FROW NEWS #127: Havaianas Reach New Heights, Bella Hadid Finds Her ALO and Max Factor Raids the Chocolate Cupboard 🩴🧘🏽♀️🍫
Friday has arrived, and fashion has questions to answer. Namely, what happened to the rest of the Havaianas heel? Elsewhere, Bella Hadid has made her relationship with activewear official, Kelly Wearstler is dressing H&M from the living room up, and Max Factor has been rummaging through the chocolate cupboard. There is also an autumn wardrobe reset from & Other Stories, foundation mixed for your skin, new luggage worthy of the airport outfit and a familiar voice joining the Wednesdays group chat. Let’s get into it. ⬇️
Havaianas Have Put Their Flip-Flops in Heels 👠
Havaianas made one of Copenhagen Fashion Week’s more unexpected appearances when Studio Constance sent the Brazilian brand’s first heeled flip-flop down the catwalk. The familiar rubber sole remains, but it now comes with an asymmetric kitten heel and a moulded cap covering the big toe. Just the big toe. Fashion has made its decision.
Shown in black, off-white and scene-stealing green, the shoes are strange, sculptural and somehow rather chic. They formed part of Studio Constance’s Spring/Summer 2027 show, so the group chat has until next year to prepare.
Bella Hadid and ALO Were Always Going to Happen 🧘♀️
Bella Hadid has spent years helping to turn activewear into an off-duty uniform, so becoming the face of ALO feels less like a surprise and more like someone finally completing the paperwork.
The model fronts the brand’s Pre-Fall campaign in sculpting sets, shorts, trainers and relaxed layers, bringing her own relationship with movement and wellbeing into the partnership. It is an obvious match, although Bella’s ability to make a sports bra look appropriate almost anywhere probably sealed the deal. The collection is available online, ready for the coffee run and everything that may happen afterwards. 🫣
Nike Asked Women What They Actually Want From Their Clothes 👟
Women have been wearing sportswear everywhere for years. To work, through airports, on school runs, occasionally to exercise and during any day that requires comfort without complete surrender. Nike has finally asked more than 300 of them what would make those clothes work harder.
Their answers shaped Studio Fleece, a new collection of hoodies, sweatshirts, joggers and shorts available in different fits and weights. Lightweight pieces handle layering, heavyweight options bring more structure, and the Total Black fabric has been developed to keep its deep colour for at least 30 washes. Frankly, women have enough to manage without their favourite black hoodie beginning its journey towards disappointed grey.
Nike has brought serious female energy to the campaign too. Figure skater Alysa Liu, basketball player Jazzy Davidson, sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson, footballer Lauren James and K-pop star Karina appear alongside talent from across sport and music. Different women, different schedules and absolutely no suggestion that activewear must wait patiently for a gym membership to fulfil its purpose.
Studio Fleece is available online now, with a worldwide release following on 1st September.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Nike
& Other Stories Is Pressing Reset on Your Autumn Wardrobe 🗼
That awkward stretch between summer and autumn is approaching, when getting dressed requires sunglasses, a coat and an unreasonable amount of optimism. & Other Stories’ Pre-Fall 2026 edit offers a little direction, courtesy of Paris-based photographer Diana Louise Bartlett.
Photographed around her familiar corners of Paris’s 9th arrondissement, Diana moves from early shoots to dinners and late-night walks in classic trenches, ballet pumps, fluid skirts, warm knits and long leather boots. These are clothes for real days rather than one perfectly styled moment, which is precisely what your between-seasons wardrobe needs. The collection is available globally in stores and online, with current new arrivals starting from £14.
UNIQLO and JW Anderson Are Making a Case for Another Shirt 👔
UNIQLO and JW Anderson have returned with the sort of autumn clothes that quietly become the backbone of your wardrobe. Oxford shirts, checked flannel, relaxed jackets and straight-leg jeans lead the collection, with soft pinks and blues sitting alongside more sensible neutrals.
