Eva Marcille Launches Cannabis Brand 'Sunflower By Eva'

Eva Marcille has always been that girl – from her America’s Next Top Model days to her acting career and now as a businesswoman redefining wellness. But these days, her glow isn’t just about flawless skin or statement nails. It’s rooted in peace, purpose, and growth — inside and out.

The Georgia native shared this with me during a recent Zoom. What started as a call to discuss her new cannabis lifestyle brand, Sunflower by Eva, quickly evolved.

We talked beauty, fashion, nails, and what it really means to evolve as a woman in your forties – while still honoring the girl who once won over America on ANTM. Eva is definitely in full bloom – and fans are watching as her true beauty unfolds.

Eva Marcille Was Inspired By Oprah’s Hair As A Little Girl

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“Hair is art from the top,” Eva said. “I mean, I grew up in the day of Soul Glow. Now hair is art. It is our crown … Culturally, it is such a defining piece of who you are – how you choose to wear your hair.”

She reminisced about watching Oprah as a young girl. To Eva, even Oprah’s bob spoke volumes about power, style, and self-definition.

“I remember Oprah, when I was a young woman, watching her with her bob, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, Mommy, you have to get that hair.’ Because to me, it just meant something,” Eva shared with a smile. “She was professional, she was stylish, and she was very much a Black woman. You saw the thickness and all of the beauty of who she is through her hair.”

Eva Marcille On Locs: They Can Be Professional, Glamorous, Sexy

Today, Eva wears her hair in locs – glamorous, versatile, and inspirational. I asked her to share her philosophy about the natural hairstyle with HB.

“People think locs are one thing, but they can be glamorous, professional, sexy, and stylish. My daughter has locs, too. I don’t call them dreads because that word came from ‘the dreaded people.’ I say locs, because that’s what they are—ours.”

And Eva’s love for locs and representation isn’t just part of who she is. She’s also brought it into her acting. She’s not playing about being real – and beautiful all the time.

“When I was creating Madam, I remember getting storyboards where she had wigs. And I was like, she’s a bona fide murderer — how does she have time to make sure her wig is tacked down?” she laughs. Instead, Eva pushed for a look that reflected both her character and her culture. She even pulled pics of women like Ava DuVernay for reference.

“I sent over a storyboard of locs and showed Ava DuVernay to show the beauty of what people think can be a monolith. You look at locs and think one thing, but it’s not.”

Her creativity doesn’t stop at hair. “Like hair, nails are art for me; it’s a whole thing,” she said.

“Growing up as a Black girl in Southern California, a lot of things we couldn’t have, but the things we could do to express ourselves were our hair, our nails, our fashion. Nails are part of my essence – I can’t properly emote without them.”

Eva Marcille Has Grown Since ANTM: ‘Thanks To Tyra, I’ve Learned About This Business’

As Eva reflects on her evolution, she’s clear: growth is the real glow-up. “So the girl that you met on Top Model, and the woman that you see today – that little girl is still in here,” she told me when I asked her about her evolution from ANTM to now.

“What I was blessed with through Top Model was learning that I’m not here just to exist. I’m here to find my purpose.”

That journey has been shaped by powerful mentorship. “So the woman I am now is someone who has, thanks to Tyra, learned a lot about this business – the way the business was – and then decided what I wanted to do to make my mark, to make my changes in this business,” Eva continued.

“I’ve been blessed, but my biggest blessing is to be a blessing.”

Now in her forties, Eva has found peace in gratitude and groundedness. “I don’t have a superpower or anything,” she said when I asked her how she stays positive in the face of negativity around her.

“But there is a difference between existing and being deliberate. At this big age, I’ve lived a lot of life that I shaped with purpose. And now, as a mother and as a woman who has been blessed with such a voice and advocacy, there’s no other space I’d want to live in outside of gratitude.”

Eva Marcille Has Launched A New Cannabis Brand: It Is A Movement, It’s Intentional, & It’s A Whole Vibe

That sense of joy and healing is what inspired Sunflower by Eva, her cannabis lifestyle brand rooted in wellness and community. “I’m a Southern California girl who grew up with a mom from UCLA who was a Panther of the hippie nature,” she said. “So I’ve always had a positive idea about cannabis — what it is and how it helps.”

Now one of the few women licensed to grow cannabis in Georgia, Eva sees her brand as both a movement and a message. According to her website, Sunflower by Eva isn’t just a cannabis brand. It’s “a lifestyle born at the intersection of plant medicine, feminine power, and cultural rebirth.” Created in partnership with Wishing Wellness, Sunflower is “here to unlearn shame, reclaim joy, and light up a new chapter in the cannabis conversation.”

Through it all, Eva’s fingerprints are everywhere. From the chic packaging and apparel to the honest conversations about liberation and leadership, it’s a vibe. The brand also gives back to the community. Sunflower by Eva supports initiatives that fund mental health resources for women, promote Black maternal health, and provide legal aid for cannabis-related convictions.

“I like to look good. I like to smell good too,” Eva explained how she is merging her beauty and fashion background into the new brand. “You want to be able to consume in a way that doesn’t offend anyone else. You get what you need, and you’re educated.”

Eva Marcille In Full Bloom: How Fashion, Beauty, & Gratitude Are Shaping Her New Cannabis Brand  was originally published on hellobeautiful.com