Innholdsfortegnelse for January - February 2020 i ELLE Australia

It would be a mistake to assume that Gwyneth Paltrow’s success — both as a Hollywood actor and the founder of cult lifestyle brand Goop — has been easily won, and it’s a notion her good friend Kate Hudson shuts down right away in our cover story this month. “Anybody who thinks that someone as successful as Gwyneth has just been floating around in kaftans all day is just being rude,” she says on p110. Paltrow is open and candid about her ambition and the fact she’s only come to embrace her drive later in life. Whereas once ambition was a “dirty word”, at the start of this new decade, it’s something to unleash. “WHEREAS once AMBITION WAS A ‘DIRTY WORD’, AT THE START OF this NEW DECADE, it’s SOMETHING…

Let’s face it: the “return to work” portion of summer can be a slightly depressing affair. Weeks spent email-free and wearing variations of the bikini-and-a-breezy-dress combo have come to an abrupt end, replaced with an overflowing inbox and back-to-back meetings. But there’s no need to get down about it! If anything’s going to put a pep in your step in the opening weeks of 2020 it’s a killer working wardrobe. And thanks to designers’ current penchant for unfussy, functional fashion, the options have never been more bountiful. the TRENCH THE PERENNIAL CLASSIC CONTINUES TO WOO US, SEASON AFTER SEASON As far as versatility goes, you’d struggle to find a harder-working piece than the trench coat. Light and airy for those cooler summer days, winter-appropriate when worn over your trusty cashmere…

carbon neutrality is the new black in the fashion world. Achieving a zero carbon footprint by balancing emissions with carbon removal (eg. by planting trees) or eliminating those emissions altogether has gone from the noble aim of a few brands to the new way of doing business. Among the most committed? Gabriela Hearst, whose SS20 show was the first to be carbon neutral. Sustainability has always been a cornerstone of Hearst’s brand, whether she’s sourcing merino wool from her family’s ranch in Uruguay or overhauling her packaging with fully compostable Tipa bags. Working with consultancy group EcoAct and production company Bureau Betak, the designer took stock of all emissions for her show, from power usage to transportation to catering. The offset amount was donated to the Kenya-based Hifadhi-Livelihoods project, which…

“i come from a long line of storytellers. My mother was a great storyteller, and I had aunts and uncles who would put Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams to shame. I was the last of that generation to grow up at the feet of people who still told the old stories. My grandmother was from the Stolen Generations. On her papers, she was considered subhuman. She never had a  voice. My mother was of the generation that was left out of culture, tradition, language or knowing a place. They were at those crossroads: one foot in the black world, one foot in the white world. But they weren’t accepted in that white world. My mother was born on the Barambah Aboriginal Mission in Queensland (now called Cherbourg). They moved to…

naomi Klein makes her way through the crowd outside the Bloor Street United Church in Toronto. There are people chalking slogans on the pavement and a contingent wearing neon-pink “Justice For Foodora Couriers” T-shirts. All are there for an event titled A Green New Deal For All, at which the last speaker will be Klein, an author, intellectual and environmental activist who is often deemed one of the leading progressive voices of our time. Klein has been in the public eye since 2000 when her first book No Logo: Taking Aim At The Brand Bullies, an account of sweatshops, marketing and the rise of anti-corporate resistance, established her as a prodigiously capable systemic thinker and a writer of uncommon prescience. When she told people she was writing a book about…

…The worst part is everything else. The best part of job hunting is wish-listing blazers on Net-A-Porter in the interest of interview-readiness... Trawling job sites, cold-calling recruiters, working and reworking your CV until you are screen-blind at midnight, discovering that your application has not been successful “on this occasion” via an email that’s guaranteed to arrive when you’re at your lowest emotional ebb, or nailing the interview only to be ghosted instead of got-back-to-very-soon. And somehow, between each differently painful kind of no-thank-you, you’re meant to be getting out there, networking and knowing exactly what you want. No wonder 60 per cent of respondents to a recent Australian labour study admitted that job hunting can be onerous, less than 40 per cent felt confident about finding the right role and…

