The R29 Lookbook: The Making of a Summer Star

Reported by Refinery29 Fashion.

Something shifted this season. After years of quiet dressing and careful shrinking, summer 2026 is asking a different question: what happens when you decide to actually be seen? According to Refinery29 Fashion, the answer looks a lot like four women who already know the answer — Naima, Toccara, Mercedes, and Molly, all ANTM alumni — reuniting for the platform's Summer 2026 Lookbook, shot by Nigel Barker and styled with Miss J Alexander on set. The result isn't a nostalgia trip. It's a full-on reclamation.

The four archetypes they embody map neatly onto the summer most of us are actually living. The Summer Maximalist (Molly) lives for looks that carry from noon pool parties to midnight dance floors — stylist Ana Tess calls the energy "cool Phoebe Philo," while makeup artist Alexis De La Isla translates it into smudged liner and a sun-flushed glow. Beauty entrepreneur Danessa Myricks keeps the formula waterproof and low-maintenance: Colorfix on the lashes, Maybelline mascara as a non-negotiable. Hairstylist Anike Rabiu keeps hair in its lane — "enhance your natural texture rather than fight the elements." Simple, but never soft.

From the Beach Club to the Boardroom

The Resort Queen (Toccara) is the season's maximalist on steroids: Y2K prints, Pucci-adjacent color, cheekbones glazed with holographic highlighter. Myricks predicts dimensional blush goes even bolder this summer, and the hair follows — brushed out, airy, intentionally undone. Meanwhile, the Office Siren (Naima) is getting a mermaid rebrand: sequins and crystal-embellished heels over everyday staples, a metallic lip standing in for the classic red. "I'd always rather be at the pool," De La Isla admits, "so why not bring that light into the office?" Rabiu's prescription for work hair is equally unbothered — slick it back with TRESemmé's Instant Fix Styling Stick and redirect your energy toward actually doing your job.

Then there's Mercedes, navigating the season's most politically loaded dress code: the wedding guest. Tess leans into '90s detail-dressing — embroidery, crocheted fringe, a silk slip elevated by texture rather than volume. De La Isla pulled her makeup references from a '90s beauty campaign: "sleek and classic — without veering bridal." Rabiu scrapped the expected updo in favor of a French roll with a side part and, as she put it, "a little oomph." Because Mercedes is fierce, and the look should reflect that.

The through-line across all four? This summer isn't asking you to be perfect — it's asking you to take up space like you've already earned it, because you have.

Read the original at Refinery29 Fashion.