The UK may boast a plethora of unusual, trendy restaurants that serve all manner of cuisines, particularly in our big cities, but it seems we're more likely to play it safe when ordering a takeaway.
Deliveroo has revealed the top 100 most-ordered dishes around the world in 2017 and the UK's most popular meals were pretty unadventurous, to say the least. Brits lean towards a classic cheeseburger when ordering from the food delivery service, with burgers our favourite meal. Maybe we're more likely to make bold choices when cooking at home?
Strangely, given the rise of veganism and vegetarianism in the UK, all of our most-ordered dishes contained meat or fish. The most popular "dish"? A bog standard cheeseburger from Five Guys in London, which was the third most-ordered Deliveroo dish in the world. This was followed by Chicken Katsu Curry from Wagamama, also in London.
Other beloved burgers included the Cheese 6oz American Cheeseburger from GBK, followed by a St Peter's Burger from The Meating Room in St Albans, along with the Byron Burger from Byron and the Dead Hippie Burger™ from MEATliquor, both in London.
We're also a nation of fish fans, with the Crazy Salmon Roll from Kenji Sushi (Edinburgh) and the Oahu Bowl from Ahi Poké (London) among the top 100 dishes ordered worldwide.
Nine UK restaurants made it into the top 100 list, six of which were in London.
Ireland boasts a few of the world's most popular dishes, with the Burrito from Boojum in Dublin ranking as the second most-ordered in the world, ahead of the Five Guys Cheeseburger.
There were some clear worldwide trends to emerge from the ranking – outside of the UK, at least, 2017 was a year for making some bold takeaway choices. Hawaiian food, such as poke, was popular the world over, as were brightly coloured dishes like Buddah Bowls, as well as charcoal-flavoured foods and – wait for it – insects.
The UK's most-ordered dishes in 2017
Cheeseburger from Five Guys (London, UK) Chicken Katsu Curry from Wagamama (London, UK) Cheese 6oz American Cheeseburger from GBK (London, UK) St Peter's Burger from The Meating Room (St Albans, UK) Medium grilled chicken burrito from Tortilla (Brighton, UK) Crazy Salmon Roll from Kenji Sushi (Edinburgh, UK) Byron Burger from Byron (London, UK) Dead Hippie Burger™ from MEATliquor (London, UK) Oahu Bowl from Ahi Poké (London, UK)
The top 10 most-ordered dishes in the world 2017
1. Les Fernandines cheeseburger from Big Fernand (Lille, France) 2. Burrito from Boojum (Dublin, Ireland) 3. Cheeseburger from Five Guys (London, UK) 4. Tripletta Pizza from Tripletta (Paris, France) 5. Regular Burrito from Taqado Mexican Kitchen (Dubai, UAE) 6. Boojum’s Twojum from Boojum (Belfast, Ireland) 7. Sushi Box for Two from Sushi Shop (Toulouse, France) 8. Chicken Salad Bowl from The Daily Cut (Singapore) 9. Chicken Katsu Curry from Wagamama (London, UK) 10. Cheese 6oz American Cheeseburger from GBK (London, UK)
There's not much that will make you feel like you're failing at life more than reading one of those articles that peeks inside a woman's handbag, especially if she's a shiny, famous type. The carefully curated contents of their Saint Laurent shoulder bag inevitably include a Smythson diary, fancy hand cream and a travel-size bottle of Jo Malone. Well, I call bullshit. Mainly because I personally have never met a woman who carries an Evian Brumisateur Facial Spray with her everywhere she goes.
So we asked members of the Refinery29 UK team to reveal what was actually in their handbags. To make things interesting, we sprung the project on everyone so nobody had time to spruce up their bags. Click through to find out what we carry around with us, wrapper-less tampons and all.
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Leaving your house in the dead of winter can feel like an herculean task, especially when the weather is gloomy and there's black ice on the ground. But getting out of town sounds like the perfect antidote for our mounting seasonal affective disorder: We want a vacation, and we want it now.
While we would normally recommend a beach break as a nice way to deal with the weather, there's something to be said about destinations that pull off the winter wonderland look spectacularly. We're talking about places that offer impressive holiday decorations, lively Christmas markets, and readily available fireplaces. If a city looks quaint enough to be featured in a holiday card, we can (maybe) overlook the frostbites.
From a quaint ski town to a snowy wonderland, we've rounded up five postcard-perfect trips you should take while there's still snow on the ground. And, just so you'll know what to do should you decide to make an impulsive visit, we've also included the cosiest hotels in the area, plus the insider intel you need to know.
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If you're one of the people who finds themselves taking the ultimate plunge during this engagement season, congrats! You might be fielding thrilled texts from your friends and family, answering questions about wedding planning (which, good luck), and soaking up every moment of this loved-up time. But after the excitement over hitching your life to someone else's for all of eternity wears off, you may find yourself questioning the whole situation. That can be a seriously alienating feeling, because this is meant to be the happiest time of your life — right?
But a major life moment like this is bound to bring up some anxiety. It's a huge deal. "If you didn't question your engagement, that could actually be more of an issue," says Amie Harwick, PhD, a licensed family and marriage counsellor. "It's important to say to yourself, 'Is this something I want? Have we talked about this enough? Is it consistent with both of our individual goals?'" And those questions are natural for most people who have recently gotten engaged.
According to Kelley Kitley, LCSW, a clinical psychologist, we need to normalise this kind of questioning. "The expectation is so high, especially for women, that we've been waiting for this our entire lives, that we think it's supposed to be so magical," she says. "But once the excitement wears off, the reality can be scary." And in reality, people question their relationships at every stage — even those who've been together for years. "I have those days with my own partner where I ask myself if they're crazy, and if I can really spend the rest of my life with this person," she says. "But then the next day is better, and the questions go away."
But in the case of her newly engaged clients, Kitley says 90-95% of have questioned whether this big step is the right next step. "The biggest question they ask themselves is, 'Is this really forever?'" she says. And that's definitely a good place to start.
What you have to pay attention to, though, is whether those questions turn to doubt. "Questioning your engagement could be something like, 'I wonder how my agnostic parents are going to get along with my Catholic boyfriend,'" Dr. Harwick says. "Doubting is more negative. It's asking, 'Can I live with a Catholic for the rest of my life?'" Doubts should be taken seriously — especially because they can point to larger incompatibilities.
