A Day in the Life
Fashion Editors Gabrielle & Danielle Prescod
Meet a sister act making waves in the fashion industry: Gabrielle, left, and Danielle Prescod. The latter is the style director at BET; the former, the style lead and senior fashion market editor at Bustle. Follow this powerhouse styling duo at their joint Instagram @theprescodsisters—or keep reading to step into a day in their lives and discover how they get it all done.
Gabrielle Prescod, left, wearing the Sandra tank, Jessie cardigan, Debbie high-rise skinny, and Taran mules; Danielle in the Sandra tank, Lucy skirt, Grier loafers and the Bradford pullover tied around her waist.
In the Morning
You start the day by…
Danielle Prescod: Before I do anything else, I journal, free write. One of my best friends, who also writes, told me to start forming this healthy habit and that we must “create before we consume”. After that, I check my phone.
Gabrielle Prescod: If we are getting technical, I usually tell my Alexa to turn on the lights in my bedroom first thing! Hahahah, but then I check my phone for emails, texts, and briefly scroll through Instagram before getting up and taking a shower.
Danielle Prescod: Before I do anything else, I journal, free write. One of my best friends, who also writes, told me to start forming this healthy habit and that we must “create before we consume”. After that, I check my phone.
Gabrielle Prescod: If we are getting technical, I usually tell my Alexa to turn on the lights in my bedroom first thing! Hahahah, but then I check my phone for emails, texts, and briefly scroll through Instagram before getting up and taking a shower.
Morning beauty routine…
DP: I wash my face using Dr. Barbara Sturm cleanser. I tone with a medicated toner pad and apply her cleansing serum and Bioré sunscreen. I do my eyebrows with a pencil from BrowBar and then set them with a gel from Milk Makeup. I haven’t been wearing much makeup this summer! I really am trying to limit the amount of stuff on my face.
GP: I am a Dr. Barbara Sturm addict! I pretty much use her Darker Skin Tones product line exclusively. I wash my face with her foaming cleanser, then use her hyaluronic serum and face cream, and finish it off with the eye cream. Then I use a mixture of PUR’s 4-in-1 Energize & Rescue and Dark Spot Corrector correcting primers and mix that with Make Up For Ever’s mattifying primer and Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Glow Drops. And, of course, sunscreen! SPF is so important. And I never leave the house without doing my brows. I typically use a Benefit pencil for that.
DP: I wash my face using Dr. Barbara Sturm cleanser. I tone with a medicated toner pad and apply her cleansing serum and Bioré sunscreen. I do my eyebrows with a pencil from BrowBar and then set them with a gel from Milk Makeup. I haven’t been wearing much makeup this summer! I really am trying to limit the amount of stuff on my face.
GP: I am a Dr. Barbara Sturm addict! I pretty much use her Darker Skin Tones product line exclusively. I wash my face with her foaming cleanser, then use her hyaluronic serum and face cream, and finish it off with the eye cream. Then I use a mixture of PUR’s 4-in-1 Energize & Rescue and Dark Spot Corrector correcting primers and mix that with Make Up For Ever’s mattifying primer and Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Glow Drops. And, of course, sunscreen! SPF is so important. And I never leave the house without doing my brows. I typically use a Benefit pencil for that.
Go-to breakfast…
DP: I don’t eat breakfast, but if it is not too hot, I have a matcha latte with oat milk.
GP: I find that I’m not really hungry until around noon or 1 PM! I also don't drink coffee or tea so it's really nothing in the morning except water. But, if I do have breakfast, it's usually something quick and easy. Fruit is always good. Maybe a banana and peanut butter. That's an all-time favorite of mine.
DP: I don’t eat breakfast, but if it is not too hot, I have a matcha latte with oat milk.
GP: I find that I’m not really hungry until around noon or 1 PM! I also don't drink coffee or tea so it's really nothing in the morning except water. But, if I do have breakfast, it's usually something quick and easy. Fruit is always good. Maybe a banana and peanut butter. That's an all-time favorite of mine.
Workout routine…
DP: I rotate between Soul Cycle, Pilates, yoga, horseback riding and tennis. I do a different workout every day and have one to two rest days per week. Some days I double up on the workouts.
GP: I'm not really a workout person, but Danielle and my mom and dad have really been on me about finding some kind of workout to do so I don’t injure myself. So now I am a huge New York Pilates fan and I also do training with Nike some weeks!
DP: I rotate between Soul Cycle, Pilates, yoga, horseback riding and tennis. I do a different workout every day and have one to two rest days per week. Some days I double up on the workouts.
GP: I'm not really a workout person, but Danielle and my mom and dad have really been on me about finding some kind of workout to do so I don’t injure myself. So now I am a huge New York Pilates fan and I also do training with Nike some weeks!
How do you decide your outfit for the day?
DP: This is going to make me sound like a loser, but I look at the forecast and pre-plan all of my outfits for the entire week on Sunday and I write them down in a note on my phone. I know it sounds nuts, but if I am exercising—which I normally do in the mornings—I need to pack my looks to go! It is critical to have everything in order so that I don’t forget stuff!
GP: It really depends!! For fashion week I always have my outfits planned out because the schedule is so crazy I can't afford to take extra time in the morning to get an outfit together. Sometimes, I’ll go to bed the night before and have an idea of what I want to wear the next day, and sometimes I wake up and try on a ton of different things before deciding on an outfit. One thing I will say is that I rarely check the weather and that's something I really need to start factoring into my outfit planning. I ruined a pair or suede slides this summer because I didn’t check that it was going to pour rain that day!
