£2.4 million gets you 5,592-square feet worth of Spanish estate in a cul-de-sac with a two-story entry and a gourmet kitchen. The master suite has a sitting room, a fireplace, two walk-in closets, and a huge master bathroom. That suite literally sounds like a house in and of itself.
Moretz will be able to rehearse scenes for her upcoming role in The Little Mermaid in the outside area. The backyard includes a pool, spa, and waterfall, as well as a structure that would be perfect for watching dailies.
It also looks like the perfect place at which to stage the types of parties featured in Neighbours 2, another film in which she’s starring.
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Despite Kanye West's strong statements that The Life Of Pablo would be a Tidal exclusive, it appears that his album will be coming to all other streaming services, according to a Mashable report.
Taylor Swift dis track “Famous” and Kanye self-love anthem “I Love Kanye” have been made available on Spotify, Apple Music, and the recently launched Soundcloud Go. But Kanye doesn't plan to stop there; Mashable says the whole album will come to all relevant streaming services this Friday.
It's notable that Friday also is April Fools' Day, which would make this news especially cruel, even for Kanye. However, it's more than a little awkward considering his previous statements on the matter.
My album will never never never be on Apple. And it will never be for sale... You can only get it on Tidal.
The report comes as a huge blow to Tidal, which had seen its subscriptions reportedly double after the West exclusive.
But don't go cancelling your subscription just yet. Beyoncé's album is rumored to be arriving on Friday or April 8 at the latest. Also, you wouldn't want to hurt Jay Z’s feelings. He's given you so many nice things and all he asks is £19.99 a month to stream songs in high definition.
That said, we wonder what Jay Z thinks about his protege reneging on a forever promise to his streaming service. We guess having millions of dollars and being married to Beyoncé probably helps, though.
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Each month, we're here to guide you through the best exhibitions opening in London over the following weeks. The big art shows, and the ones that lie somewhere off the beaten path.
Click through to check out this month's offerings.
The Other Art Fair
Victoria House, Friday the 8th of April – 10th of April
Set against the delightful backdrop of Victoria House in Bloomsbury, this art fair trades the work of artists who are not represented by a gallery. You can pick up an original from as little as £50, and special guest Martin Parr will be there signing copies of his new book Real Food.
In this annual show, the RCA asks artists both established and new to create postcard-sized original art works. Each of the postcards are sold for a fixed price of £55, but the idea is that you don't know who created it until you've paid for it. The artists? Illustrator and accessory designer Emma J Shipley, musician Damon Albarn, designer Zandra Rhodes, artist Jake Chapman and many more.
Photographer's Gallery, Saturday 16th of April 16 – 26th of June
Each year, the photographer's gallery present the work of four new nominees for the Deutsche Börse award. Each year, we are blown away. Remember Richard Mosse's 2014 winning series, The Enclave, featuring infrared pictures of soldiers in the Congo? Remember Mikhael Subotzky and Patrick Waterhouse's 'Ponte City' project, documenting an apartment block in Johannesburg, which won in 2015? This year sees entrants Laura El-Tantawy, Erik Kessels, Trevor Paglen and Tobias Zielony in the running.
Victoria & Albert Museum Saturday the 16th of April – 12th of March
The Victoria & Albert Museum put on the best fashion and costume-led exhibitions in London, and this show is no exception. From corsets to garters to high-rise thongs (actually, not sure about the last one) 'Undressed' will chart the evolution of our underwear over history – exploring both the coiffed to the comfy.
Tate Britain, Tuesday the 12th of April – 29th of August
Conceptual art is art where it is argued that the idea behind the work is perhaps more pertinent than the work itself, although really, the two are inextricable. Here, Tate explores the relationship between the concept and work nonetheless, in a show including works by British artists Victor Burgin, Susan Hiller, Mary Kelly and many more.
This year, London is lucky enough to host Foam Talent - the exhibition to celebrate 21 of the world's most exciting young photographers (all under the age of 35). Give your eyes a treat and visit the show from 22 April,
Entry is free.
Photo: Sjoerd Knibbeler
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Let’s take a moment to celebrate the fact that spring has finally sprung. Okay, back in your seats. While we readily welcome the warm weather, the prospect of having to dress ourselves properly again after months of hiding away in chunky knitwear and shroudy overcoats is pretty daunting.
Thank god the reality of having to fully unsheathe our (unshaven) legs from 60 denier tights and jeans isn't here just yet since summer is still a long way off, but as the sun slowly rears its beautiful head, it is time to accept that a wardrobe rejig looms. Get ready to reveal those shoulders, abandon the cardigans and bid adieu to that aran jumper. Now's the time to inject more colour into your mostly monochrome office wardrobe, experiment with silhouettes or shape and embrace light tailoring.
Workwear can be just as fun as it is functional and we're here to remind you of that with some of the most stylish and flattering spring offerings.
Pair these floral trousers with a white T-shirt and Stan Smiths on a down day or a crisp shirt and mules when you mean bizniz.
Olive* green doesn't sound like the sexiest colour but this Marques' Almeida blouse looks very chic with light blue jeans and even better with a simple skirt and ankle boots.
For the days when you can barely fall out of bed, let alone find something suitable to wear to work, this dress will be your saviour. Simple, stylish and oh so easy to throw on. At £65, it's a steal too.
Just as every woman should own an LBD, a beautifully cut pair of black or navy trousers are a must too. Your colleagues will eye you up with envy in these Helmut Lang satin trousers.
White trousers might scream 'danger, danger!' with the potential of coffee and/or ink spillages but for those of us who aren't accident prone, these trousers are effortlessly elegant and also elongate the leg. Double win.
If you need a quick way to smarten up your look, for those days when all your best clothing is in the wash, throw on a blazer for instant sophistication.
Hooray! After months in layer upon layer upon layer, it's finally time to wear dresses again. This Warehouse frock is long enough that it's work-appropriate but fun and feminine at the same time.
The proverbial rule book says that you shouldn't mix horizontal and vertical stripes but this Whistles shirt proves that old-fashioned rules are meant to be broken.
PJs as daywear are a big thing and we're certainly taken by the idea of wearing a satin suit to work. Who said sleepwear couldn't be office-appropriate?
There's something different about Ariana Grande in her just-released video for "Dangerous Woman," but we can't quite put our finger on it. Oh, wait, yes we can: For once, she's ditched her signature high ponytail. She's also ditched her clothes.
The pop star writhes around in lingerie as she coos lines like "something 'bout you makes me feel like a dangerous woman." Let's just say it's a far cry from her work on Sam & Cat.
It's a sexy song, but plot-wise, the video leaves something to be desired. The video is titled "Dangerous Woman (Visual 1)" which implies that more is to come. Perhaps "Visual 2" will feature a love interest, which some fans in the video comments think should be Zayn Malik. People, we like the way you think.
Watch the steamy video below.
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According to a new study, women can't resist men who stand around looking like they’re starring in a '90s boy band video: legs a-kimbo, arms outstretched, hands in jazz-mode. Men who take up unnecessary amounts of room on the tube and in so doing let their crotch just… breathe, got a lot of flak at the beginning last year. But a new U.S. study, released this week, suggests that, at least subconsciously, we find people who extend their torsos, sit in wider positions and generally take up more room, attractive.