TAILOR MADE SUITING DOESN’T HAVE TO BE STUFFY – THESE PIECES OFFER A MODERN UPDATE THE NEW POWER SUIT Opt for a relaxed shape and summer-ready hue. BACK TO BASICS A classic black or white singlet maintains the laid-back vibe. COOL KICKS Sneakers are the ultimate mix of fashion and function. USE YOUR LOAFER Back-to-back meetings call for flats that mean business. CHAIN GANG For extra polish, just add simple jewellery. PRETTY PUNK SHOW SOME ATTITUDE IN LACE, LEATHER AND PLENTY OF LAYERS TOP IT OFF Cropped, printed, embellished: we’ll take them all (and all at once). TIGHTEN YOUR BELT Don’t be afraid to double up – you make the rules. STOMPING GROUND Chunky soles complete the grungy feel. ANIMAL ATTRACTION Embrace your wild side in head-to-toe animal print.…

there was once a firm divide between the products we used on our face and body for aesthetic purposes, and the sleep aids we employed to send us into dreamland each evening. But as the intersection between beauty and wellness continues to narrow, brands are starting to offer items that cover both requirements, from body oils to bath soaks and any number of sensory soothers. The combination is a clever one. Despite all the TED Talks and podcasts we’ve digested that preach the life-spanning benefits of proper sleep, for most of us, it’s still not ranking high enough on our list of priorities. In fact, according to The Sleep Health Foundation, we’re in the midst of a sleep crisis, with an estimated 7.4 million Australians regularly falling short of the…

Q: I’VE HEARD THAT A GOOD PRIMER WILL MAKE MY FOUNDATION LOOK BETTER AND LAST LONGER. IS THAT RIGHT? A: Absolutely, as long as you find the right formula for you. There are countless options available (blurring! Hydrating! Mattifying!), so it can be tough to navigate. Essentially, primers are formulated as a skincare step to create a canvas that holds onto whatever makeup follows, be it foundation, tinted moisturiser or concealer. The latest formulas also double-down with ingredients that brighten, smooth lines and clear spots. So to find your perfect match, consider what you need. For an airbrushed effect that blurs pores and fine lines, our pick is Estée Lauder’s The Smoother primer. Apply the silicone-based formula in small amounts, then blend well for best results. If your face often feels…

There was a time when it would have been near impossible to get close to someone with the expertise of Fluidform Pilates founder Kirsten King, unless you were one of the professional athletes or influencers in her orbit. Fortunately, that’s all changing thanks to her Fluidform At Home program, which can be done from the comfort of your living room. “I wanted to find a way to share my love of Pilates and the ways that it can change your body and mind with more people,” she says. Her advice is simple: get moving for 15 to 20 minutes a day. “You’re going to get better results than hitting the gym once a week and you’ll feel a greater sense of overall wellness.” King is especially known for her technical…

A recent New York Times investigation brought the ethics of touch and consent in yoga studios to the forefront. It’s a relatable moment – you’re nose-to-toes in a forward fold, when you feel a pair of hands move to your hips to gently adjust your stance. For some, it’s a welcome and expected part of the practice, but getting hands-on without permission can leave others a little uncomfortable. For those who’d prefer to establish some boundaries, an increasing number of yoga studios in the US are now incorporating consent cards that display the participant’s adjustment preferences. Otherwise, a simple, “Is it okay if I put my hands on [insert body part]?” will never go astray.…

Manifesting is like goal-setting on steroids. Simply put, it’s drilling down on your dreams, putting them out into the universe and taking practical steps towards making them a reality. It may sound a little lofty, but no-one breaks it down better than DJ/presenter FlexMami (aka Lillian Ahenkan). “I attribute a good part of my success to it,” she says. In her e-book How To Manifest, FlexMami makes one thing clear: be prepared to delve deep and work hard. The best place to start, she says, is to imagine a very clear 3D rendering of what getting what you want looks like. Ask yourself how it feels, who is around and even visualise what you’ll be wearing. “Your brain can’t tell the difference between reality and an imagined reality, so the…