The appeal lies in how easily everything works with clothes you already own. Shirts start at £29.90, and jeans cost £39.90, with pieces arriving throughout August and the main A/W collection landing on 27th August. That oversized shirt is entirely different from the others hanging in your wardrobe. The evidence has been reviewed, and the case is now closed.
Strathberry’s New Sway Bag Has Let Its Hair Down 👜
Strathberry’s handbags tend to be polished, structured and exceptionally well behaved. The new Sway loosens things up with a curved shape that tucks beneath the arm and feels more relaxed than the brand’s sharper silhouettes.
Arriving on 12th August, the Sway costs £375, while the roomier Sway Maxi is £425. A woven Chocolate leather version comes in at £495, adding texture without piling on unnecessary detail. No enormous logo or hardware is fighting for attention here. Just a quieter statement bag with enough room for more than your phone and one wildly optimistic lip gloss.
Max Factor Has Raided the Chocolate Cupboard 🍫
Max Factor has given its latest make-up collection the full confectionery treatment. Chocolate Melts brings warm browns and glossy finishes to the lips and eyes, including six new shades of Mellow Blur Lipstick.
Cacao Blend, Berry Crème and Chai Fudge tap into beauty’s continuing appetite for brown, but the colours are far more wearable than their dessert-inspired names suggest. The soft, buildable finish can add an everyday wash of colour or bring more depth when another pale nude simply will not do. The Mellow Blur Lipsticks cost £9.99 and are available at Boots and Superdrug. Your make-up bag gets the chocolate; the emergency desk-drawer stash can remain untouched.
L-R: Cacao Blend, Berry Crème and Chai Fudge
Minimalist Is Putting Indian Skincare on the UK High Street 🫧
British beauty shelves have spent years in their K-beauty era. Now, Indian skincare is demanding some space. Minimalist has landed at Superdrug in a UK high-street first for the brand, bringing one of India’s biggest ingredient-led names to more than 60 stores and placing Indian beauty firmly in front of the mainstream British shopper.
Minimalist built its following by refusing to make skincare sound like a secret language. Actives and percentages sit front and centre, so shoppers can understand what they are buying without conducting a full investigation in the serum aisle. That feels particularly relevant when nearly two-thirds of people consider ingredients before choosing facial skincare, according to Superdrug’s research.
The range is available online and in stores including Westfield White City, the Trafford Centre and Bristol Cribbs Causeway, with more locations planned later this year. Easier access is very welcome. Buying every active at once because the labels suddenly make sense is less advisable.
DCYPHER Is Personalising More Than Your Foundation Shade 🎨
Finding the right foundation colour is only half the job. A perfect shade match becomes considerably less impressive when the formula leaves your skin looking parched or turns your complexion shinier before lunch.
DCYPHER already uses its Beauty AI technology to create an individual shade. Its Custom Foundation Collection also lets you choose between Matte, Natural and Radiant finishes, alongside different levels of coverage, so the bottle is tailored to more than your skin tone.
The 30ml foundation costs £39. This month, selected John Lewis stores will also let you watch your chosen foundation being mixed in person in under 60 seconds. Personalised foundation is not new, but tailoring both the shade and the way it sits on your skin makes the service considerably more useful.
Kevyn Aucoin Has Two New Shades for Overlooked Brows ✍️
Kevyn Aucoin’s Micro-Sculpting Brow Pen has expanded from three shades to five, with Cream Blonde and Auburn joining Blonde, Brunette and Dark Brunette. It is a small addition with a useful point: natural-looking brows are considerably harder to achieve when the closest shade still is not particularly close.
Cream Blonde gives people with very fair blonde, grey or silver brows another option, while Auburn brings some long-overdue attention to red tones. The £29 waterproof pen has a soft, multi-fork tip and sheer, buildable formula, helping you add hair-like strokes exactly where they are needed without colouring over the entire brow. More choice and better definition are welcome. Two identical blocks above your eyes are not required; brows are sisters, not colleagues in matching uniforms.
Covent Garden Is Bringing Its Beauty Playground Back 💄
A casual trip to Covent Garden may require considerably more restraint between 4th and 13th September, when Beyond Beauty returns for ten days of make-up, skincare, fragrance and wellness events across the Piazza and surrounding shops.