In the report, published in the 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences', Tanya Vacharkulksemsuk at the University of California, Berkeley, and her team began by watching 144 videos of different speed dates, and discovered that for both men and women, those with expansive postures almost doubled their chances of getting a ‘yes’ from their date.
Vacharkulksemsuk followed this first part of research by creating Tinder-style app profiles for three men and three women. The profile pictures uploaded were either closed stances (arms crossed, sat down) or open postures (legs apart, arms out wide) and discovered that, yes, you gottit, ‘open’ pictures saw more likes – especially when it came to the mens’ profiles.
“Based on our results garnered from thousands of single persons at an actual speed dating event, and using a dating application, it is evident that postural expansion can dramatically increase a person’s chances of making a successful initial romantic connection,” the report reads.
It’s interesting that the male profiles, where full use of available space was exercised, fared better than the women’s profiles where the same technique was employed. When Sharon Stone uncrossed her legs in Basic Instinct, when Christina sat ring-side legs wide and in chaps for Dirty, and when Miley swung the hell out of that wrecking ball; we all took a deep breath. But why, when we’ve seen it all before in cowboys, Santa’s lap, Tarzan, every slow boy-band track where they sit, open legged on a stool. The male ownership of the spread is something we’ve become accustomed to, through popular culture and social conditioning.
While the guys doing their best gorilla impersonations on Happn might be doing alright in terms of matches, it’s important to bear in mind that the study was based in environments where people are consensually looking for a romantic partner. So before you do your best David Brent in the canteen at lunch, or knock out someone else's leg room on the Northern Line, it’s worth considering that it might just look like rabid entitlement.
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As a professional organiser in New York City, a big part of my job is helping clients declutter and hone in on which items are necessary and positive additions to their lives. I have spent countless hours working to help them gain control of their belongings and rid themselves of physical burdens. This often involves encouraging clients to say goodbye to excessive sentimental items or possessions that can be hard to let go of. I can assure you that people are always thrilled at the end of the process, but the work itself can be challenging. And when it comes to clearing out a space after the death of a loved one, things get even more difficult.
Going through someone’s stuff after that person dies can be a brutal task. I should know; my mom died two weeks before my 15th birthday.
She had been losing her battle against cancer for almost a year, so it came as no surprise when she was taken from us one evening in late August. The disease took a toll on her entire body, changing it from the inside out, to the point where she was almost unrecognisable and couldn’t put together cohesive sentences. It was terrible to witness and now, over 13 years later, I can still feel the pang and intensity of the loss. My family chose to move about a year after her death, and my aunt, sister, and I took it upon ourselves to go through her belongings. We boxed up the most special clothing and shoes and some of her beautiful, delicate nightgowns. The myriad of get-well cards and letters were put into a box and sealed up. All of her jewellery went into a safe along with her old passports and ID cards. My mother’s work papers and files were thrown away, and we donated the rest of her clothing and shoes at a centre in Brooklyn. We went about the process in a swift, practical way — focusing mostly on getting the job done, figuring we could revisit when the pain was less intense.
I know the desire to fill countless storage units with every last belonging of the deceased can feel insatiable.
It wasn’t until years later that I finally went back into those boxes to see what was there. At that point, most of my mother’s clothing had been attacked by moths or other garage inhabitants and was ruined. There was a pair of boots that I took for myself (they were super cool and my size, which was exciting), and it was nice to look through the cards that people had made for my mom. But honestly, I felt fortunate to be confronted with such a small collection of her belongings. It was clear to me that day that these were only things, and I didn't need anything external to sustain my bond with my mother. Accepting this idea was a choice that I made, and that choice continues to comfort me. It powers me through the moments when I wish I could have access to my mom's shoe collection, or when I wonder what happened to her oversized tie-dyed T-shirts. Yes, I could choose to dwell on these physical items and feel sad that they’re not in my life. But allowing that would be wasting my energy, and I recognise that.
I know the desire to fill countless storage units with every last belonging of the deceased can feel insatiable. But trying to keep a person alive by surrounding yourself with the stuff that he or she cherished is just a dream. In reality, death is as natural as life, and possessions will never bring that person back. Below, find some practical advice — handed over with love and compassion, and based on real-life experience — for dealing with what can feel like an impossible task. Keep in mind, though: Coping with death is incredibly personal, and there’s no right or wrong way to go about it.
Take your time, but acknowledge when you’re ready to take the plunge.
Unfortunately, it will never be an easy time to go through this process. But there is an inevitability that should be recognised. Although there’s no “right” time to face this undertaking, I do believe that it gets harder the longer you wait. Give yourself a few months, and then ask yourself: Do I have the strength to do this? Will waiting be beneficial or detrimental to my well-being? And when you feel ready to take the step, go about it with patience and bravery.
Moving on in this way does not mean you’re “over” anything.
It’s easy to feel heartless when getting rid of belongings that were so much a part of a loved one’s life. But practicality and emotions can coexist, and focusing on real-world necessities is an important part of dealing with death. Allow yourself to feel the emotions that come along with this endeavor, and be kind to yourself throughout. I went through the entire process ridden with tears, and that’s okay.
Remember that things are only things.
If you allow yourself to put weight and value on every possession, you run the risk of burying yourself in the physical. So take a moment to tell yourself that the material is nothing more than that. Recognising this will help you let go of items that aren’t particularly special and need not be held onto.
Creating a curated collection will make everything more approachable.
If there’s a collection of paper keepsakes that feel special, store them in a binder or book so they can be accessed with ease and pleasure. Saving stacks and stacks of papers or pounds of clothing will make the entire collection overwhelming to interact with. Since these items can help spark memories, they should be welcoming, but not excessive. I always encourage clients to keep the sentimental items down to one box. This way, they can easily enjoy looking through the items without feeling like there’s an overwhelming amount.
Taking pictures is a great cheating method.
If there are many items that ignite happy memories, taking photos of them is a practical way to hold on without taking up endless storage space. Make sure the photos end up in a folder or printed out and placed into a small album. Otherwise, they will just become electronic clutter and get lost.
Cherish the items you hold onto.
Safely protect papers and clothing by storing them in airtight plastic bins. And if you can incorporate your loved one's items into your life, even better! It’s a beautiful way to remember that person and keep him or her with you. I can’t even tell you how much money I’ve spent repairing my mother’s boots over and over again as I wear them.
Let go without regrets.
It’s very common to be afraid of throwing something away and wanting it later. But regrets are wasted, negative energy — so consciously protect yourself from them. Acknowledge that you might have moments when you wish you had held onto something, but you will ultimately be okay without it. When feelings of regret come up, remind yourself why you let go to begin with. I know that my life can be beautiful without every old item that belonged to my mother, and the thought of her possessions lying in storage in a box somewhere doesn’t appeal to me at all.
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Pantene products have recently (literally) come under fire, for ostensibly causing hazardous side effects during routine dye jobs.
Patrik Alan Simpson of Mixed Elements salon in Maryland took to Facebook last week with a public service announcement for anyone willing to listen (uh, read). "For the love of anything holy...PLEASE stop using this crap in your hair!" he wrote.
"This crap" unceremoniously refers to Pantene's Moisture Renewal shampoo and conditioner, which he included a picture of in the post. He went on to recount a situation in which a client's hair started to burn — with smoke "billowing out" of the aluminium foil — after he applied a light-blond, ombré colour to her hair. He stressed that he's been doing this process for years without incident.