Whether you're straight doubting your new commitment, or just parsing how exactly you feel about changing your life as you know it, it's a great idea to sit down with a trusted person to explore your thoughts. Both Kitley and Dr. Harwick suggest some pre-wedding therapy. "It could be with a psychologist or a religious leader," Dr. Harwick says. "But working through these questions can really lighten the emotional load of your engagement."
Kitley adds: "People are more well-equipped and feel better about their decision if they've processed it with a therapist." This kind of check-in doesn't mean signing up for couple's therapy for life; it could just be a one-time sit-down, and it's a strategy that can be useful at other times in your relationship, too.
Taking a moment to be sure you and your partner are hearing and acknowledging one another, and that the partnership is progressing in a way that's positive for everyone, simply can't hurt. So don't conflate your questions for cold feet. Working through your anxieties could actually lead to a happier marriage in the end.
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In a matter of just 60 seconds, Molly (Jessica Chastain, who is nominated for a Golden Globe for the role) in Molly's Game loses the "game." The game in question is a mixture of poker and industry — in the film, Chastain plays Molly Bloom, a woman who earned millions of dollars running exclusive poker games in Los Angeles and New York. The movie is based on the book Molly's Game: The True Story of the 26-Year-Old Woman Behind the Most Exclusive, High-Stakes Underground Poker Game in the World, which was written by the real-life Bloom.
In the exclusive clip below, Molly loses a high stakes game when she slights one of her most high-profile clients. Michael Cera plays player "X," a member of the Hollywood elite. (Both Tobey Maguire and Matt Damon appear in the book. Cera's character is believed to be a composite of Maguire and Damon. Aaron Sorkin, the writer and director, told Entertainment Weekly that beyond Molly, he tried to obscure all the identities of the famous people featured in the book.)
In the movie, Molly loses the game when player X calls out her salary. Molly makes her money through tips from the players of the game, and she makes quite a lot of it. As player X points out, Molly is one of the biggest winners of the night. Only one player wins the poker game, but Molly wins a pile of cash every single night. It's this conversation that marks a turning point for Molly: As soon as player X (a wealthy actor) challenges her authority, he essentially calls her bluff. And she is bluffing — she makes a lot of money, but she has virtually no power.
Missguided was roundly applauded last month for showing its swimwear models' stretch marks, and now the high-street fashion retailer has gone a step further by launching a completely unretouched campaign – and it's going down a treat on social media.
The campaign, #MakeYourMark, stars nine barnstorming "babes of Missguided" – models, body-positive activists and bloggers – who were chosen to encourage women to "love themselves", embrace their "flaws" and reject what "the world perceived as perfection".
"Because f*ck perfection. It doesn't exist," the retailer's website reads. "We are making a pledge to never retouch our models' perfect 'imperfections' out." Among the women enlisted to preach the body-positive message are model Emily Bador, model and body positivity activist Felicity Hayward, designer, artist and model Jade Laurice, and Fatty Boom Tatty blogger Sam Rowswell.
"For the last two years with #SELFLOVEBRINGSBEAUTY I've been pushing the importance of SELF LOVE and understanding that FLAWS don't exist. Can't tell you how proud I am to be part of #MAKEYOURMARK with @Missguided," tweeted Hayward.
The ads are part of Missguided's larger campaign, Keep On Being You, which features a range of inspiring women, from model and social activist Munroe Bergdorf and the plus-size advocate and LGBT activist Enam Asiama, to Baddie Winkle, the 89-year-old fashion and internet personality and all-round badass.
The overwhelmingly positive social media reaction to the latest campaign further strengthens the idea that we're tiring of airbrushed "perfection" and outdated beauty standards.
So much respect for @Missguided with their #MAKEYOURMARK campaign, my body's so different compared to what it used to be but iv never been prouder of it since having my beautiful baby👶💪
ASOS was similarly applauded for showing its models' stretch marks on its site earlier this year, with customers hailing the move "a step in the right direction". Which big-name retailers will be next, we wonder?
"Winter inspires both joy and woe," according to The Old Farmer's Almanac. We fully cosign with this statement: This season may bring parties and merriment, but it's also stressful. We often find ourselves burning the candle at both ends while trying to find gifts for everyone on our list and finish extra work before going on holiday.
Another reason it may be stressful? The days are shorter, and therefore gloomier. But after the winter solstice — the shortest day of the year, meaning we'll experience the least sunlight in 24 hours — they'll get longer again.
What, exactly, is the winter solstice? Solstices happen because the earth gradually moves around the sun and is tilted on its axis. In the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice occurs when the sun is at its southernmost location in the sky. If you're in the southern hemisphere, the summer and winter solstices are reversed.
Traditionally, the winter solstice — sometimes called Yule in Pagan and Wiccan traditions — has marked a time of spiritual rebirth and coming together with community, which is why we see many cultures and religions celebrating holidays around this time.
This is the time of year when "nature itself is inviting us to really accept ourselves, so we can grow and cleanse and prepare for personal growth," seeress and shaman Deborah Hanekamp of Mama Medicinetold Refinery29.
Hanekamp suggested a few ways to observe the solstice: Make sure you have plenty of natural light (or candles at night), try to go screen-free to avoid distractions, don't drink too much, gather with friends for a meal, and, above all, do some self-reflection. It's a time to illuminate your "shadow self," she said, and ask yourself: "What are you ready to let go of and leave behind, to essentially let die or leave in the dark? Are there parts of your hidden self that need to be given a voice?"
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Twenty-four years following a scandal that rocked the world, Margot Robbie takes on the role of figure skater Tonya Harding in a behind-the-scenes story that will have you questioning what’s real, what’s fake, and how much we truly know about the controversial figures who become cultural lightning rods. I, Tonya opens in the UK February 23rd.
At Tuesday night's New York screening of I, Tonya, Margot Robbie arrived in a sheer, glittering floor-length dress. I almost had to do a double take to make sure that it was indeed Robbie standing in front of me, and not the big screen version of figure skater Tonya Harding. And then she offered up that wide, signature smile and Australian accent and I thought Ah, there she is.
Robbie may not beTonya Harding, but she sure is championing the infamous figure skater as both the star and producer of this film, which reveals Harding's perspective of her involvement in an assault against fellow figure skater Nancy Kerrigan in 1994. The film was just nominated for three Golden Globe Awards, including one for Robbie in the Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy category. But for Robbie and her production company, Lucky Chap, I, Tonya is just the beginning of bringing more women's stories to light.
