FRANK M A G A Z I N E
Issue 09 Aug - Sept 2020
FRANK by name FRANK by nature
F R A N K
M A G A Z I N E
Oct Nov 2020
Contents
Editors note
FASHION p8 p10 Autumn Wardrobe by Annabel Kerman p14 CLOUDBUSTING Fashion Shoot
Hello autumn and hello to you all. The summer has flown by even with all its challenges and now we look forward to colourful walks and cosy nights. And here is your shiny new Frank Magazine . As usual it’s bursting with beauty, fashion, interiors ideas and inspiring women and for the first time, we are are introducing fitness, with the brilliant personal trainer Caroline Girvan, who whipped me and many others into better shape during lockdown on her fantastic YouTube channel. Caroline tells us about why she started the videos and her surprise at their reach. She has designed an exclusive full body workout, just for you.
P28 Champney’s Competition BEAUTY p30 p32 Beauty Editor Fiona Eustace p34 Melanie’s Top Beauty Products p44 Delights for our Fingers & Toes p48 No Tricks, just Treats for Legs INTERVIEWS p50 p52 Getting Personal With…Paul Hollywood p454 Amanda Byram - The Switch p64 Heather Stewart-Whyte - Camera Ready p68 Steyn Grobler - Making Scents p74 Fiona Eustace - Behind the scenes p80 Kathleen Soriano - Author p88 Venetia Berry - Artist p94 Hilary Boyd - British novelist
Paul Hollywood makes an appearance in ‘Up close and personal’, Kathleen Soriano talks to us about her love of art and being a judge on ‘Portrait artist of the Year’ and make up artist and Frank’s beauty editor, Fiona Eustace takes us behind the scenes of Katherine Ryans brand new Netflix Show ’The Duchess’.
HEALTH & WELLNESS p98 p100 Menopause Clinic - Dr Caitlin Scott p104 Lumity Founder - Sara Palmer Hussey p108 Oestrogen Matters - Emma Bardwell p112 Your Best Life - Dr Louise Wiseman P116 The Return to Origin - Michelle Adams p122 Ready to Feel Epic - Caroline Girvan p128 What Lies Beneath - Sandie Fredriksson P132 Waking up Well - Luisa Skinner p136 Autumn The Season of Change - Kate Tilson p140 Resilience in Challenging Times - Michelle Langer WHAT TO… p142 p144 Why Not Try? - Sam Baines p148 FRANK Interiors - Lisa Dawson p152 A Love Affair- Lara Platman p156 The READING List - Eleanor Tattersfield p160 Story of a Shoot AND MUCH MUCH MORE.........
So snuggle up and enjoy.
Love Melanie x
''Frank is for women who want to be informed, inspired, amused, look good and be healthy.''
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T E A M
F R A N K
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF - Melanie Sykes
MELANIE
DESIGN DIRECTOR - Millie Cooper BEAUTY EDITOR - Fiona Eustace FASHION EDITOR - Annabel Kerman CONTRIBUTORS Dr Caitlin Scott Sara Palmer Hussey Emma Bardwell Dr Louise Wiseman Michelle Adams Caroline Girvan Sandie Fredriksson Luisa Skinner Kate Tilson Michelle Langer
Photo by Sam Hemsley
''Melanie Sykes was a fashion model before moving into hosting TV and Radio shows. Alongside her presenting work, she is now Editor in chief of FRANK magazine. As a woman in her late forties, she felt there was a gap in the magazine market for women her age and wanted to rectify that. “I believe it is never too late to try something new and creating and editing FRANK is the perfect project at this stage in my life and something I am relishing."
MILLIE ''After 15 years in the tech world,Millie now has successful businesses in publishing and social media, delivering original content and design. She says she is excited about helping FRANK to be the magazine of choice for women over 40.''
CONTACT US hello@thefrankmagazine.com Photo by Alan Strutt
International Distribution | FRANK Magazine FREE Subscriptions Worldwide | www.thefrankmagazine.com
Copyright © 2020 The Frank Magazine.
@thefrank_mag Nothing from this or any other publications of The FRANK Magazine may be reproduced by letterpress, photo-offset, photocopying, microfilm or any other method whatsoever without the express written consent of the publisher or of the holders of the copyright of the author in question. This publication has been compiled with the greatest care. However, the publishers do not in any way hold themselves liable for any errors that may have arisen. www.thefrankmagazine.com
MODELS HELLA AT MRS ROBINSON MODELS AND BETSIE AT MOT MODELS HAIR ALEX SZABO AT CAROL HAYES USING RITA HAZAN MAKEUP FIONA EUSTACE USING PAULA’S CHOICE AND CHANTECAILLE MAKEUP ASSISTANT LISA FUDIO STYLING ASSISTANT SASKIA PURR DIGITAL ASSISSTANT TIM WHEELER PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANTS EDDIE BLAGBROUGH AND EVA WATKINS PRODUCTION ASSISTANT CHARLOTTE SCOBIE WITH THANKS TO THE HENLEY RIVER AND ROWING MUSEUM
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Product of the Month
Make Up Intelligence by Gary Cockerill
THE COVER, CONCEAL AND CORRECT Cover Conceal & Correct was designed with just that in mind. Adding radiance, brightness and balance to your face, with Natural Lime Extract which is an antioxidant to help heal, protect and reduce stress levels, stimulating and maintaining healthy skin. Multipurpose and cross functional in 8 shades for different skin tones in Fair, Light, Medium, Sand, Light Tan, Tan, Dark and Mahogany. An easy to apply Liquid foundation which melts into the skin for a soft dewy buildable finish.
Colour Correcting pigments are added into the foundation to help balance out uneven skin tones, which helps with discolouration and disguising unwanted blemishes, sallowness, dark spots, diffusing redness, broken capillaries and sunburn, revitalising for a radiant glow. A Cream Concealer is positioned in the lid of the foundation bottle which is slightly lighter than the foundation to lift and brighten and is easily mixable to achieve the right tone for your face. Oil free and enriched with vitamin C and hyaluronic acid which reduces dry and damaged skin by restoring suppleness, creating a smooth and hydrating finish.
www. makeupintelligencegc.com www.thefrankmagazine.com
NEVER MISS AN ISSUE
''Frank is for women who want to be informed, inspired, amused, look good and be healthy.'' thefrankmagazine www.thefrankmagazine.com
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Autumn FASHION This month models Betsie and Hella take us on an optimistic trip around autumn's most uplifting fashion, in ‘Cloudbusting’, plus we pick key pieces from the new season’s trends, and edit a wish-list of timeless trench coats. For the story of the shoot go to page 160
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A U T U M N
F A S H I O N
IF YOU ONLY BUY ONE PIECE THIS AUTUMN... WARDROBE ESSENTIALS WE COVET
This season we’re eschewing slavishly following trends in favour of cherry picking our favourite new autumn pieces and reworking wardrobe staples. By Annabel Kerman
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1. CHECKED SUIT (VICTORIA BECKHAM at Zalando, Blazer £494.99 and shorts £309.99) Checks are big for Autumn, in a suit co-ord for the brave, or throw on a blazer. zalando.co.uk 2. FAUX LEATHER SKIRT ( M&S £39.50) Matrix style leather was all over the catwalks, from skirts and trousers to Keanu-esque trenches. marksandspencer.com 3. LOUNGEWEAR ( MT MADELEINE THOMPSON cardigan £143 and pants £143) With staying home the new going out the elevated tracksuit has become an autumn essential. madeleine-thompson.com
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7 4. STATEMENT BELT (FERRAGAMO AT Farfetch £260 (reversible) Update coats and blazers by tying with a ‘look at me’ belt, and why not try in the season’s favourite colour. farfetch. com 5. RIDING BOOT ( MICHAEL KORS COLLECTION £770) Any long boots suit the season’s mood, but the riding boot has a longevity that appeals. michaelkors.co.uk 6. CORDUROY (WYSE LONDON £185) The brand’s insta famous scalloped dungarees now come in seasonal ‘preppy’ corduroy. And yes we can wear them at ANY age. www.wyselondon.co. uk 7. OVERSIZED COLLAR ( SEA at matches fashion £268 ) The oversized collar and its sister the puff sleeve are the season’s big hitters. A classic white shirt feels like a more grown up take on the look. matchesfashion.com
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8. BIKER BOOT ( JIMMY CHOO £975) Chunky boots have just got even chunkier. Throw on as an easy antidote to dresses and skirts, and look for details that stand out. jimmychoo.com 9. FRINGING (HOBBS £299) There are a multitude of coats to choose from, from belted to military to capes, but for a wardrobe update consider the season's love of fringing. hobbs. co.uk 10. SLIPPERS ( ACCESSORIZE £45) Slippers are non negotiable in the current climate. Add embellishment for some seasonal pizzazz. accessorize.com 11. GOLD (KLEMENTS £240 ) When life gets serious any injection of gold will add much needed frivolity. klements.co.
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12. PARTY PYJAMAS ( SLEEPER at Studio B £245) The ultimate in multitasking, flamboyant pyjamas will take you from evening to night time in the comfort of your own home. studiobfashion.com 13. STRUCTURAL EARRINGS (CULT GAIA £78) Zoom calls make statement earrings the new go to for instant glamour; bold sculptural pieces were everywhere on the catwalks. cultgaia.com 14. QUILTING (STAND STUDIO at Matches Fashion £270 ) A quilted bag is an easier and more wearable alternative to the quilted jacket. matchesfashion.com 15. MILITARY EMBELLISHMENT ( MONSOON £80) Never long out of fashion, this season look for textural fabrics and gold embellishments. monsoon.co.uk
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CLOUDBUSTING Banish grey skies with an optimistic, magpie look at Autumn's trends Photography Elisabeth Hoff Fashion Editor Annabel Kerman
HELLA: SELF PORTRAIT at Edit Secondhand Jumpsuit, PRETTY BALLERINAS Boot
BETSIE: GANNI Sequin top, ARKET Leather collar, MAX MARA STUDIO at Fenwick Skirt, GINA Boot
BAUM UND PFERDGARTEN at Studio B dress, MICHAEL MICHAEL KORS Cape, PRETTY BALLERINAS Boot
Hella: MADELEINE THOMPSON top and trouser, MAXMARA at Edit Secondhand Coat, GRENSON Sneaker , PARADISE ROW bag Betsie: MAXMARA STUDIO at Fenwick Coat, ZARA blouse, MAX MARA STUDIO at Fenwick trouser, GINA patent boot, JOLLY BROLLY Umbrellas
RESUME COPENHAGEN at Studio B Coat, LIVIANA CONTI at Fenwick Top, EMILIO DE LA MORENA Trousers, GINA boot, CHANEL at Edit Second Hand bag
Hella: EMILIO DE LA MORENA Blouse, MICHAEL MICHAEL KORS Jeans, ESSENTIEL ANTWERP at Edit Secondhand Blazer, MICHAEL MICHAEL KORS Boot Betsie: EMILIO DE LA MORENA Dress, ESSEN THE LABEL Boots
MARINA RINALDI at Fenwick Silk Jacket, GANNI Blouse and Trousers, GINA Brogues
Betsie: MAXMARA at Edit Secondhand Coat, ASCENO at Edit Secondhand Pyjama Suit, BIMBA Y LOLA Bag, PRETTY BALLERINAS Boot Hella: WEEKEND MAXMARA at Shop at Anna Jacket, ARKET Roll Neck, ZARA Trousers, PARADISE ROW Bag
LIVIANA CONTI at Fenwick Blouse, PALONES Trouser, MADELEINE THOMPSON Jumper, ZARA Loafer, JOLLY BROLLY Umbrella
Hella: GANNI roll neck, MICHAEL MICHAEL KORS cardigan, ZARA skirt , GINA boots Betsie: ZARA Top, MAX MARA WEEKEND at Fenwick Skirt, GINA Boot arket.com, editsecondhand.com, emiliodelamorena.com, essenthelabel.com, fenwick.co.uk, ganni.com , gina.com, grenson.com , jollybrolly.co.uk, madeleine-thompson.com, michaelkors.co.uk, palonesofficial.com, paradiserowlondon.com, prettyballerinas.com, studiobfashion.com, zara.com Models Hella at Mrs Robinson Models and Betsie at MOT Models Hair Alex Szabo at Carol Hayes using Rita Hazan Makeup Fiona Eustace using Paulas Choice and Chantecaille Makeup Assistant Lisa Fudio Styling Assistant Saskia Purr Digital Assistant Tim Wheeler Photographic Assistants Eddie Blagbrough and Eva Watkins Production Assistant Charlotte Scobie With Thanks to the River & Rowing Museum, Henley On Thames
A U T U M N
F A S H I O N
Let's get Trenched The traditional trench coat will always be a wardrobe staple- although it's classic silhouette gets subtly tweaked with each season. This Autumn look out for checks, colour and oversized silhouettes and team with a seasonal boot, either knee high or an ankle grazing combat.