"I asked the usual questions i.e. Well water, medication etc. the only thing that was there, she used Pantene shampoo and conditioner for over a year," he explains on Facebook. "With the build up of parabens and plastic and silicones when it comes in-contact with a bleach or hi-lift colour it reacts and the bleach will melt off the build up and becomes a very hot liquid and if it come in contact with skin it will cause a burn. [sic]"
This seems to be a hot-button issue. Many Pantene users claim to have experienced similar issues — some of them flocking to Simpson's post (which has 56,000+ shares and counting) with their own stories. "This happened to me yeeeears ago! My scalp bubbled from the burns. It was awful. Now, I only use Organix or Renpure," one Facebook user wrote. "I used to use this when my mum dyed my hair back blonde. Same thing happened to me, very scary," another recalled. There are even several discussion threads — from 2013, 2010, and 2006 — where people complain about the negative effects they attribute to the brand's products, which range from burning incidents to hair loss.
Despite the number of complaints, we couldn't uncover any scientific evidence that proves Pantene is at fault in any of these incidents. And the experts we spoke with didn't seem to be convinced of the claims.
PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!!!!For the love of anything holy...... PLEASE stop using this crap in your hair! I...
"There is no ingredient in Pantene that is flammable in that manner; I couldn't even begin to give you a theory!" says cosmetic chemist Ni'Kita Wilson. She explains that placing the blame on the ingredients misses the mark. "Plastics is such a broad term that it really can't apply here. Silicones coat the hair strands to seal down the cuticles. If there is buildup on the hair, then the only negative impact could potentially be the colour not taking as well."
Snopes.com, a website regarded as "an online touchstone of rumour research," echoes Wilson's sentiment. As it points out, none of the ingredients Pantene lists on its website are out of the ordinary. In fact, when compared with pricier hair products, there is a ton of overlap — including the silicon-based polymer dimethicone.
As far as the plastics rumour goes, well, beauty blog The Beauty Brains debunked that claim years ago, stating that it was "a myth started by stylists to keep you from buying salon products." In a separate post, the blog even challenges users to compare Pantene's ingredient list to that of any other hair-care brand. "Even though the names vary, you'll see three basic types of ingredients: fatty alcohols (like cetyl and stearyl alcohol), conditioning ingredients (like stearamidopropylamine and quaternium-18), and silicones (like dimethicone and cyclomethicone)," the article states. "There's nary a plastic to be found in Pantene. And no, it doesn't make your hair fall out either."
The brand also sent us an email to confirm that its products do not contain plastic.
So, what is causing these hazardous instances? Colourist Aura Friedman says that other substances in the hair could be at fault. "That kind of chemical reaction happens when there are heavy metals or henna in the hair," she explains. "I haven't had that sort of chemical reaction on people's hair that use Pantene."
There is no ingredient in Pantene that is flammable in that manner; I couldn't even begin to give you a theory!
Hairstylist Paul Cucinello also places the blame elsewhere. "In the event that foil highlights start puffing up and literally exploding (colour specialists refer to this as a 'heat reaction'), it is not because of the silicones contained in many shampoos and conditioners — it's due to a perfect storm between sodium hydroxide, ammonia, and aluminium," he says. "When a lightener is applied to hair that has been shampooed with products that contain sodium hydroxide, using aluminium foil can create extreme heat reactions. This can make foils heat up and expand, potentially causing chemical burns and hair breakage. (Have you seen Chris Rock's documentary Good Hair?)"
Cucinello stresses that this is why it's vital for colourists and clients to be honest with each other. "It's important for colourists to ask what products their clients are using at home, so they can avoid the unpleasant experience of having foils explode on your head," he says. "Pantene is not really the culprit here. It's a lack of knowledge about what ingredients are in the products consumers are using in their hair and on their bodies."
Despite Simpson's inflammatory claims, Pantene stands firmly by its products. "The people’s trust in the quality of our products and their safety is of our utmost priority," the brand said in a statement released to Refinery29. "Millions of consumers use and enjoy our Pantene products daily and colour regularly as well. There is no connection between our products and the reaction this hairdresser saw on the client’s hair. We don’t know what caused this; shampoos and conditioners cannot."
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New York magazine recently published a story about Friends and its impact on pop culture. While working on the piece, writer Adam Sternbergh picked my brain about why I love the show so much, and why I keep coming back to it after all these years. The short answer is, not surprisingly, the nostalgia factor: I re-watch Friends over and over because it takes me back to the '90s. The longer answer involves growing up, feeling comforted, and experiencing a deep sense of belonging.
I fell in love with Friends in 1998. I was 10 years old and in the fifth grade. If you were watching the show live, it was the beginning of season 5; Ross had just said “Rachel” instead of “Emily,” and Monica and Chandler were well on their way to becoming more than friends. I was oblivious to all of this, however, because I watched in syndication on my local WB affiliate. I saw episodes out of order and pieced together the histories and relationships and dynamics over time. It’s not unlike the way we watch TV now: We start after a few seasons have already aired, based on a recommendation from a friend. Even though I was late to the Friends game, I found in the show a new set of, well, friends.
I have a deep connection with Friends — one that can only be achieved from serious repetition. I watched the show in syndication and eventually live, starting somewhere that fall with the fifth season. The moment owning seasons of TV shows on DVD became a thing, I owned all 10, and I watched them over and over. Having Friends on in the background became second nature. It was my go-to source of entertainment and laughter in high school, college, and beyond. It cheered me up after bad days and helped me through bad breakups. Without fail, every episode took me back to the first time I watched it, and filled me with a sense of calm. It still does.
Even though Phoebe didn’t meet Mike through Tinder, that doesn’t render an entire generation clueless about their relationship.
If you’re a Friends fan, there’s a natural tendency to quote the show in everyday conversation, regardless of your age or when you started watching it. I quote it to such a degree that it almost borders on banal; it’s like having inside jokes with myself. A few weeks ago, I met a friend of a friend named Laura, and my first instinct was to point at her and simply shout Laura! in a commanding voice (Joey, season 10, episode 7: “The One with the Home Study”). I would have looked like a crazy person. There’s a certain satisfaction that comes with selecting and reciting the perfect Friends quote for any given situation; it’s the original reaction GIF. Fans adopted phrases like “Oh. My. God! ” and “It’s Pors- cha!” long before Tumblr was around, and we quoted them of our own volition. The writing on Friends speaks for itself, and never relied on the internet to surface its best moments; that simply wasn’t an option.
Photo: NBC/Getty Images.
But that’s not everyone’s experience with Friends. In Sternbergh’s article, he talks about younger generations who stumble upon the show on Netflix, or find it because of something they read on the internet. And like generations before them, they too fall in love with the sitcom. But why? What makes the twentysomethings of today care about the twentysomethings of 20 years ago (who are now fortysomethings)? I think it’s the perception that life was easier back then.