CAPE TOWN HEAD TO THE SOUTH AFRICAN CITY FOR SOME OF THE WORLD’S HIPPEST CLUBS “SANDWICHED BETWEEN THE SEA and the MOUNTAINS, CAPE TOWN is THE PERFECT MIX of BEACH AND CITY LIFE” the lowdown Capetonians like to party, starting with sundowners, which roll into dinner, then bar-hopping and clubbing after 11pm. Sandwiched between the sea and the mountains, beautiful Cape Town is the perfect mix of beach and city life. It’s fun, foodie and has a booming art scene. Head to inner-city suburb Gardens for buzzing bars and restaurants, the Victoria And Alfred Waterfront for design, and Bree, Loop and Long Streets for nightlife. The best of summer is from November to March, so enjoy the morning after the night before with sunny days on the white beaches around…

JESS PW Renowned model Jess Picton-Warlow, who’s walked the runways for Prada, Dior and Alexander McQueen, shows us how to wear the new tailoring in “Strong Suit” on p98. MY SUMMER UNIFORM IS… The entire aesthetic of the TV show Euphoria. It’s got to be comfy, cute but quick to take off down at the beach. Lots of silver jewellery, too. MY SUMMER ANTHEM IS… “Going Down South” by Adani & Wolf. It’s a feel-good banger. MY DRINK OF CHOICE IS… Blueberry gin and tonic. MY CURRENT OBSESSION IS… Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. I recently started reading it and now I can’t put it down. IN 2020, I’M MOST EXCITED ABOUT… A whole new decade of music, questionable fashion trends, parties, travel, discovery and realising stuff. I have a…

Cool, classic, fuss-free: Bassike co-founder Deborah Sams lives and breathes her brand’s design ethos. “When it comes to my daily uniform, I love anything tailored,” she says. “My go-to at the moment is a slouchy crepe tailored pant worn with a white T-shirt and an oversized man-style blazer, belted at the waist, and paired with our Leather Hiker Sandal.” Perhaps not surprisingly, this laid-back look has a lot to do with the coastal suburb she calls home. “I live on Sydney’s northern beaches, in the neighbourhood I grew up in. It’s a wonderful place to raise a family but also serves as a constant source of inspiration for my work.” “My home is a Spanish colonial-style property built in the ’30s and similar to the types of homes you’d find…

in a hyper-modern and minimalist co-working space in Amsterdam, the future of fashion is playing out. Albeit very quietly. There is no hiss of scissors through patterns, no sewing machines hammering away and no swoosh of fabric being carried from machine to mannequin. In fact, there’s no fabric at all. Which is strange, because I’m standing in a fashion house, one that recently made a dress that sold for more than $13,500, and whose work has been talked about among fashion circles and the tech set across the world. Instead, there is only the tap of a keyboard as a figure cloaked in fashion’s all-black uniform amends a hem here, a collar there, all through the click of a mouse. This is The Fabricant, the world’s first digital-only fashion house.…

ten years ago, even the most foresighted future-casters didn’t predict the technology we live with today. And in another 10 years? We’ll all have robots as remote avatars, according to Marita Cheng. Cheng is the founder and CEO of Aubot, a company that produces telepresence robots that can be used by sick kids to attend schools or by remote workers to go to meetings. This is a woman who’s used to shaping the future. When she was studying mechatronics at the University Of Melbourne in 2008, she was shocked by how few female engineering students were in her classes. This inspired her to create Robogals, an organisation encouraging young women and girls to study engineering and robotics. Twelve years, nearly 100,000 people and 11 countries later, it’s still going strong.…

it was early evening when I arrived in Colombo. We’d leapfrogged a day from New York, and everything felt half-dreamed. On my first flight, to Dubai, old men had peered out the bulkhead windows to check for the first lines of dawn, then dropped to the cabin floor in prayer. Dessert was apricot cake draped in cream. A teenage girl wore a bright pink T-shirt that read “Never look back”. The Gulf Times was full of Middle Eastern justice – “Woman to be lashed for insulting morality police”, “Arrest of atheist bloggers urged” – and chilling dispatches from my own country: “Tear gas and baton rounds can’t keep the peace in Missouri.” I’d come to Sri Lanka on assignment for a travel magazine. The premise of the feature was the…