"Our company has 13 films in development at the moment, and I'm starring in a few of them," Robbie said during a Q&A after the screening. "And we have a TV department right now, so I'm really busy producing female-led stories at the moment. And hopefully I'll be playing [ Suicide Squad's] Harley Quinn again soon, I'm hoping next year!"
I, Tonya screenwriter Steven Rogers joined the conversation, as well as Paul Walter Hauser, who plays Harding's former "bodyguard" Shawn Eckhardt in the movie. Rogers explained that what he hopes makes this film unique is the layered way it tells the story of one of the most scandalous moments in sports history.
"It is a really funny story, and it is a really tragic story, and it is a really crazy story," he said. "And it's a true story, depending on whose point of view you believe. I didn't want to limit it...I felt like why should any movie be just one thing? Why can't it be all that stuff?"
You can watch the full video of our panel below or read highlights to check out more on how Robbie learned to skate like Harding, her view on why women in sports are pitted against one another, what all three of the panelists are feeling about the state of Hollywood in the midst of the #MeToo movement, and more.
Refinery29: Like the movie says, I think everyone has a different memory of what actually went down between Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan. What were your recollections of what happened in "the incident?" Paul: "I knew very little. I was born in 1986, so for me it was snapshots of seeing these people being investigated and that being a story across Ricki Lake and Montell Williams and Oprah and Sally Jesse. It was part of that like loud trashy television coverage."
Margot: "I was four years old at the time, so I missed it completely, and I was in Australia. When I read the script, I didn't know any of it was true. I didn't know any of these people were real-life people, I thought it was completely fictionalised in Steven's brain!"
How did the idea for I, Tonya come to life? Steven: "I gambled on myself and wrote the script without financing to see if people would actually want it. And if they did, then I could have some caveats. The first caveat that I had was that Allison Janney was gonna play the part that I wrote for her [as Harding's mother]. I've known Allison for 100 years, so I wanted it in writing, or it was a dealbreaker. I did this before Allison had even read the script or said that she would do it!"
Margot: "I read the script, and obviously our production company was looking for female-driven content for my production company. We spoke to a lot of brilliant, brilliant directors, but the conversation we had with Craig Gillespie, who ended up being our director, no one could articulate how they would accomplish the tone in the film the way he could, and how they'd handle the violence. They were the two biggest questions we had, and he just had such a clear vision for the project. He had no judgement of these characters."
You interviewed Tonya Harding and her ex-husband Jeff Gillooly in real life before creating the movie. Can you talk a little bit about what that was like? Steven: "I just happened to see this great documentary on ESPN about Tonya Harding called 30 for 30. There were things about it that really resonated with me about class in America and the disenfranchised and what we tell women they're supposed to be. And truth, and the perception of truth, and what we tell ourselves just to be able to live with ourselves. All of that was wrapped around this really crazy story. So I went on the Tonya Harding website to find out if the life rights were even available, and I found a number for her agent and it was a Motel 6. I just thought I'm so in! I tracked down Tonya Harding, and I tracked down Jeff Gillooly, and I'd never really even interviewed anyone before. When I did interview them, their stories were so wildly different, they just remembered everything differently. I thought, that's my in, I'll show everybody's point of view and then let the audience decide what's what."
Margot, how did you physically get prepared for the part of an Olympic ice skater? How much of what we saw was you versus a stunt double? Margot: "Anything truly spectacular is not me. Try as I might, I could never pretend to be a professional ice skater. I did like four or five months of training, five days a week, four hours a day. It was a lot. I'd skated like a handful of times growing up, but not really because I'm from the Gold Coast in Australia. There's no ice! I can surf! But when I moved to America, I joined an ice hockey team...but it turns out ice hockey skates and figure skates are totally different, so I was face planting until I could really wrap my head around the topic. I quickly discovered that it was a brutal sport and incredibly difficult. I trained for ages and after awhile I started making progress and after awhile it became really fun, I really love it."
There' in this movie. What were some of the hardest scenes for you to film, Margot? Margot: "Logistically, shooting those scenes, that's fine, it's a mechanical thing. Emotionally, it's different. Honestly doing those scenes with Allison or with Sebastian Stan [who plays Jeff], it really comes down to your acting partner. But what struck me, there was a documentary made about Tonya when she was 15, way before she knew the media was going to scrutinise her every move, so she was very candid and vulnerable. She was talking about her home life, and she was saying very candidly to the camera 'My mum hits me and she beats me and she's an alcoholic.' She was saying it just like that. Just desensitised to it at 15. That struck me as an important element of this abusive cycle that she went through as a child and into her marriage that she just accepted because it was so habitual. Craig had the great idea of having her break the fourth wall in those moments so you could see her emotionally disconnect from what was happening to her physically at the time, so you got the idea of how repetitive these sorts of abusive relationships can be. And I think speaking directly to the audience in those moments makes it a little easier for the audience to be like, okay I can keep watching, on some level I think she's fine, and I'm watching a movie. I think that was an important way to do it. But Craig said you can't shy away from the violence, because doing that would be an incredible disservice to anyone who has suffered violence. It was something we paid particular attention to."
Why do you guys think that the public was so quick to make Tonya the villain in this real life story, despite the roles that her ex-husband and bodyguard played? Steven: "It was the first time there was a 24-hour news cycle and the first time that people really had to fill it. So I think people cared less about being accurate, and they just wanted content. So the easiest way to do that was to just reduce them to be just one thing. Tonya was the villain and Nancy was the princess and that's what we were fed and that's what we believed."
Margot: "I think it was easier to put Tonya as the villain because she just wasn't the image that the figure skating world wanted. I've watched every video of her skating like a thousand times over and the number of times they comment on the class of family she comes from, it should just be about the skating, but they'll be like 'Here's Tonya Harding, girl from the wrong side of the tracks!' It's just like, give her a chance! But it's about which box they decided to put each woman in. I think both were unfairly portrayed, because they portrayed Nancy Kerrigan as being from the elite, but she apparently came from a blue-collar family herself."
Paul: "I think there's really been an unfair stigma, lately men have been getting it in Hollywood and thank God people are uncovering a lot of garbage. But women, go to any checkout aisle of any grocery store, and you'll see people plastering names and accusations on women in the media that just by reading them, you know they're untrue. It's just people gravitating toward a story and things tend to snowball. In Tonya's case, like many stories, they let it evolve into this monster."