The differences between twentysomethings in the '90s and twentysomethings today are obvious. You couldn’t land a date just by swiping right. You couldn’t make plans on the fly like we do now. And there is still a general sense that things were simpler. To my generation — one that remembers life before cell phones and the internet — it’s fun to look back on that time. To a younger generation — one that’s now discovering Friends for the first time — it’s a fascinating peek at what life was like not all that long ago, and a testament to how much has changed. I think people love Friends because it’s real, but also because it’s not too real. No matter what, it always remains lighthearted and funny; even the darkest of major life events are punctuated with a laugh. That’s what a sitcom is supposed to be: a slightly exaggerated version of everyday life that reflects a little part of yourself back to you.
In Sternbergh’s article, I’m quoted saying that it wouldn’t be possible to make an authentic version of Friends starring twentysomethings of today. And I stand by it. At the heart of the show is a group of people who meet up to sit around and talk — a behaviour that’s since evolved, because today’s twentysomethings connect through their phones. That’s not a bad thing, it’s just the truth. You could certainly make a show about six friends, but to have them all constantly return to one central meeting point like a coffee shop or someone’s apartment just wouldn’t happen. Because on their way, they’d discover something shinier and prettier to do instead. That’s not to say I don’t think a formal Friends reunion of some sort would work — because I do, and I would cry tears of joy for days if that were to happen — but even with the same six actors, a reboot would look drastically different.
Time period aside, Friends is still a relatable show. Even if you missed the era of being set up on blind dates by friends, you still know what the awkwardness of a first date is like. Even though Phoebe didn’t meet Mike through Tinder, that doesn’t render an entire generation clueless about their relationship. The Friends story lines of the mid-'90s are slightly different, but still timeless enough that today’s twentysomethings can understand and enjoy them. Younger viewers even connect with the nostalgic piece of it all. No, they aren’t reminiscing about being young in that specific era, but the show still reminds them of being younger versions of themselves. Nostalgia inspires nostalgia.
To this day, I still feel pangs of loneliness and an extreme sense of culmination when I watch “The Last One.” It fills me with the same sadness you feel on the last day of summer camp. To that same end, I also feel a rush of excitement and newness when I immediately follow it with “The Pilot.” It resets me, and I’m comforted to know that there are, once again, so many episodes and adventures ahead. You can tell me that Friends seems outdated because of its laugh track (it does), or that it would never have run for 10 seasons in today’s world (it wouldn’t have). You’re right, but I’m simply not interested in your assertion that those things make Friends a bad '90s sitcom. At its core, Friends is a show about relationships — platonic, caring, romantic — and that’s the singular concept that transcends generations and pulls in new audiences. The thing that people love so much about the show is right there in the theme song: “I’ll be there for you, ‘cause you’re there for me too.”
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Unless you’ve been calling the underside of a mossy rock ‘home’ you’ll have heard about Beyoncé's activewear line that's been not-so-secretly simmering for quite some time. When we say ‘line’ what we really mean is the Queen of Pop has launched her own sporty brand that's a 50/50 partnership with Sir Philip Green - called Ivy Park, that's just been unveiled via Beyoncé's Instagram. The first picture, of Beyoncé in a black leotard suspended horizontally in acrobat rings, sends us through to the Ivy Park Instagram account (which racked up 12k followers in 20 minutes FYI) where another monochrome image of the star smouldering in a 90's style logo leotard appears.
This is not your typical collaboration. Originally slated for 2015, the long-awaited brand has been tweaked and perfected in for many months but will function as a separate business to Topshop with separate offices. All good so far?
The collection which is made up of a whopping 200 pieces consists of blue logo-heavy sports bras, mesh-trim bodysuits, metallic print jackets and over-the-thigh hockey socks. Ivy Park will be stocked globally in 50 countries with online and IRL stockists including Topshop, Net-a-Porter, Selfridges and JD Sports.
Beyonce explained why she was so keen to create Ivy Park: "When I'm working and rehearsing I live in my workout clothes but I didn't feel like there was an athletic brand that spoke to me. My goal with Ivy Park is to push the boundaries of athletic wear and to support and inspire a women who understand that beauty is more than your physical appearance." She went on to explain; "True beauty is in the health of our minds, hearts and bodies. I know that when I feel physically strong, I am mentally strong and I wanted to create a brand that made other women feel the same way."
Quite frankly we’d happily skip from yoga to dinner in her leotard (maybe under some jeans?) that has more than a hint of DKNY's original 90s streetwear jersey pieces.
After being diagnosed with general anxiety disorder, photographer Aleksandra Stone actually welcomed her depression diagnosis. Once she understood the full scope of her condition, she felt more secure in her feelings.
"Almost instantaneously, I felt an overwhelming sense of relief, because I could finally put a name to the problem," she tells Refinery29. "Finally, I understood that my thoughts and moods were symptoms, and within my reach were means to alleviate them."
Chief among these means was photography — specifically, self-portraiture.
In her work, Stone casts herself in elaborate, and at times strange, images in an attempt to "cope, heal, and carry on," she explains. The results are an exploration of self that she couldn't have undertaken without her camera. With each image, she aims "to isolate, deconstruct, and communicate fleeting and defining life-moments," and to give the viewer an idea of what it's like to live every day with depression. In some photos, Stone places herself at the centre of the image; in others, it's difficult to find her hiding in much larger landscapes.
Although her self-portraits depict a deeply personal journey, Stone hopes that her work will broaden people's perceptions of mental illness. She says that viewers should feel welcomed when looking at these images, as if she's bringing them into her world.
"Each member of my viewing audience has something crucial to contribute to this conversation, whether it be an introspective assessment of their own life, an improved understanding of an unfamiliar subject, or the discovery of art as an avenue to communicating their own psychological frailties," she says.
Stone admits that it's hard for her to remember to take breaks from work, thanks to the sense of purpose it gives her. This drive is what's been most therapeutic for her: "Depression tends to feel akin to swimming in an ocean with no sight of land. You can tread, swim, or float, but no matter which method you chose, survival requires constant effort."
In Stone's experience, photography has been key to easing this effort. Click ahead to view a selection of Stone's work.
"Surrender," shot in Iceland while on her honeymoon.
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Heart of Mine," shot post husband's heart surgery.
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Journey."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Mothership."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Twilight."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Landscape."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Sunny Side Up."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Mounted."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
"Pulse."
Photo: Courtesy of Aleksandra Stone.
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"Your canines are flat," the dentist told me, drawing a straight line with his finger in the air. He pushed the backlit mirror in front of me, and I leaned forward, skeptically tracing my finger along the blunt edge. It felt like the tips had been cut artfully away with an X-Acto knife. He wasn't pulling my leg; my teeth were flat.
I didn't talk much as he began to list the causes and their solutions. He told me that most teeth grinders, especially women, grind their teeth even when they're awake and explained that the reaction was so habitual that most grinders probably wouldn’t notice unless it was pointed out. With a pair of false teeth, he demonstrated just how out of line my jaw had been moving to create my teeth's current shape. I would need a mouthguard if I wanted to prevent nerve damage. Gently, he asked if I was a nervous person, and I laughed (nervously) back at him.
I knew that I suffered from bruxism (the technical term for teeth grinding), all tied up with my laundry list of sleep and anxiety issues. Even when I was a kiddo, my mom says the noise from me grinding my teeth would tumble into the hallway like someone was operating a buzz saw. Like most grinders, I'm at my worst when I'm upset: It's bad when I'm nervous, but it’s even worse when I'm angry. And that’s what’s really at the heart of all this — anger.
