One hundred days without a mirror
Kjerstin Gruys is 1/3rd of the way through her year without mirrors
This Monday celebrated our nation’s independence, and also marked the 101st day of my decision to go a year without mirrors. It seemed like an auspicious time to give About-Face a progress report!
1) FEASIBILITY: YES, I have been able to almost completely remove mirrors from my life, and I no longer feel dependent on them. This feels is pretty phenomenal.  Still, it’s been really difficult, and sometimes I still slip up. In other words, I’m not yet 100% mirror-free. Mirrors and reflective surfaces are everywhere, and even the most stringent measures haven’t prevented accidental glimpses.  (Darn those ATM security cameras!) These peripheral peeks have been mostly benign, but every so often, “seeing myself” has led to “looking at myself,” which is totally against the rules. Continue reading
Interview with Gala Darling: Inspiring radical self-love
Gala Darling, blogger extraordinaire, has a mission: to inspire her readers to love themselves — a self-proclaimed “radical” idea.
Starting out as a fashion and lifestyle blogger, Gala has now transitioned into a savvy businesswoman who makes a living from her bra
nd. She’s originally from New Zealand, and now lives in New York City with her boyfriend and two dogs. She’s invited to high-profile events and rubs shoulders with designers like Betsey Johnson.
I first started reading iCiNG (the previous incarnation of Gala Darling’s blog) a few years ago, when she was living in Melbourne, Australia. Like her hundreds of other readers, I found her style and personality contagious. Even though she wasn’t always writing about topics I was interested in, she managed to captivate me with her bubbly and fresh energy. I followed her move to New York with awe, and dreamed of a life one day where I would be able to do something similar.
Over the years, her blog has evolved and Gala has taken on various projects with the common aim of inspiring self-improvement. Recently, her crusade is the “Radical Self-Love” movement: galvanizing change in body image but encouraging her readers to love themselves. She rallies her community, focuses them on taking specific action, runs Radical Self-Love workshops, dishes out incendiary wake-up calls like “Empty Bellies Do Not Beget Genius” and trumpets motivational words like: “The world is so big. Big enough that we can have 30,000,000 different types of beauty, & they are ALL cool & ALL valid & ALL fabulous!” She also recently published a series of posts about body image pressures in the fashion blogosphere.
I was interested in her mission, and in particular the apparent contradiction her work spans between fashion consumption and positive body image. And what better way to ask her about this that to interview her?
Gala, I may have resisted in the past, but I can now say that I’m unabashedly, unashamedly ON BOARD with Radical Self-Love.
Without further ado, I give you Gala Darling…
What inspired you to start the Radical Self-Love movement? Why is it so important to love yourself, and why is this a radical thing? Continue reading
Mirror, mirror…OFF the wall
Kjerstin models her first love, dress #1...
Now imagine surviving several months of that year trying to plan your wedding. Nightmare? Or sweet relief?
About-Face Program Evaluation Consultant Kjerstin Gruys is making it her mission to survive 365 mirror-free days. Read an excerpt from her blog below, and check out the rest at http://mirrormirroroffthewall.blogspot.com/.
The Day Before Day 1
I bought my first wedding dress at a sample-sale, the same week that I got engaged.
Most of the dresses didn’t even fit me, which was mildly frustrating (especially when I wasn’t ALLOWED to try on a few!), but one caught my eye and fit the bill, and my butt.
It was made of light, slubbed silk in light blush with lace detailing and a dramatic train.  The ex-fashion merchandizer in me was satisfied.  The current (penny-pinching) grad student in me was relieved by the 80% discount. I bought it. I loved it. It loved me.
Until… somehow… we fell out of love. Continue reading
The issue with the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
This piece was written by Lexie Kite and originally posted on beautyredefined.net. Thanks so much to Lexie and her sister Lindsay for allowing us to re-post this, and for doing such a great job with Beauty Redefined!
– Michelle
On Tuesday, the hotly anticipated 2011 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue will hit the mailboxes of 70 million SI subscribers, every newsstand and media outlet, at least 250 million people will view the thousands of images online, and a 30-minute video for PlayStation will be released with an “up close and personal” look at the photo shoots.
Since it’s unlikely you will hear any media outlet discuss the Swimsuit Issue’s serious blow to female equality, self-image, attack on women of color or its use of pornography packaged as “safe” for the home coffee table, we are here to give you fair warning! I have chosen not to include any photos from my 40-year analysis because they are displayed everywhere else you will be looking (whether you want to see them or not), and Beauty Redefined is dedicated to de-normalizing these harmful images rather than promoting them in any way.
Every week, 30 million faithful followers catch up on the latest sports news in their weekly edition or online version of SI, the self-proclaimed “foremost authority” and “most respected voice” in sports journalism. And once a year, every year, those 30 million subscribers soar to more than 70 million and are joined by 250 million more online viewers for the always record-breaking event known as the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Published since 1964, the SI’s 200-plus pages of nude to semi-nude females is truly a cultural event, generating global mainstream media coverage, TV shows, calendars, DVDs and mass amounts of memorabilia to push Sports Illustrated’s sales through the roof every spring. Since its birth, the Swimsuit Issue has earned $1 billion for SI’s parent company, Time Warner, which owns CNN, AOL, HBO, the CW, Time Inc, DC Comics and hundreds of other media companies. Talk about a media powerholder! Continue reading
Female desire and the princess culture
Peggy Orenstein's new book, Cinderella Ate My Daughter, is a must-read.
