Fashion used to be a playground, a space for imagination and risk. Kate Spade said that playing dress-up begins at five and never truly ends, but somewhere along the way, we stopped playing. The algorithm and aesthetic templates have flattened creativity, making style feel safer and more approved than inspired. I have to go offline to find real inspiration, where subcultures and communities remind us that clothes can be identity, joy, and rebellion. The Overdressed Black Girl celebrates that boldness and invites you to dress for yourself, not for the algorithm.

Nia AllenNovember 21, 2025

Creative Crisis: Why Fashion Still Praises Black Women as Muses but Refuses Them as Makers

Luxury fashion is stuck in a cycle; praising Black women in campaigns while shutting them out of leadership. This essay unpacks why the industry’s creative crisis persists and what change could look like.

The $55,000 Fashion Dream That Costs Too Much

Nia AllenSeptember 11, 2025

The Price of Silence: Ulta Leaves Target, But Not For the Reasons That Matter

Ulta spent five years inside Target and chose silence when DEI was under attack. Now they are leaving, but not for us and Black beauty consumers deserve better.