More than 80 brands are involved, including Charlotte Tilbury, NARS, Elemis and Space NK. Masterclasses, treatments, pop-ups and live experiences will make up the programme, with some sessions requiring advance booking and others open throughout the event. Full details will be released on the Covent Garden website. If you go in for a little wander and leave emotionally attached to a new serum, we will understand.
BIBS Is Starting Trend Training Early 🍼
Babies may not understand accessorising, but apparently trend training can begin early. BIBS has expanded its Polka Dot Series across dummies, clips, boxes and gift sets, giving an everyday essential a fashion update with spots that move from subtle tonal pairings to larger designs with absolutely no intention of disappearing quietly into the changing bag.
Tango, a vibrant coral red, and Wasabi, a lively green, have also joined the BIBS colour palette for Autumn/Winter 2026. It is a welcome alternative to the predictable pastels and relentless beige often assigned to baby products. After all, if a dummy is going to spend half the day attached to an outfit, it may as well contribute something.
The STUDIO collection is available now from BIBS and selected retailers. A Studio Colour Dummy costs £5.95, while a two-pack and matching clip each cost £11.95. Dummy boxes cost £14.95, while the Soothe & Go Gift Set is £29.95.
Kelly Wearstler Is Dressing H&M From the Living Room Up 🛋️
Kelly Wearstler is not known for quiet rooms. The American designer has built her name on unapologetically glamorous interiors filled with sculptural shapes, clashing textures and objects that command attention. Now, she is bringing that world to H&M with 29 pieces of furniture, lighting and decoration, marking the first time H&M HOME has worked with a designer on furniture. Modular chairs can be joined to create larger seating, while statement tables, ceramic lamps, candlesticks, vases and even a metal clothing rail offer plenty for anyone who wants a little Wearstler drama without redecorating an entire hotel.
The collaboration does not stop at the living room. An eight-piece fashion capsule translates the same confident attitude into sharp shoulders, low-slung trousers and denim, a coated cotton trench with leather detailing and a cropped leather jacket with zip sleeves. A sequinned skirt and vase-print slip dress provide the glamour, while a boxy white shirt and embroidered T-shirt handle the days when full interior-designer fabulousness feels slightly ambitious. The complete collection arrives on 3rd September, with the H&M HOME pieces available online and in selected stores and the clothes sold exclusively online.
NUDIENT’s Bold New Luggage Is Ready for Take-Off 🧳
The airport outfit has received years of careful consideration, while the suitcase beside it has largely been expected to do its job. NUDIENT’s new Bold luggage gives it a cleaner wardrobe, with cabin and check-in cases available in Linen Beige, Urban Grey, Charcoal Black and Chalk White.
The hard-shell cases come with reinforced handles and spinner wheels. The cabin size costs £220, while the larger check-in case is £290, offering an understated option that should survive more than one holiday season and remain distinctive enough to spot at baggage reclaim. The emergency ribbon tied around the handle may finally be allowed to retire.
Ruby Adler Is Joining the Wednesdays Group Chat 🎙️
Sophie Habboo is stepping away from Wednesdays to focus on family life and NewlyParents, leaving Melissa Tattam in need of a new partner in oversharing. Ruby Adler, Melissa’s longtime friend and former Made in Chelsea castmate, is taking the seat.
Regular listeners will already know Ruby from previous appearances, but it is her real friendship with Melissa that makes the change interesting. Their history gives the pairing something that cannot be manufactured in a studio: the freedom to interrupt, disagree and say the thing everyone else was politely avoiding.
The pair will cover relationships, friendships, careers, beauty and the general disorder of adulthood every Wednesday, with listeners’ dilemmas handled on Fridays. You can listen through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and YouTube. Your own group chat can finally have an evening off.
Whatever the weekend brings, wear what feels like you, spend your money on things you genuinely love and never underestimate fashion’s determination to put a heel on absolutely anything. See you next Friday.
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