Steven: "I think the media likes to pit two women against each other, and people eat that up."
Shawn and Jeff each received 18 months in prison for their roles in the Nancy Kerrigan incident, but Tonya Harding was banned from ice skating for life. Do you each think those were fair sentences?
All three: "No."
Margot: "I just don't think she should have been banned from figure skating at all. That was her livelihood. She dropped out of school to do skating, there was nothing to fall back on. She obviously didn't come from a family that could lend her family or anything like that. I think that was so unfair. I don't care if people think she did it or not, she didn't deserve that."
You guys are telling a really important story for women in this movie. In the wake of the #MeToo movement, are you guys hopeful about Hollywood right now? Paul: "So hopeful. I think we're done with the bullshit. I think people are ready to be vocal and stick up for each other. There were a lot of people that wanted to stick up for people, but everyone was afraid of their jobs. And now people are losing jobs. I'm thrilled that it's happening and I think you're gonna see a big turnaround, not just in how people are treated, but how films are made and seeing more female-led projects in Hollywood."
Margot: "What he said! But it's true, I think the new wave...we're a really young production company, this is our first film to make it to the big screen that we've produced. I can kind of feel that this young generation as we enter the industry, we're pointing out the things that we don't agree with and we wanna change it. It is about moving forward and finding what we're gonna fix and actually doing something about it instead of talking about it. There's been a lot of talk about it, and the chat does need to continue so it doesn't get swept under the rug. But everyone pivoted very quickly into how are we going to fix it, though, and how are we going to make sure this doesn't happen again."
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As a single woman, I get asked a lot of intrusive questions about my love life. "Have you tried dating apps?" (Yes. Every single one.) "Have you considered moving out of a major city? It might be easier." (Considering my job and friends are here, I'm not going to uproot myself to maybe land a man.) "Don't you worry about having kids one day?" (Thanks for reducing me to my womb, pal.)
And while all of these are terrible, awful, no-good inquiries, there is one that bothers me more than the rest: "Why are you single?" It's a ridiculous question to ask a person — right up there with, " How are you still single?" It's like asking a person why they're not taller, or why they were born with brown eyes. I'm not sure why I'm single. If I knew, I might not be single anymore.
And honestly, have you ever heard someone ask coupled-up people why they're coupled-up? Probably not, because why would someone ask such a nonsense small-talk question?
But because I thrive in nonsense, I decided to spend a week asking coupled-up folk why they aren't single. I had some rules for this, though. Since I consider this a rude question that would inevitably lead to the person telling me to fuck off, I'd only ask people who I didn't already intimately know. No badgering my friends and fam about their duo status. (You're welcome, guys.)
Ahead, find out how my week went. Spoiler: I only got told to fuck off once.
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A baby born with a rare congenital condition is now on the road to recovery after three intensive surgeries to put her heart inside her chest.
The baby was born with ectopia cordis, an extremely rare condition that causes the heart to grow outside of the body. Delivered by a team of 50 medical professionals at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester, England, Vanellope Hope Wilkins is now three weeks old. According to Dr. Frances Bu'Lock, a paediatric cardiology consultant at the hospital, Vanellope is the first baby to survive the operation in the United Kingdom. "I deal with babies with heart problems all the time, some of them very complicated," she told CNN.
Her condition was discovered during an ultrasound scan nine weeks into the pregnancy. "I had prepared myself for the worst; that was my way of dealing with it. I had brought an outfit to hospital that she could wear if she died," said Naomi Findlay, Vanellope's mother, in a statement. "I genuinely didn't think my baby would survive, but the staff at Glenfield have been amazing."
50 minutes after being born, she underwent her first of three cardiac surgeries. According to Dr. Martin Ward-Platt of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, Vanellope's condition was even more unusual than the already uncommon condition in that she had no other complications with her heart or other organs.
"The moment she was born I realised that we had made the right decision," said Vanellope's father, Dean Wilkins, in a statement. "People always knock the NHS, but all we have seen from the team at Glenfield is kindness and a desire to keep Naomi and Vanellope safe and I can't begin to thank them for what they have done for my girls."
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It was on the first day back at work after Christmas last year when, as I was cycling home, hands and face numb from the bitter cold and everything around me shrouded in darkness, a fox fell from the sky. No, really, an actual fox. The fox had been hit by a passing train overhead on the bridge and fallen over the side, straight into my path. I stopped, shocked, startled, helpless and a little perplexed, looking at the fox as its body trembled en route to its inevitable and untimely death. When I got home to my empty flat, I pondered how unlucky someone would have to be, to be passing under the bridge at that precise moment. Pretty unlucky, I concluded, filed it under 'Bad omens for 2017' and climbed into bed. The next morning on my way past the fateful spot, however, the fox corpse was nowhere to be seen, which struck me as peculiar, given that just 12 hours had passed since the incident. And that’s when it happened; that’s when a malignant thought dropped into my consciousness and took root: 'What if the fox didn’t actually exist, and I had hallucinated the whole thing? What if I was crazy and was seeing things? What if my mind had created the whole episode?' It did seem pretty far-fetched...
In the days and weeks that followed this incident, I couldn’t move for foxes. Foxes on adverts, foxes outside my bedroom window, foxes in magazines, each and every one triggering the malevolent yet strangely seductive thought that I had imagined the whole thing, which I couldn’t for the life of me deflect with any level of conviction. It wasn’t until a few weeks later, when my anxiety hit its peak and I asked a friend to verify whether he had seen the fox standing a metre ahead of us, that I came undone. He had. I cried and cried, sweet tears of relief.
Now, the comic absurdity of this story isn’t lost on me, far from it; it’s now safely lodged in my repertoire of 'amusing things that happened when I was mentally ill', which I often roll out to demonstrate to people that, as with anything in life, when it comes to your mental health, it helps to have a sense of humour. What I hadn’t realised, however, until recently, was that Foxgate was one of many such episodes that have recurred throughout my life, and was a symptom of my undiagnosed obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).