DP: This is going to make me sound like a loser, but I look at the forecast and pre-plan all of my outfits for the entire week on Sunday and I write them down in a note on my phone. I know it sounds nuts, but if I am exercising—which I normally do in the mornings—I need to pack my looks to go! It is critical to have everything in order so that I don’t forget stuff!
GP: It really depends!! For fashion week I always have my outfits planned out because the schedule is so crazy I can't afford to take extra time in the morning to get an outfit together. Sometimes, I’ll go to bed the night before and have an idea of what I want to wear the next day, and sometimes I wake up and try on a ton of different things before deciding on an outfit. One thing I will say is that I rarely check the weather and that's something I really need to start factoring into my outfit planning. I ruined a pair or suede slides this summer because I didn’t check that it was going to pour rain that day!
What's in your bag?
DP: Two external batteries, air pods, wallet, blue light glasses, business cards, keys, gum, lip gloss and steel water bottle. Sometimes my laptop!
GP: I am a tiny bag advocate! So the smaller, the better for me. I only want bags that can fit my keys, wallet, gum, and my phone. Anything else is excessive.
DP: Two external batteries, air pods, wallet, blue light glasses, business cards, keys, gum, lip gloss and steel water bottle. Sometimes my laptop!
GP: I am a tiny bag advocate! So the smaller, the better for me. I only want bags that can fit my keys, wallet, gum, and my phone. Anything else is excessive.
During the Day
What's a typical day at work like?
DP: Every day is different! Some days I can be on set on a shoot, but I start my day answering emails at home and then I either go work out or I get ready at home. I go to the office and have a lot of meetings and answer more emails. I edit stories and look at the news to see if there is anything new we should be covering. Then I go home!
GP: I usually start my day by going to an appointment or a meeting at 10 AM and go into the office after that. Then it's really sending out or following up on emails to request things for a shoots! I could be doing edits for shoots, too, on any given day, so scrolling through Vogue Runway and picking out looks that we want to request for shoots.
DP: Every day is different! Some days I can be on set on a shoot, but I start my day answering emails at home and then I either go work out or I get ready at home. I go to the office and have a lot of meetings and answer more emails. I edit stories and look at the news to see if there is anything new we should be covering. Then I go home!
GP: I usually start my day by going to an appointment or a meeting at 10 AM and go into the office after that. Then it's really sending out or following up on emails to request things for a shoots! I could be doing edits for shoots, too, on any given day, so scrolling through Vogue Runway and picking out looks that we want to request for shoots.
Gabrielle Prescod, left, wearing the Sandra tank, Jessie cardigan, Debbie high-rise skinny, Elsy belt and Taran mules; Danielle in the Sandra tank, Lucy skirt, Grier loafers and the Bradford pullover tied around her waist.
When you need an afternoon pick-me-up…
DP: Go to the candy jar in the office.
GP: There are a ton of snacks in the office so there’s never a shortage of something to grab for that afternoon slump. I do love a banana and peanut butter to snack on or graham cracker squares, like I’m in kindergarten.
DP: Go to the candy jar in the office.
GP: There are a ton of snacks in the office so there’s never a shortage of something to grab for that afternoon slump. I do love a banana and peanut butter to snack on or graham cracker squares, like I’m in kindergarten.
In the Evening
Favorite nighttime eats…
DP: I eat poke with kale noodles, like, every night. I am probably going to get mercury poisoning.
GP: I love Trader Joe’s Oven Baked Cheese Bites and also their English Butter Fudge. They’ve stopped selling it at the one near me and it has been devastating.
DP: I eat poke with kale noodles, like, every night. I am probably going to get mercury poisoning.
GP: I love Trader Joe’s Oven Baked Cheese Bites and also their English Butter Fudge. They’ve stopped selling it at the one near me and it has been devastating.
Nighttime beauty routine…
DP: I wash my face with Dr. Barbara Sturm enzyme cleanser and then use another exfoliator. The one I am using now is from Kora organics and then I use my at-home micro-needler and another medicated toner pad. Then I put on an acne cream, usually spot treat any problems and use a brightener on my hyperpigmentation.
GP: I use Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Foaming Cleaner or her Enzyme Cleanser from her Darker Skin Tones line and a prescription acne medication. I also love to do a mask at least once a week!
DP: I wash my face with Dr. Barbara Sturm enzyme cleanser and then use another exfoliator. The one I am using now is from Kora organics and then I use my at-home micro-needler and another medicated toner pad. Then I put on an acne cream, usually spot treat any problems and use a brightener on my hyperpigmentation.
GP: I use Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Foaming Cleaner or her Enzyme Cleanser from her Darker Skin Tones line and a prescription acne medication. I also love to do a mask at least once a week!
Bedtime rituals…
DP: I read every night before I go to bed!
GP: I usually don’t go to bed without talking to my parents and my sister on the phone at least once that day and I can never go to bed without my sleep mask! It’s a black-out one that also protects my eyelashes. It's padded and ridiculous, but I literally can’t go to sleep without it.
DP: I read every night before I go to bed!
GP: I usually don’t go to bed without talking to my parents and my sister on the phone at least once that day and I can never go to bed without my sleep mask! It’s a black-out one that also protects my eyelashes. It's padded and ridiculous, but I literally can’t go to sleep without it.
And what gets you motivated to start it all over the next day?
DP: I just think being generally positive is a good motivator, but I really like my life and I feel lucky—so that is a pretty good motivator!
GP: Knowing and feeling that I’m blessed and grateful to have the opportunities that I do, but also knowing that there is so much that can be done to make things better for everyone.
DP: I just think being generally positive is a good motivator, but I really like my life and I feel lucky—so that is a pretty good motivator!
GP: Knowing and feeling that I’m blessed and grateful to have the opportunities that I do, but also knowing that there is so much that can be done to make things better for everyone.