“Sweating it out in a sauna does wonders for my circulation, as does dry body brushing before I shower.” “My beauty regimen is a time for me to slow down and check in with how I’m feeling – it’s as much about the time I spend as the products I use.” “To prevent fine lines, I sleep with a silk eye mask, and for tired skin, I like super-hydrating formulas. I’m also a big believer in inner health. Looking after your gut is so important for your skin and energy.” “These patches are a must for when I travel. They’re great for dehydrated eyes.”…

A vegan formula that blurs pores and fine lines while helping your base last longer. Veil Mineral Primer SPF 15, $115, HOURGLASS, mecca.com.au Full of electrolytes and proteins to hydrate and smooth. Hello Fab Coconut Skin Smoothie Priming Moisturizer, $46, FIRST AID BEAUTY, sephora.com.au This lightweight problem-solver utilises skin-softening apricot essence. The Smoother Universal Perfecting Primer, $52, ESTÈE LAUDER, esteelauder.com.au A gel-based primer that hydrates skin for 48 hours, for a lit-from-within glow. Luminous Silk Hydrating Primer, $75, GIORGIO ARMANI, giorgioarmani beauty.com.au This balm-like formula is perfect for nixing a shiny T-zone. Prisme Primer in Mat, $64, GIVENCHY, sephora.com.au Packed with vitamin C, this brightening primer is great for faking holiday skin. Banana Bright Face Primer, $49, OLE HENRIKSEN, sephora.com.au…

START WITH THE WORKING ASSUMPTION THAT YOU ARE PERFECT, JUST AS YOU ARE. THEN READ ON FOR THE WORKOUTS, HABITS AND MINDSET HACKS THAT WILL MAKE THIS YOUR BEST YEAR YET It’s scary to consider that 91 per cent of the world’s population lives in places where air quality doesn’t meet the standards of the World Health Organization. In 2016, air pollution was the believed cause of an estimated 4.2 million deaths. “What happens is that microscopic pollutants in the air can slip past our body’s defences, penetrating deep into our respiratory and circulatory systems,” says Lisa Guy, naturopath and founder of Sydney clinic Art Of Healing. While WHO’s online pollution meter indicates Australia is one of the lucky countries (mind you, this was before smoke engulfed the east coast),…

The pap smear has officially been replaced by the Cervical Screening Test (CST). What that means is you’ll now be tested for HPV infection (not abnormalities, as was the case with the previous test). The reason for the switch: this infection is found in 99 per cent of all cervical cancer cases, so ruling it out is a better way to keep you safe. If you get the all clear, your next appointment will be in five years. Getting this test is a no-brainer. For more information, go to cancerscreening.gov.au…

HUSTLE BOXING Founded by trainers Daniel Conn and Ellice Whichello, Hustle Boxing’s high-energy classes switch between easy-to-follow boxing drills and functional training. Each class is complete with pristine white leather gloves, aqua boxing bags and TV screens with trainers running through the fast-paced drills to help you keep up. hustleboxing.com LAGREE PILATES Once you recover from your first sighting of the megaformer, a three-metre-long Pilates reformer-style machine, it’s easy to see why these classes are so addictive. Each 50-minute session combines high-intensity, low-impact exercises that hone strength, core and flexibility. The challenging workouts leave you feeling the burn, but the fast pace and vibeymusic keep your spirits up. lagree.com.au HUMMING PUPPY During meditative flow yoga in a vast, warehouse-style room heated to 27 degrees, the room literally hums. The sound…

As a former photography director of ELLE Decoration and the co-founder of Made Good — a production, art direction, interior styling and content production company — Flora Bathurst was full of great ideas when it came to renovating her own home. “I spend all day looking at the most beautiful houses in the world,” she says. “There’s constant inspiration.” And the four-bedroom terrace in north-west London that she shares with husband Andrew, son Eli, seven, and daughter Isobel, four, certainly put all her style skills to the test. The 1890s-era house was “in a very sorry state” before they moved in four years ago, just in time for Notting Hill Carnival down the road. “There were rotten joists and holes in the floor,” recalls Bathurst. “It was the ultimate doer-upper.”…

