We caught up with actress Francia Raísa at the Alice + Olivia Presentation last week.
The actress currently plays Ana Torres on hit show Grown-ish.
How has your fashion week been?
Francia Raísa: So far so good, I just got here yesterday morning and this is my first fashion show and it’s amazing and I’m actually obsessed with Alice + Olivia.
What do you love about the line?
Francia Raísa: Well one it fits my body really well cause I’m very curvy so it’s really important to me. Also, I love that she has a range of things, sometimes if I want to feel like a businesswoman and wear a power suit she has that. If I want to be a little more chill with a little hip-hop vibe, she has that and then if you want to be a little more girly she has all that and she has really great staple pieces that everyone needs in their closet.
Tell me about your beauty must-haves.
Francia Raísa: Makeup must haves: eyebrow. Eyebrows shape your face. So you need a good eyebrow gel and a good eyebrow pencil and a good eyebrow brush that’s in my makeup bag. And then also, no one likes chapped lips. So either keep some sort of vaseline, which is my thing or chapstick in there. And then mascara is huge and then if you put a little bit of blush on your eyes if you don’t have time to do eyeshadow then that just adds a little pop that you need.
What do you love about New York? Do you spend a lot of time here?
Francia Raísa: I’m starting to now. I’ve been here twice already this year. And I’m coming back in April. I like that you can walk everywhere and that everything is so close. I know that traffic is crazy here, the food is great. I’m huge on Jamaican food and Dominican food.
What else is coming up that you would like to share?
Francia Raísa: I’m producing. So I have other projects that I have literally in the works. It’s starting!
It’s your production company?
Francia Raísa: You know what? I literally just texted my manager like “do I need to start a production company now that we have this?” Because I am working with his wife.
What kind of stories do you want to tell?
Francia Raísa: I like to tell real stories. I am really a big fan of humor. Comedy is very new to me. And I’m learning that there is so much that you can learn and say through humor. Like in grown-ish and black-ish, we are being educated, but we are laughing along with it, so it’s great. But I also want to tell real stories that people don’t know…there’s so much in our history that people don’t know. Especially in the Latin history because I was asking myself the question like “ok, back in the day, we know there was a black bathroom and a white bathroom. Where did the Mexicans go? Where did the Hispanics go?” And so I’ve been researching and there are stories that I’ve learned in my research that I’ve already brought to my team and they are like, “alright, let’s develop it.”
We also spoke with model Denise Bidot who is the founder of the @NoWrongWayMovement.
Nice meeting @DeniseBidot @aliceandolivia today! pic.twitter.com/3ybZFaONaZ
— The Knockturnal (@_TheKnockturnal) February 13, 2018
What brings you to the show?
Denise Bidot: So, I think Alice + Olivia has always been inclusive. I feel like their brand always fits my curves really beautifully. And it’s luxe, it’s that perfect piece. I feel like I’ve been purchasing their brand ever since I was able to afford it. I absolutely love her. I love the versatility. It’s chic, rock & roll, with a little glam and that is what I love to live by.
Tell me about your goal to empower women?
Denise Bidot: I think we are in such a beautiful day and age, 2018 is such an empowering moment for women. 2017 was as well … it’s about supporting one another and empowering women to live their truth and to be their most authentic selves. And to feel confident walking down the street like no longer do we need to hide. We are in a generation where you can achieve anything, you should be valued for your intellect and confidence and feel good. It’s really about empowering the next generation to be better and be smarter.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BfKKjMODNcq/?hl=en&taken-by=franciaraisa
