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THE FRESH FACE OF BEAUTY
Emily Weiss | Founder and CEO of Glossier, New York City
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Six years ago, after brief stints assisting at fashion magazines, Emily Weiss had an epiphany. “I wanted to position beauty as an element of personal style, the way people approach fashion,” she says. So she started Into the Gloss, a website that gained more than a million readers thanks in part to intimate, what’s-in-your-makeup-bag interviews with the likes of model Karlie Kloss, actress Tracee Ellis Ross, and even Martha. In 2014, Weiss turned a second epiphany into a reality, and Glossier, a “skin care as makeup” line, cemented her as a millennial mogul. Since she’s only gotten busier, the jet-setter keeps things streamlined but stylish, wearing cashmere sweatpants on flights and vintage Levi’s to her SoHo offices. She also goes for dewy skin over matte makeup and prefers nudes to bright hues, resulting in a quietly confident look that mirrors her business MO: “I want women to feel proud of who they are every day.” —MELISSA OZAWA
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WIN THIS!
This sweater could be yours! Visit martha stewart.com/winthis on January 19 to enter for your chance to win. (For more details, see page 114.)
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HER FAVORITE THINGS
1. “I’m a huge fan of Brittany Asch of Brrch’s abundant rose arrangements. Asch pulls back each petal so that the individual flowers look bigger.” From $150, brrch.com.
2. “I wear Adidas Stan Smith sneakers practically every day—they’re so comfortable.” $75, adidas.com.
3. “My go-to gift is Byredo’s Burning Rose candle.” $80, byredo.com.
4. “Doesn’t everyone want to get a handwritten note? These chic note cards by Cartier help keep this dying art alive.” $75 for a set of 10, cartier.com.
5. “During the workweek you can usually catch me in a cashmere sweater, jeans, and sneakers.” Crewneck, in Camel, $100, everlane.com.
6. “Sophia Amoruso’s Nasty Galaxy is the perfect coffee-table book, with fantastic horoscopes.” $37, indiebound.com. 7. “I always keep coconut Balm Dotcom in my bag for extra moisture on my lips and cuticles. Generation G lipstick in Cake is my signature color. I wore it on my wedding day.” $12 and $18, glossier.com.
8. “Ouai’s Wave spray gives a bit of added volume, and I love that it can be used on either wet or dry hair.” $26 for 5 oz., theouai.com.
9. “I like to support emerging women designers, like Olivia von Halle. Her silk pajamas are super-luxe.” $440, nordstrom.com.
10. “I wear an Apple watch to help me stay on track for meetings.” Series 2 with stainless steel case and saddle-brown leather strap, $649, apple.com.
11. “My workout gear is Outdoor Voice’s Athena crop top and three-quarter tritone leggings.” $50 and $85, outdoorvoices.com.
12. “I highly recommend the massages and custom bath soaks at the Standard hotel in Miami.” From $50, standardhotels.com.
WEISS’S NEW YEAR’S TIPS
Start Fresh “I often do a 21-day cleanse to detox after all the holiday festivities. My favorite one is the Clean Program.” $475, cleanprogram.com. Stay Hydrated “I begin each morning, before I eat anything, with a cup of water and lemon—either hot or cold, depending on how cool it is outside.” Treat Your Skin “I’m a big fan of masking. I start with Glossier’s Mega Greens Galaxy pack to clean my pores, then follow with Moisturizing Moon.” $22 each, glossier.com. Get Centered “I try to meditate for 10 minutes every morning before I head into work. I find the app Headspace helps make it easy to do.” From $6.25 a month, headspace.com. Keep Striving “I don’t think resolutions should be made only at the start of the new year. I set them constantly throughout the year.”
Health
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The Surprising Power of Self-Compassion
Scientists have discovered an amazingly simple way to get through tough times, deepen relationships, and feel happier every day: Try a little tenderness—toward yourself.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHELSEA CAVANAUGH TEXT BY LOUISA KAMPS We may crash when we fail, but those of us who are kind to ourselves bounce back more quickly.
LIFE SERVES UP an endless stream of challenges, from daily nuisances to serious setbacks. But how you react when you make a mistake at work, gain a few pounds, or snap at your kids impacts your well-being more than you realize. A growing body of research shows that people who respond with self-compassion rather than self-criticism maintain healthier emotional equilibrium and weather hardships better than those who don’t. When we soothe ourselves, we trigger the flow of oxytocin, the “feel-good” hormone also released when mothers nurse their babies, says University of Texas at Austin associate pro- fessor of educational psychology Kristin Neff. “All primates feel safe in the presence of a gentle touch or voice. When you give that to yourself, by putting your hand on your heart or speaking to yourself in a warm tone, your body actually responds.” Sound too woo-woo to be true? Here are five reasons to be kinder to yourself, starting today.