WEEKEND MAX MARA Cotton Arlette Reversible Trench Coat £570
GESTUZ Mia Wide-Sleeved Trench Coat £300
KHAITE Libby Trench Coat £1,680
MAX&CO 3-in-1 Trench Coat £349
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STELLA MCCARTNEY Luke Trench Coat £1,325
ALLSAINTS Chiara Check Trench Coat £299
Alessandro Lucioni/Gorunway.com
C O M P E T I T I O N
WIN! An overnight stay for two at Champneys
A Break from Reality Soothe your mind, body and soul with a well-deserved Champneys spa break. Arrive, slip on a robe and let our experts take care of the rest.
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Choose from Tring in Hertfordshire, Forest Mere in Hampshire, Henlow in Bedfordshire, Springs in Leicestershire or Champneys Eastwell Manor Spa Hotel in in Kent. Each resort offers sumptuous accommodation in elegant surroundings, delicious cuisines, blissful treatments and all of the latest fitness trends. Whatever you decide to do, it’s all about inner health and outer beauty.
Slip on our famous white robe and flip-flops and explore everything we have to offer. With full access to our wide range of classes such as HIIT, Pilates, Aqua Circuit, Zumba and Hula Hooping and access to our spa facilities – think swimming pool, sauna, Jacuzzi and gym – there really is something for everyone. From pampering and fitness to our delicious choice of food, you’ll also get a healthy lunch, three-course evening meal and tasty buffet breakfast the following morning. With a world of relaxation at arm’s length, you’ll leave feeling refreshed, relaxed and rejuvenated, and ultimately, ready to face the world.
What's included? · · · · · · · ·
Arrival 2pm, a tour of Champneys and a nutritious welcome drink Use of resort facilities including swimming pool, gym, sauna, steam room and whirlpool Access to up to 20 different exercise classes per day One night’s accommodation in a standard room Three course evening, a nutritious lunch and healthy breakfast Complimentary robe hire and flip flops 1 x 25 minute spa treatment each Departure 4pm (room 11.00am)
For more information visit www.champneys.com Terms and conditions apply. Not valid Friday or Saturday nights. Prize must be booked and taken within six months, subject to availability. Prize value dependent on location. Guests must be 16 years or over and accompanied by an adult, non-refundable and non-transferable. Travel to the spa is not included. Prize cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. www.thefrankmagazine.com
F R A N K L O V E S
AVEDA CLOVE COLOUR CONDITIONER
Enriches warm tones in medium brown shades of hair. Contains organically grown clove to help enhance warm tones and purify the scalp. Organically grown coffee helps to intensify brown shades. Deep-conditions Leaves hair lightweight and manageable For brunettes and honey shades Not intended for lighter shades People tested
Apply to hair that has been shampooed with Clove colour Shampoo. Comb through. Leave on 2-5 minutes. Use every 2-3 shampoos for consistent, lasting colour enhancement.
www.aveda.co.uk
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BEAUTY
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B E A U T Y
E D I T
Masks & Skincare
By Beauty Editor Fiona Eustace @fionaeustace
Choose the right mask.
of your skin, the Stratum corneum and the mask. Drunk Elephant do a fabulous moisturiser, a Protini polypeptide Certain materials if worn for a long period can be abrasive cream that is jam-packed with amino acids. Perfect for on the skin. So choosing the right material is beneficial for adding extra moisture. the skins protective barrier which can take up to 1 month to heal once it's damaged. I suggest washable silk or cotton masks, over any synthetic material. There are When you experience breakouts it may be instinctive to some beautiful affordable masks out there that feel soft grab for stronger products first but It might be worth on your face. I have to wear a face-covering for long treating your skin to a gentler cleanser instead. If your periods at work so my mask of choice is a Slip Silk skin is suffering, try washing your face after you've been Pillowcase face covering. There are lots of designs to wearing a mask to remove the debris. if your skin feels choose from. (I have the pink one with the lips on, of tight after cleansing you are probably using something too course! harsh. The cleanser, Cetaphil, will not leave your skin (slipsilkpillowcase.co.uk) feeling dry. Make sure you wash your mask after every wear, but be careful when choosing your detergent as this can be an To help calm stressed-out skin add a clay face mask into irritant to your face too. your weekly routine. Clay masks draw out impurities. Try a baby-friendly washing detergent and wash your Emma Hardie purifying detox pink clay mask is very mask on a high temp. Why not try this hack that has gone nourishing and feels soothing on the skin. If after you viral. People have reported that if they spritz the inside of have tried everything to help with breakouts or their masks with a toner It has calmed their skin. Toners aggravated skin and nothing is working then look at have astringent properties and remove traces of oil, adding stronger forms of treatment. There are many over makeup, perspiration and debris from the skin, meaning the counter treatments that can help in an emergency, if the protective barrier won't be as clogged. So it's you're suffering from persistent maskne. Try Adapalene definitely worth giving this a go. Try Aveda botanical gel, it is from the retinoids family and can decrease the skin toning agent, it’s very soothing. severity of this whilst promoting quick healing of pimples. One of the most bio-available non-prescription forms of Skincare vitamin A products on the market is the Sunday Riley A+ High-Dose Retinoid Serum. You will get serious results Choosing the right skincare is even more essential when but without the same side effects that you might get with we have to wear face coverings. I would recommend other retinoids like, dry flaky red skin. Another brilliant swapping your moisturiser to a non-comedogenic one, this product in the war against maskne is Azelaic acid. This means that the product does not clog the pores. antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory ingredient will help Moisturiser acts as a barrier between the protective layer decongest your skin and reduce pimples. www.thefrankmagazine.com
Paula's choice 10% azelaic acid booster can be added to your moisturiser or serum twice a day which is perfect if you don't like strong acids. And finally, if you're looking for some extra protection why not add some antioxidant skincare into your daily routine. Fresh Seaberry skin nutrition booster is brilliant, add a drop to your moisturiser or eye cream for that extra protection and nourishment.
Dare to go bare. We’ve talked about face coverings and skincare but what about makeup? Wearing makeup under your mask can cause congested pores and worsen skin problems. Not wearing any make up under your mask of course would be the best solution but If you think you look washed out and need that base colour try adding a self-tanner to your
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moisturiser or use a tanner especially for the face. Amanda Harrington has the perfect face tanner that comes in three shades, natural rose if you have fair skin with a cool undertone, Natural honey if you have medium coloured skin with a warm undertone and finally natural olive for darker Mediterranean skin. If you wouldn't dare to bare then luckily there are non-comedogenic foundations out there that won't clog up your pores. Bare Minerals’ original foundation has been a popular choice for over two decades and with over 28 shades to choose from, there's one for every skin tone. Do not use all of these treatments. Find the ones that work for the problem that you are experiencing. I would always use the gentler product first before reaching for the strong guns.
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1 Amanda Harrington face tanner. 2 AVEDA botanical kinetics 3 Cetaphil cleanser 4 Drunk Elephant protini 5 Fresh Seaberry Booster 6 Emma Hardie pink clay mask 7 Paulas Choice 10% azeliac acid 8 Sunday Riley serum 9 Water Wipes
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B E A U T Y
E D I T
The Eyes Have it...
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Especially when you're wearing a mask. They need to wow and here's how.
reating a great base is essential so that your eyeshadow does not crease. I love Mac paint pots and they come in lots of different colours. Once painted onto the eyelids, any shadow put on top will not budge, great news if you have to wear a mask all day at work and all you can see are your eyes. I love to use the shade painterly, it's a pinky grey colour but you can also use Quite Natural which is a warm brown and great for darker skin tones. If this is all the colour you want then this can be used on its own and looks great and under the lower lash line too. It does dry quickly so you have to use it fast. If you want to make those eyes super smokey then grab the Nars Voyageur palette in Suede. The colours are great for day and night. The dark brown shade, Graffiti, is gorgeous and rich. It looks so sexy drawn close to the lash line and smudged out slightly, which adds an extra bit of drama. Partner that with the eyeliner ‘Teddy’ from Mac. This eyeliner is a gorgeous brown, with flecks of copper throughout. It looks heavenly. I also use it in my upper waterline and smudge it into the base of my lashes and in the lower waterline, for that ultimate sexy smokey eye. I then take the medium brown shade, ‘deep chic’ and contour my eyes and highlight just below my brow using Silt house. Clean up under the eye if you have any fall out from the darker shadow, with a water wipe. They are soft on this delicate eye area and won't leave any oily residue.
By Beauty Editor Fiona Eustace @fionaeustace
than your base however when you are covering blemishes,
make sure you are using the exact shade that matches your base otherwise you may highlight your blemish instead of concealing it. Back to your under eyes, give the concealer a minute to soak in. Try warming the product with your ring finger and dab gently, to ensure the product melts into your skin. Don’t rub! Adding a banana powder over your concealer will add more brightening properties, we want those eyes to pop. Try the Rodial Instagram Delux Banana powder which comes in a handy compact. Now, this may sound like a fiddly thing to add to your routine but if it's a major impact you're looking for then adding false lashes is a must. I have to admit I am not a fan of strip lashes, I prefer individual lashes because you place them where you need them and create the shape that you desire. I have fallen head over heels in love with Sweed No lash by Nikki_Makeup. I love the pretty packaging but most importantly I love that these lashes are natural looking yet add so much drama. Pop a few on Now for concealer. Let's brighten under the eye. Use the the outer corner to create a cat-eye effect or use the same skin ceuticals mineral eye defence SPF 30 under your length from the outer edge in the middle, for that doe-eyed eyes, you will love the brightening effect and the look. protection it gives. I also love the IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Next, give your lashes a curl and use black mascara. under eye concealer, a little goes a long way. When using a Charlotte Tilbury pillow talk push up mascara is the one to grab. This revolutionary mascara is the talk of the town! concealer under your eyes you can go two shades lighter
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I use brown mascara on the bottom lashes, this gives a sexy finish to the eyes, I love Dior show in pro brown. Framing the eyes is the next trick. I love creating soft brows. To keep the eyes looking youthful, make sure that the brows do not slant, if they rise too much at the end it can be ageing. Keep the brow straight but with a slight arch. I use the SUQQU liquid eyebrow pencil for adding wispy fine hair lines to create this shape, this keeps them light and natural-looking. Pop a bit of highlighter on your cheekbones and some liquid blush, Dr Perricines no highlighter is my favourite and Danial Sanders watercolour liquid blush. This buildable cheek colour always looks so natural and gorgeous. Add to your lips once you arrive anywhere, so that it doesn't rub off on your mask en route. I would love to see your eye makeup, so send your pics to my Instagram @fionaeustace. I will also be doing a tutorial on eyes and will be posting it on to the Frank Magazine IGTV. Watch this space.
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1 Sweed no lash lash 2 Skin ceuticals eye defence 3 Mac teddy liner 4 Suqqu eye pencil 5 Rodial banana powder 6 Charlotte Tilbury mascara 7 Dior show pro brown 8 Nars eyeshadow palette 9 It cosmetics bye bye undereye
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B E A U T Y
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Sustainable Scents I love the change of season and for me it brings a change of scent too. Here are my earth friendly favourites....
By Beauty Editor Fiona Eustace @fionaeustace
Fern Autumn 20 ÂŁ69 www.ffern.co This gorgeous company only makes small organic batches of perfume a few times a year. Their new scent Autumn 20 comprises of 16 organic, sustainably sourced fragrance ingredients and has an organic grain vodka as its base. You have to be added to a waiting list, which of course makes it very exclusive.
Small batch, organic, seasonal. Artisan perfume blended four times per year for the names on our production ledger.
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Floral street. Electric Rhubarb Eau de Parfum ÂŁ60 www.floralstreet.com This vegan perfume is floral with hints of sandalwood and rhubarb. Just divine. I love it's gorgeous bottle and cute name. It comes all wrapped up in a biodegradable carton too.
All of the brand’s perfumes feature sustainably sourced, vegan and cruelty-free ingredients and recyclable packaging.
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Sana Jardin Sandalwood Temple Eau de Parfum ÂŁ95 www.sanajardin.com Sana Jardin is a socially conscious, luxury fragrance house. With a vision to help empower the woman at the beginning of their supply train to become micro-entrepreneurs by upcycling the waste products from perfume production. Instead of just being able to work a few times a year the women in the Moroccan flower growing region are given the opportunity of consistent employment. There are so many different fragrances to choose from but my favourite is this sandalwood rich scent, perfect for cleansing the spirit.