In my day-to-day life, I think you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who uses that word to describe me. More often, I get “nice,” a word that I want to cross out even as it sits in this sentence. Sure, we can all be bigger than the sum of one adjective, but nice just seems wrong: Nice girls don’t ignore their friends’ texts or chain-smoke on the balcony at parties to escape taxing conversations. They don’t argue with people on Facebook, and nice girls definitely don’t grind their teeth behind forced smiles so much that they flatten their canines.
For me, anger has always come in and out, like a radio station on a far-off highway. There are times when it weighs on me so heavily that I cut off all of my hair or relentlessly follow an outburst until I’m blue in the face, but mostly, I am nice. People compliment my ability to mediate — I talk to others calmly and with good humour, even when I want to shake them. I get little presents for people, and I send them messages to let them know when I’m thinking of them.
But between dentist visits, the anger situation had escalated from “keep an eye out” to “get in the bunker.” I felt duped. The betrayal was twofold: First, that my body was (very rudely) turning against me. Second, that it took a guy shining a light in my mouth for me to notice the damage that had been done. When had I stopped pay attention to my body so thoroughly that I had missed that?
Instead of buying the expensive custom-made mouthguard from the dentist, I opted for something more in the budget: a set of two mouldable, plastic mouthguards from Amazon for less than $20. Each one comes in a little blue tray that you soak along with the guard in hot water, and then bite into so it shapes to your mouth. I did it three times, just to make sure, and then sent my husband a Snapchat of me smiling eerily with one slid in. It felt like a joke, but when I took out my mouthguard the next morning, it was marked with deep divots.
My worries, though sometimes an unnecessary burden, shape a lot of the way I present myself.
Wear on my teeth from grinding had always seemed inevitable, but I wasn't prepared for the tangibility of it all: I could hold the damaged mouthguards in my hand, and could touch my square-cut canine with the tip of my finger. And, of course, the dentist was right. Once he pointed it out, I began to notice myself grinding my teeth during the day. In learning how to change my outward reactions to people, I had dug inward. Whenever someone brought up "the liberal media" or how they weren't racist but, my jaw clenched, and I had to hold my teeth apart to prevent myself from grinding. Nights when I went to bed still swimming in thoughts from unresolved conflicts, my mouthguard earned deeper notches. And the more I worried about grinding my teeth, the more I was doing it.
I’ve seen enough motivational posters to know the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting different results, so I put my worrying to good use and devised a plan. With the help of my friend Sarah (who said she could also use some help chilling out), I created a spreadsheet for the two of us: columns of daily tasks to keep us busy, like reading and listening to podcasts. Before bed, we spent at least 30 minutes completely away from technology, and we kept daily creative goals. The reward? Points, which meant nothing except the bulbous number at the bottom right of the graph.
As the days on our tracker went by, the jaw pain lessened, and I went to bed a little easier. Even with the improvements, there were still nights when I wandered around my two-bedroom apartment, drinking water and bumping into sleeping cats, but for almost a month, those came less often. When January blew in, I nearly collapsed under a mountain of snow and stressors, from increased hours at my day job to dealing with the emotions tied to finding that meme of me. But I reevaluated, shifted, and returned to good habits.
In a way, my mouthguard has two roles: On top of its obvious function as, well, a mouthguard, I’m using it as a way to test my self-care. Am I eating enough? Drinking enough water? Spending enough time by myself? Check the mouthguard — the mouthguard does not lie.
But no matter how many changes I make, those bursts of perfection — when everything lines up exactly, and my head hits the pillow without the heaviness of some worry — are few and far between. My worries, though sometimes an unnecessary burden, shape a lot of the way I present myself. I want to be nice, and I want to do good for other people, but I also want to let myself get angry and, sometimes, I want to be selfish. Part of me wonders if the waking bruxism occurring more often in women is some demonstration of our overwhelming need to please and the way we’re shamed when we do tap into our anger, but that’s a worry for another time. Right now, more than anything, I just want to get some sleep.
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Rihanna has been teasing the release of her second music video from ANTI, and it's finally here. Get ready, because it's quite moody.
There's no twerking or grinding as in "Work." Unfortunately, there's also no Drake. Bad Gal RiRi chose to keep it simple with just her, her silhouette, and a few #FreeTheNipple moments.
It's got dice. It's got sheer clothing. It's got electric guitar. But mostly, it's got a lot of Rihanna. What could be better?
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Wondering how to quickly get to know your next blind date? New research from the University of Cambridge might give you an idea: talk about music. The findings suggest that a person's taste in music might say a lot about his or her overall personality.
For the initial study, which is still in progress, the researchers designed a thorough online quiz and distributed it to over 4,000 men and women between 18 and 61 years old via the myPersonality Facebook application.
Participants answered questions about their current mood, personality traits (descriptors included "extraverted," "critical," "anxious," "sympathetic," and "reserved"), the way they read and control their emotions, and the role music plays in their life. The participants then listened to 25 excerpts of music, ranging from rock to smooth jazz to electronic, and rated how much they enjoyed them.
By comparing the music ratings to participants' personality traits, the researchers found that people who were more empathetic and conscientious of others' feelings were more likely to enjoy mellow, emotional music. Meanwhile, people who were more analytical or interested in critical thinking tended to prefer intense, energetic music.
David Greenberg, one of the lead researchers and a psychologist at Cambridge, tells CNN that people who are more analytical may view music as a sort of "puzzle" for them to figure out, which could be why they preferred artists with more instrumentally complex music, like Rage Against The Machine or Metallica. Correspondingly, more empathetic people may have gravitated toward artists with more emotional music, like Joni Mitchell or Jeff Buckley, because they were more concerned with a song's narrative.
The research is ongoing and the quiz is available for anyone to take, so we'll have to wait to see whether this connection changes or stays strong. At any rate, if you're on the lookout for a partner who'd be a great listener, there's no harm in asking which artist he or she prefers — Adele or Guns N' Roses. Sure, this research wasn't intended to be used quite so practically and you probably can't glean too much intel from the fact that your date is obsessed with Adele. But hey, at the very least, bringing up music will give you something to talk about if you're in need of an icebreaker.
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Women are more likely to have the extremely fun experience of dealing with stomach and gut conditions, though experts don't quite know why. But according to new data, an overlap with your mental health may help explain that link.
The data, collected by health startup Amino, encompasses two years of patient experiences with chronic gut conditions. Those included irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn's, ulcerative colitis, and acid reflux, as well as gallstones, colon cancer, and celiac disease.
Amino's analyses showed that women are far more likely to be diagnosed with many of these conditions, including celiac, acid reflux, gallstones, and Crohn's disease, than men. But according to Amino's report, the biggest gender difference is women are nearly three times as likely to be diagnosed with IBS as men.
Researchers have noticed this pattern before, but it's still unclear why women would be more susceptible to these conditions than men. Theories include that it might be due to differences in intestinal cells or simply that women see their doctors more often, giving them more opportunities to be diagnosed.
But in other data that Amino shared with R29, the company found that mental illnesses — especially anxiety disorders — are commonly diagnosed alongside those tummy issues. For instance, those with IBS are twice as likely to have any anxiety disorder, and 2.2 times as likely to have generalised anxiety disorder than those without IBS. From these results, it's impossible to tell which — if any — condition causes the other, but it's definitely suggestive of a connection. And other research (such as this 2009 study) backs up that trend.
