HB EXCLUSIVE: Jackie Aina Gets Ready For NYFW
Exclusive: Get Ready With Jackie Aina Before Sergio Hudson’s NYFW Anniversary Show
- Jackie Aina has been a leading voice in beauty and lifestyle culture for over a decade.
- Aina's NYFW suite showcases her love of makeup and glamour girl style.
- Aina offers practical winter skincare tips, emphasizing moisture balance and simplicity, social media advice, and more.
If you don’t know already, Jackie Aina is that girl.
She’s been shaping beauty and lifestyle culture since 2009, long before “creator economy” became a phrase. Jackie taught us which makeup products to buy, what to leave on the shelf and how to find our undertones. She took us along for “Get Ready With Mes,” product testings, and story times. Her presence online has inspired an entire generation of Black women learning how to navigate beauty, luxury, and self-expression in real time.
Hair, beauty, lifestyle. All of it. She’s been expanding her influence for over a decade. And she’s still evolving.
So when I caught up with her getting ready for Sergio Hudson’s New York Fashion Week (NYFW) Fall/Winter 2026 show, I was totally fangirling. We’ve met in passing at events before – you know, quick hugs, quick hellos, the usual NYFW shuffle. But sitting down with the makeup guru herself was a completely different experience. We were like two girlfriends catching up on fashion, fragrance, winter skin struggles, and everything in between, all while getting ready for one of the most talked about NYFW shows this season.
Inside Jackie Aina’s NYFW Get-Ready Fashion Suite
Her suite looked like a boutique showroom the moment I stepped inside. (I later found out the fashion on display was courtesy of her stylist, Amira Vee.) Racks of clothing lined the room. Shoes were set out in rows, from high heels to slingbacks to pumps to boots. Accessories covered the tables. Multiple purses were within reach, from Louis Vuitton to Schiaparelli, to name a few. There were leather gloves in different colors, bold earrings, sunglasses, and bracelets. Everything was custom and couture but curated for Jackie.
It was a fashion girl’s playground.
The glam station looked exactly how you’d imagine. NARS. Kevyn Aucoin. Danessa Myricks Beauty. One/Size and more.
Jackie sipped a pistachio latte from a local coffee shop she recently fell in love with. Her hubby, Denis Asamoah, dropped it off before our chat. Even OGs like Jackie need a sweet pick-me-up before a night out.
Her makeup was basically done. Skin glowing, eyes shimmering, lashes sitting just right. Her hairstylist was booked, so she was doing double duty, touching up her sleek, blonde, chin-length bob herself. Deep side part. Smooth and sharp. The cut was immaculate, straight and precise.
Her camera was set up, lighting ready. She was filming while getting ready, and we talked through it all.
“Sergio does a good structured power suit or like a really simple, clean dress so like today’s glam ties all that in,” she said, smoothing her hair into place.
She likes to do things her way. In her words, she can give a lil’ “obnoxious.” In the context of fashion, that means committing to the look. The bold color. The leather. The monochrome moment. Not second-guessing it. Showing up to be seen.
How Jackie Aina Does Glam During NYFW
Our conversation moved easily. We talked about designers she loves and the excitement of runway fashion. We talked about the comfort of a good pajama set at night. Her niche fragrance brand, Forvr Mood. Her experience wearing Sergio to the White House.
And when it comes to fashion weeks, Jackie isn’t stopping at NYFW. She’s ready to go global. Copenhagen Fashion Week is high on her list. “I love Danish style,” she shared, smiling at the thought.
But for now, it was freezing in New York. And because I was sitting with the OG herself in the middle of February temperatures that don’t play, you know I had to ask for some cold-weather-ready beauty secrets.
When it comes to winter skin, she kept it practical.
“Winter makeup is a whole balancing act,” she said. “You’re battling dry air but also trying not to clog your pores.”
Her focus is moisture balancing. “Not too much hydration, not too little. No matte products, but no dewy products either. Something right in the middle.”
For brown girls especially, skincare in colder months matters, but she doesn’t overcomplicate it. “Skincare isn’t as complicated as people think. One or two good serums and a good face cream.”
And for the people reaching for Vaseline when the air gets disrespectful, she clarified: “Vaseline is not a moisturizer — it’s a seal. It won’t penetrate the skin. It seals whatever you put underneath it.”
We also talked fragrance, which she now builds into her getting-ready ritual.
“I absolutely factor in what I want to smell like around what I’m wearing,” she said. “What’s the vibe I want to convey? Is it sexy, sultry, mysterious? I play off of that and go from there.”
Jackie Aina’s Fire-Engine Red NYFW Fashion Moment
And speaking of sultry, sexy, and mysterious, enter Jackie’s Sergio Hudson look for the night.
A fire-engine red moment from head to toe. Fitted leather pants tailored to perfection. A matching leather button-down layered under a cardigan and a wool coat in that same commanding shade. A slim belt at the waist. Red gloves. And a leather red tie that sealed the deal. Her final fit was the kind of look that serves the girls and feeds them.
The vibes were in your face and a little obnoxious, just like Jackie likes to be. (Her stylist Amira did her thing.)
We ended the night rushing to the highly anticipated anniversary show at the New York Public Library. And when Jackie walked in, heads turned. Conversations paused. People looked twice. Because like we said in the beginning, she is, and forever will be, that girl.
Exclusive: Get Ready With Jackie Aina Before Sergio Hudson’s NYFW Anniversary Show was originally published on hellobeautiful.com