''Our mission is to harness the power of commerce for social good.''
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HITO Eau de Parfum ÂŁ146 www.waitbotanicamente.com This perfume lasts on your skin for ages, it smells divine and is one of my favourites as we come into Autumn. The glass, packaging and wooden lid are all 100% sustainable. Composed of natural essential oils extracted from plants through steam distillation and with a certified supply chain.
HITO evaporates and transcends the common heart of pure human spirit experience. The perfume is the expression of the soul, it is a melody composed of aromatic notes, blended together harmoniously in order to elevate the spirit and free the mind it promotes a meditative state and raises the vital tone. www.thefrankmagazine.com
Clean Reserve Terra Woods Eau de Parfum ÂŁ82 www.spacenk.com This unique perfume has beautiful zesty tones and crisp notes that work well when combined with other scents in the collection, like the velvet flora. Stacking scents makes the aroma exclusive to you.
Terra Woods from Clean Reserve captures the Scandinavian flair for inviting the nature into the home, with bright and elegant flowers, which brings beautiful scents into the everyday life. Crispy and fresh notes paired with the creamy and woody base creates a beautiful and unique contrast. www.thefrankmagazine.com
R E A D E R
O F F E R
Exclusive FRANK Reader Offer
use our code NEWA028 www.newabeauty.co.uk www.thefrankmagazine.com
G I V E A W A Y
Booze and Burn Candle giveaway Drink in the sweet smell of this delicious smell without any of the calories. For even before you light this candle, the scent wafts through the house with fresh bursts of pear and cinnamon. As well as its scent, this candle ticks all the right boxes for a clever design concept and eco-friendliness – owner Sophie has really pulled out all the stops! Each candle is made out of a recycled bottle of wine or can of beer and turned into a scented soy candle. Once lit, the scented eco soy wax gives a long and creamy burn -twice as long as paraffin candles and much kinder to the environment.
All you have to do is Email us your answer ''How many glass bottles and jars end up in landfills every year''? You will find the answer at www.boozeandburn.com Email us hello@thefrankmagazine.com UK only, giveaway ends 30th November 2020
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B E A U T Y
R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S
We've Nailed it! Delights for those fingers & toes.
‘‘Wearing nail polish is a ritual, that will ground you, that will give that precious time, just for you.’’ Licia Florio
Slim, elegant and effective, the file helps to lessen instances of splitting and breakages. It contributes towards an even, radiant manicure and can be used in any direction. MARGARET DABBS.
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Pairing breathable, vegan-friendly formulas with a wide spectrum of flattering shades, Nailberry is the go-to nail brand for those who don’t want to compromise on the quality and appearance of their at-home manis and pedis. NAILBERRY
LICIA FLORIO Sesamo and India NAILBERRY Conditioning Cuticle Cream by Nailberry MARGARET DABBS LONDON Crystal Nail File by Margaret Dabbs London MALIN + GOETZ Vitamin B5 Hand Treatment 48ml by Malin + Goetz URELIA PROBIOTIC SKINCARE Aromatic Repair & Brighten Hand Cream by Aurelia Probiotic Skincare MARGARET DABBS LONDON Manicure & Pedicure Set by Margaret Dabbs London NAILBERRY Fast Dry Gloss by Nailberry NAILBERRY Peace Oxygenated Nail Lacquer by Nailberry by Nailberry PATCHOLOGY Best Foot Forward Softening Foot & Heel Mask by Patchology
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S P O T L I G H T
O N
F R A G R A N C E
DIPTYQUE Car Diffuser And Figuier Scented Insert by Diptyque
Bring a fruity fragrance to a vehicle with the Diptyque Car Diffuser and Figuier Scented Insert, a luscious scent that evokes the entirety of the fig tree. The Figuier scent summons the aroma of every part of the fig tree, allowing the milky sap of the fruit to blend with the warmth of the bark and the fresh scent of the leaves, resulting in an olfactory treat to tantalise the senses. Also included in the set is the Un Air de Diptyque car diffuser. This innovative cold diffusion system makes use of the car’s ventilation system and features a grid that can be easily adjusted so that the Diptyque Car Diffuser and Figuier Scented Insert can be enjoyed at the perfect intensity. Allow the fruity aroma of a fig tree to fill the car with the Diptyque Car
Diffuser and Figuier Scented Insert, which uses an adjustable cold diffusion system. Key Benefits: Adjustable intensity Set includes car diffuser and scented insert Fruity notes Innovative cold diffusion system Fragrances the car with a fig tree scent.
''Elegant and sophisticated, the diptyque car diffuser uses an innovative system of cold diffusion..'' www.diptyqueparis.com
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B E A U T Y
T O O L
FACIAL ROLLER HERBIVORE Jade Facial Roller by Herbivore
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et that fresh from the spa look without even leaving home with the Herbivore Jade Facial Roller, a skincare treatment designed to promote inner calm and outer beauty. Facial rolling has been used in China to de-stress and promote a clearer complexion for hundreds of years. Rolling the applicator across the face helps invigorate the lymphatic system, which promotes detoxification. This type of massage can help reduce signs of puffiness, wrinkles and facial tension to leave skin looking and feeling more youthful. For an added boost, place the Herbivore Jade Facial Roller inside a refrigerator to cool it for a few hours before use. Then, after cleaning and toning skin, apply a few drops of a favourite facial oil. This enables the roller to slide along smoothly and helps the oil absorb better. After cleansing and toning, smooth a few drops of facial oil into skin. This will help the Facial Roller glide across the skin with ease, while the roller will help the facial oil to absorb better, increasing its benefits. Place the stone in the refrigerator before use for extra cooling effects. www.herbivorebotanicals.com
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B E A U T Y
S A V I O R S
No tricks, just
Treats
for Legs & Feet www.thefrankmagazine.com
BLOOM AND BLOSSOM Revitalising Leg and Foot Spray
MARGARET DABBS LONDON Margaret Dabbs London Firming Leg Serum by Margaret Dabbs London MAMA MIO Lucky Legs
ELEMIS Instant Refreshing Gel, Muscle Reviving Body Gel, 150 ml
THIS WORKS Perfect Legs Skin Miracle 120ml by This Works LEGOLOGY Air-Lite Daily Lift For Legs ( 175ml ) www.thefrankmagazine.com
CLARINS Energizing Emulsion for Tired Legs
F
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INTERV Paul Hollywood Amanda Byram Heather Stewart-Whyte Fiona Eustace
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VIEWS Kathleen Soriano Steyn Grobler Hilary Boyd Venetia Berry
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GETTING PERSONAL WITH...
Paul Hollywood
The son of a baker, Paul originally trained as a sculptor before his father persuaded him to join the family business. He went onto become head baker at some of the most exclusive hotels, including Cliveden, The Chester Grosvenor and The Dorchester, gaining a reputation as an innovator and one of the country’s finest artisan bakers. www.thefrankmagazine.com
How quickly did you get into the groove of filming that first ever show? I guess we each found our footings quite quickly. Personally judging bakes people have made I’ve always done professionally anyway so it was easy. What’s difficult about eating cakes pies and bread…
Did the level of fame you experienced at the beginning shock you at first ? The fame thing is a double edged sword, it was the 3rd year before I started to be recognised daily whilst I was out and about. I never set out to become famous, as I was a baker, baking..! Why would I? I still enjoy helping people with their baking questions and helping them improve. The problem with fame is the media attention. That I don’t understand or approve of. The lies, the twisted truths and harassment.
What’s your signature dish? My signature dish would be croissants, quite stagey to make but delicious in the end.
What other ambitions do you hold away from the kitchen? I’ve always wanted to race Le Mans..
What is your favourite dish to cook at home? Pizzas in my pizza oven or slow cooking ribs
What is your favourite ingredient? Flour obviously.
Do you still enjoy the process of making the show?
What is your favourite Sandwich, bread and filling?
I love going to the tent, it’s my home now and its where I feel very comfortable.
A bacon butty!!
How do you fill your time during the waiting around in-between being on set? I read when I’m not judging or end up doing countless Sudoku.
How do you keep your energy up during filming, keeping up beat and enthusiastic? My energy levels on ‘Bake Off’ have never wained because baking is a passion, it doesn’t feel like work.
What’s your favourite Bake Off moment? My favourite moments on bake off is when the winner is revealed, the look on the winners face is priceless.
When are you happiest? When I have a helmet on.
What’s next for you in your baking journey? I love to discover new things and experiment, so its a constantly changing horizon in the baking world.
How has the pandemic and the lockdown affected you? I live in a very rural part of the uk, so lockdown was even more peaceful, at the same time I really did feel for the people in smaller living spaces with little or no access to open spaces. Its effected everyone but its unified us all too, to fight off this silent enemy.
Why and when did you first get the baking bug? My Dad ran bakeries most of his life and my mum is still very good at pastry and biscuits, so pretty early in my life I was surrounded by the smell of baking .
Keep up to date with Paul on his website www. paulhollywood.com
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F R A N K
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Photo by Julian Okines
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The Switch TV presenter and wellness warrior
Amanda Byram
opens up about how decades of destructive dieting and the pressures to be perfect finally forced her to make the switch, taking her from food deprived and frazzled to a balanced, positive and fulfilling life. At 47, the Irish TV presenter and former model is in the shape of her life, both mentality and physically and in her heartfelt, honest and often hilarious book, Amanda offers ingenious insights and practical advice for women of all ages on how they too can make the switch to a happier, healthier lifestyle.
Styled by Annabel Kernan Hair and makeup Sally O Neill
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Tell us about 'The Switch’. I spent three decades battling with the need to be perfect, yo-yo dieting, beating myself up, desperate to please, being unkind to myself and listening to the nasty voices in my inner mind. As I was approaching my 40th birthday, I was mentally and physically exhausted and I knew something had to give…I had to make, what I now call: ‘The Switch’. Subsequently, I spent many years coaching other women via social media platforms, emails and blogs and they all gave me so much beautiful and inspiring feedback and the resounding message was always “YOU SHOULD WRITE A BOOK!!!” And so I did, and of course I had to call it “The Switch”! The Switch is a distillation of all the simple, yet lifechanging techniques, tips and tricks I used to help me get off that “perfection treadmill” once and for all. It took me on a journey of science and psychology, from silencing the crippling and critical voices in my head, to understanding how to eat and exercise in a way that gives me power not problems. Today, I am happier and healthier than I ever was in my twenties and thirties and I am so excited to share how I got here with women of all ages, from the ladies of my generation to teens and every girl in between. Because I learned, from the vast age-range women I speak to, that there is no bad time to make this Switch. You might be in your twenties and burning the candle at both ends, holding down a career and a solid party diary. You could be in your thirties, perceivably ‘healthy’ yet slightly stressed and obsessed with clean eating. You could be in your forties or fifties and frantically trying to manage a career with kids pulling out of your sprog-soiled activewear or sandwiched between teens and ailing parents. Or you could be older, and want to make the most of your autumn years. Adopting this knowledge at ANY age is the key to the permanent change to be your best self. Similarly, it doesn’t matter if you are a size 8 or a size 18 – if you are fundamentally unable to live comfortably in your own skin, no physical changes will make you any happier. It took me 30 long years of making mistakes, accumulating knowledge, assimilating it, challenging the facts then making more of the same mistakes, until I learned enough to make The Switch and arrive at a place of peace.
It is an important book and extremely pertinent right now isn’t it? Thank you! The importance and the need for a book like this in the current world we live in today is one of the reasons I was inspired to write it. I have spoken to so many women who are caught in a whirlwind of fear, shame, guilt and self-loathing and I know that there is a way out - because I lived it. And so I wanted to share my knowledge with them in the hope that my mistakes and my advice could help. So I wore my heart openly on my sleeve, hoping to impart a little knowledge that could potentially save women years of ‘hanger’, confusion and anxiety by avoiding the same mistakes I did. I wanted to help peel away the layers of lies and myths peddled by the media. To take the overwhelming heap of contradictory information and strip it back to basics. With a little bit of know-how, it is simple to lose weight and get into shape the healthy way by taking back control of your relationship with food and your body, and most importantly, your mind. What also really encouraged to write the book was knowing that the level of body image issues amongst women and young girls is at an all-time high – almost 90%. And here is the scariest part: when asked; many young women revealed that their mothers were responsible for passing on their own insecurities. So if ever there was a motivation to write this book and to help women to finally get their heads straight, it’s that the body image issues that have plagued us for decades are now looking to get their grubby paws on our daughter’s psyches, and she will take that with her into her forties and beyond.