Although your head and your intestines are anatomically far apart, researchers are beginning to understand that they're more connected than you might expect. For instance, research has shown that the types of friendly bacteria housed in your gut might have an effect on your mood. And when they're out of whack, we might feel it in the form of gut troubles or even symptoms of depression and anxiety, which are also more common in women than men.
If an issue with gut bacteria is at the root of your gut problems, it might also be at least partly responsible for your anxiety. If you think that might be the case, you can try eating more probiotic foods, which at least one study has shown might help with anxiety. But remember that, at this point, researchers are still working out exactly how your gut bacteria really play into these conditions. So, a chat with your doctor along with that Greek yogurt is probably a good idea.
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Update: In the wake the public release of a video revealing that Nick Young cheated on Iggy Azalea, the rapper's fiancé said in a press conference on March 30, "I think it's best me and D'Angelo handle the situation we have in a private matter, outside of the media. I think it's something we do need to sit down and talk about and that's about it. What happened is what happened. We've got to work on it."
D'Angelo Russell, who recorded the video, expressed remorse and explained that he never meant for it to be released to the public, saying, "We joked around, played around all the time, say crazy things and this just got in the wrong hands. It wasn't a prank and it wasn't something for everyone else to see. It was for my eyes, his eyes only — and that was it."
This article was originally published March 30 at 5:30 p.m.
Thanks to D'Angelo Russell, Iggy Azalea now knows more about her fiancé, Nick "Swaggy P" Young than she previously did.
Azalea has been engaged to Young since June of last year. However, in a video apparently taken by Russell — Young's L.A. Lakers teammate — he seems to allude to hooking up with a 19-year-old when he was 30 "this summer." The video was first uploaded to Twitter by Fameolous, a gossip site, Deadspin reports. In the video Russell asks if anything happened between Young and Amber Rose. Young explained why nothing has happened, saying, "she knows my girl."
NBA star Nick Young Caught on Video Admitting To Cheating On Iggy With A 19-Year-Old Girl After The Club! pic.twitter.com/9ny9tDG0Mb
With the video beginning to quickly spread, today Azalea tweeted out, "hmmm i see D Angelo Russell is trending... I actually liked his film. Thanks bro." It's hard to gauge whether Azalea is actually, at least kind of appreciative that Russell brought this to light, or if she's 100% angry that he brought this out into the public eye.
Only time (or further tweets) will tell.
hmmm i see D Angelo Russell is trending... I actually liked his film. Thanks bro.
Many of us dream of the day when we’ll become managers. Finally, a chance to be the boss, have your voice heard, and do shit the way you want to. Getting the promotion is a huge deal, and even if it’s extremely nerve-wracking, it’s also a major career milestone. But how do you actually learn to be a boss? When you step into that role, it’s unlikely you’ll have had any training, and chances are, you’re going to make some mistakes.
One way to learn how to be a good manager is to take advice from the smart women who’ve come before you. Ahead, we interview six women who told us about the mistakes they made as first-time managers, and offer advice on how you can avoid similar disasters. One thing to keep in mind as you read this, everyone messes up — even if you read this article and take every bit of advice we offer here. That’s okay. Because that’s really how you’ll learn how to be an excellent manager: by seeking advice, learning from your mistakes, and being willing to admit when you’re wrong or you need help. It might be scary, but you’ve got this.
The first thing to remember is that just because you’ve been promoted to a management role doesn’t mean you automatically know everything about being the boss.
“A lot of people don’t get training in management, you just kind of have to wing it,” says Emily McInerney, the director of marketing at Tapjoy, a mobile app monetisation company and the co-president of Women in Wireless. This can leave many women feeling like they’re just not cut out for management, McInerney says, when instead they may just need a little help.
“You could be a great salesperson and you’re promoted because you’re good, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be a good manager. There’s a lot of different skills you need to learn,” she says. In order to get what you need, you must speak up. “Actively ask for help, guidance, and advice. Ask your company if they’ll sponsor you to get a business coach or do some management or leadership training. This company put you in that role, they want you to be better at your job. Even if they won’t sponsor it, think about investing in that kind of training on your own. It will leapfrog you to the next level in your career,” McInerney says.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
Some of those qualities that got you promoted — being a perfectionist, excelling at your job, and a desire to help people — could land you in a classic first-time manager trap: micromanaging. And everyone knows there are few things worse than a micromanager for a boss.
“One of the hardest things I’ve had to learn is to step back and watch when an employee is potentially making the wrong move,” says Katie Jansen, CMO for the marketing platform AppLovin, who has 12 years of management experience. At first, Jansen, 35, says, she was more of a task giver. While this method worked to get things done, she quickly figured out that she wasn’t thinking about the big picture — how she was helping to shape the careers of her direct reports.
Then, as her team’s responsibilities grew, micromanaging became untenable. “There just wasn’t enough time to do that every day,” Jansen says. “If we were going to get everything done, I needed them to think on their own, and figure out their own strategies without me telling them exactly what to do.” Jansen found the best way to help her direct reports grow into leaders was to pull back. “It was a little scary. You’re thinking, ‘What if they mess up?’ or ‘They’re not going to do it the way I would do it,’ but if it’s low impact to the business, even if they do make a mistake, you have to let them do that in order for them to learn.”
It can seem like it’s easier to just control what everyone else is doing, but in fact, you’ll be a better manager if you don’t have such a tight grip on day-to-day tasks. It will not only make your team happier, it will free up your time for more important tasks.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
A whole team of people exactly like you might sound fabulous and unstoppable at first, but multiplying your strengths throughout your team also means multiplying your weaknesses.“I’m a multitasker and I move really fast,” says AppLovin’s Jansen. “And I think naturally, but you tend to want to hire people just like you.”
No one is good at everything, even if you’ve done a really good job of faking it so far. The great thing about being a manager is you can hire people to help fill in your skill gaps. Jansen wasn’t sure at first if the person she hired to be her director of communications was the right fit for her pace. “He’s a very, very mellow guy. When I first hired him, I just kept thinking, ‘Is he even listening to me? I need this quickly!’ But it’s his nature to take things at a certain pace and he always gets it done and gets it done on time, and I’ve actually really learned to appreciate him and the vibe he brings to the team. It’s quite calming. He mellows me out.”
Hiring employees who have strengths that are different than you will make a team stronger, Jansen says, and keeps you from feeling like you have to do it all.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
Sarah Gibson Tuttle faced a steep management learning curve when she first opened Olive & June, a group of Los Angeles nail salons. Owning her own business was Tuttle’s first foray into a leadership role after working an equity sales trader at JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley for 10 years. “About three days into Olive & June, I walked outside and just started hysterically crying because I just wanted everyone to be happy all the time and it was so hard,” says Tuttle. A major issue for Tuttle was that she was trying to communicate with her staff the way she communicated in her old industry.
She realised pretty quickly how different things were on Wall Street. “Everyone is very Type A, and insanely driven and they all talk to each other very directly and have very little emotion about it,” she says. But that method was not flying in her new gig. “Beauty is an industry of art and design. When people are creative, they feel more and things are more personal. It was a struggle because I didn’t know how to act with a ton of warmth at work at first, I wasn’t used to it. I finally realised I needed to learn how the professionals in this field interact and how to motivate them.” Tuttle went to her employees for feedback, and they taught her a lot about the beauty world.