You see, for as long as I can remember, I have been a problem-solver. Now this is not, in itself, a bad thing. For the most part, my ability to identify issues and find solutions has allowed me to develop and maintain meaningful, enduring and mutually respectful relationships; to push myself academically, professionally, personally, emotionally and physically; and to dedicate my attention to the betterment of myself and the world around me. In fact, I am often called upon by friends and colleagues for advice, because of my natural ability to look at a problem panoramically.
However, during periods of prolonged or intense stress, this compulsion to find a solution to anything and everything that could be considered a 'problem' can sometimes malfunction, taking me to the corners of my mind that the light struggles to reach. This is usually because the 'problem' that I am trying to solve is me; that is to say, the thing that I believe to be intrinsically wrong with me, which is the sole cause of my inability to live the peaceful and loving existence that I so crave. As is common among sufferers of mental illness, this derives predominantly from a series of deeply held convictions about myself that I have historically believed without question, and which are all adjectives qualified by the words 'not' and 'enough'. During these times, of which there have been only a few particularly acute episodes in my life, I have fallen down a well so deep it has taken months to pull myself back out again. Yes, my friends, I’m talking mental breakdown.
Over the years, this relentless pursuit to uncover and solve this mystical 'something' that makes me different from those around me has led me down some particularly dark corridors, during which times I have worried that I am one, or all, of the following things (to clarify, I am none of these things; I checked with my psychiatrist): an abuser, a narcissist, a sociopath, an imposter, an emotional manipulator, a cheater, a liar, and even a murderer. It has tricked me into thinking that I am physically repulsive, unloveable, mentally unstable, unkind, selfish, stupid, cruel; unfaithful, intolerable, untrustworthy, clinically insane, annoying, and without talent or skill. This obsessive solution-finding exercise has stolen seconds, minutes, hours, days and years of my life, robbing me of peace, enjoyment, contentment and the ability to feel or appreciate the love of others. During particularly bad phases, I would even have to avoid reading stories, or watching TV programmes or films containing even the faintest suggestion of malevolent behaviour. This is because I knew that I would then spend the next few days worrying whether I too possessed that trait or affliction. God, it was tiring.
Now, as a self-professed solution-finder, it may seem ironic to learn that I was fundamentally incapable of solving the 'What’s wrong with me?' puzzle. Every single time I stumbled upon a solution, doubt would creep in or a fresh, new idea would force its way into my mind and arrest my thoughts. You know that annoying feeling when you’re doing a crossword or a quiz and a question comes up you know that you know the answer to, but you just can’t quite retrieve from the depths of your mind? This is what OCD feels like to me; a sensation of being forever on the edge of a solution that evades my grasp, which, once identified, will make everything okay. And like a cat chasing its tail, every time I feel like I’m nearing the solution, it moves just beyond my reach once more.
Now as someone who grew up around mentally ill relatives, who had previously been (incorrectly) diagnosed with both a general anxiety disorder and a panic disorder, who has many friends with OCD and, indeed, who has read every single description of every single mental disorder (and subsequently convinced themselves they had every single one of these conditions), you’re probably thinking, 'But Rose, how did you not work this out sooner? All those hours spent trying to reach what is a relatively simple and well-signposted answer?'
Well chaps, the truth is that I had. In fact, when the empathetic and incredibly insightful psychiatrist I visited in the summer delivered my diagnosis, she quickly followed it with an observation: “But I think you knew that already.” And she was right. But the problem was that years of habitual self-doubt had made me instinctively question the validity of my own thoughts, feelings and perceptions, and assume them to be a product of my 'melodramatic personality'.
As I walked out of her office and back out into the real world, contrary to what one would expect upon receiving what is, objectively speaking, a pretty scary diagnosis, I was hit by the most overwhelming sense of calm I have ever felt in my life. I went straight to a therapy session and cried non-stop for an hour, but they weren’t tears of sadness, it was a feeling of unadulterated relief; I no longer carried the burden of having to find the solution. Because the irony of it all was that the very thing that had led me to question what was wrong with me, was the thing that was wrong with me all along.
Now I don’t want to sit here and preach the value of labels; lord knows that living in a society that seeks to pigeonhole and marginalise people based on their objective differences has so far yielded naught but misery and conflict. But in this particular situation, being able to identify and categorise whatever dysfunctional pursuit that my mind is engaging in has enabled me to put it aside and refocus my energies. Before, when people told me to “just think about something else”, I couldn’t understand what they meant, such was the potency of my ritualistic obsessing; if only it were that simple. Now, however, I am able to say, “Oh, that’s just the ol’ OCD again”, allowing me to disengage from said thought for long enough to starve it of life. And I am not alone in this. According to Miranda Boal, a psychologist and founder of Skylark Therapy in London, “a label can help to shine a light to guide both client and therapist out of the labyrinth, and find ways of coping along the route.” Delivered compassionately, a diagnosis can enable a patient to “recognise that the problem is the illness and not them,” allowing them to be “more forgiving and accepting of themselves.”
A week after my diagnosis, I cycled to Paris to raise money for Mind, which was possibly the most meaningful thing I have ever achieved in my life, and since then things have only improved. I have, with the support of an incredibly patient and kind therapist, learned that not everything has a single fixed solution, and that the relentless search for one is what produces anxiety, panic and fear. I am not a puzzle that needs to be solved; neither is life in general. And for those of you paying close attention, that’s it! That’s my eureka moment! I’ve solved the OCD riddle guys, we can all go home. The more comfortable we can make ourselves with seeing foxes fall from the sky, and embracing uncertainty and the not knowing more generally, the more liberated, peaceful and content we will become. The end.
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The days are getting colder and the nights are drawing in, but that's no reason to let romance go out of your life. Whether you've just swiped right, are trying to turn that Christmas party hookup into something more serious, or are celebrating your two-year anniversary with your SO, life's too short to Netflix and chill every single date night.
London is ranked the sixth best city in the world for dating but deciding where to go can be tricky. Nowadays, a date might involve spending all night at a Colombian rave or splitting a vegan breakfast buffet. (Yes, those are dates we have actually been on. No, we don't want to talk about it.) So how are you supposed to choose?
Well, Londoners, we've got your back. Click through to see our favourite date night spots that are perfect whatever the weather.
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It's the most wonderful time of the year. And we're not just talking about Duane Reade playing holiday tunes and the sidewalks being lined in Christmas trees. Sure, 'tis the season for shopping for gifts for those we love, but we say it's all about self -love, too. And just in time for some self-gifting, Reformation is having its annual end-of-year sale, which means some of those plunge dresses and midi skirts you've been eyeing all year long are now marked up to 50% off.
