Tomiko Fraser Hines (née Fraser, born May 2, 1968) is an American

fashion model A model is a person with a role either to display commercial products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as an artist's model. Modelling ("modeling" in American English) entails using one's body to represent someone ...

and actress. She has done runway, print, and commercial modelling. Fraser is best known for being the first

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

face of

Maybelline Maybelline New York (formerly The Maybelline Company and Mabelline and Co.), trading as and commonly known as simply Maybelline ( ), is an American multinational cosmetics, skin care, perfume, and personal care company, based in New York City. ...

, which she was from 2001 to 2007. She starred in the 2001 movie '' Head over Heels''. She is an advocate for

lupus erythematosus is a collection of autoimmune diseases in which the human immune system becomes hyperactive and attacks healthy tissues. Symptoms of these diseases can affect many different body systems, including joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, heart, ...

awareness.

Early life

Fraser was born and raised in Bronx, New York. Fraser attended Cardinal Spellman High School. Fraser aspired to be a school teacher because of her love of learning. Her parents divorced when she was a child. She is 1 of seven children: she has 3 maternal siblings and 4 paternal siblings. Her brother Terrell Fraser is a DJ. Her sister Shneequa died of brain

Lupus Lupus, formally called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Common ...

. Her aunt died of

scleroderma Scleroderma is a group of autoimmune diseases that may result in changes to the skin, blood vessels, muscles, and internal organs. The disease can be either localized to the skin or involve other organs, as well. Symptoms may include areas ...

, a rare autoimmune disease.

Career

Modeling

Fraser started modeling at a later age than is typical of most fashion models. She was discovered by a modeling scout at 25 while working as a waitress at

Flatiron District The Flatiron District is a neighborhood in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan of New York City, named after the Flatiron Building at 23rd Street (Manhattan), 23rd Street, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Generally ...

restaurant ''Lola''. She stayed with the small agency for six months and her first modeling job was for Seventeen Magazine. She later signed to

Ford Models Ford Models, originally the Ford Modeling Agency, is an American international modeling agency based in New York City. It was established in 1946 by Eileen Ford and her husband Gerard W. Ford. History 20th century Eileen and Jerry began the bu ...

and she walked the

Chanel Chanel ( , ) is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. It is privately owned by French brothers, Alain and Gérard Wertheimer, through the holding company Chanel Limited, established in 2018 and headquarte ...

runway in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Since then, she has appeared in numerous commercial and print campaigns including

Essence (magazine) ''Essence'' (stylized in all caps) is an American monthly lifestyle magazine covering fashion, beauty, entertainment, and culture. First published in 1970, the magazine is written for African-American women. History Edward Lewis, Clarenc ...

Target Target may refer to: Warfare and shooting * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artille ...

, Gain,

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, Gemey. Her fashion campaigns include Alfani shoes, Gap,

Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( ; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger (company), Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's P ...

, J.Crew, Talbots,

Liz Claiborne Anne Elisabeth Jane Claiborne (March 31, 1929 – June 26, 2007) was an American fashion designer and businesswoman. Her success was built upon stylish yet affordable apparel for career women featuring colorfully tailored separates that cou ...

Old Navy Old Navy is an American clothing and accessories retailing company owned by multinational corporation Gap Inc. It has corporate operations in the Mission Bay, San Francisco, Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, California. The largest of t ...

maternity. Fraser is most known for being the face of Maybelline cosmetics. She was the first African-American model to represent the brand. Fraser has worked Chloe,

Vera Wang Vera Ellen Wang (; born June 27, 1949) is an American fashion designer. Wang initially pursued a career in figure skating before transitioning to fashion. She worked for ''Vogue'' and Ralph Lauren before launching her own bridal gown boutique i ...

John Galliano John Charles Galliano (born 28 November 1960) is a British fashion designer. He was the creative director of his eponymous label John Galliano and French fashion houses Givenchy and Dior. From 2014 to 2024, Galliano was the creative director ...

, Nicole Miller,

Vivienne Westwood Dame Vivienne Isabel Westwood (; 8 April 1941 – 29 December 2022) was an English fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream. In 2022, ''Sky Arts'' ranked her the ...

and Emmanuel Ungaro runway shows. Photographer

Mario Testino Mario Eduardo Testino Silva Order of the British Empire, OBE Royal Photographic Society#Distinctions and qualifications, HonFRPS (born 30 October 1954) is a Peruvian fashion and portrait photographer. His work has featured internationally in ...

has photographed Fraser for US ''Vogue'' . She has also appeared on the cover of

Flare A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala, bengalo in several European countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illuminatio ...

in 1999. In 2012, while pregnant, she modeled for

. and Stork magazine She spent a majority of her career with

; but is currently represented by Cathy Quinn Models in New York.

Acting

After years of modeling, Fraser turned her focus to acting. She is represented by Innovative Artists, and currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband. Fraser's first role was in '' Head over Heels'' with Freddie Prinze Jr. in which she portrayed a fashion model. Since then, she has appeared on '' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', ''

Soul Food Soul food is the ethnic cuisine of African Americans. Originating in the Southern United States, American South from the cuisines of Slavery in the United States, enslaved Africans transported from Africa through the Atlantic slave trade, sou ...

'', '' The Game'', and the feature film ''

Monster-in-Law ''Monster-in-Law'' is a 2005 romantic comedy film directed by Robert Luketic, written by Anya Kochoff and starring Jennifer Lopez, Jane Fonda, Michael Vartan and Wanda Sykes. It marked a return to cinema for Fonda, being her first film in 15 ...

''. In 2011, Fraser became a judge on '' Model Latina: Las Vegas''.

Personal life

On July 3, 2006, Fraser married Christopher Hines. After years of fertility struggles, the couple used donor eggs and

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning ''in glass'', or ''in the glass'') Research, studies are performed with Cell (biology), cells or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in ...

to conceive. In January 2013, Fraser gave birth to twins Kaden James Hines and Bryce Harrison Hines.

Philanthropy

Fraser is also known as a Lupus Activist. The cause is near and dear to her heart as her sister Shneequa suffered from the disease. Fraser is a member of the Lupus Foundation of America (LFA) National Board of Directors.

References

External links

* *
Maybelline Cosmetics Tomiko Page

Lupus Spokesmodel Tomiko

Tomiko and her sister Shneequa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Tomiko Living people People from the Bronx African-American female models African-American television personalities American entertainment industry businesspeople 1968 births African-American actresses American film actresses Cardinal Spellman High School (New York City) alumni 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women