The Zoe Report

Maria Del Russo

Bio

Maria Del Russo is a commerce writer for Bustle Digital Group's lifestyle brands. She is also a contributing writer for The Zoe Report, having contributed to the site's Fashion Week content for the past three seasons. Maria is a freelance writer covering sex, relationships, beauty, and other lifestyle topics. Her writing has appeared in publications including Elle Magazine, Glamour, The Cut, The Washington Post, Glamour, InStyle, Gossamer, Man Repeller, Coveteur, Men's Health, Real Simple, and Playboy, where she also served as the magazine's Advisor for the spring 2019 issue. She has a weekly newsletter, called NSFW(ish), which is published by Meredith Publishing. Maria's first book, Simple Acts of Love, was published in 2019 by Adams Media, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. When she isn't writing, Maria loves traveling, cooking, rewatching The Sopranos with her boyfriend, and painting watercolors. She's also currently writing her second book, a memoir about love and layoffs. She lives in Brooklyn, by way of New Jersey.

Hermès' Fall/Winter 2020 Show Featured A Sneak Peek Of The Brand's New Lipsticks

Red lipsticks are a dime a dozen during Paris Fashion Week. A staple for the French "cool girl" look, crimson pouts pop up on a good chunk of the runway shows that happen during the final stretch of Fashion Month. At first blush, the look at Hermès…
By Maria Del Russo

Chanel Closed Paris Fashion Week With The Dreamiest Second-Day Hairstyle

To say that anticipation around Chanel's fashion show every year is high would be an understatement. The storied design house closes out fashion month, presenting on the final morning of Paris Fashion Week. The clothing, hair, and makeup that you…
By Maria Del Russo

The Biggest Trend Out Of Paris Fashion Week Is One You're Probably Already Wearing

While there are always hair and makeup trends that come out of Paris Fashion Week — red lips, hair accessories, and watercolor eye makeup being some of the most recent ones spotted this season — it's very rare to see one, cohesive look repeated show…
By Maria Del Russo

How Thom Browne Broke With Tradition For His Fall 2020 Show

"The world is full of duality. Good and bad. Dark and light. I wanted to capture that," lead hairstylist Eugene Souleiman told a group of reporters backstage at Thom Browne's Fall/Winter 2020 show in Paris. He was discussing the dual-nature of the…
By Maria Del Russo

The "Chandelier Skin" Trend To Try, Fresh From Paris Fashion Week

If there’s one thing you can count on during fashion month, it’s that Vivienne Westwood’s shows will always delivery some kind of major look. The designer is always known to push the envelope when it comes to looks, and designer Andreas Kronthaler…
By Maria Del Russo

This ‘90s Makeup Trend Was All Over Paris Fall/Winter 2020 Fashion Week

There are certain makeup standbys that you expect to see come out of Paris Fashion Week — soft contouring, red lips, and flushed cheeks are mainstays of the stereotypical French girl look. And there's a reason they always pop up. They're flattering,…
By Maria Del Russo

The Biggest Beauty Trend From Paris Fashion Week Is Perfect For Bad Hair Days

Regardless of the city, the hair during Fashion Month tends to take a backseat to everything else that's going on. The clothes are in the spotlight, of course, but the makeup also tends to get a little more of the shine. And with so many different…
By Maria Del Russo

The Hero Hair Product Used At Chloe’s Fall/Winter 2020 Show Is Probably Yours, Too

"The Chloe girl isn't just one girl," makeup artist Pat McGrath told TZR backstage at Chloe's Fall/Winter 2020 show in Paris. "Lots of women from all walks of life wear Chloe." So it only made sense that the hair and makeup at the label's show,…
By Maria Del Russo

Think French Girl Beauty Is Over? Saint Laurent Says Otherwise

Once heralded as the go-to style for anyone wanted to look effortless but chic, French-girl beauty has gotten a bit of a bad wrap over time. It's been disregarded as a cliché, and possibly a bit exclusionary: After all, how many times can you see…
By Maria Del Russo

Giorgio Armani's Fall/Winter 2020 Show Celebrated Effortless, Classic Beauty

Just hours before Giorgio Armani was set to close out Milan Fashion Week, the designer announced something that the fashion world hadn't seen before. Instead of staging his show in front of a large audience of buyers, editors, and influencers,…
By Maria Del Russo

The Major Hair Trend From Milan Fashion Week You’ll Want To Try ASAP

If London is where eccentric beauty thrives, and Paris is home to the chic, effortless variety, Milan Fashion Week falls somewhere in the middle. There are always examples of sleek, sophisticated beauty trends, of course. But the designers who show…
By Maria Del Russo

Versace's Fall/Winter 2020 Featured This Major Throwback Hair Trend

If there's one thing that Versace's shows are known for, it's for celebrating feminine energy. Last season, for example, Jennifer Lopez graced the runway in her iconic, cut-down-to-there silk chiffon dress. For the brand's Spring/Summer 2018 show,…
By Maria Del Russo

Why Gucci's Fall/Winter 2020 Show Began Backstage Rather Than Front Of House

One of the fun parts about covering backstage beauty during Fashion Month is the ability to peek behind the curtain of a show, and gaze at everything it takes to bring the spectacle to life. Beauty editors, influencers, and the hair and makeup teams…
By Maria Del Russo

Burberry’s Fall/Winter 2020 Beauty Look Relied On Only 5 Staples

Classic, fresh beauty tends to get a bad wrap during Fashion Month. Because the world of beauty has its eyes trained on bold, innovative hair and makeup trends, it's easy to look at the basics and think boring! But like a classic white tee, or a…
By Maria Del Russo

This Surprising Makeup Trend Was All Over London Fashion Week

While fashion shows in New York, Milan, and Paris tend to lean heavily into classic beauty looks — think bold lips, graphic cat-eyes, and fresh, glowing skin — things get a little more creative in London. Makeup tends to be a bit edgier, relying…
By Maria Del Russo

Michael Kors Fall/Winter 2020 Featured This Edgy Hair Trend

When you hear the name Michael Kors, you can probably conjure an image almost instantly: chic and tailored, but always with a fun dollop of classic Americana. The beauty looks the designer chooses for his runway shows follow a similar pattern.…
By Maria Del Russo

Two New Ways To Wear A Chignon, Courtesy Of New York Fashion Week

Classic hairstyles are classic for a reason — they can be pulled out at a moment's notice and work in myriad situations. Take, for example, the chignon. The traditional take on this 'do looks just at home at your senior prom as it does at a wedding.…
By Maria Del Russo

We Got All The Details On Carolina Herrera's New Makeup Collection

If there's one thing you look to Carolina Herrera for, it's glamorous, luxury beauty that always seems just out of reach. But at Carolina Herrera Fall 2020 in New York on Feb. 10, that elusive beauty came within our reach. The brand took this moment…
By Maria Del Russo

Crystal Hair Took Center Stage At AREA's Fall/Winter 2020 Show

It's typical that designers have a go-to look after getting their groove in the fashion week circuit. Often, these classic styles tend to be sleek, yet mussy, hair and fresh skin, which are beautiful in their own right . But if AREA's Fall/Winter…
By Maria Del Russo

Christopher John Rogers' Fall/Winter 2020 Show Featured The Perfect Trick To Weightless Hair

The inspiration of the day at Christopher John Rogers' Fall/Winter 2020 show in New York on Feb. 8 might have been topiaries — those tall, shapely plants that people prune to perfection. But the weightless, structural hair looked more like something…
By Maria Del Russo