I should probably preface this by saying that I love Rihanna. I think she’s cool, and feisty. She’s got guts, and besides, even if you’re too cool for pop music, you can’t deny that every song she comes out with has the ability to turn any party around. And I do believe she’s a grown woman and can make her own decisions about her personal life, even if they may very well be bad ones.

I also believe that guys who beat up their girlfriends (or guys who beat up their boyfriends, or girls who beat up their boyfriends, or anyone who beats up anyone, really) are not necessarily just misogynistic assholes. They might be, but it’s usually a little more complicated than that. I believe that people who do things like that are deeply messed up and need psychological help rather than just punishment. It’s pretty simple – people who are happy and well adjusted and have been brought up well don’t want to hurt people. Maybe it’s naïve, but I generally always think rehabilitation rather than retribution should be the first response.

But I also believe that if you sign up to be famous, you have at least a base level of responsibility to understand how your choices influence the rest of the world. If Rihanna still wants Chris Brown in her life after that infamous night three years ago when he bashed her face in, and wants to hang out with him in her own private time, that’s her call. I’m all about forgiveness, and I can understand how when you love someone that much, you can let anything slide. But she has a responsibility to understand that recording music with him and going around in public like nothing ever happened, as if we never saw those police photos with her face all bloody and purple with bruises, just isn’t all that cool. (more…)

Why you should marry the Beast, but not Prince Eric. In case you were wondering which Disney Prince you should marry, Thought Catalogue provides a pretty convincing guide.

Timeless Bad Advice: Hugo Schwyzer presents the case against settling for Mr Good Enough.

Taylor Swift is all kinds of beautiful in US Vogue.Read the profile feature and you’ll probably understand why I think she’s such a cool girl.

How to be a productivity unicorn, and why that’s so much more chic than being a productivity ninja.

On that note, how to hold a Ladies Working Brunch. Also, me and some of my most brilliant friends are holding one soon, so get in touch to get in on that awesomeness.

Jean Paul Gaultier’s Men’s RTW Fall 2012 show (starring Andrej Pejic, naturally) makes me want to wear menswear, and you’ll probably want to too. Is there anything cooler than the picture above??

Eating disorders and the fear of the ordinary. Imposter syndrome, perfectionism, eating disorders, and how they’re all tied up together. (more…)

Thinking about “Sexing up animal rights: is it wrong?” By Katrina Fox and Stephanie Honor Convery in Overland

What exactly is the link between sex and animal rights? It’s weird to even be asking that question, but inspired by the debate in Overland between Katrina Fox and Stephanie Honor Convery, I’ve been thinking about whether it’s okay to use sexualised imagery to raise awareness about animal cruelty. Sex sells, so where do we draw the line over what it should be used to sell? This is such a complex issue, and seeing as Katrina Fox and Stephanie Honor Convery are far more qualified than I am to comment on the issue and they express their thoughts so eloquently, you should probably read what they have to say on Overland for a more considered analysis – but for now, here’s my two cents.

So, the issue is this. In September, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) announced plans for a porn site, peta.xxx, to draw attention to their cause – provoking, of course, a lot of debate about the questionable ethics of using images that objectify women for political advocacy. It’s not the first time PETA has caused this kind of controversy – they’re known for using sexualised images to get attention. From the (comparatively more innocuous) “I’d rather go naked than wear fur” ad campaign to this ridiculous “vegetarians have better sex” ad, which is so gross it was banned from the Superbowl, they have a long track record of this sort of thing. (more…)

Sometimes I think I can kind of trick people into thinking I’m cool. I try to impress people with my ability to sing along to Rage Against the Machine and my love for Fight Club, and sometimes I even convince myself that I’m a little bit rock and roll. But other times, I just come right out with it: I wish Taylor Swift was my best friend.