How was the writing process? How long did it take? How did it feel? Writing the book was an emotional rollercoaster! Because I had spoken about my journey to an extent in the press, I assumed that writing it would just be an extension of the blogs and articles I had written. Very quickly I realised that a book requires all of that x 1000! There were days when I knew what I wanted to say, yet could not quite find my voice, and other days where my voice screamed loud and clear! So I just had to roll with it.
www.thefrankmagazine.com
“The Switch is a distillation of all the simple, yet lifechanging techniques, tips and tricks I used to help me get off that “perfection treadmill” once and for all. It took me on a journey of science and psychology, from silencing the crippling and critical voices in my head, to understanding how to eat and exercise in a way that gives me power not problems.”
Photo by Ray Burmiston
I started writing it June 2019 and submitted first draft in Dec. Then I went to Australia and took a complete break from it before starting again in January with copy edits and the next stages of the process. When lockdown kicked in, it meant I had no excuse but to put my head down on a daily basis and get the final stages completed. Most of all though, it was a very cathartic process. It is a great feeling knowing that all my thoughts and my advice now lives in one sacred place that will exist on paper for eternity! I feel so proud of myself that I achieved this - something I never thought possible - which further cements what I tell women all the time - we are so capable of so much, if only we allow ourselves to believe it.
It’s an honest book. How much bravery did you have to muster in order to do it? I had many moments of asking myself “Am I giving away too much of myself?” So I reminded myself that this book was not just for me, it was for the hundreds and thousands of women and men that I could help by being brave enough to take that step. I overcame my negative and destructive patterns after years of learning truths and unlearning myths, so I believe I have a duty to save others from making the same mistakes, by being the most raw and honest version of myself; otherwise how can they learn from me? Of all of the job satisfaction I have had from successful TV shows or celebrity events, the positive feedback I have had from women, beats that satisfaction hands down. No amount of success in TV or red carpet celebrity events could ever compete with that feeling of being able to give back.
“After years of mistakes, I learned you can have a beautiful body without doing ugly things to yourself. Most of all, I learned that until I loved myself internally, no amount of external changes would matter. The sooner we can spread that message the better!"
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“In a nutshell, you just cannot achieve prime physical health without being mentally healthy, and vice versa. They are two sides of the same coin, and that coin is priceless. It is the currency to ultimate happiness. In order to look different you will need to think differently, then your mind and body can start to work in harmony rather than being in conflict with each other.�
Photo by Julian Okines
“I wore my heart openly on my sleeve, hoping to impart a little knowledge that could potentially save women years of ‘hanger’, confusion and anxiety by avoiding the same mistakes I did. I wanted to help peel away the layers of lies and myths peddled by the media.”
How hard was it to ‘come out’ if you like from being a health and fitness advocate which you still are of course but to come forward with the baggage of all that and say, actually I wasn’t being very good to myself?
So writing the book was a way to atone by shining a light on how to fix the problem, by helping people to stop
buying into the lies, subscribing to the non-truths and find some equanimity by working towards true health and genuine happiness.
In the early days I convinced myself that skinny = success and that if I looked exactly the way I wanted to, The obsession with body perfection feels like a the rest would fall into place both personally and more recent obsession especially through the professionally. Forget Happy Ever After, the fairy-tale media. What do you think has been the cause of ending I was chasing was more like Skinny Ever After and its explosion? I would do anything it took to get it. So when I had my Switch moment came, I knew I had to face some home Obsession with body perfection has come to the forefront, I truths. believe purely because of social media use. However, it was Yes, magazines and the media hold a lot of responsibility still prevalent in our day – it’s just that social media was non-existent so it wasn’t talked about as much. Obsession for a lot of body image issues among women, often with body perfection has been a problem for a very long making bold proclamations that they care about our wellbeing, all the while using visuals that are breaking us time. Women of our age didn’t have forums to speak about it (for better or worse) like women do today. down both physically and mentally. It breaks my heart when I see cover after cover of retouched ‘perfection’ and That is another reason I knew it was important to talk about what they perceive to be a ‘perfect size 8’. And I’m not my own past issues - because as a 47 year old woman, I feel blameless in that. I readily admit that there have been times when I have been on the wrong side of the fence and as though my (our) generation got left behind. Lots of women our age don’t ‘do’ social media, and therefore have images of me in magazines when I was younger not had access to some of the positive influences that young perpetuated a myth of wellbeing through my own women have access to today. So we rely on our peers, and extreme dieting. that’s why I am hoping my book can be an inspiration to women of our generation and of ALL ages. www.thefrankmagazine.com
Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could just focus on health and happiness? Why is this not promoted do you think? Oh yes it really would! I think because health and happiness is not the first thing people think of….weight and body perfection is. People expect that health and happiness will naturally follow AFTER they lose weight, yet it is the opposite. It is a viscous circle though because things do not happen immediately – they happen slowly and surely. That is why so many women try and fail to lose weight or to look and feel their best. Because when we set our expectations too high, impatience is sure to follow. Yet what people are neglecting to realise is that the welcome side-effect of being happy and living healthily is that your body naturally sheds excess weight, your muscles tone up, your metabolism speeds up, your sleep improves and your energy levels go through the roof! We live in a society where everything is available right now. And in turn, this fuels our desire and hunger to have everything we want readily available. We want the quick-fix diet, speedy slimming pills and instant abs. We want skin that looks 20 years younger in 10 minutes. We have been told by society that if we want to lose weight quickly, the only way to get there is to severely deprive ourselves, restrict calories and even cut out certain food groups altogether. This just isn’t the case and is not the key to long-lasting health and happiness. In a nutshell, you just cannot achieve prime physical health without being mentally healthy, and vice versa. They are two sides of the same coin, and that coin is priceless. It is the currency to ultimate happiness. In order to look different you will need to think differently, then your mind and body can start to work in harmony rather than being in conflict with each other. So, it is important to educate ourselves as to WHY diets don’t work for your body and cut through the bullshit with regard to what food actually is and does, and why we need it to not only survive but also thrive.
Your book is definitely going to help to unravel that. Will you use the book as platform to help to change the narrative more widely? ( TED TALK ? !! ) Absolutely! When you are passionate about something it evokes a real fire inside. The topics I hit on in the book are so close to my heart and I feel a fire of passion when I speak about them. I wish more than anything for women and men to be healthy and happy without the obsession of perfection. After years of mistakes, I learned you can have a beautiful body without doing ugly things to yourself. Most of all, I learned that until I loved myself internally, no amount of external changes would matter. The sooner we can spread that message the better!
the Switch is available through Amanda's Website www.amandabyram.com
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Excerpt form The Switch NEURO-LINGUISTIC PROGRAMMING
How we speak to ourselves makes all the difference to our mental health. There are so many ways we can switch the patterns of our internal voice to be more positive and productive, leading to a healthier happier you. The most famous is a technique called Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) created by Richard Bandler and John Grinder in the 1970s. Simply put, NLP is the practice of programming the brain’s language towards more strategic vocabulary for a more positive outcome. ‘Neuro’ refers to the brain and mind; ‘linguistic’ refers to language. The relationship between the two affects our behaviour, i.e. the ‘programming’. The mental strategies learned in NLP set those who practise it apart from the rest, helping them to learn faster and reach their fullest potential more quickly. You may have heard of some of the following NLP fans ... Oprah Winfrey, Bill Clinton, Tony Robbins, Russell Brand, Bill Gates, Tiger Woods and Robbie Williams. Now ask yourself this: what do all of these people have in common? The answer is, ‘success in their chosen field’. So you see, the way in which you speak to yourself, and also how you assimilate external influences into your own head, really makes a huge difference to your own behaviour.
Here are some tricks to talk yourself out of it when you hit a negative wall. 1. You want to go to the gym, but you feel a little out of shape. THE OLD NARRATIVE: ‘I am fat, what’s the point in going – I will look like a whale among all those beautiful women and everyone will laugh ... I might as well sit and watch daytime TV and eat those Cheesy Wotsits that have been screaming at me all week.’ THE NEW NARRATIVE: ‘OK, you hot ball of sexy stuff, let’s get this peachy butt to the gym, because you deserve to sweat, have fun, and kick some ass. Let’s go, Lara Croft in the making!’
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By eliminating any negative words or language here, you are simply not allowing yourself to believe the words and lies you berate yourself with. This means that the positive way in which you speak to yourself becomes a natural habit, and soon you’ll be off to the shops to buy your Lara Croft get-up.
stressed you will become! You will find in time that by switching out negative words like stress, you will reprogram your mind into new ways of processing the world around you.
3. I often hear people repeat that they are 2 .Another common language mistake is filled with ‘self-loathing’. By saying the words telling or reminding ourselves how stressed we out loud you are reminding yourself that you are: loathe yourself, and this becomes a reinforcement that you do not like who you THE OLD NARRATIVE: are. ‘I am SO stressed out right now, my brain is so THE OLD NARRATIVE: frazzled, I can’t see straight. Has anyone ever died from stress? I think I am dying from ‘Ugh, I hate myself so much – my body, my stress.’ hair, my mind. I am such a self-loather, that’s just who I am, and it’s not going to change.’ THE NEW NARRATIVE: THE NEW NARRATIVE: ‘I feel a little funky right now, so I am going to take a breath and see what happens.’ ‘The old me used to be so hard on herself, and that’s not going to fly any more. I am bored of In the new narrative, changing the trigger that narrative, it does not serve me, so you word ‘stress’ to something a little more light- know what? I am one fucking foxy, funny, hearted makes all the difference. The more fabulous, fit, fantastic, fortuitous female ...’ you tell yourself you are stressed, the more
OK, you hot ball of sexy stuff, let’s get this peachy butt to the gym, because you deserve to sweat, have fun, and kick some ass. Let’s go, Lara Croft in the making!’
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Camera Ready
Photo Erin M Skehan
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eather Stewart-Whyte talks to FRANK about her life as a super model in the 90’s and how now she is using all her wisdom and experiences from that successful career to help women achieve their full potential.
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How did you get into modelling? Well, I always dreamt of travelling the world and was ready to start that journey as a nanny. I left home and like many before me and headed for London! I literally fell into modelling one summers day after taking a walk down the famous Kings Road. I was sat in a pub having a drink when I got chatting to a friendly group of people around my young age of 17. We left the pub and continued to walk together back towards the tube, when one of them pointed out a sign saying, ‘Female Models Wanted’. The next thing I knew, they picked me up, threw me through the door and ran off. Falling on my knees, my long and slightly tinted purple hair covered my face along with my embarrassment! As I got up and started to apologise for the disturbance, my sentence was cut short by a classy lady staring at me from her desk. “Pull your hair away from your face.” she ordered, so I did. That afternoon she arranged to have my hair cut and dyed brown, removed my make up and sent me on my first casting!
Moving to Paris is an integral part of becoming a successful model. How was it for you ? I went to Madrid for 6 months first. I hadn’t realised my potential and my desire was to travel was paramount, so when I heard a conversation in my agency about girls going to Madrid, I quickly said I’d like to go. Looking back I believe it gave me time to develop my independence and considering I’d never been to an airport, let alone take a flight, I did well. Paris was a decision I made upon my return having asked where should I go to make a serious attempt of making a career from modelling. I believe it was 1991.
That day changed my life forever.
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“I quickly started to work with the most iconic designers and got to appreciate and admire the talent I was surrounded by. It wasn’t just about the experience of walking the runways and having my picture taken, it felt like I was part of a creative team bringing art to life.”
What was your career highlight? I have to say that working with photographer Dominique Issermann stands out as she and I did so many shoots together over the years and we built a close friendship that enhanced the work we did. She just knew how to guide me and use my emotions in a positive way to create a stunning image and she has a cheeky sense of humour! My first cover of French Vogue was thanks to Dominique and it took my career to another level for which I am truly grateful. I quickly started to work with the most iconic designers and got to appreciate and admire the talent I was surrounded by. It wasn’t just about the experience of walking the runways and having my picture taken, it felt like I was part of a creative team bringing art to life. Learning how to communicate, to listen, watch people and understand them better, even when it wasn’t my language. It was a joyful challenge and a life experience that has helped me in so many other ways.
