like the rest of Glossier’s stuff.
I really loveGlossierin general.
But it has a little bit of pizazz to it.
Glossier
Glossier Lip Gloss
Allure:Do you like shimmery glosses?
Do you wear different colored glosses?Brunson:No.
I don’t really like shimmery stuff.
I’m not a bigglitterperson.
No shimmer, no glitter.
I don’t do that.Allure:What is your go-to makeup routine?
Brunson:It’s super simple.
I will put on a nice moisturizer.
It’s really good.
Then if it’s a simple day, I’ll honestly use the Glossier [Stretch] concealer].
They have a great concealer and they have the [Perfecting Skin Tint] that I’ll also use.
Then a simple gloss.
It’s almost like a deep rose or burgundy.
L’Oreal Paris actually has this mascara I really love called [Voluminous Original Mascara].
It’s almost like a cream.
I can’t be giving it away [laughs], but it’s the truth.
It’s really all I use.
Once I find something and land on it, I’ll use it forever.
I’m like that.
I’ve been filling them in and brushing them out to make a biggerbrow.
I used to go super thin back in the day, thenbigger eyebrowscame into fashion, which is cool.
Allure:What’s your skin-care routine?Brunson:My skin-care routine is pretty simple.
My mom was very big on it.
She really took very good care of her skin.
I love having a nice white washcloth after I take all my makeup off.
Sleeping in even an ounce of makeup can drive me crazy.
Then sometimes I use serums.
I really like here we go with Glossier the Glossier serums.
I think they’re very good, especially their[Super Pure] zinc serum.
It’s really, really nice.Then there’s alsoMonastery.
They have wonderful skin-care products, super expensive, but I love them.
They have this beautifulAloe serum.
It’s a moisture boost and I can fully see a difference when I use that serum.
Then I’ll apply a moisturizer.
I change up on moisturizers, but I really like the Belif moisturizing balm.
I also like the simplePond’s Dry Skin Cream always gets the trick done.
It’s a really good moisturizer.
I’ve been on the verge of trying to find other ones.
Here I go with Glosseragain.
They have [theMilky Oil] that I like.
I also like the old-school trick of olive oil and a cotton pad.
I feel like my skin is getting a cleansing but also a layer of moisture at the same time.
I feel like, “Oh, no!
I need my eyebrow pencil.”
I’ve seen her without makeup just as much as I’ve seen her with makeup.
I really appreciate that about her.
I like people who exist in that realm where some days you’ll catch them fully bare-faced.
What does the process for getting glammed up look like for each of those?
I wouldn’t do anything different than I normally did for my day-to-day.
That’s just the way it goes on TV.
That being said, my makeup onAbbottis probably the simplest makeup job I’ve ever had as an actress.
My makeup artistRenee Loizknows where I like to exist.
I like to look like myself.
I’m not big oncontouring.
I’m not big on having a whole different-looking face on.
She knows that I like to keep it really simple and natural.
They have a vision and they’re kind of stuck to it.
I know we have to do makeup, but I don’t like a lot.
I want to look like me.”
Yeah, absolutely.Allure:How do decompress when it’s too much?
Brunson:I get off.
Honestly, the pandemic pushed me to get off more.
I was like, “This is far too much.
It’s far too much being online.
It’s far too much of me reading everybody else’s thoughts.”
It was like, “I am done with being on here so much.”
I think the end goal was definitely to pull back from the internet.
That feels really healthy for me.
I think it’s different for everybody.
In that case, it might be really good to be on the internet all day.
For me, it just wasn’t good anymore wasn’t healthy.
Not only the meme itself but [also when] it is accompanied by a caption or a tweet.
I think they’re the coolest, little hieroglyphic-bang out things that we have.
They’re so fun.
Every time I think I’ve seen it all, a new meme comes up.
It’s like, “Man, the internet is hilarious.
I’m happy and grateful that people feel that way about my face, my work, and everything.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
