Burnt Hair and Soft Power: A Night Out With Evie Magazine

Evie Magazine’s NYFW Party Blends Romance, Glamour, and Conservative Ideals in Viral Cultural Statement

Just after 8:00 pm on Sunday night, Evie Magazine’s first-ever live event finally kicked off, transforming New York Fashion Week into a celebration of what the publication calls “the Romantic Era.” The women’s magazine, founded in 2019 and once described as a “conservative Cosmo,” welcomed an eager crowd to the Standard Hotel’s Boom in Chelsea, where guests lined up outside hugging fur coats around formal dresses while hosts scanned invitation lists for their names.

The atmosphere crackled with anticipation as one blonde woman begged for VIP access while an event planner rushed downstairs to inform coworkers that someone’s hair had caught fire during preparations. Upstairs, women crowded the entrance for their chance to be photographed against a larger-than-life plastic Evie Magazine cover that boldly declared “Welcome to the Romantic Era,” accompanied by other cover lines including “Your secret feminine power,” “12 ways to make him swoon,” and “Feminine fashion we love: corsets, dresses, & drama.”

The party, hosted by Brittany Hugoboom, Evie’s editor-in-chief, and her cofounder and husband Gabriel Hugoboom, was billed as a “celebration of romance & beauty” with attendees promised an “immersive night of live music, gorgeous visuals, captivating performances, delicious food and drinks, and a secret reveal.” Despite the lingering stench of burnt hair and the prominent “EVIE” projection above the wraparound gold bar, the event was nearly indistinguishable from any other high-end Fashion Week party—which appeared to be precisely the intention.

There was virtually no overt mention of politics throughout the evening, and the kind of conservatism in the air had more to do with Hollywood star Sydney Sweeney than with traditional abstinence messaging. However, Evie, which critics have labeled “alt-right,” is inherently political in its approach and messaging. The magazine has been embraced by different corners of the Republican Party, with figures like Candace Owens, Steve Bannon, and conservative commentator Brett Cooper—who attended the party—all championing the publication.

Evie’s content strategy traffics in conspiracy theories, shares anti-vaccine content, dispenses tradwife inspiration (remember Ballerina Farm?), rejects “modern” feminism, and promotes an app founded by the Hugobooms called 28, where users log information about their periods to calculate their menstrual cycle. Advertisements for the app, which was initially funded in part by Palantir cofounder Peter Thiel, run next to articles that criticize hormonal birth control and push women to get off the pill. Brittany Hugoboom told The New York Times that she pitched Thiel, one of many conservatives concerned about declining US birthrates, on the “fertility crisis.”

If this content sounds familiar from other right-wing media enterprises, that’s because it essentially is. What distinguishes Evie, aside from its unusual soft-focus photography of glamorously dressed women milking cows, is that this sort of content runs alongside listicles titled, for example, “7 Questions to Ask Early If You Want a Serious Relationship” or “How to Dress Like Olivia Dean on a Budget.” It’s a classic example of soft power in action—just as the appeal of mid-century Hollywood films wasn’t necessarily the anti-Communist messaging but the glitz and glamour, the strength of Evie’s politics are in its pretense that it doesn’t have any.

To many attendees, this approach represents the goal not just of the party, but of Evie in general. “That’s how we shift the culture,” said one attendee, who asked to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of her career. She credited Evie with the beginning of a Republican cultural revival. “We’ve been so policy-focused that we lost the culture, and we need to take that back if we want to win.” That’s what made this party particularly notable. Evie’s conservatism-without-conservatism messaging has long drawn attention, including profiles by numerous publications. But now, going into a consequential midterm election in which the polls look grim for the GOP, that messaging seems less a curiosity than a necessity. Here at least was proof of the concept that Evie-ism can make a compelling backdrop for young women unsure about what the Republican movement means to them.

This strategic approach represents a significant evolution in conservative media outreach, moving away from traditional policy debates toward cultural influence through lifestyle content, fashion, and relationship advice. The Evie model demonstrates how political messaging can be effectively embedded within seemingly apolitical content, creating what some strategists call “stealth conservatism” that appeals to younger demographics who might otherwise reject overt political messaging.

The success of this approach at New York Fashion Week, traditionally a bastion of liberal cultural expression, suggests that conservative media is finding new ways to infiltrate and influence spaces previously dominated by progressive voices. By presenting conservative values through the lens of romance, beauty, and feminine empowerment, Evie is attempting to rebrand the Republican movement for a new generation of women who may be skeptical of traditional conservative messaging.

As the 2026 midterm elections approach and polls continue to show challenges for the GOP, particularly among younger voters and women, Evie’s model may represent a crucial strategy for Republicans seeking to regain cultural influence and political power. The magazine’s ability to blend conservative messaging with mainstream lifestyle content could prove to be a template for future conservative media ventures seeking to reach audiences who might otherwise be resistant to traditional right-wing messaging.

The implications extend beyond just media strategy, potentially signaling a broader shift in how political movements engage with culture and identity in the digital age. As traditional political boundaries blur and cultural influence becomes increasingly important in shaping electoral outcomes, Evie’s approach may represent the future of political communication—one where the line between lifestyle content and political messaging becomes increasingly difficult to discern.

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