That's right: The kingdom of all things sexy and effortless typically has only two sales per year (at the end of the summer and at the end of the year), so if you slept on the summers-end blow-out, now's the time to scoop up a few pieces on healthy discount. In the clearance section, you can expect everything from the label's famous wrap dresses and wide-leg pants to shorts, tie-front blouses, and linen staples, many of which are already selling out. The pieces may not be the most seasonally appropriate (especially if you live somewhere with snow currently on the ground), but there's nothing wrong with stocking up now for future warm weather — or for a much-anticipated winter getaway.
Click ahead to shop our picks from the sale, but fair warning: We wouldn't think twice about pressing 'buy,' because someone else will undoubtedly swoop right in and scoop things up.
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Your diary is filling up, you're prepping your playlist, you're armed with all the Fenty Beauty shimmer you'll ever need: party season is upon us. Amid the red-cheeked merriment, mince pies and Mariah Carey, party season means party dressing. How are designers putting on the party this season?
Alexa Chung hosted a magical starry night-themed bash, with silver dresses with sweetheart necklines taking us back to our prom night. Molly Goddard dressed models in her signature frothy pieces, with tea party-style dresses getting a touch of sequins. Speaking of sequins, king of glitter Ashish delivered the most mood-lifting of parties, with positive slogans on rainbow-striped dresses that shimmered and sparkled. Saint Laurent's party was hard-edged and high-shine, with ruched vinyl dresses matching slouch boots.
Whether you're gearing up for full-scale sparkle, going for sumptuous fabrics like velvet and tulle, or ready to clash your maximalist prints, we've found the best party dresses to wear from the office Christmas 'do through to New Year's Eve. Click through to see our pick of the party dresses, from high street to designer.
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Fashion is a form of self-expression and can allow you to more confidently present your personal identity. But how do you maintain that extension of yourself when becoming a mother? For most, it's a dramatic transformation of both your life and your body, leaving little money or time to focus on yourself, let alone the clothes you wear.
With a number of the fashion set announcing pregnancies over the past year or so – from Susie Lau to Leandra Medine – we asked a few of our favourite dressers how they've tackled maternity style and how they're staying true to themselves while life throws bigger priorities their way.
Trine Kjær has been running one of Denmark's most popular style sites since 2008. Her way with bold colours and a statement sneaker has captured the attention of her 103k Instagram followers. For her, the trickiest part was the first trimester. "I found it pretty difficult to get dressed in the beginning of my pregnancy. We kept it secret for the first four months, and trying to dress like normal while feeling really bloated was extremely hard," she explains. "I remember I felt so relieved the second we announced the pregnancy, then I didn’t have to hide the little bump anymore, and it was time to figure out how I wanted to dress as a pregnant woman."
Katherine Ormerod, founder of Work Work Work, an anti-perfectionism site that looks behind the superficial veil of social media, agrees. "I think at the beginning it’s hard, because you're really trying to hide your bump. I think that's the toughest time because you might be in work environments where you want to keep it under your hat for a while, or you just don't want to say anything before your 12-week scan. Your body is changing and it's not like you're going to be showing off your new figure, so you just have to pretend that it isn't changing. I found that the hardest time."
Once the announcement has been made, women are faced with figuring out exactly how to dress for the next six or so months. For writer Pandora Sykes, being fashion-conscious is taking a back seat. “[Being pregnant brings] a very different personal style. It’s a lot of skinny trousers with oversized shirts or big jumpers, bodycon dresses and stretch skirts. I maintain my personal style from before with great coats and big earrings, but otherwise it’s changed a lot as my body is so different and I don’t want to spend a lot of money or energy on my style!”
Spending huge amounts on clothes with a lifespan of nine months wasn’t for Trine, either. "The first thing I decided was that I didn’t want to spend much money on maternity clothes," Trine tells Refinery29. "It seems like a waste of money and also unsustainable to invest in a whole new maternity wardrobe that I wouldn’t use as soon as my baby was born." Instead? Edit. "I took a close look at my wardrobe. Everything oversize and without a waist I kept in my closet and the rest I put away. That made me realise that I actually had a lot of items that I was able to wear even though I was pregnant. Shirts, track pants, knits and a lot of my dresses. I bought a couple of new and pretty bras since my breasts got bigger, and nice underwear always makes me feel more confident. The fact that I still wore regular clothes made me feel way more like myself."
While to well-meaning outsiders the bump is the focus, the women themselves are experiencing a whole host of other changes to their bodies, from bums to calves via boobs and feet. “A mind-blank moment for me was when I got really big bosoms,” Katherine says. “I went from a 32B to a 34E in about four months. A lot of the way I dressed involved deep V-necks and polo necks, which are really chic when you’ve got nothing, but can become quite X-rated with a huge cleavage. Either you wear something that’s unsuitable for a professional environment, or you try and cover it up completely, which can look frumpy. Learning to dress the boobs has been the biggest challenge for me.” As Katherine’s signature style is feminine, with casual florals and dresses a big part of her everyday wardrobe, wearing something bump-suitable – “like a pair of maternity jeans with an oversized shirt and flat shoes” – feels unusual. “I'd feel like I was wearing someone else's wardrobe,” she says.
The problem with maternity dressing, and perhaps part of the reason the market isn’t really catered for by fashion brands, is that no one body changes in the same way. Two 5”6, size 14 women won’t see the same body part getting bigger, and one bump may sit lower than the other’s. One person’s calves might expand, requiring bigger knee-high boots, while someone else may need empire lines on dresses to sit higher. With this in mind, brands tend to offer elasticated waists and not much else. So with your body changing throughout your pregnancy – and in ways you wouldn’t have predicted – how do you keep your personal style during the transition?
“I just sized up,” Pandora says. “I’ve worn a lot of H&M, Joseph, and Raey, plus Topshop Maternity jeans. I can’t really do heels now, so I’ve relied heavily on my Golden Goose trainers and Maje studded Derby brogues.” Trine relied on Danish brand Ganni. “I was living in mesh maxi dresses – they work perfectly for every occasion. At work I wore them with a knit and sneakers and for a night out I paired them with mules and red lips.” “I think it’s about responding to your body and keep trying!” Katherine advises. “Just try on everything, even outside of maternity lines, and find what works. I have a few dresses that have fit all the way through my pregnancy, but you wouldn’t have guessed that they would before trying them on.” Her hero piece? A black turtleneck midi dress from Isabella Oliver. “That was an ‘Aha!’ moment. It’s a blank canvas – it looks like a tube skirt if you layer a knit over the top, you can throw an oversized denim jacket over it, wear it with biker boots or with heels for the evening. If you find layers that cover your body in a way you’re happy with, you can layer the rest.”
