# Fashion and beauty questions, answered

> Direct, sourced answers to common questions about modelling, fashion weeks, couture, skincare and cosmetics rules.

- Canonical: https://thecastindex.com/answers
- Comparisons: https://thecastindex.com/compare
- Glossary: https://thecastindex.com/guide/glossary

## Models & careers

- [How much do models make?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/how-much-do-models-make) — The only official figure we found is American. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median wage for models at $23.30 an hour, or $48,470 a year, for May 2025, across 3,780 employed models. It leaves out the self-employed, which many models are, and agencies take commission from what models earn.
- [Is there an age limit for modelling?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/is-there-an-age-limit-for-modelling) — Agencies set their own minimum ages, usually between 14 and 18 on the pages we checked, and under-18s are expected to involve a parent or guardian. For adult shows and shoots, LVMH’s 2017 minimum was 16; LVMH and Kering are raising it to 18 from the next Paris Fashion Week in 2027. Some agencies run boards for older models.
- [Who walked in the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/victorias-secret-fashion-show-2026-models) — The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026 took place on Sunday 18 October at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, Los Angeles. Agency photo captions name 24 walkers, including Gigi and Bella Hadid, Adriana Lima, Anok Yai, Alex Consani, Irina Shayk and Barbara Palvin. Kylie Jenner wore the returning Fantasy Bra.

## Designers & houses

- [What is haute couture?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/what-is-haute-couture) — Haute couture is fashion made to measure and largely by hand in a house’s own ateliers. In France the name is legally protected: since 1945 only houses approved each year by a commission under the Ministry for Industry may use it. The Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode runs Paris couture week every January and July.
- [Which brands does LVMH own?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/which-brands-does-lvmh-own) — LVMH owns more than 75 maisons in six business groups: fashion and leather goods, wines and spirits, perfumes and cosmetics, watches and jewellery, selective retailing and other activities. Its fashion and leather goods maisons are Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior Couture, Celine, Loewe, Fendi, Givenchy, Kenzo, Loro Piana, Berluti, Pucci, Rimowa, Moynat, Vuarnet and Barton Perreira.

## Fashion weeks

- [What is the Met Gala?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/what-is-the-met-gala) — The Met Gala is the Costume Institute Benefit, an annual fundraiser at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It takes place on the first Monday in May and is the Costume Institute’s main source of annual funding. The 2026 gala, on 4 May, marked the exhibition Costume Art. The Met has not yet announced the 2027 date.
- [When is the Met Gala 2027?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/when-is-the-met-gala-2027) — The Met has not announced a date, theme or co-chairs for the 2027 Met Gala. On 31 August 2026 it withdrew its planned spring 2027 exhibition, John Galliano: Horizons, saying details of a new exhibition and the 2027 gala would follow. The gala is traditionally held on the first Monday in May; in 2026 it was on 4 May.
- [When is London Fashion Week 2027?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/when-is-london-fashion-week-2027) — London Fashion Week’s February 2027 edition, for Autumn/Winter 2027, runs from 18 to 22 February 2027, according to the British Fashion Council. The BFC has not yet published dates for September 2027. Shows take place at venues across London; official accreditation is for press and buyers, but the BFC also runs public events.

## Beauty

- [Can you use retinol and vitamin C together?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/can-you-use-retinol-and-vitamin-c-together) — Yes, though the common advice is to use them at different times. The American Academy of Dermatology’s routine advice puts vitamin C in the morning, before sunscreen, and a retinoid at night. In one small trial of a regimen using both, dryness was the only tolerability measure that rose significantly. Start slowly, one product at a time.