I did my research and pestered the agency to find out as much as they could about the style of each casting I was going to. With that information I would change my hair or make-up and act the role I thought they were looking for. One day I went on 11 castings and got booked for them all so my hard work was paying off. It felt like an over night success as a year later I managed to get a shoot with top magazines including Elle with a cover of Vogue. The Elite scene I found myself in was literally another world. First off though I have to share with you that I really struggled with everything and it took a lot of hard work and failures before I achieved my goals. I used to whisper when I talked and looked down a lot. I remember being told that I walked like a puppet, knees lifted in front of me and my legs never straightened. The scene was full of perfectly beautiful people, eccentric, flamboyant and famous celebrities fluttered around backstage during fashion week. I felt like I was watching from the outside, not really connecting with where I was and wondering how and why I was even a part of it! I was very nervous for my first show for Versace. While having my make up done another model sat down next to me and started chatting away and she managed to reassure me that I would be fine. I couldn’t see her face as the make-up artist was working on my eyes. When I was finally free to turn my head and look at her to say thank you, I saw it was Claudia Schiffer! I almost fell off my chair. She was and is the sweetest soul and made me feel welcome into the club of fashion models. We were in the same night club later that week and as we were talking she asked me if her bum “looked too big in her white jeans?” I said if your bum doesn’t look good in them, then nobodies will. Honestly, it goes to show that we all have our insecurities even if we do have perfect derrière’s !
When did you retire from modelling?
I retired about 7 years ago, partly because I had a few back to back illnesses the last one being Myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart which took two years to recover from. I was 48 at the time and being told that it would take so long to recover left me feeling trapped and defeated. Like most I had a list of things I wanted to achieve before 50, as I did for age 30 and 40. This news was What was the Paris elite scene like for you? definitely not in my plans! There was nothing elite about it when I first arrived. I had The only solution to this situation, I realised, was to make this my new challenge. With my laptop in front of me I very few clothes that I was washing by hand every day, stayed in a small room with a shared bathroom and carpet was free to research everything I had always wanted to and more. I gave myself new goals from slowly improving on the ceiling! Still can’t figure out why and not sure I my health to new adventures to try. want to know! I went on castings every day and had to figure out public I learnt that nothing should be looked at as a problem just as a new and interesting challenge! transport and the language as fast as I could. www.thefrankmagazine.com
“ Camera Ready, was put together from the heart, to help anyone build confidence. That’s the bottom line.I coach my clients on how to be aware of their body, how to communicate in a capacity they desire. These benefits will translate in to all areas of their life.” When did you come up with the concept of ‘Camera Ready’? Thanks to a few close and inspirational friends. While I was recovering from Myocarditis my friend Nina, a painter and textile designer, recommended me to her friend Meara, a talented Opera singer/musician who was looking for help with her new direction of music, image and for a shoot. Which led to helping my friend Erin also a talented musician and music producer. Then my friend Ginni, who’s a fab hair and make up artist asking me to coach her daughter who sings like an angel and who needed help with her confidence generally and for photo shoots. I’ve always enjoyed sharing my experience and knowledge to help others and on a long night drive to a shoot with Erin, it was then, that I really got excited about this new business venture and we started to play with names for it. Then during a phone call to follow the progress of my daughters friend, the name Camera Ready was born!
Everything I have learnt from working in the fashion industry, has gone directly into my business .Having done thousands of castings/interviews, some quite intimidating, I learnt how to control my nerves, choose my words carefully and present myself in the most professional way. On photoshoots I learned body awareness, how to take instruction from multiple people, the photographer, the client, stylist etc, often asking for different things yet managing to give them all what they wanted. Negotiating on set, be it for a TV commercial or shoot with the team to ensure the final outcome was not only good for them, but for me too! Show season developed my people skills, patience, determination, stamina and creativity.
How does ‘Camera Ready’ work practically? Camera ready was put together from the heart, to help anyone build confidence. That’s the bottom line.I coach my clients on how to be aware of their body, how to communicate in a capacity they desire. These benefits will translate in to all areas of their life. I’ve put together a package of what I call ‘anxiety hacks’ to help deal with stressful situations. Ive put my courses into three categories, Public Speaking, Film & Photography and Modelling, however all of these areas are flexible depending on the clients particular needs. My public speaking course covers voice training, correct breathing and anxiety hacks, all of which will improves their performance in a conference call, in an interview or teaching a course, which in addition improves their confidence in daily life. Wether its for a big event such as a wedding, to performing in front of the camera, I put together a bespoke course for each persons needs.
It’s a great name! Tell us bit more about who it is for ?
I recommend to my clients to have at least 6 sessions with me which comes with homework. As much a I would love to meet in person which is what I do normally, right now It is for anyone, at any age or stage of their lives who is under the circumstances of Covid-19 I do everything looking to improve their personal skills, build confidence online with Zoom, Skype or Whats app. I understand that and learn how to perform in front of an audience or the it can be stressful to consider an online course so I’m free camera. to arrange a chat on the phone, a free consultation before I love helping people and it warms my heart to see positive change in someone who is building a new career or any decisions are made. just preparing for a big event such as a wedding…. to see Get in touch with Heather and book a free consultation to them blossom. discuss your aspirations. Public speaking is a skill that’s needed more and more, wether its in the office for a corporate meeting or conference calls. Speaking on the phone is hard enough for many, let alone a conference call to companies all over the world!
www.cameraready.co.uk heather@cameraready.co.uk
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Making Scents Steyn Grobler
talks to FRANK about his passion for perfume
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qualis was founded by Steyn Grobler, a South African native who has adopted London as his home. Having graduated with an MSc in Business Management, Steyn has spent his entire career in the luxury world. Over the last decade he has worked extensively with a number of contemporary niche fragrance brands, both in business management and fragrance development. Looking to follow his own creative path, Steyn founded Aqualis in 2015, bringing his experience and unique perspective to the world of olfaction. www.thefrankmagazine.com
I was in all the magazines, did a number of campaigns for
Tell us about your journey into the perfume industry? How do you develop a nose for it?
two years until I quit modelling to study at Bristol university. I 'rediscovered' fragrance again when I was doing a MSc in Business Economics and I was working part time in the Harrods perfumery. I enjoyed working with fragrance and the business behind it so much that despite studying Finance I took a job with Boadicea the Victorious. I started with them as a manager in Selfridges and within 3 years I was running production, new product development and all retail for BTV. I was also in charge of all the global distributors. This was really where I learnt the ropes. I quickly realised that the fragrances I developed were doing incredibly well. It became obvious to me that I wanted to have my own creative outlet and so I quit BTV and started Aqualis in 2015. From there I worked with Roja Parfums, Henry Jacques and currently I am also a sales Director for Ex Nihilo. That is my journey career wise in short.
I've always had a real interest in perfume, even though at the time I was so young I didn't even understand that I actually had a slight obsession. I distinctly remember all the fragrances my older siblings and mother wore. From there at the age of 12 I would walk to the local shopping mall where I grew up in South Africa (Pretoria) completely on my own and spend hours in the fragrance shop smelling everything. I used to spend my money I earned on the miniature sets and was always wearing fragrance. I then moved to England at the age of 15. At 17 I was a model and this was my first brush with the luxury industry.
Developing a nose for perfumery has a lot to do with training your nose over a long period of time. I trained my nose by consistently smelling individual ingredients and memorising them. You then slowly start being able to pick out single ingredients in each fragrance. Of course you have to have a certain strong ability to smell, but on its own it is not enough. You have to train your nose. It is also important to understand the structure of fragrances and the limitations of each ingredient in order to express your idea or concept. This was something that has been developed over the past 12 years for me, I am still continuing to learn!
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“ Aqualis is a celebration of each person’s unique experience of incredibly concentrated high quality fragrances. I create the fragrances, but really it is about the individual bringing them to life.”
What is it about creating perfume you love the most?
ideas that when revisited I cringe at to be honest.
But the ones that stick then become a whole different beast as I start thinking of how to convey the concept Like all creative processes, getting the end result is a journey that is sometimes easy and other times incredibly through fragrance as the medium. My daydreaming then revolves around this for the following months. Which frustrating. Working with the perfumer means that you ingredients can I use to effectively communicate the put your trust in their ability to convey the brief. By far the most satisfying thing in developing a fragrance is when concept so that it instantly makes sense to the wearer? That they internalise the fragrance and it becomes I smell the latest sample the perfumer worked on and something very personal and intimate to them as the mind there is nothing left to do. My nose isn't detecting the imperfections or the extra work that needs to be done. In a relates to it. To help, I do a lot of visualisations of the concept. To give you some examples of the most feminine moment of total clarity, it immediately transcends me scents: into the concept of the brief and in that moment nothing else matters but the pure joy of experiencing the When creating Coda I visualised a female putting the fragrance. Immediately thereafter follows a rush of fragrance on as the final piece of her wardrobe that excitement to get it to market and showcase it to the completes her before going out, her own Coda. How does world. she want to feel in that moment? Confident? Sensual? Playful? So I used heavy base materials for confidence and What is the process ? How long can it take to find vanilla, benzoin to create a sensuality and finally an array the ‘one’? of fruity notes to give the fragrance a playful edge. My girlfriend will tell you I am a daydreamer and in my own head a lot. Once a concept comes to me, I frantically pour everything in my mind onto paper for the fear of losing the idea. I then leave it for a few days/ weeks even months sometimes. I have a diary full of totally rubbish www.thefrankmagazine.com
“Never buy fragrance on a blotter and take as much time as possible to wear the fragrance.”
Namaqualand has always been a special place to me as the arid desert blooms in August after the rains every year. It always happens around my birthday so its something I have always related to. A desert in bloom, the turning of a year. With Namaqualand I wanted to sketch a day in the desert. Its still late winter so can be very chilly in the morning so I used a refreshing combination Mandarin, Orange Blossom and Bergamot. The day then heats up and the flowers start to bloom. The tapestry of flowers is represented by a beautiful floral heart of Jasmine, Tuberose and Ylang Ylang. Finally the flowers give way and the base represents the arid desert. Sandalwood, Cedarwood, lots of resins and vanilla.
Every one of my fragrances follow this process in one way or another. Time wise, could be one month, could be years. I struggle sometimes to find the right ingredient, so for instance Blom took 3 years to develop. Utopia I had a very clear vision and took 4 months. However I never launch something I am not entirely happy with and haven’t worn for months before taking it to market.
For 'Blom' I wanted to do a fragrance that is essentially an ode to my parents. It is called Flower in Afrikaans because my mom was a florist and my Dad also owned a farm that grew carnations and gyps. I spent my entire childhood surrounded by flowers. I wanted to create something that also encapsulated their relationship. In South Africa at the time it was very traditional to have the nuclear family set up as the male breadwinner and the female 'taking care of the house'. I didn't grow up like that. My mom was a serial entrepreneur who as I said owned her own florist which was hugely successful. She also decided to take our entire house, renovate it and turn it into a guest house. Their relationship was incredibly modern and with their example I have always been attracted to incredibly strong woman myself. So the question is how on earth do you make a fragrance that reflects all of this? I came across a Jasmine that Robertet (the fragrance company I work with) has. Only myself and one other company in the industry use this Jasmine, because it is just too expensive for others who create on a budget. Robertet extract the Jasmine using a solvent extraction process and this forms a jasmine absolute that is incredibly sensual and heady. When you smell it on its own, it has a banana like texture and sweetness in the base. It’s a traditionally a very heady floral. They then take this Jasmine and put it through a molecular distillation process. This process gets rid of the molecules in the Jasmine that gives it that heady indolic smell. What you are instead left with is a light Jasmine that has a fruity nature and is much more delicate and modern. I couldn't think of a more apt ingredient to use that perfectly encapsulated their modern relationship in a conservative world. So the whole fragrance was then structured around this ingredient.
“I've always had a real interest in perfume, even though at the time I was so young I didn't even understand that I actually had a slight obsession. I distinctly remember all the fragrances my older siblings and mother wore. From there at the age of 12 I would walk to the local shopping mall where I grew up in South Africa (Pretoria) completely on my own and spend hours in the fragrance shop smelling
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everything.”
We love the Aqualis range. What does Aqualis mean? Aqualis is an amalagam of Aqua and Qualis. They form the two foundations and ethos of the brand. Aqua refers to the unbelievable ingredients used in each fragrance. I create without a budget and push the concentration of oils to the highest possible. On the other hand the dictionarial definition of Qualis is ‘a quality or property as perceived or experienced by a person’. I am intrigued by each person’s unique experience of scent and how they relate to a certain fragrance. Therefore, Aqualis is a celebration of each person’s unique experience of incredibly concentrated high quality fragrances. I create the fragrances, but really it is about the individual bringing them to life.