Listen for a minute. It’s easy to dismiss her and think she’s all sugary sweet and stupid. I mean, a) she’s a young female pop singer, b) she hangs around with that whole Disney Channel crowd, c) she sings about boys and high school, and d) she’s so pretty, with her long blonde curls and a wardrobe full of sweetly romantic dresses. But seriously? She’s just about the coolest girl in the world. She’s smart, she’s hilarious, she has class, and she has guts. And yeah, she’s so nice – but she also has just the right amount of bitchiness that I think we’d get along just perfectly. (more…)

Sigh. I just have so much love inside me! I wish these people would hurry up and realise I could totally be the best thing that ever happened to them (and maybe, just maybe find my madness cute and endearing rather than deranged and stalker-like)…

Daniel Johns

Hey Dan. So, I’ve been waiting here pretty patiently for you to realise that we’re soulmates. No seriously, I figured it out maybe eight years ago – what’s taking you so long? But it’s okay; I’ll forgive you for making me wait, because I know the love we could share will be worth it, and besides, I get that you’ve been busy.

It’s not just that you’re maybe the sexiest man alive. I’ve always loved you for your brilliant mind and gentle personality and somewhat mystical aura – and that’s what makes you so special. Seriously, I didn’t even mind that much when you went and shaved off all your beautiful blond hair. There’s just something kind of ethereal about you, Dan, and I knew it before you went and got all seriously ripped and Adonis-like. When you showed up shirtless at Waveaid and everyone was suddenly saying, “Oh wow, he’s like, really hot” – I was saying, “What have I been telling you all for years?”

The thing is Dan, I get you. All that Neon Ballroom heaviness, I’ve been there, and for the longest time I thought you were the only one who would understand me. But now I’m in happy Young Modern sort of times, so it’s pretty perfect really.

(more…)

Andrej Pejic modelling bras for Hema, and why I think he is just the coolest

Okay, so anyone who has spent any time with me in the past six months or so will know that I’m completely enthralled by Andrej Pejic. I think he’s an absolute genius, and he inspires me in a lot of ways. Firstly, in the obvious sense – he inspires me because of his utterly captivating, otherworldly beauty, the way he challenges boundary after boundary, the way he continues to take everyone’s breath away with every new outfit, every new runway show, every fashion editorial.

But maybe more than that, he inspires me because he just seems so completely serene while he does it all. Obviously I have no idea how he really feels inside – but you get the sense that he’s genuinely just really comfortable with who he is, that he actually doesn’t care what anyone thinks. He just does his own thing, and he does it without being all defensive and “hey fuck you man!” about it. He’s only just turned 20, but there’s something really mature about they way he seems to really know himself.

Anyway. So this week he’s making headlines for one of his latest gigs - modelling push-up bras for Hema lingerie. Which is pure genius,  and with Andrej’s sassy, sardonic sense of humour you can just tell he loves the whole idea of it. A lot of the things he says or does, it’s like he’s secretly laughing, and you can just tell he kind of thinks this is a scream. It’s kind of on the same wavelength as the incredibly clever Dermablend concealer ad Rico Genest (better known as Zombie Boy) starred in, and I think it’s very cool. (more…)

Here are a few articles I read this week that got me thinking, and I’d implore you to click on through.

We’re all real women … what do men or size have to do with it? by Clementine Ford on The Drum

One major problem with the whole “real women have curves” thing is that it still places female body types in adversity with one another. Instead of saying it’s okay to be any size, it just reverses the typical preference for super-skinny types and disparages those women. Saying that having curves is “better” or “more real” and “more womanly” than being skinny doesn’t help anyone. This is such an interesting and complex issue, and Clementine Ford expresses all these ideas quite eloquently. Importantly, she points out something that is easy to miss, but that’s pretty salient to the whole issue: the “men prefer curves anyway” argument that always comes up just reinforces the idea that male desire should be integral to the way we feel about our bodies.

(more…)

(Published on lipmag.com)

Everyone from Cindy Crawford to Christina Aguillera has done it. Ever since Demi Moore appeared naked and seven months pregnant on the cover of Vanity Fair in 1991, it’s been a common trend for celebrities to pose for nude photos when they’re expecting. This week, Miranda Kerr has joined the hall of fame and stripped down to show off her six-and-a-half-months-pregnant body for the cover of W magazine.

And she looks incredible. They say that pregnant women glow, but she is utterly radiant. There is something almost ethereal about her in this photograph, and it makes even me (someone who generally can’t help but see pregnancy as something kind of horrifying and gross) see the complete beauty of the female body in this natural state.

In a way, I can see how wonderful it is that these women are celebrating their pregnant bodies, putting their essential womanliness out on display. On the other hand, it’s easy to see how such images could put even more pressure on women to look a certain way. (more…)