DOMAYNE Bring a coastal feel to your home with Domayne’s Peacock outdoor setting. Handwoven wicker gives the three pieces a Hamptons vibe, while a moisture-resistant aluminium frame will keep them looking good, no matter the weather. $1,199; domayne.com.au REVLON Your ultimate summer accessory: Revlon Ultra HD Vinyl Lip Polish, which delivers high-voltage colour and shine in one coat. Formulated with vitamin E and shea butter, it also nourishes your lips while preventing feathering. Just swipe on and go. $24.95; revlonanz.com HIRUDOID Handy to have in your cupboard at home, Hirudoid Cream helps speed up the healing process of bruises, sprains and swelling caused by accidental or surgical injury. Always read the label. Follow the directions for use. If symptoms persist, talk to your health professional. CHPAUS 30781-1119B SKECHERS Skechers is…

THE NO-SEX RELATIONSHIP My wonderful boyfriend, at the tender age of 39, has realised he doesn’t enjoy sex. He’s handsome, silly, honest and kind, so he still engages in the act to keep me happy, but it’s just not pleasurable for either of us. The cuddles afterward, however, are pure contentment. He’s a deeply good (and good-looking) man and my favourite person of all time, and he wants to make this work. Are we kidding ourselves? Waking up to this man warms my heart and coming home to him at night is the best part of every day, but I do like sex! – A Snuggly Almost-Lover SNUGGLY, MY SWALLOW: Dear me! You’re too marvellous to give up one of the great joys of life. And your beau is too…

Unisex pieces have long been the backbone of a great wardrobe – perfectly fitted jeans, button-up shirts, a polished blazer – but fashion’s love for quasi-masculine dressing has recently reached new heights. Brands like The Row are bringing a level of precise tailoring to women’s pieces, including well-cut trousers and sleek black blazers. Stella McCartney – who trained as a menswear tailor on London’s Savile Row – brings the same detail to her designs, including a sharp black tux punctuated by a flowing ribbon in her resort collection. Daniel Lee’s much-hyped tenure at Bottega Veneta has been dominated by menswear-inspired pieces as well. The belted suits from his resort collection were truly splendid, with lace-up sandals tied up over the legs of pants offering a feminine touch. Is a feminist…

not so long ago, the notion of wearing shorts to the office felt outlandish, but there’s been a shift of late. Fashion has started reconsidering the value of well-tailored versions, as evidenced by the recent summer collections’ ultra-stylish show-goers, who embraced knee-skimming bermudas and more streamlined pedal pushers en masse. Street-style favourite Alyssa Coscarelli (left) gave a modern edge to the look, opting for a check shorts suit and PVC top, while Parisian It-girl Monica de La Villardière (above) offered a thoroughly French take in a billowy white top, sandals and zebra accents. Moda Operandi’s Lisa Aiken (below left) also chose a cool palette, pairing white shorts with an oversized beige blazer and lots of gold jewellery. One thing they all agreed on? The new generation of shorts look polished,…

AN education you only have to look at the success of Booksmart and Euphoria to see that the new wave of high-school stories is changing the genre for the better. Sex Education, another runaway hit, returns to Netflix for season two this January. When it first aired in February last year, most of its young cast were newcomers, including Emma Mackey, who plays the pink-haired, kohl-addicted Maeve. Along with Asa Butterfield’s Otis, they form an endearing and entrepreneurial pairing that teams up to offer sex and relationship advice to their classmates — at a price. Their unwitting source? Otis’ sex-therapist mum, the liberal Jean, played by the inimitable Gillian Anderson. “[Anderson] doesn’t really walk — she kind of floats,” gushes Mackey. “If she wasn’t so nice, it would be really…

AUTHENTICITY A key tenet of existential philosophy. Now likely to be accompanied by a hashtag and a photo of someone with toilet paper stuck to their shoe. SELF-CARE Once about the need to take care of mental and physical health, it now refers to getting into debt at your local wholefoods shop. WOKE Central to the Black Lives Matter movement, the word is now used to flog everything from hummus to eye drops. THE SISTERHOOD Second-wave feminism’s crucial pillar and campaigning phrase can be found on mugs and notepads in card shops. EMPOWERMENT When it’s being used to sell weight-loss powder, you know it’s lost its muscle. DIVERSITY It was originally about greater representation. Now it’s a buzzword flung about by corporates in suits. (Even Oprah won’t use it.) ***…