## Regulations & halal

- [Are Korean sunscreens legal in the US?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/are-korean-sunscreens-legal-in-the-us) — Only if they meet US drug rules. In the US a sunscreen is an over-the-counter drug, and unless it has its own FDA approval it may use only the UV filters in the FDA’s sunscreen monograph. Many Korean formulas use filters missing from that list. The FDA added one newer filter, bemotrizinol, on 10 June 2026.
- [Is halal certification mandatory for cosmetics in Indonesia?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/is-halal-certification-mandatory-for-cosmetics-in-indonesia) — Yes in law, but not yet in practice. Indonesia’s halal law requires products sold there, cosmetics included, to be halal-certified, with a phase-in period. On 16 October 2026 the government said that period for cosmetics would run to 17 October 2028, not 2026. Products made from haram ingredients are exempt but must be labelled as not halal.
- [How do I check if a cosmetic is BPOM registered?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/how-to-check-bpom-registration) — Search the product on BPOM’s official site, cekbpom.pom.go.id, or in the BPOM Mobile app, using the notification number on the pack, the product name or the registrant, and confirm the status says Berlaku (valid). For halal status, search the product, company or certificate number at bpjph.halal.go.id/cari/sertifikat.
- [How do I check a cosmetic’s NPRA notification and JAKIM halal status?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/how-to-check-npra-notification-and-jakim-halal) — Open NPRA’s Product Search on the QUEST3+ system, choose the Cosmetic category and search by product name, registration number or holder. The number is not printed on packs, so search by name. For halal status, use the Verify Halal Status search on JAKIM’s Halal Malaysia portal, halal.gov.my, under Kosmetik dan Dandanan Diri.
- [Which countries ban cosmetic animal testing?](https://thecastindex.com/answers/which-countries-ban-cosmetic-animal-testing) — Countries with confirmed bans include the EU’s member states, the UK, Norway, South Korea, India, Colombia and Canada, though each law differs in scope. Australia bars new animal test data for cosmetic-only ingredients. China has no ban, but since 2021 general cosmetics can skip toxicology tests, which used to mean animal tests, if conditions are met.

## Comparisons

- [Runway vs Commercial Modelling](https://thecastindex.com/compare/runway-vs-commercial-modelling) — Runway models walk in designer shows; commercial models sell products in adverts, online shops and TV. Agencies that publish heights for fashion boards, such as MIKAs and Stockholmsgruppen, ask women for roughly 170–180 cm, while their commercial divisions set no height. Commercial fees depend on how widely the images are used.
- [Paris vs Milan Fashion Week](https://thecastindex.com/compare/paris-vs-milan-fashion-week) — Milan Fashion Week is run by Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana and shows just before Paris each season. Paris Fashion Week is run by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, which also holds a separate couture week. Both official programmes are invitation-only, but many shows are livestreamed.
- [Seoul vs Tokyo Fashion Week](https://thecastindex.com/compare/seoul-vs-tokyo-fashion-week) — Seoul Fashion Week is a city-government event, run by the Seoul Metropolitan Government from Dongdaemun Design Plaza. Rakuten Fashion Week Tokyo is run by the Japan Fashion Week Organization, mainly at Shibuya Hikarie. Both are held twice a year, overlap in early September, and offer public ticket draws and livestreams.
- [Haute Couture vs Ready-to-Wear](https://thecastindex.com/compare/haute-couture-vs-ready-to-wear) — Haute couture is a legally protected French designation for original, made-to-measure clothes sewn by hand in a house’s French workshops and shown in Paris each January and July. Ready-to-wear, or prêt-à-porter, is made in standard sizes and larger quantities, shown in February–March and September–October, and sold far more widely.
- [Retinol vs Retinal (Retinaldehyde)](https://thecastindex.com/compare/retinol-vs-retinal) — Retinol and retinal are vitamin A derivatives that skin converts into retinoic acid, the active form. Retinal is one step closer, because retinol must first become retinal. Reviews find retinol gentle but modest and rate retinal more effective while still fairly well tolerated. Both are milder than prescription tretinoin.
- [Mineral vs Chemical Sunscreen](https://thecastindex.com/compare/mineral-vs-chemical-sunscreen) — Mineral sunscreens use zinc oxide or titanium dioxide; chemical sunscreens use organic filters such as avobenzone or octocrylene. Both mainly absorb UV. The FDA has proposed only the two minerals as safe and effective and wants more data on 12 organic filters, without calling them unsafe. The EU and UK allow listed filters of both kinds.