Learning to warm up at work really paid off for Tuttle. “People sometimes worry that the only result that matters is the profit margins. Personally, I think that a happy team is more important because they’re the ones that will produce what you’re after.”
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
At first Tuttle thought being a boss meant she was always right. Eventually some stress over a chair taught her a very important lesson. "The chairs I ordered for the salons are unique. They’re not typical comfy lounge chairs like most nail salons have. They’re not plush. They’re sling leather and I loved them. Then I started to hear that some people didn’t think they were comfortable, and I was like, ‘What are they talking about? They’re so comfortable, I love them!’
“But then I thought, ‘If this is what customers want, then change something.’ I ended up getting a ton of pillows and now I use the pillows with the chairs,” she says. But Tuttle regrets she didn’t start listening earlier. “I should have taken some of those manicurists out in the beginning and asked what they thought about everything, but I was scared they would tell me something bad and I just wanted them to stay.”
Sure, you’re the boss. Your opinion does matter. But you should also listen to what your employees have to say. Chances are, they are witness to things you never see. And if you build trust with them, they can offer invaluable feedback that will make you a better manager.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
Jaclyn Johnson was just 24 when she started her own marketing agency, No Subject, and was faced with bringing on staff. “When I hired people in my own company, I immediately tried to be friends with them. It seemed obvious that we would be: I liked them and we were going to hang out all the time.”
But even though being friends seemed natural at first, Johnson says she realised it could lead to trouble when you’re the boss. “There can't be a sense of ‘favourites’ or a ‘buddy-buddy’ mentality in the office,” she says. That can lead to anything but a friendly environment.
“Now that my company is bigger and has more of a corporate structure, it was a culture shock because I realised I really wanted to set up those boundaries. But then you also don’t want to create a culture of fear, so it’s a super tricky balance.” Now, Johnson sets up that boss and employee boundary from the beginning. “You can be friendly with your employees...but there needs to be a thorough divide and respect in place on both ends to make [the relationship] work.”
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
Managers learn quickly that the one thing worse than receiving criticism is giving it. But it’s also an essential job of a good manager. “One of my first bosses would reprimand me over something as small as not having a period at the end of a sentence, he’d bring me into his office and tell me I’d screwed up,” Johnson says. “I didn’t get it at the time, but that feedback made me so meticulous. Now I’ve become him, you have to go over your employees work and provide feedback. Even if at the time they feel offended, it will be lucrative for them in the long run.”
This can be tough when you’re a young manager, says Johnson, but the key is confidence. "When I hire people older than me, it’s bizarre, but one thing I’ve learned is they’re not trying to compete with me. They want to work with me because they see my vision and want to be a part of it.”
Critical feedback shouldn’t be given via email, Gchat, or Slack. If you’re nervous before you go into an awkward conversation, jot down some notes so you don’t lose your train of thought. Have the meeting in a private space, take a deep breath, remain friendly but firm, and make sure you give your employee some advice on how they can improve, rather than just being entirely negative.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
When Tracy D’Inunzio, 37, started the online clothing resale shop Tradesy, it wasn’t just her first time in a management position, it was her first real job. “We’ve gone from me in my living room to 125 people in the last three-and-a-half years,” D’Inunzio says.
There was a lot to learn, and D’Inunzio admits she made mistakes along the way. Trusting the wrong people impacted her team's overall performance. After a series of bad hires, she reassessed how she chose her staff. “I just wish someone would have told me to hire slower and fire faster. Nobody wants to be in a position where they’re not succeeding, so ultimately it’s the right thing to do for the person, the team, and the company. Eventually I got bolder about firing faster and better at hiring, and that makes being a manager much easier, you can get out of their way while they make magic,” D’Inunzio says.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
Some truths about being a manager exist no matter your industry. One big one: Once you become the boss, you’ll need to start paying more attention to your image. Mandana Dayani should know, she started her career in law, worked for years as the vice president of Rachel Zoe, Inc. and then last year switched over into the tech startup world joining Everything But the House, an online estate sale market, as their chief brand officer.
“Early on you need be thoughtful about the perception you create, in the office, and on social media,” says Dayani. “You need to be mindful of the pictures you put online, how you dress, how you speak to people, because everything plays into the way you’re perceived. And when you’re working in management, that means how the company is perceived as well.”
That doesn’t mean you need to wear a suit every day, she says. And it doesn’t mean you have to quit social media, just be more mindful of what you’re putting out into the world. Now that you’re a manager, you’re naturally a role model and it’s important to put your best self forward in every situation.
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
“When I was pregnant with my daughter [and working at Rachel Zoe], my nesting hormones were getting the best of me,” says Dayani. “I wanted everything in a perfect place before I left for maternity leave so I was pushing really hard. I was putting a lot of unfair pressure on our team, I was expecting too much of them. At some point, my husband just looked at me and said the very important words: ‘It’s going to be okay.’ That really helped me let go.”
Now that she has her daughter, Dayani says, that lesson about exemplifying balance has sunk in even more. “Maintaining your own balance and having your own boundaries will help you be better as a manager,” she says. “If you work too much, your team thinks they have to too, and space from work is helpful for everyone.”
Illustrated by Abbie Winters.
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Maisie Cousins is a 23-year-old photographer from West London who deals in the visceral and grotesque. Her work eschews the conventional ideals of beauty and sex that we are served up by, say, fashion photography, and instead hones in on strange surfaces, icky materials and lesser-seen body parts.
The effect is jarring. Super-saturated and super-guttural, Maisie's photos can't help but force a reaction out of you. They've also earned her a place in the Tate and on Dazed's 100.
Here, she speaks to Refinery29 about her influences and intentions, and tells us what it's like working with rotten meat and vegetables for a living.
When and how did you first pick up a camera?
When I was a kid, I would borrow my mum’s 4 megapixel camera and take pictures of my barbies just for fun. I carried on an interest with photography throughout my teens, especially with things like blogging and social media coming into my life. I’m not a very academic person but I always knew I wanted to either do painting or something creative. Living in London in a small flat meant I couldn’t do anything on a large scale and photography enabled me to create big photographs from very tiny set ups. I ended up studying a BA in Fine Art Photography after I realised this is what I wanted to do.
How has your style and subject matter changed since then?
I think my general themes and subject matter have stayed pretty consistent but I’ve noticed the type of work I make depends on where I’m living. For instance, when I was a teenager living at home in West London, I was really into black and white and shooting on film. Out the window is a view of the Westway and Trellick Tower, which I think heavily influenced me. When I went away to university in Brighton I found the buildings and surroundings so uninspiring and started making a lot of studio work. Now that I’m back renting a small flat, it’s all close up still life stuff in my home studio.
What girls are made of series by Maisie Cousins.Photographed by Maisie Cousins
What, for you, makes the perfect subject?
For still life, it’s got to have lots of different textures going on. For portraits, I never usually pick my models, instead I like to let them come to me when I put out casting calls. That way I feel more comfortable shooting them.
You often focus on the female body, quite viscerally... What do you seek to expose?
The realities of having a body, I suppose. Most of my work stems from a personal place and I guess I’m sick of seeing imagery aimed at me that I cannot in any way relate to. It’s very boring and dishonest. I think it’s important for art to be relatable.