DIM LIGHT After the molten metallic shades we favoured during the festive season, we’re feeling a little more laid-back as we embark on a new year. Summer is a great time to embrace a bit of sheen, but freshen things up by limiting the luminosity to the brow bones and inner corners of the eye, with soft matte shades in between. Strip back the layers of foundation and apply a subtle tint, leaving skin looking polished but almost bare for an understated glow. LIP SERVICE A glossy pout finds favour once more, but this time it’s minus the fuss. Line the lip with a nude-berry hue and smudge around the edges before layering on a clear lacquer. Double-down by taking the same coloured liner onto your lids, or leave little…

#1 ***best*** SKIN REBOOT Advanced Night Repair Intense Reset Concentrate, $120, ESTÉE LAUDER, davidjones.com “This SOS treatment is for whenever your complexion is looking tired. It hydrates and fortifies the skin’s natural ability to respond to stressors, so your beauty sleep is better than ever.” – BARBARA HUBER, ELLE GERMANY 2. ***best*** ECO-FRIENDLY FACE FORMULA Noni Glow Face Oil, $30, KORA ORGANICS, koraorganics.com “The Holy Grail of clean beauty. It makes my skin smooth, hydrated and glowing, with a light, natural scent and no sticky residue.” – MARTHE JAKOBSEN, ELLE NORWAY 3. ***best*** FRAGRANCE Un Jardin Sur La Lagune, $180 for 100ml, HERMÈS, myer.com.au “This strikes the perfect balance between white flowers and a sea breeze, making it a good everyday scent without being a-dime-a-dozen.” – SHANICE ZOETEWEIJ, ELLE NETHERLANDS…

I love the word self-care. It covers all manner of sins, doesn’t it? Cancelling Friday-night plans at the last minute to stay in. Eating peanut butter straight from the jar. Face masks. Bubble baths. Adding to cart with gleeful abandon. In many ways, it has become the “get out of jail free” card for all those mini indulgences, the word being bandied about with “treat yourself” and “YOLO”. But thanks to all the buzz around self-care, somewhere along the way, it has started to feel meaningless. Self-care, for a long time, was something I subscribed to whole-heartedly. But when I moved to the other side of the world, I began to question if sun salutations and manipedis were enough to quell the anxiety and loneliness that comes with uprooting your…

While making my daily pilgrimage through Instagram recently, I came across a post about a new Pilates studio in my neighbourhood. It wasn’t the announcement that gave my thumb pause (boutique studios are hardly a scarce resource in urban centres), but the imagery. It was certainly striking, but it took me a minute to realise how the caption and the picture of two women in their underwear were correlating. Their bodies were beautiful, but they appeared, for lack of a better word, “normal”. In fact, they looked somewhat similar to mine – there were no rock-hard abs, no almost-radiating amber tan, not a  single delineation of space between the inner thighs – and yet the caption was promoting fitness and muscle strength, which caught me off-guard and prompted unexpected tears.…

Plant-based meat really boomed in 2019 and it doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon. No longer just for vegans, the innovative formulas popping up in mainstream supermarkets and restaurants are packed full of proteins and vitamins with more options to choose from than ever before. An occasional switch could even make a huge difference on your eco footprint. Plus, with companies like Beyond Meat and Gardein producing meat-like flavours and textures, you barely notice the difference!…

LISTEN OUT THE PODCAST Song Exploder tells the stories behind some of the world’s best songwriting. It’s a great way to pass time. THE YOUTUBE OBSESSION I’ve become obsessed with videos of Lana Del Rey’s live performances. THE PLAYLIST Caribou’s “The Longest Mixtape: 1,000 Songs For You” is full of amazing disco, soul classics and B-sides.…

Having grown up witnessing the hard work required to bring about change, Rachel Perkins has hope for the future of the relationship between Indigenous people and their fellow Australians. In the first of her ABC Boyer Lectures, the award-winning filmmaker and Arrernte/Kalkadoon woman outlines how the Uluru Statement From The Heart, which calls for a First Nations Voice to be incorporated into our constitution, provides a path towards recognising the rightful place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in this nation, leading to a more holistic view of our country’s identity and our narrative. Described as “gracious and hopeful”, her words are a call to action for a new decade. Listen to her lectures on the ABC Listen app and join her in the fight for an “end of…