What do these women think could change in order for pregnant women and mothers to feel more powerful in their fashion choices? “In general, women are too hard on themselves,” Trine states. “I would lie if I didn’t admit that it took some time getting used to my new pregnant body – especially before the bump really popped out – but instead of focusing on my extra pounds, I tried to focus on the good stuff. Like the fact that I felt more womanly with my bigger breasts and that I would never have to suck in my stomach if I wore a tight dress!” Media representation was also key for her. “I would love to see more editorials in fashion magazines with pregnant women. I did a mood board on Pinterest with pictures of cool pregnant women like Blake Lively and Natalia Vodianova, and that gave me a lot of inspiration fashion-wise. I think that social media can help change the way pregnant women feel about themselves, too – following cool pregnant women on Instagram was really inspiring to me.”
Trine, having had her daughter now, is back to wearing the bright colours and statement patterns that drew her social following in. “I’m anticipating going back to my personal style of before,” Pandora says. “I can’t wait!” Katherine doesn’t see it changing much, either. “I can't imagine that I’ll suddenly be toning anything down,” she states. “I think style confidence is so important, but from what I gather from friends, for those first six months so much of that stuff is tied up with how you feel about your body. So basically, watch this space – I'm not putting any pressure on myself to be at my fabulous fashion peak in the next few months!” While practicality is surely at the forefront for a while – like dresses that are suitable for nursing – Trine highlights the importance of fashion as self-expression for her: “I love my new identity as a mum but I still want to be Trine, and fashion is an important way for me to express myself and for me to feel like myself.”
While wanting to feel, and thus dress, like yourself while pregnant is vital to many women, the most important approach is to go easy on yourself and embrace the changes. Nail the basics that make you feel comfortable and make room for flashes of your personal style – from statement earrings to signature prints. It’s society’s job to avoid setting standards for pregnant women and new mothers, aesthetic or otherwise.
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We're braver and bolder with our hair colour than ever before, seasonally experimenting with navy blues, bubblegum pinks, and sunset oranges. Where bright colours and daring shades were once the preserve of underground subcultures, now you'd be hard-pressed to walk down a London high street without seeing a flash of colourful tresses.
According to the 2017 L’Oréal Professionnel Survey, a quarter of women said they were now more likely to try a bold or pastel hair colour than they were a year ago – an indication of how much has changed in our approach to hair.
Jack Howard, a resident mega stylist at Knightsbridge salon Paul Edmonds, tells us the future is metallics, both silver and gold. "We're beginning to see a huge increase in guests asking for metallic-inspired colour in the salon. I think that this is partly due to the transition of the trend from glossy finishes to metallic on the catwalk," he explains. "We’ve also seen the metallic element continued into makeup looks."
While you may be dazzled by the beauty industry's offering of shimmering, iridescent makeup this season, one scroll through Instagram – where #SilverHair has over one million posts and counting – proves that the high-shine effect has reached our hair, too.
Think metallics sound a little out there? Just like the makeup we're wearing, this trend is super wearable. "What's the point in developing a colour if it's not going to be used in salon? It's not going to have a relevance," Josh Wood, premier colourist and celebrity stylist, says. "I think that's one way hair colour is becoming a lot more like makeup. You're able to dial your colour up or down, be one colour for a night or another for a couple of weeks."
Josh, too, is touting metallic hair for 2018. Launching six new Shades EQ colours with global haircare giant Redken, he reveals a polished silver and a medium grey steel. "I'm working with people who are celebrating their natural grey, but at the same time, 20-year-olds are coming into the salon wanting to be bleached with grey applied on top," he explains. "Before, grey was never a colour – it was either a background or an accent. I love the idea that you can create a multi-tone of greys, with different hues. We're getting more sophisticated with it."
It's brilliant for every age, but every hair type? Jack, who developed L'Oréal Professionnel's Metals by Majirel permanent hair colour collection, an in-salon service that promises transformative shine, assures us it's for all hair types and textures: "It's important to have a thorough consultation with your colourist before your appointment to determine your desired shade and the journey that you may need to take in order to get to the final look."
If all-out silver sounds too bold a first step, the Majirel Metals can actually be used as a glaze to add shine to existing colour, too. The hyper-reflective gloss can add a metallic impact to copper, brunette and blonde hair that lasts for up to four weeks, or up to six if used as an all-over silver. It looks like shimmer's here to stay, folks. Shine on you crazy diamond.
L'Oréal Professionnel's 'The Metals' by Majirel Colour Collection is available in salons now. Redken's Shades EQ colours will be available in salons from January.
Last month, the fashion world was rocked when news broke of the passing of legendary designer Azzedine Alaïa. Tributes poured out from editors, designers and supermodels alike, and at the Fashion Awards last week, Naomi Campbell, who referred to Alaïa as "Papa", took to the stage alongside a group of other models, to honour the late, great fashion icon. In a touching speech, the supermodel spoke about his impact on both the industry and her personally: "He was the most generous, kind, compassionate and humble man I have ever known, with a mischievous sense of humour in the glint of his eye, and he filled my life – and the lives of the women on this stage, and all of you in the room who met him – with light and joy. I moved into his home at 16 and he opened my eyes to the world: to artists, art and design, architecture, French and Tunisian culture. How blessed was I to have Papa show me these different worlds?... Azzedine was a protector, a teacher, a seeker and defender of all that is good and positive in this world. I am proud to be honouring, along with his daughters, a giant of fashion and a true master of humanity.”
Following on from Campbell's touching tribute last week, yesterday it was revealed that the Design Museum in London will honour the iconic couturier's career, creative process and legacy with a forthcoming exhibition, to open in May 2018. The exhibition, which will run until October 2018, has been in development for the past year and will go ahead as planned despite the designer’s untimely passing at the age of 82 on 18th November 2017.
