Tamara MC, Ph.D.
Tamara MC, Ph.D., is the 2025 Lowell Thomas Bronze Award winner for Travel Journalist of the Year, with 90+ publication credits, including The New York Times, BBC Wildlife, and Newsweek. Her work explores the intersection of culture, identity, and place—examining how communities tell their stories through folklore, food, and the spaces they create. She holds a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics and is a Middle East scholar, with residencies at Bread Loaf, Sewanee, and Ragdale. She has a deep love of fuchsia and can always be spotted wearing the color somewhere on her person.
Articles by Tamara MC, Ph.D.
I remembered The Lip Bar from their infamous 2015 "Shark Tank" rejection—the moment Kevin O'Leary called founder Melissa Butler and her creative director "colorful cockroaches" and told them they'd never succeed. As someone who loves bright colors and wears lipstick—probably the only makeup item I've ever worn throughout my life—I'd been following the brand's journey. When I found myself in Detroit a decade later, I knew I had to visit their flagship store, especially since my favorite color is fuchsia, and I was determined to finally get their Playmate shade, which is often out of stock online.
