Not only are skin-bleaching creams disgustingly bad for the psyche, many of the ones sold in the UK are also illegal and possibly be unhealthy.

"Illegal bleaching creams and soaps are a major problem," Bouch says. "And once we eradicate it from Brixton, it will go to another borough where there's a big Asian or Black population."

Skin bleaching — using chemical or natural products to lighten skin color — is common practice in the Americas, Africa, across Asia, and increasingly, in Europe.

Psychologists say consumer demand can be traced to perceptions that lighter skinned or white people are more successful, intelligent and sexually desirable.

And as the UK's Asian, African and African-Caribbean communities grow, so too — cosmetics industry experts say — does ethnic spending power for products promoted to lighten skin tone.

People, but specifically women, of color across the world have been trying to lighten their skin for ages. This is a pretty well known fact. And yet, hearing about skin-bleaching creams being in high demand upsets me more than nooses hanging from trees and crosses burning in front yards. Where's the self-love, guys?

Thanks Racialicious

As controversy swirls around VH1 for capitalizing off of the worst stereotypes of black women on shows Flavor of Love and Charm School, JanJay Sherman efficiently does her work as a public relations assistant at Flirt! Cosmetics, socializes with friends, and enjoys New York City life like any normal, 22-year-old college grad.

What does one thing have to do with the other? I should mention JanJay manages to do all of this while cameras record her every move for Soapnet's reality hit, Fashionista Diaries. But the only thing Janjay has in common with a Flavor of Love girl is starring on a cable television show. And skin color, of course.

"There is like this stigma now that [black women] argue and we’re ghetto," Janjay told Stereohyped. "For me, being a part of corporate America, I make it point to be articulate and classy, and I don’t feel like how [the FOL girls] act affects me at all."

On the Fashionista Diaries, which follows several other young assistants trying to make it in the NYC fashion world, it's not all serious. JanJay, a Minnesota native and former Zac Posen intern, tries to find a balance between doing her job (and she really does public relations for Flirt!) and not being a boring working drone in front of the cameras.

It was hard initially because you have to find an equal balance between meeting your deadlines and being entertaining and making sure your producers are getting the shot that they need," she said. "It's work, but at the same time it is a show, and you can’t be sitting at your desk typing away."

After the jump, the burgeoning fashionista answers a few of Stereohyped's questions in honor of fashion week. Beyonce haters, take heed! Also, the good publicist gives us her favorite Flirt! products for brown girls.

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It's kind of hard to recommend makeup for the very wide range of skin tones black women possess, but Sam Fine was kind enough to tell me a little bit about some of his favorite products and brands, after I was done grilling him about the glamorous life of a celebrity makeup artist.

You may be surprised by how inexpensive some of his picks are. As Sam says, "Just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's going to do the job."

A few of his faves after the jump.

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It was the era of the Supermodel — you know, when they all went by their first and last names but certainly didn't need to — think Naomi, Christy, Linda — and claimed they didn't get out of bed for less than $10,000 a day.

New York Fashion Week shows were more glamorous (read: they weren't sponsored by Olympus or Mercedes Benz and were held in lofts, clubs, and restaurants instead of tents). And Sam Fine was behind the scenes — at Geoffrey Bean, Fernando Sanchez, Tracy Reese, Todd Oldham, Isaac Mizrahi, etc. — giving the models faces to match their designer looks or rushing from show to show with Naomi and Tyra.

It was the first half of the '90s when Sam Fine both assisted the late Kevyn Aucoin and worked the shows on his own. Those were the good ol' days… that he doesn't really want to go back to.

"It's a fun gig, but I leave it to the young at heart and the ones that really love fashion," he told Stereohyped.

And it's not like being a celebrity makeup artist, which is the the job Sam Fine graduated to when he left the fashion show world, is any less glamorous. Or that much different.

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According to an interview in French magazine Questions de femmes, she has 10 years to figure it out. In the interview, she said that she wanted to wait a decade before procreating, and she also made a very curious comment that begs for clarification.

There are a lot of Beyonce haters out there, people, and I can attest that I am the opposite of one. In fact, I have a slightly irrational love for her, despite the fact that her off-stage persona (meaning the part of her that's not Sasha) leaves much to be desired. No matter how big of a fan I am, I simply cannot let her get away with this one:

She also insists that, although she always looks immaculate when she goes out, she's really low-maintenance. "I actually don't like wearing make-up, I'd rather be natural," she says. "My hair is natural and when I go out I don't need to spend hours deciding what I will wear or which make-up to put on. I know exactly what I want."

Your hair is natural Beyonce? Really? Does that mean that your wig/weave is made out of real human hair, or are you actually trying to say that the 500 lbs of hair that sits on top of your head at any given time is actually yours?

[People]

Iman hobnobbed with the rest of the rich and fabulous at a charity dinner party last night. It was a foodbank thing. Or something. Sorry, I'm distracted by her skin. It's completely flawless, and I may know why.

For a couple of weeks, I've been using Iman's Second-To-None Luminous Foundation ($14.99, Walgreens), a foundation powder flecked with shimmer that makes your face glow (in a good way) and adds enough light coverage to smooth your skin tone without looking like pancake makeup. Genes like Iman's make having flawless and ageless skin easy. If you don't have those, this definitely helps you fake it. Check out more Iman pics after the jump.

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