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IT ’S AN ALL-NATURAL MOOD ENHANCER
For decades, educators and policy makers have touted high self-esteem as the key to well-being. But new research suggests that how we treat ourselves predicts happiness and success in a more stable way than how we rate ourselves. People who comfort themselves and don’t suppress their pain consistently report fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety. Mark Leary, a professor of psych- ology and neuroscience at Duke University, has found that people who respond to difficulties with the same concern they’d show a loved one—which can be as simple as telling yourself, “Yes, this is hard, but it’s a normal part of life”—have fewer negative, selfcritical thoughts than people who are less forgiving. “When you can regard your screwups and suffering as something zillions of other people experience, you don’t take it so personally or get so defensive,” Leary says. “It takes the edge off.”
People often confuse self-
IT BUILDS UP compassion with
RESILIENCE self-indulgence and complacency (translation: giving up when the going gets tough). But a 2011 University of California, Berkeley study found that students who had performed worse than they’d expected on an exam were mo- tivated to study harder and got higher grades on a follow-up exam if they wrote themselves a consoling letter. (Students who didn’t scored no better on the second test.) The idea applies to emotional stumbling blocks, too. University of Arizona psychologists reported in the journal Psychological Science in 2012 that among a cohort of 109 newly divorced people tracked for nine months, women and men who were high in self-compassion reported less divorce-related distress. (High self-esteem, meanwhile, provided no such buffer.)
IT MAKES AGING EASIER
While some elderly people get frustrated with themselves when they have memory lapses or face physical limitations, those who respond kindly to their cognitive slips (or walking canes) are more likely to take aging in stride, Leary has found. They even describe themselves as highly satisfied with their lives despite the limitations.
IT BOOSTS OUR PHYSICAL HEALTH
Anyone try- ing to maintain healthy eating or exercise habits is familiar with this cycle: You eat an usually rich meal or miss a morning run. You chastise yourself, which makes you feel ashamed and hopeless, which leads to more backsliding— and maybe another cookie. (Researchers even have a name for this emotional loop: the “what the hell?” effect.) Next time, try saying to yourself, “Don’t worry about it—you’ll get back on track”— and moving on. Research shows that self-kindness helps people stay motivated to eat healthier, continue working toward exercise goals, quit smoking, and even seek medical care for conditions earlier. And a small study re- leased last year found that a group of diabetes patients who were trained to practice self-compassion not only felt less distressed about their condition, but also reduced their blood-sugar levels, compared with a control group of patients who were wait-listed for the training.
IT ENRICHES OUR RELATIONSHIPS
Finally, there’s loads of lovely ev- idence that being a better friend to yourself makes you a better friend to others. The University of California, Berkeley team found that students who felt guilty about treating another person badly—lying to a romantic partner, saying something cruel— were more likely to apologize and mend the rift after they’d written
“Selfcompassion allows you to support yourself when your mind is full of worries,” Neff says.
themselves a letter about the episode from the perspective of a caring friend.
Therapist and author Tara Brach, founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, D.C., experienced this firsthand. Feeling ashamed after she’d treated a colleague and good friend insensitively, Brach sat down to contemplate the “most young and vulnerable” part of herself and figure out “what she most needed from me. Quite spontaneously, I put my hand on my heart and whispered, ‘It’s okay, sweetheart.’ And immediately I had a feeling of warmth and tenderness.” Brach then called her friend with a heartfelt apology. “Far from letting me off the hook,” she says, “self-compassion made me more responsible. Ultimately, it frees us to live and love without holding back.”
Bold Pours
Simon Pearce’s sturdy yet graceful glass pitcher is hand-blown in Vermont and stands a foot tall. $160, simon pearce.com.
Hit the Spot
Cook up a pot of Rancho Gordo’s California-grown heirloom Christmas lima beans for a healthy and hearty meal. $6 for 1 lb., ranchogordo.com.
Chef’s Prep
New York ceramist Michele O’Hana’s six-piece porcelain nested-bowl set is as gorgeous as it is practical. $360, micheleohana.com.
Editors’ Picks
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A Fine Spectacle
Forty-five people working in Chicago at State Optical Co. create chic frames like these that come shaded or not. $407, stateopticalco.com.
MADE IN THE USA
From established companies to emerging artisans, the American maker movement has never been more robust. We plucked standout items from coast to coast that will perk up your winter and add style to your world.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY PETER ARDITO
Spritz Me
Herbivore’s rosehibiscus spray, concocted in Seattle, lifts your mood while hydrating your skin. $32 for 4 oz., herbivore botanicals.com.
Graphic Art
Colorado maker Alexa Allen molds one-of-a-kind bowls out of leather—just right for holding jewelry or displaying on their own. From $25 each, alexaallenis.com.
Good Jeans
These flattering designs with cool washes from Raleigh Denim Workshop may become your true blues. From $225 each, raleighdenimworkshop.com.
A nod to Virginia native Thomas Jefferson.
Off the Hook
Lostine’s sculptural bronze wall hangers are cast in a small foundry in Pennsylvania. From $110, lostine.com.
Try our twist on clean.
Clinically proven as effective as brushing* Patented twist bone design with nubs & ridges Helps clean hard-to-reach back teeth
