Lifestyle
Three L.A. creatives show you how — and where — to wear La Beauté, Louis Vuitton’s new makeup line
From the cafe to Catch One: Day to night
Amber J. Phillips, @amberabundance
Day
You’ll find Amber workshopping her stories at a cafe in Leimert Park, with a sheer, subtle eye shadow that creates a glow around her almond eyes.
Night
And at night? That pop of blue in the corner of her eye expands. Spot her at the legendary Catch One — formerly the Catch, founded by Jewel Thais-Williams in 1973 — living the life that informs her work, among those who make life worth living.
“When I started adding music into my [writing] practice, it was honoring the fact that I don’t want to just run my political lens through policy, but through how I’m living my everyday life.
Black people, especially Black queer people … dance spaces, play spaces is where we form who we are. It’s where we are testing identity.
I love being able to play with makeup at home and then take it under some blue lights onto the dance floor, where really no one’s judging you.
As I grow as a writer, it’s important for me to not just respond to the world around me, but to tell the story of the world that I’m actually participating in.”
Amber is wearing: La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Ombres eye shadow palette in Force of Nature 951 and Sky Is the Limit 950 ($250); La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Rouge in New Dimension 405 and Vanity Beige 103 ($160). Available at select Louis Vuitton stores. louisvuitton.com
Girl about town: Glamour in any weather
Tiara Kelly, @tiararkelly
Depending on the day’s agenda, Tiara may be at the downtown library or posted in Santee Alley. She’s a downtown girl, but don’t be surprised if she pops up in Leimert Park to connect with her community in a makeup look that’s anything but casual.
“I’m either super plain or super dramatic.
If I’m wearing white, I’ll add glitter to radiate a pure energy. If I do pink, I want all shades of pink. I love pink makeup on my skin. If I’m wearing bright colors, I like bright makeup. Blush — lots of blush all over. I want to be as extra and drag as I can.”
Tiara is wearing: La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Ombres eye shadow palette in Dazzling Gaze 350 and Cosmic Dreams 450 ($250); La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Rouge in Legendary 503, High in Red 507 and Tonic Orange 601 ($160). Available at select Louis Vuitton stores. louisvuitton.com
It’s date night: L.A. fine
Jenn Torres, @jen4romtheblock
Jenn’s date nights with her girlfriend always revolve around food — and her lipstick is foolproof.
“This look would definitely be for an upscale restaurant, a jazz club or a museum. Very nighttime romance. I don’t drink anymore, but if I did, it would be wine night or a cocktail.
I love the classics: sharp eyeliner, mascara, brown lip liner with pink gloss, some blush and I’m done.” (She makes it sound so easy.)
Makeup artist Dennese Rodriguez Hermoso’s simple step-by-step lip technique on Jenn:
- Line the outer lips with a brown lipliner and blend inward.
- Apply LV Rouge in Cosmic Trip on the outer edges of the lip.
- Blend LV Rouge in Cosmic Trip into the center of the lip. Make sure to leave room for LV Baume in Tender Bliss.
- Apply LV Baume in Tender Bliss.
- Blend with LV Rouge in Cosmic Trip.
- Now smile.
Jenn is wearing: La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Ombres eye shadow palette in Beige Memento 150, Nude Mirage 250 ($250); La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Rouge in Cosmic Trip 401 ($160); La Beauté Louis Vuitton LV Baume in Tender Bliss 030 ($160). Available at select Louis Vuitton stores. louisvuitton.com
Creative direction and words Darian Dandridge
Production Mere Studios
Makeup Dennese Rodriguez Hermoso
Hair Elonte Quinn
Nails Lila Robles a.k.a. Nail Jerks
The American Library Association’s list of the most frequently challenged books of 2025 includes Sold by Patricia McCormick, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer: A Memoir.
American Library Association
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American Library Association
The American Library Association has released its annual list of the most commonly challenged books at libraries across the United States.
According to the ALA, the 11 most frequently targeted books include several tied titles. They are:
1. Sold by Patricia McCormick
2. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
3. Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
4. Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas
5. (tie) Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
5. (tie) Tricks by Ellen Hopkins
7. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
8. (tie) A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
8. (tie) Identical by Ellen Hopkins
8. (tie) Looking for Alaska by John Green
8. (tie) Storm and Fury by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Many of these individual titles also appear on a 2024-25 report issued last October by PEN America, a separate group dedicated to free expression, which looked at book challenges and bans specifically within public schools.
The ALA says that it documented 4,235 unique titles being challenged in 2025 – the second-highest year on record for library challenges. (The highest ever was in 2023, with 4,240 challenges documented – only five more than in this most recent year.)
According to the ALA, 40% of the materials challenged in 2025 were representations of LGBTQ+ people and those of people of color.
In all, the ALA documented 713 attempts across the United States in 2025 to censor library materials and services; 487 of those challenges targeted books.
According to the ALA, 92% of all book challenges to libraries came from “pressure groups,” government officials and local decision makers. While 20.8% came from pressure groups such as Moms for Liberty (as the ALA cited in an email to NPR), 70.9% of challenges originated with government officials and other “decision makers,” such as local board officials or administrators.
In a more detailed breakdown, the ALA notes that 31% of challenges came from elected government officials and and 40% from board members or administrators. In its full report, the ALA states that only 2.7% of such challenges originated with parents, and 1.4% with individual library users.
Fifty-one percent of challenges were attempted at public libraries, and 37% involved school libraries. The remaining challenges of 2025 targeted school curriculums and higher education.
The ALA defines a book “ban” as the removal of materials, including books, from a library. A “challenge,” in this organization’s definition, is an attempt to have a library resource removed, or access to it restricted.
The ALA is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to American libraries and librarians.
Promo image with Phil Pritchard, Alzo Slade, and Peter Sagal
Bruce Bennett, Arnold Turner, NPR/Getty Images, NPR
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Bruce Bennett, Arnold Turner, NPR/Getty Images, NPR
This week, Phil Pritchard, NHL’s Keeper of the Stanley Cup, joins us to about taking the cup jet-skiing and panelists Alonzo Bodden, Adam Burke, and Dulcé Sloan beef with the Pope and get misdiagnosed.
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