Is it fun to see people reactions when ‘trying on’ fragrances? This is one of the best parts of creating fragrance. I enjoy all reactions, even when it is really bad and people do not realise that is actually me who created the fragrances. There is a certain honesty in the bad reactions that I appreciate and learn from. But of course the greatest fun is seeing people say ‘oh this reminds me of…’ and watching the fragrance transcend them to a place where they instantly relate to it in their own quails bubble. It is satisfying to think people wear your fragrances and it becomes part of their every day.
“My mom was a serial entrepreneur who as I said owned her own florist which was hugely successful. She also decided to take our entire house, renovate it and turn it into a guest house. Their relationship was incredibly modern and with their example I have always been attracted to incredibly strong woman myself. So the question is how on earth do you make a fragrance that reflects all of this?" There is a chemistry between the perfume and the wearer. What actually happens and how long does it take to know if it works for you? Every person has their own unique body odour. The fragrance will blend with each person’s own scent and form something unique, again this is where the concept of quails and experiencing fragrance in a unique way comes into play. With this in mind you should always try a fragrance on your skin and never buy it from a blotter. It could mix with your own scent and smell totally different.
“Kruger has been my most popular fragrance. The funny thing about the gold leaf is that the fragrance oils actually costs 7 times the cost of the flakes. It was just a fun way of representing what the fragrance is all about.”
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Who is wearing your perfume ? My collection of fragrances are unisex and balanced across all the fragrance families. I therefore have women that wear incredibly heavy Oud based scents and others that wear lighter florals. So woman across ages and styles wear Aqualis. One thing that is a common thread amongst my clientele is that they have a real appreciation for quality and concentration. I have also found that because of the high concentration their personalities are such that they wear the fragrance and feel confident in the huge sillage they are projecting. The Parfum collection is not for the timid, you cannot let the fragrance wear you. Fragrances will broadly go through three phases. Each phase is due to the volatility of each ingredient. The more volatile the ingredient, the more prevalent it will be in the first instance. The greater the volatility of the ingredient however, the more diminished its ability will be to endure on the skin. This is why you always smell fresh ingredients first in a perfume, followed by florals and then the woody/ balsamic notes. When creating a fragrance the perfumer therefore wants to take the wearer on a journey by using ingredients of differing volatilities. As each ingredient fades, a new one unfurls and becomes apparent. Therefore, if you are short on time it is very important to wear fragrances for at least half an hour. After this amount of time the top notes would have faded and the heart and base will be more apparent so you will have a pretty good idea of what it will be like. This also gives the time for the fragrance to blend with your own essential oils. Ideally a fragrance should be worn for the whole day so that you can really understand each of the perfume’s personalities as they unfurl over time. It also majorly depends on the concentration of the fragrance you are buying. When buying and Eau de Toilette which is only going to last 3-4 hours, half hour is sufficient. On the other hand if you are looking to purchase a parfum which is much more expensive and will last for 12 hours plus on the skin, it is worth taking the time to really evaluate the fragrance before spending a lot of money on something you don’t end up liking. To conclude: Never buy fragrance on a blotter and take as much time as possible to wear the fragrance.
Tell us about Kruger, your most decadent perfume and your most popular. Kruger has been my most popular fragrance. It seems that the concept, presentation and fragrance itself has really captured people’s imagination. Kruger was the first president of south Africa and he happens to be my great great grandfather. His legacy includes the Kruger National Park and the Krugerrand amongst many other things. The Krugerrand is a coin which is an Ounce of pure gold. I therefore had the idea to create a fragrance that smells like the imaginary texture of gold. I wanted to have this gold shimmering effect in the fragrance also so used two different types of Rose (A Turkish absolute and essential oil) with saffron to add a glint to the fragrance. Jean Charles Mignon and I then worked on creating a base that is as smooth as gold bullion. Tonka bean, vanilla and sandalwood gives the scent this incredibly smooth, soft and creamy texture. I added 24 carat gold leaf just for the sheer pleasure of it. The funny thing about the gold leaf is that the fragrance oils actually costs 7 times the cost of the flakes. It was just a fun way of representing what the fragrance is all about.
“Only myself and one other company in the industry use this Jasmine, because it is just too expensive for others who create on a budget. Robertet extract the Jasmine using a solvent extraction process and this forms a jasmine absolute that is incredibly sensual and heady. When you smell it on its own, it has a banana like texture and sweetness in the base.”
I love your idea that you create the fragrance and that the wearer brings it to life with their wardrobe and www.aqualislondon.com/collections personality.
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F R A N K
I N T E R V I E W
Behind the scenes of 'The Duchess' with Fiona Eustace
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Congratulations on ‘The Duchess’. You are Katherine’s hair & makeup artist and she always looks amazing. How long have you been working with her and how did you meet? Thank you so much. Feels great to hear peoples thoughts. We filmed it last year so it’s been a long time coming. Katherine and myself have been working together for 7 years now. We are a team of three, myself, Katherine and Jen her stylist. I met Katherine on a TV show right at the very start of her career and we have all worked together since. I cannot believe how much her image has changed over this time. We have had fun creating all the looks. It's like dressup.
Fiona at work, Katherine Ryan and more work shots
The show is an absolute hoot and her different ‘looks’ really add to it. How much planning goes into a series like this regarding that? So much planning goes into the looks. Once we had read the script, Jen puts together a mood board for the clothes and the hair and makeup designs flow from this. Once we get an idea of the character and her story you can get a feel for how she would want to look. I particularly love this part. I love researching new looks. We did keep Kathrine’s makeup very simple for The Duchess, in fact we only had three looks, fresh face, day time look and an evening look. Each one was fresh and simple with added glamour for certain events like the adoption scene or the mourning scene. Keeping the makeup simple meant we could play around with the hair a bit more. We were so lucky to work in collaboration with Victoria Percival (www.victoria percival.com) who provided all the stand out headpieces and accessories. Some we designed together as a one off piece for Katherine. It’s this attention to detail that really helps the Duchess stand out. (image of Katherine in sequin jacket. She is wearing a one of custom made headpiece)
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We recently did a shoot for ‘Netflix Queue’ with the amazing photographer Carla Guler. I really wanted to do something different fo this look so when they asked for a pop of colour for one of the looks I grabbed for the neon. With the white outfit and the simple bend in the hair, this look is one of my favourites that we have created.
How is doing TV make up different to doing make up for the red carpet or shoots? In terms of application there is no difference but there is so much to consider when you’re doing makeup for red carpet or TV, lighting is the biggest decision as this can really change how a makeup looks. Another consideration is how long that makeup has to last, filming days are very long and you want that makeup to last all day and you also don't have long to create the look. So speed and durability are essential.
What are your days like whilst filming?
“Treating the skin well before makeup always helps to create a flawless look. So I always try to take the time to do a mini facial before I do makeup.”
Makeup artists are usually one of the first people on set. If it’s the first day of filming we have to take time to set up our kit. I like to add essential oils to my station so everything smells nice and I like to have everything clean and in order. For The Duchess I had 40 mins every morning to create Katherine’s hair and makeup looks for that day. We then have to watch a monitor to make sure Katherine looks perfect under the lights and that nothing has moved. Hair isn’t always your best friend when you are shooting, especially outside. Record days are usually 12 hours long and after shooting has finished for the day, we will have to go back to the makeup room to pack down and cleanup ready for the next day so we are usually one of the last to leave.
Where do you get your inspiration from? I always try and stay up to date with hair and makeup trends. I love looking through current catwalk images and I love following other makeup artists and just trying to stay ahead of the curve. The excitement I feel when I learn something new is what I love about my job. I always want to be the best I can so I always push myself to create something new and exciting. Katherine’s look is fresh, youthful yet sophisticated and I love to add a bit of intrigue to a look with a splash of colour or to tie her hair up in an unusual way and of course to use a Victoria Percival accessory. www.thefrankmagazine.com
What is it about your job that brings you the most joy and what is the hardest part ? I absolutely love being creative. I am always pushing myself to learn new skills and try new looks. Luckily Katherine lets me do my own thing and she never questions what I’m doing. I love being creative with colour and using contrasting colours in my makeup, even when used subtly, this can create a beautiful look. I use colour theory throughout my work, which is both the science and art of using colour. It is the visual effect of how colours match or contrast each other. If you know even the basics of colour theory you can create some beautiful looks. Treating the skin well before makeup always helps to create a flawless look. So I always try to take the time to do a mini facial before I do makeup. I love using eye masks if I don't have time for anything else I will always pop these on whilst I'm doing the hair. Treating the eye area before makeup helps create a beautiful base and makes my clients look fresh and awake even if they have been filming for days on end.
Thank you for your brilliant work on Frank, bringing great beauty ideas to women over forty but what are your personal favourite products at the moment. I love being a part of the Frank family. I am a bit of a nerd at heart so I love researching new products and hopefully bringing our readers the best choices that are out there in the market today. I have to admit I absolutely love ‘Paula’s Choice’ skin care right now. I have the Clear System and I use it on myself and in my kit. I also love Skyn Iceland and will always use their eye masks. For hair i am loving Authentic beauty concept, their hair oil smells divine and is gorgeous even on really fine limp hair like mine. I wish you could smell it right now! Also living proof hair products, the dry volume blast is another great product fo refine hair. When it comes to makeup i don't use much on my own skin, i will always use sunscreen, i'm loving Dr Russo once a day SPF50 for the autumn, it sits on my skin really well before makeup. A pop of Chantecaille cheek gelle and Delilah gel and brow liner and I'm ready to go.
“Katherine's look is fresh, youthful yet sophisticated and I love to add a bit of intrigue to a look with a splash of colour or to tie her hair up in an unusual way and of course to use a Victoria Percival accessory.”
The Duchess is on NETFLIX now
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Beauty Editor and Makeup Artist
Paulas Choice clean system skincare. I love all her products but the Clear system is my staple. I use the C15 booster too.
Delilah gel and brow liner. This multi tasking gel does my brows and my liner. Stays put all day and glides on so easily.
Skyn Iceland eye masks. These eye masks are a dream. They are cooling, firming and brightening. Keep it in the fridge for extra cool.
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Authentic beauty concept. Their hair oil smells divine and is gorgeous even on really fine limp hair like mine. I wish you could smell it right
Living proof hair products. A dry shampoo but on steroids
Dr Russo SPF50. A clear gel that works really well under makeup. A little goes a long way and it comes with a handy built in brush,
Sunday Riley antioxidant and superfood face oil. A beautiful boost to my skin care regime. I just love how it feels and looks on my skin.
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Chantecaille cheek gel. I absolutely love this product. It finishes off any look with a hint of flush on the cheeks
F R A N K
I N T E R V I E W
Kathleen Soriano Photo Credit Women in the Humanities
K
athleen began her career at the Royal Academy of Arts over 35 years ago. In 1989 she joined the National Portrait Gallery, where as Director of Exhibitions & Collections she was also responsible for national and international programmes. In 2004 she became one of the first cohort of Clore Leadership Fellows, working at the South Bank Centre and the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney. In February 2006 she became Director of Compton Verney Art Gallery, Warwickshire. January 2009 saw her appointed Artistic Director at the Royal Academy. In 2014 she set up her own curatorial, artistic advisory and strategic consultancy company. In addition she has recently acted as Interim Director at Firstsite, Colchester and Artistic Director of the Jakober Foundation, Mallorca. As well as curating many successful exhibitions she has lectured and written extensively in her field and her book Madam and Eve on women artists, was published in April 2018. Her broadcast activities include the six series of Portrait/ Landscape Artist of the Year for SkyArts.
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When was your interest in art ignited? I have had so many ignition moments in my art life that it’s hard to pinpoint the big one. Early ones include the reproductions of Vermeers, or Turner’s famous Fighting Temeraire on our staircase at home in Wimbledon Park, and how could I forget the appalling reproduction of the Venus de Milo statue that my parents were so proud of. Those and the rich baroque religious statuary that I was surrounded by, growing up with Spanish and Irish catholic parents, ensured that a heightened aesthetic sense was injected into my dna at the earliest opportunity. They were all so much part of the warm visual memory of home, faded old friends who whispered my future career at me right from my childhood. The really big moment however came when I was already working in the art world, when I was Head of Exhibitions at the National Portrait Gallery, an institution that I was exceedingly happy to call home for 18 years, ultimately as Director of Exhibitions & Collections with additional Portraits of Jacob Trip and his responsibility for conservation, Wife Margaretha de Geer design and our national and international programmes. It was lunchtime and I was taking my customary short cut through to Trafalgar Square via the back entrance of the National Gallery. As I raced through the Dutch Galleries I was stopped in my tracks by Rembrandt’s portrait of the wife of the merchant Jacob Trip, Margarethe de Geer. I sat on the bench in front of this totally awe inspiring work of art and spent a good 20 minutes with Margarethe (a long time for me as I’m usually super speedy in galleries) as I revelled in the depth of her humanity and Rembrandt’s ability to touch the soul through paint. The veins on the hand, so full of expression, folded over the arms of the chair, the wetness of those old eyes, and the thinning, receding hairline. Her direct gaze holding me fixed, questioning, gently demanding that I stay and ‘see’ her. I was done for. Knew then that I was 100% in the right business.