Azzedine Alaïa was recognised throughout his life as a master couturier who captured the timeless beauty of the female silhouette in the most refined degree of haute couture. His exquisite form-fitting creations were worn by everyone from Grace Jones and Madonna to Clueless 's Cher, Michelle Obama, Rihanna and Victoria Beckham. This unique exhibition, overseen by Alaïa himself, will explore his passion and energy for design, as he intended it to be seen.
Celebrated for his mastery of cut, fit and tailoring, of innovative forms and materials, Alaïa designed by draping and working directly around the human frame. He also painstakingly cut all his own patterns, which was virtually unheard of in the increasingly depersonalised world of large luxury fashion houses. Well-known for being a perfectionist, Azzedine Alaïa would work on a single creation for many years if necessary before unveiling it to the public.
The must-see exhibition will present more than 60 breathtaking examples of Alaïa’s craft from his archive, spanning the past 35 years, selected personally by Alaïa and guest curator Mark Wilson. As one of the most important fashion figures of the past century and based on the overwhelming adoration for Alaïa as both a designer and a friend, we're anticipating this exhibition will be an instant sellout. Put it in your diaries now.
Azzedine Alaïa: The Couturier will open from 10th May 2018 until 7th October 2018.
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Is yours a small, medium or large? We're talking wine here people, and the answer in 2017 is most likely to be extra large because our wine glasses are getting bigger – a lot bigger.
According to research published in the British Medical Journal, over the past 300 years the size of wine glasses in England has increased dramatically. In fact, they are more than six times larger than those our ancestors used.
The study, which is the first of its kind, took the measurements of 411 glasses from five sources (including retailers eBay and John Lewis) and found that they have grown from a measly 70ml in 1700 to a very generous 450ml in 2017. That's a sevenfold increase in capacity.
These stats are particularly relevant to women. Among female 'binge drinkers' (that’s those of us who exceed six units on our heaviest drinking day – which equates to three pints of normal-strength beer or two large glasses of wine), the most popular choice of tipple is wine, with three in four women choosing it over beer, the most popular choice for men.
The brains behind the study, Professor Theresa Marteau and her colleagues investigated why our wine glasses have ballooned in size – and it doesn’t just come down to greed.
Increases over time are due to price, technology, societal wealth, and wine appreciation. Two particular changes during the 20th century probably helped to increase glass sizes further.
Firstly, wine glasses started to be tailored in shape and size for different wine varieties (hence those gigantic red wine glasses we all love so much). Then the people running bars and restaurants, as well as their customers, had an effect too. Wine sales increased when sold in larger glasses, incentivising pubs and clubs to use them more.
Larger wine glasses can also increase the pleasure from drinking wine, which may in turn increase the desire to drink more, but you didn’t need the BMJ to tell you that, did you?
Something else to bear in mind when you are getting a round in over the coming weeks: The strength of wine sold in the United Kingdom since the 1990s has increased too, so the amount of pure alcohol that wine drinkers consume has likely risen in line with larger glasses.
If all of this has you worried about your drinking over Christmas and New Year then there are lots of ways to help rein it in.
There’s a ton of useful info and help from Drink Aware, and Drink Coach has an easy-to-use (free) app which you can download here.
And don’t forget your friend water, also free.
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While Christmas is the most popular time of year for engagements, you needn't be expecting a diamond sparkler to experience the thrill of unwrapping a piece of jewellery you’ll cherish forever. In fact, in recent years fine jewellery has become as much of a must-have fashion accessory as the latest 'It' handbag (not to mention lasting a whole lot longer).
From stacking rings to statement earrings, more and more designers are creating contemporary fine jewellery that appeals to a younger generation and complements our everyday wardrobes. And like our fashion choices, we’re becoming more daring in terms of colour and scale.
Add in the increased availability of coloured gemstones on the market, thanks to technical advancements and deposits of emeralds discovered in Zambia and rubies in Mozambique, and our jewellery boxes have the potential to be far more colourful than our mothers’ or grandmothers’ ever were.
Those mines are both owned by Gemfields, the world’s leading supplier of coloured gemstones. It produces 25% of the world’s emeralds and 70% of the world’s rubies. By investing in the mines and controlling the entire process, from sourcing the stones to selling rough gems to the market, the company ensures that every Gemfields emerald and ruby is produced according to their strict business, social and environmental standards. Not only are they beautiful, they’re also responsibly sourced.
But choosing the right stone is by no means straightforward. Before you invest – whether treating yourself or someone else – we spoke to the experts at Gemfields to find out everything you need to know about buying coloured gemstones.
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Nobody ever told me how much work and time it takes to make a real podcast. A great podcast. One that's truly worth the time you might otherwise spend, say, watching Smilf or Better Things (which I highly recommend). Like you, I've been listening to podcasts for years, and count one Terry Gross as my unofficial radio coach and model interviewer. But here's the truth: Podcasts aren't just a mic and a chat — they are tiny works of art. Which is exactly how we look at each episode of UnStyled.
After months of prep — behind the scenes and in the studio — we launched Season 2 of Refinery29's second podcast in early October. With guests like Gabrielle Union, Miranda Kerr, model icon Bethann Hardison, and feminist hero Naomi Wolf, the stakes were HIGH to get it right and make it GOOD. But in the end, the time we take to research each guest and find just the right theme to help tell their most important stories of the moment makes all the difference. And honestly, I think it's why so many listeners take the time to leave powerful reviews or send me heartfelt messages of how much a discussion about Stacy London 's year of starting over or Miranda Kerr's recovery from depression made them feel less alone, and more connected.
To me, that's the whole point of UnStyled: To show us all how our experiences as women and how we move through the world informs our identities, our dreams, our fears, and, ultimately, our style.
As of today, there's only two episodes of Season 2 left: This week's, which debuted with InStyle editor-in-chief Laura Brown, and next week's episode, my season finale, with actor-activist Sophia Bush. While we talk about serious issues that impact every single one of us at certain points in our lives — fertility, breakups, dream jobs, and the constant struggle to understand our purpose in the world, famous or not! — what stands out most in each episode is this need to connect...the unmistakeable magic when women speak and listen to one another.
So, the countdown is officially ON. If you haven't already caught up with Season 2 of UnStyled, it's time for a binge. I might be a little biased, but I think it's more than worth it. And I'm ever grateful to you-all you beautiful listeners and supporters—for making this season what it is: a celebration of women being unique, powerful, and forever claiming their destiny.
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