Your work is very concerned with texture. What are some of the more unusual materials you've found yourself using?
I often use a lot of things that are lying around in the flat like make up, fruit, bath products, snails. Sometimes it can be really smelly – for instance right now my kitchen table is probably a huge health hazard.
Grass, peonie, bum series by Maisie Cousins.Photographed by Maisie Cousins
What's it like working as a female photographer in 2016?
It’s all I know, so it’s hard to say. I do think it’s amazing how much exposure female artists are getting at the moment but I think it’s important we don’t just get made into a commodity. It’s weird to me that ‘female’ is a genre. I want mixed group shows and I want the same stuff the boys get.
Do you find that you have to balance commercial work with your own pursuits as an artist?
I never really say yes to jobs that don't match me, it really helps having my agent Lydia. I actually find it really hard to take pictures of things that I don't care about.
Who are some other photographers inspiring you right now?
A lot of my friends are photographers and they inspire me to keep creating. Francesca Allen, Joe Skilton, Matt Martin, Milo Belgrove. Photographers I wish could be my friends – Nobuyoshi Araki and Martin Parr.
Red comes and red goes, but the latest take on one of beauty’s most classic looks is the prettiest (and probably the most summer-appropriate) we’ve seen in a while. Call it cherry, call it candied apple, call it Coca-Cola can (just a few of the references that rolled off the runways), it’s all shorthand for a bright, true red, worn with gleaming skin and applied with the steadiest hand you can muster. So here’s everything you need to know, from the texture we’re all talking about to the shade that suits almost everybody. Spoiler alert: if you haven’t learnt to love lip liner just yet, it’s about time you did…
Red right now
Say hello to your summer red: apple-bright, precision-applied and set against a freshly-scrubbed face. “What looks freshest at the moment is the contrast of a perfect red mouth with clean, gleaming skin – almost dewy in places,” says runway makeup artist Sharon Dowsett, who recommends as little base as you can get away with followed by something clear and glossy over eyelids and cheekbones to create “high points of shine.”
Photo: Getty
Skin matters
While the less you wear with it, the better it looks, red lips have a habit of highlighting redness elsewhere in the skin. MAC Senior Therapist Lesley Keane dusts illuminating powder over a lightweight base and then goes in with a tiny eyeliner brush to dot concealer over any blemishes. “Powder your chin, sides of your nose and forehead with a regular powder so you don’t look too shiny and you’re red-ready.”
Summer’s cartoon-perfect shape makes lip liner a must. Sharon Dowsett promises a Eureka moment with the following technique. “Outline your Cupid’s bow followed by a horizontal dash along the fullest part of your lower lip and sideways Vs in the corners of your mouth. Then join everything together with short strokes, working from the corners up to the Cupid’s bow, and from the centre of the bottom lip up to the corners.”
Photo: Courtesy of MAC
Lock it down
Or go one step further and use your liner to create a budge-proof undercoat. “Line your lips with a pencil that matches the shade of your lipstick as closely as possible, then fill them in completely,” says Sarah Reygate, makeup artist to Daisy Lowe. “Apply your lipstick from the bullet, blot, re-apply with a brush to really work the colour into the skin then blot again. It won’t move.”
Ever triple-decked your lip balm? It’ll make your red go on smoother, last longer and flake less, says makeup artist Kenneth Soh. “Apply a rich balm the night before then buff the next morning with a warm, damp flannel. Apply another lighter balm five minutes before doing your lip colour, then add a dab to the centre of your lower lip afterwards and purse gently to disperse without dislodging your lipstick.”
Photo: Getty
Liquid or stick?
The shade of the season might be Coca-Cola red, but the texture of the day is liquid. “I’ve been using liquid lipstick since the early noughties, when I had to bring it back from Japan,” says Kenneth Soh. “Bullets are great for a really dense colour, but liquid is so much faster, easier to apply, and more precise. I always wondered what took it so long to get here.”
“Like a new pair of shoes, a new shade of lipstick needs to be worn in a little if it feels uncomfortable at first,” says Poppy King of Lipstick Queen. “Get used to seeing yourself in it by wearing it at home, while you do the vacuuming or watch TV. And if you’re worried about smudging, there’s nothing wrong with checking your reflection in the blade of a knife when you’re out for dinner.”
Lipstick Queen Lipstick in Eden, £22 (available from April at Space NK)
Photo: Lipstick Queen
Dial it down
Diluting your brave new red into a stain will also make it more wearable – Sharon Dowset recommends working a lip crayon over a coat of balm for a more muted look. Or pick up one of the new sheers that’ll do the job for you. Bourjois’ new matte gives a glowing wash of marshmallow-soft red, while Lancôme’s latest launch is a barely-there dab-and-go gloss.
So what’s the ultimate red? Probably Chanel’s iconic Pirate, says Sharon Dowsett. “It’s an amazing shade – a combination of rich true red and cool blue undertones that suits almost everyone. It’s certainly the one that comes out of my kit more than any other. And if anyone says you have the wrong skin tone for a red, ignore them and try it anyway – sometimes it’s the clash that makes it work.’
This is no April Fools. After months and months of speculation, this morning Kering confirmed that after a four year tenure at the French fashion house, Hedi Slimane is parting ways with Saint Laurent. In a statement today Kering announced that the designer's departure comes at the end of a "four-year mission, which has led to the complete repositioning of the brand."
Though rumours have been abounding since late last year of Slimane's exit, the fashion gossip mill went into overdrive earlier this week when Saint Laurent revealed Cara Delevingne as the face of "La Collection de Paris". Delevingne first modelled for Slimane at Saint Laurent in 2013, for his grunge collection, and his move to pick the 23 year-old supermodel who had supposedly retired from fashion, seemed like a poignant decision which went full circle to his beginnings with the brand.
François-Henri Pinault, chairman and chief executive officer of Kering, asserted in a joint statement with Saint Laurent today: "What Yves Saint Laurent has achieved over the past four years represents a unique chapter in the history of the house. I am very grateful to Hedi Slimane, and the whole Yves Saint Laurent team, for having set the path that the house has successfully embraced, and which will grant longevity to this legendary brand."
And indeed Slimane has left his stamp on the legendary French fashion house, transforming the brand with his signature rock and roll, grunge glamour aesthetic. While critics initially doubted that his skinny chic signature style would catch on with the traditional YSL customer, his reinvention of the house in fact saw sales rocket and Saint Laurent is now one of the fastest-growing luxury brands in Europe. Saint Laurent recorded revenues of 974 million euros last year across 142 retail spaces which is significantly less stores than competitor brands like Chanel, Gucci, Dior, or Louis Vuitton.
So who will succeed Slimane? It looks likely the Versus designer Anthony Vaccarello, 33, is set to fill Slimane's shoes at Saint Laurent, though this morning's official statement only reveals that "a new creative organisation for the house will be communicated in due course."
Slimane's departure has already sparked speculation surrounding his next move. Will he focus more on photography? Will he set up his own label? Will he head to Dior? Well, we'll have to wait and see but his departure certainly reaffirms the seismic changes occurring in fashion, as star designers such as Alber Elbaz and Raf Simons step down from leading luxury labels. Though no one knows exactly what's ahead for the industry, change is afoot in fashion.
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