What have been the highlights of your career so far? I have been lucky to work with great artists at the top of their careers as well as incredible artists at the very beginning, both bringing equal but different personal reward and pleasure. Curating Anselm Kiefer’s major retrospective exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts (where I was Artistic Director between 2009 and 2014) was a phenomenal highlight. Spending time with someone who I regard as probably the greatest living artist, seeing the world through his sophisticated and scholarly eyes and having the opportunity to visit his mind-blowing studios in Croissy and Barjac in France where he has created vast landscapes that bring to life the incredible worlds in his head, with no holds barred, no sense of what isn’t possible, allowed me to feel brave and adventurous through his work and his spirit. That said, I am a sucker for the underdog and love nothing more than championing unknown artists who deserve to be known better. In fact, one of the driving forces in my time at the RA was to broaden the art historical canon. I have always believed that when you have an international stage, as at the RA, that institution has a duty to bring more artists into the spotlight rather than simply regurgitating the same old artists that we already know so much about. In many ways, that same principle guided me to want to write Madam & Eve in order to bring the work of so many ‘unknown’ and certainly unrecognised fabulous women artists to the fore. This passion of mine is also related to the ecology of the art world, from the major national, metropolitan institutions to the smaller regional museums and independent museums around the country, like Compton Verney Art Gallery where I was lucky enough to be Director between 2006 and 2009. Back in 2006 I had wanted to show the work of an Australian woman artist, well known in Australia but outside. At the time I suggested it to the team at Compton Verney it was decided that we could not take the risk of showing someone unknown when so much of our income generation was based on ticket sales (the subtext being that we needed to programme artists who would get the bums on seats so to speak). I always felt that there was something inherently wrong and unfair with that ‘system’, as it is not based on ability or quality of contribution, so when I arrived at the RA in 2009 I decided that Australian art needed a survey show all of it’s own and set about making a huge Australian landscape show in 2013, in which this particular woman figured.
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Needless to say, the show was a revelation to visitors, many wondering why they’d never heard of these artists before, but the greatest reward for me personally was that the years that followed my show saw an explosion of Australian art shows not just in the UK but also across Europe and I feel confident that if today I suggested we mount a show on that particular Australian woman artist at Compton Verney we would say ‘yes, she was in that show at the RA and really deserves to be looked at in greater detail’. That is what success looks like to me. One of the ways in which we used to deal with this issue at Compton Verney was by employing what we called the sauna principle in exhibition programming. The hot and the cold exhibition. This works best where you have a single ticket entry system to your venue and all its exhibitions, but essentially you have a hot ticket show (Hockney, Frida Kahlo, etc) and alongside it something not so hot, maybe a contemporary art survey show. Visitors come on the back of the hot show and encounter not only something that they already feel warm and fuzzy about, but something new, revelatory and potentially to be added, next time, to their warm and fuzzy list – thereby opening up the canon and also opening up the hot ticket list of artists in the future.
Tell us about how you got involved with ‘Portrait Artist of the Year’? Before PAOTY my telly experiences had only been in relation to the press and publicity for exhibitions that I had curated, the odd news channel or radio interview, so when PAOTY happened first in 2013 it was a game changer for me. I am a great believer in fate and it certainly played a hand here as I suppose I was ‘spotted’ by one of the producers from Storyvault Productions, who make the show, when I was giving a short after dinner speech to RA Patrons on the subject of beauty. I think that what triggered her interest was the way in which I did not use art speak … I have never been able too … just not clever enough! Soon followed a screen test in my office and as I waved them all goodbye I thought to myself, this really isn’t for me … not sure I want to be in the art world’s version of the X-Factor meets Bake Off, plus I’m way too busy. But when they called and said they were dead keen to have me and that Tai Shan Schierenberg was going to be the artist involved, I was hooked. I had known Tai since we were both babies at the beginning of our careers in the art world, from when he won the Portrait Award prize at the NPG. They also hinted at another male judge so I had vision of being the most fabulous rose between two thorns …It took a long
time for that third judge to be confirmed, by which time I
had signed my contract and committed myself, so you can imagine my absolute horror when, on the way back home on the train from work one evening I received an email to inform me that the third judge had been selected and that it was Kate Bryan. Who was this woman? It certainly wasn’t another thorn to my rose. A quick google threw up endless photographs of a youthful blonde beauty (also, sadly with brains as I now know) and suddenly I was the frumpy maternal figure to the two beautiful people … On returning home I told my husband and he reassured me that I was over-reacting and that it would all be fine. Then ensued 15 minutes of silence as he trawled the internet lost in images of Kate, overwhelmed by her fabulousness to the point where he finally said to me … ‘you’ve got three months to get yourself into shape.’ Well, I never did get around to that but I did come to love that damn woman, her beauty, her brains and, above all, her kindness and generosity, and as for Tai, I think that I have always been in love with him a little bit, along with everyone who encounters him.
“Many of our major arts institutions have finally grasped the nettle of women artists and the importance of exhibitions that showcase their work and their contribution to art history overall. At last, and long may that continue.” How do you feel about the success of the show and it’s longevity? The first series was a real education for me. In the ‘proper’ art world, you’re supposed to be cool, serious, aloof, dressed in black mainly, but here I was being encouraged to be more upbeat, to smile, to wear colourful clothes … I spent most of it worrying about how I would be edited to look and how I might then be judged, or damned rather, by my ‘cool’ art world peers. I really needn’t have worried as Storyvault knew exactly what they were doing and their positive energies and spirits run through every bit of the show.
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Your book ‘Madam & Eve’ written with Liz Rideal is not only beautiful but deeply fascinating and an important book. What was the catalyst for its conception? Liz Rideal and I have been great friends since we first worked together at the NPG back in 1989, and after I left the RA to set up my own curatorial, museum advisory service business in 2014 she was one of my greatest champions and like all friends spurred me on to have the courage to keep going. Liz had been talking to the publishers Laurence King about the possibility of writing a new book and it got us chatting about how nice it might be to do something together and if we did, what would be the subject that would energise us both. As we talked we realised that we might be onto something and that our different starting points, she an artist with a great knowledge of art history, me a curator-art historian type, might be interesting viewpoints to collide and it would be an excuse for us to work together on a project – spending more time together and having fun talking about art.
Kathleen with Co Author Liz Rideal
Who is your favourite artist and why? The judges Kate Bryan, Tai-Shan Schierenberg & Kathleen Soriano (Picture: Sky Arts)
Please don’t make me choose! I love ALL my children.
What is the best autobiographical movie you have seen about an artist? There are so many heavyweight artists whose lives have been made into fascinating biopics but as always I find myself drawn to the underdog and just fell in love with the movie ‘Maudie’ starring Sally Hawkins, as the Canadian artist, and Ethan Hawke as her husband. Maud Lewis was a folk artist, with no formal training, who painted in Nova Scotia and despite a difficult life found beauty and peace in her work. The film is the epitome of charming, pulling at heart strings and reminding you about what is important in life.
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They taught ME how to talk about art and about how it wasn’t just about saying something was bad or good, but it was about finding the words to explain why, or how it could be improved, and they also taught me how to relax and be myself and to trust in them. But most of all they helped me realise that the show is actually about the artists. Shock horror! Funnily enough, when I ran the Portrait Award at the NPG for those 18 years we would often talk about getting telly interested in making a show about the process but now I realise that it was the wrong process that we were angling to interest them in. We had always thought, being art world people, that the process of interest was the judging, in other words, US, but in reality the process of real interest is that of the actual making of the work, the art itself. Not exactly ground breaking you might think … but it sort of was in my world.
“I am a sucker for the underdog and love nothing more than championing unknown artists who deserve to be known better.”
What artist would you love to paint your portrait?
I’ve never aspired to have my portrait painted and I know that many individuals have bemoaned the fact that their portraits have been recorded for posterity, for the NPG for example, when they are past the bloom of their youth and certainly past their best selfs … ahem said the 57 year To be part of something that is so warmly embraced and old. However, I was blown away by how wonderful all the that brings so much pleasure to artists of all ages and of all portraits that our Portrait Artist of the Week, paint-astandards is enormously rewarding and very humbling at long artists made of me and all the judges during our the same time. It’s taught my ‘world’ a great deal about lockdown transmissions from our homes. It warmed the where value actually lies and has broken down many very cockles of my heart, so much so that I’d take any one barriers and a lot of prejudice in the process. of them over a David Hockney any day of the week.
It's lucky as it is one of those shows that has been Which female artist would warrant a blockbuster able to go forward and be filmed in the new social exhibition right now ? distancing world? How has it felt filming under the new guidelines? Many of our major arts institutions have finally grasped We were lucky to be able to be one of the first shows that started filming again and that is down to the professionalism and dedication of the Storyvault and SkyArts teams; they were determined to make it work. I have been cushioned from the amount of risk assessment work, protocols, etc, etc that the team had to go through to enable us to do our small part of the job but if you ever needed a reminder of how it isn’t just the people you see on the screen who make the programme, this would be it! It helped having a man with a metre long and 2 metre long stick to beat us with on occasion … Also, the crew (camera, lighting, sound, production, etc) all masked up for over 8 hours a day, keeping their distance and still doing their jobs in such difficult circumstances, and always with the smiles on their faces and the excitement in their hearts, just loving and feeling lucky to work in this business, was a marker of their great professionalism and reminds me yet again that PAOTY and LAOTY are such a big happy family where every single role deserves recognition and value for contributing to the complexity of the whole.
the nettle of women artists and the importance of exhibitions that showcase their work and their contribution to art history overall. At last, and long may that continue. Going forward however, there is still much work to be done in relation to women artists of colour so if I were to pick – I would go for Amy Sherald, Lorna Simpson, Carrie Mae Weems, Ellen Gallagher, Kara Walker, Betye Saar, Jade Fadojutimi (who is about to be represented within the next Liverpool Biennial) and Toyin Ojih Otudola whose current show in the Curve at the Barbican is just out of this world.
“I’m supposedly writing – a new Anselm Kiefer publication, and that old bag Kate Bryan and I are hatching plans to publish something together, and we’ll drag Tai into it to, kicking and screaming no doubt!”
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Which artist would you like to see celebrated in film? I am desperate to make a movie about the exciting lives, the art and love triangle of the mid-20th century Italian painter Domenico Gnoli, his wife the artist Yannick Vu and their best friend, Ben Jakober (now Yannick’s husband …). Gnoli (who is soon to have a big show at the Prada Foundation in Milan) was a theatre designer and artist who achieved success in the 1960s with the Pop art sensibility of his paintings, also rich in Surrealism and magic realism. From Vietnam, to St Paul de Vence, to New York, to Paris, to Mallorca, to Morocco … these three travelled (often on a glamourous yacht) and conquered the world, with art being the glue that held them all together. Ben (now 90) and Yannick today live between their foundation Sa Bassa Blanca in Mallorca (open to the public), and their winter home in Marrakech, continuing to make art themselves, to support Indigenous artists from Morocco and Australia, as well as emerging contemporary artists and to champion the art and legacy of Domenico. A glorious love story, three in fact, and great art and passion to boot.
landscape artist Harald Sohlberg back in 2018, the next one in 2023 and on the Lithuanian Symbolist artist Mikalojus Ciurlionis. Mmmmm, two men … so I will be redeeming myself with a show on the work of contemporary artist Eileen Cooper RA (first woman Keeper of the Royal Academy of Arts Schools in 250 years) at Leicester Museum & Art Gallery in 2022. In addition, there are two fun thematic shows that I am currently making for the English Civic Museums Network for Japan in 2023 and 2024, one on the theme of Gods, Myths and Legends, and the other called Art to Enchant: Fairies, Magic and Spirits. Plus I continue working with my artists including Mario Testino and Sara Shamma, and I must not forget the two books that I’m supposedly writing – a new Anselm Kiefer publication, and that old bag Kate Bryan and I are hatching plans to publish something together, and we’ll drag Tai into it to, kicking and screaming no doubt!