Peggy Orenstein‘s new book, Cinderella Ate My Daughter, hit stores this week, and it’s a must-read. It’s a page-turning exploration of “princess culture” and its impact on girls. Peggy’s also an About-Face supporter, having donated a special book club session to our November silent auction. We love this blog post written by Margot Magowan, and think it gets the message across that this book should be required reading.
– Michelle
Originally posted on ReelGirl and written by Margot Magowan:
Thank you Peggy Orenstein for writing the brilliant book Cinderella Ate My Daughter. Every parent should read this new, excellent analysis of the ubiquitous princess kid-culture and its various mutations in the world of grown-up women.
Orenstein, a NY Times journalist, mom, and writer takes on and deconstructs two (so annoying!) messages every parent hears if she dares to challenge the monarchy of these frothy creatures.
Myth number one: we’re just giving girls what they want! Continue reading
Perez Hilton says he’ll stop bullying celebrities – do you believe him?
Perez Hilton vows to stop bullying celebrities and start spreading the love.
I generally feel like kicking Perez Hilton in the groin.
This is not to say I condone violence or approve of crotchal assault, but let’s face it, the guy has earned a reputation for being a jerk.
The number one cesspool of celebrity trash-talk, Perez’s blog often rips stars apart regarding their weight, clothing, relationships, and more.
And of course, the shameless self-promoter also peddles his own products — remember the “Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels!” t-shirt controversy?
Well, apparently hell has frozen over. On Wednesday, Perez posted the video below on his web site, declaring an end to his nasty, catty, snarky, scathing ways.
Yep, either hell’s frozen over or Perez found a lucrative way to capitalize on a kinder, gentler blogging persona. Okay, fine, I suppose it’s possible he’s being sincere about turning over a new leaf in light of the recent bully-provoked teen suicides. But something about Perez still seems slimy to me.
Only time will tell if he really stops berating Jennifer Aniston for her love life, criticizing Rumer Willis about her chin, or talking endless smack about every other celebrity on the block.
– Michelle
Hardy Girls Healthy Women joins in on About-Face activism
“It’s a covert operation! Shhh! Don’t tell anyone!”
We absolutely heart this video of the Hardy Girls Healthy Women advisory board taking some covert dressing room action. In preparation for the upcoming SPARK Summit, Maya Brown, Mackenzie Riley, and Ali Jean Reynolds paid a trip to their local JC Penney and put our dressing room decals to good use.
Watch the video below to get inspired (and turn the volume up for a ready-made Wednesday dance party). To perform your own covert operation, order our dressing room decals here.
– Michelle
Christina Hendricks’ curves should never be Photoshopped
Christina's curves seem less than curvy in the new London Fog ad.
Poems should be written about “Mad Men” star Christina Hendricks’ curves.
No, really.
The actress has one of those unbelievably beautiful bodies that only Botticelli could have dreamed up. The show’s costume department must have a field day dressing her up in vintage styles that showcase breasts, hips, and butt (all of which she has plenty of, thank you very much).
So why on Earth would London Fog feel the need to touch her lovely, decidedly unwaif-like body with even one click in Photoshop?
Jezebel put some unretouched photos side-by-side with the campaign’s final ad, and it definitely looks like some digital blasphemy has gone on. Continue reading
Kai Hibbard says “The Biggest Loser” gave her “a really fun eating disorder”
Kai Hibbard after her experience on "The Biggest Loser"
They laugh, they cry, they shed half their body weight!
Okay, admittedly I have never seen a full episode of NBC’s “The Biggest Loser,” but apparently, I’m in the minority. Since 2004, viewers in more than 90 countries have watched overweight contestants swap unhealthy habits for wholesome lifestyles, often emerging as toned and taut finalists vying for the ultimate clean-living reward: cold, hard cash.
While the contestants clearly and very, very literally work their butts off for the glory of being crowned “The Biggest Loser,” the breakneck speed at which some shed pounds can often seems too good to be true.
And apparently, it is.
Body Love Wellness founder Golda Poretsky recently spoke with Season 3 finalist Kai Hibbard about her experiences on the hit show, and Hibbard’s side of the story isn’t pretty. Nor is it anything like the warm and fuzzy accounts I’ve heard from “The Biggest Loser” fans who tune in every week.
Hibbard exposes a long list of behind-the-scenes transgressions, but the most startling is that participating in “The Biggest Loser” led her to develop an eating disorder. Continue reading
Perez Hilton changes t-shirt slogan to read “healthy” not “skinny”
The new and improved (?) shirt
In case you were looking for one more reason to loathe Perez Hilton, the self-proclaimed “Queen of all Media” has once again put himself at the center of controversy. In lieu of utilizing his inexplicable success and wealth to finally develop into a decent human being, Perez recently began hawking t-shirts emblazoned with the phrase “Nothing Tastes as Good as Skinny Feels!” The quote, famously attributed to supermodel Kate Moss (you know, that exemplar of healthy living otherwise known as “Cocaine Kate”) has come under fire for purportedly being touted as a pro-anorexia mantra.
In an unexpected (and unprecedented?) act of moral responsibility, Perez quickly removed the t-shirts from his online store and offered a quasi-apology where he utilized his most shrill, dumbfounded tone to obstinately deny ever knowing the phrase had anything to do with promoting eating disorders. Continue reading