What does the future hold for you professional and personally? Right now, with so much uncertainty in the world it is great to have the permanence of PAOTY and LAOTY confirmed going forward, knowing how much our artists take from it, especially PAOTW. I am also collaborating on another huge arts programme for SkyArts for next year but that will be behind the scenes as an advisor, which will make a very nice change. In my museum/gallery world I am busy preparing exhibitions. As they usually require planning years in advance, the pandemic has yet to have an impact on them but the museum and gallery world, culture in general, is sure to change beyond recognition over the next few years so it is going to be interesting to be part of that reinvention and development. I have shows booked for Dulwich Picture Gallery, where I last curated an exhibition on the 19th-century Norwegian
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F R A N K Issue 10 Oct - Nov 2020
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F R A N K
I N T E R V I E W
Venetia Berry
Artist paints the nude female figure through an abstracted lens, simplifying the form using pure line. She aims to reverse the male gaze, challenging the archetypical sexualised female nude.
Š Rob Wilson 2019.
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Hey Venetia, welcome to Frank! What does your day have in store for you? Hi! Thank you so much for having me. I am in the studio today. I woke up this morning and started my day with a little yoga and a meditation. This routine usually sets me off well! I then had some breakfast and headed to the studio, which is just a 15-minute walk from my flat in Brixton. I am going on a podcast tomorrow, hosted by Bay Garnett, so I have been doing some prep this morning for that. The podcast is all about celebrating second-hand and vintage clothing, it is only my second podcast, so I am looking forward to that. This afternoon I plan on getting some painting done. Every day varies really, according to my to-do list and what I need to get done first! This evening I am meeting with my book club in Peckham, it is my choice for the next book and I am deciding between ‘Rainbow Milk’ by Paul Mendez and ‘More Than a Woman’ by Caitlin Moran.
Does having all these other interests help your work and if so in what ways? I think having a few interests definitely helps my work, I have slowly started to notice different aspects of my personality coming in to it too. For example, I feel like I am always searching for tranquility as a very anxious person, (hence the yoga and meditation) and I have recently began to channel this tranquility into my work, creating paintings with a calming nature to them.
Sometimes it becomes clear to me what I should be painting about, and it is always something pretty closely related to me. It is great to have that penny dropping moment!
When did you realise you had the creative ‘gene’ ? I have always been creative, I was definitely a very imaginative child, but it wasn’t necessarily always my dream to be an artist growing up. I always loved drawing though! When I was doing my A Levels I became really keen on art and spent the majority of my time in the art block, I was encouraged to get an academic degree, before going down the art route, and got a place at Bristol University to read Politics. The summer before I started I did a course out in Florence at Charles H Cecil Studios and I just completely fell head over heels in love with it all. I met lots of students out in Florence who studied at Leith School of Art in Edinburgh. When I returned from the course in Florence I called Leith School of Art and they had miraculously had a cancellation that day. I went through the interview process and started up in Edinburgh the week after! My parents were and continue to be incredibly supportive of me and my work. I am also incredibly grateful to my cousin, Alex Eagle who let me exhibit in her Store free of charge for my first two solo exhibitions in 2017. I have numerous members of family and friends who have been there for every event; everyone is supportive in their own way really.
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“It feels particularly important to me to paint the female nude as a female artist. Male artists have been painting the female nude for centuries, and it is about time there is another perspective, that understands women, as opposed to glorifying and idealising them.�
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We love your work. How did you come to nudes and what has kept you exploring them further?
you need to make things happen? Do you listen to music ?
Thank you! Throughout art school I concentrated mainly on portraiture, taking on portrait commissions outside of this. I found it really constricting constantly striving for the precise look of a certain person, especially during commissions. After Leith School of Art I came back to London, where I am from, and studied for a year at the Royal Drawing School. This is where things really changed for me, as we went back to basics within drawing, with the aim to discover what we were all truly interested in. I began etching, where for the first time in years I was asked to draw something from my imagination. Throughout art school I had always been drawing from something. I have always loved life drawing so I began to draw models from memory. These became slowly a lot more abstracted, becoming the work I do now. I feel it is so important to truly know your subject. As a woman, this is my only experience. It feels particularly important to me to paint the female nude as a female artist. Male artists have been painting the female nude for centuries, and it is about time there is another perspective, that understands women, as opposed to glorifying and idealising them.
I like to have lots of visually stimulating things around me, images of works of other artists I love on the walls, and also lots of my own work – the walls can be a great storage space! I love to have lots of books I can flick through too. (Although sometimes my phone is more of the distraction!) I usually begin the day listening to BBC Radio 4. I go in phases with what I like to listen to. I do listen to music on Spotify, but I really love Podcasts and Audible too. When I really need to concentrate silence works pretty well too. Not a very clear answer, but one consistency is that I always light a candle after lunch for the afternoon. My favourite weather to work in is a wintery day, pouring with rain outside, with a cup of tea and a candle burning.
What is your favourite nude in art history and why?
Which other artists influence you, if any? So many! At the moment I am feeling really inspired by Agnes Martin and Helen Frankenthaler. I also absolutely love Matisse, Jenny Saville, Jessalyn Brooks, Rose Electra Harris, Lynette Yiadom- Boakye, Egon Schiele, Tschabalala Self, Yayoi Kusama, Picasso, Lee Krasner, Alma Thomas, Hockney, Anni Albers, Miro, Huguette Caland, Barbara Hepworth... and lots more.
Ooh great question.I think it has got to be one of Jenny Saville’s – so delicious you could almost eat the paint!
What other female artists do you champion and why?
What inspires you to start a painting and how does the form come to you ?
There are so many incredibly talented artists out there at the moment. I love the work of Emily Ponsonby, we met for the first time out in Florence and then I joined her at Leith School or Art. We were then both on the same course at the Royal Drawing School, so we have really been through it all together which is quite mad! She is insanely talented and has had numerous sell out shows. Check her out @emilyponsonbyart
I take most of my inspiration from other artist’s work. I love discovering new artists and feeling the inspiration seep into my bones. It may be a colour combination that I see, or a certain line that kicks of the thinking towards a new work. I try not to draw too much before starting on the canvas. I like to keep the image in my head. Once it is down on paper as a sketch, I always feel like I am trying to emulate that carefree first line of the sketch and spend too much time worrying over it. I love the instinctual nature of painting, so I try to let that control me. I also always pre-make a whole load of canvasses, so I am not worrying too much about the exact proportions being perfect within the composition. I love to invite this element of chance in my work, something that is out of my hands in some way.
Tell us about your workspace. What elements do
What have been your professional highs so far? My exhibition ‘Stretch Marks’ back in 2018 was a real high. It was exactly what I had hoped for and more. I have also recently collaborated with Bias Editions and Partnership Editions to create a 100% silk slip dress which is made sustainably in small runs within a family run atelier. It has been really wonderful to see my designs come to life on the dress, wearable art! You can check it out on www.partnershipeditions.com
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“I take most of my inspiration from other artist’s work. I love discovering new artists and feeling the inspiration seep into my bones. It may be a colour combination that I see, or a certain line that kicks of the thinking towards a new work.” What have you got coming up for you? I was meant to have a solo exhibition in May, which for obvious reasons was postponed, so I am hoping to show next April. I am really looking forward to getting this collection together over the coming months.
@venetiaberry www.venetiaberry.com www.thefrankmagazine.com
F R A N K
I N T E R V I E W
Hilary Boyd Hilary Boyd is a Welsh-born British novelist. Her first novel, Thursdays in the Park, became an unexpected best seller. Her work, often dealing with the erotic lives of older people, has given rise to a new literary genre. Here she talks to FRANK about her new book The Lie , her writing and more.
Tell us about ‘The Lie” your latest book? The Lie is about a horrible secret coming to light in a long marriage. I’m fascinated by long marriages – having a 47year-old one of my own – and the way people compromise and survive them. You think you know someone totally, when you spend so many decades with them, but can you – should you, indeed - ever really know someone through and through? Romy and Michael think they do, then a letter arrives with a terrible accusation and everything falls apart. Romy tries to think the best of the man she’s loved her whole life. But can she? And what does she owe to Michael, when he suffers a serious stroke? Especially as she’s spotted a handsome widower in her village… With sexual abuse, the focus is – quite rightly - on the victims and perpetrators. But what about the fallout for the wider family and friends of someone accusing or accused? They tend to be forgotten, but they’re also victims, which is what The Lie is all about. www.thefrankmagazine.com
How do you realise stories? My stories are all about relationships. The ideas mostly come from something small – a friend’s chance remark, an emotional snippet, a dilemma I overhear on a train or read about in the paper. And I think, What on earth would I do in that situation? I build from there like a spider’s web. It’s a gradual thing, and it’s often months from hearing the idea to nailing it. I walk round the harbour near our house most days and as I walk I start slotting characters and locations into the jigsaw, until eventually I have an outline to commit to paper.
What is your process? Have you a pattern that works? I really love writing, so it’s no torture for me to settle down at my computer and work most days. I’m also quite disciplined by nature, which helps, I think. But I’m not someone who’s up at five or works through the night. I’m basically a nine-to-fiver. I write in the morning and then delete most of it in the afternoon! I don’t write longhand, which seems to disappoint some of my fans. My relationship with my desktop is one of pure love.
What was your journey to writing before being published? Oh my God, a very long one! I went to college in my thirties, and the profs said I ‘wrote well’ in my essays, although they weren’t always so taken with the content. I got into journalism, wrote some non-fiction books on healthrelated subjects, and all the while was penning my first novel on the side. Which was not published. Neither was the next or the next… although I did eventually get an agent. Anyway, I kept at it, because, as I said, I love to write. And eventually, about fifteen years later, by some miracle I hit the jackpot.
How do you think that first published book suddenly found a market and caught the eye of the publisher? There was such a huge hole in the market for older romantic heroines. Once a woman got past 60 she was relegated to the granny/ annoying-ageing-parent figure in novels. All the romantic leads, the sexy heroines were in their twenties or thirties. So my generation of women – those stroppy baby-boomers – received my book with glad cries. Finally, a woman, Jeannie, in her 60s who actually fell in love and had sex – shock, horror, Granny’s behaving badly! My publisher, Quercus, was brave, though. Five years earlier and I don’t think they’d have taken the chance on me.
“Everyone kept asking if George – the dull, controlling husband in Thursdays in the Park – was based on my husband, Don, which used to upset him no end. And they would wink, wink, at the fact that my heroine met someone in the park and had an affair. Oddly people often say, ‘I know who that is’, when that person has never entered my head. And others, who do feature, don’t recognise themselves – phew!”
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“I love to hang out with family and close friends. Although I’m not very sociable otherwise. Entertaining winds me up, I worry about what I’m going to cook/wear/talk about for weeks in advance.” What kept you ploughing away? I suppose I always hoped. I think unpublished writers need to think the next one will be The One. And it wasn’t a hardship telling the stories and enjoying the ride as I hoped. I did cry a lot when I got the latest rejection. But only for a few days. Then another idea would spring to mind and I’d be off again.
You are seemingly now in a flow, does it get easier? Oh, yes. I don’t think I had a clue how I wrote Thursdays In The Park. So the second was more tricky as I tried to work out how I did it. But with good editors helping me out – rewriting being vital - I began to learn what works and what doesn’t, and to fine tune my work. I hope I’m improving as a writer as I go along. I’m a bit scared I’ll run out of ideas one day – although earwigging on a few train journeys should sort that out. Mobiles are such a boon if you want to overhear a stranger’s life saga.
For anybody thinking of picking up the pen (no matter what age) what advice would you give? Read a lot. Read everything. Then just write and write and write. It doesn’t have to be a complete book – that’s so daunting. Start with small stories, or just a character outline. Put in what colour nail polish she wears – or doesn’t – the first impression she gives when she walks into a room, what sort of coffee she drinks. Make it as detailed as possible. And find out if you actually like the process of writing. If you do, then never give up! Age is a boon, not a barrier, you’ve got a lifetime of experiences to draw on.
What are your hobbies? How do you relax? I don’t really have hobbies. Unless you call reading a hobby. I do read a lot. I walk and sea swim when it’s hot enough. I watch dramas on Netflix with a nice glass of something. I love to hang out with family and close friends. Although I’m not very sociable otherwise. Entertaining winds me up, I worry about what I’m going to cook/wear/talk about for weeks in advance. I’m missing cinema and theatre, can’t wait to sit in an auditorium, lights going down, popcorn in hand… without a mask.
Your daughter Clare Boyd is also a writer and your husband Don has a novel under his belt. How much have you influenced them in terms of your self discipline and the support you have given? It’s great because we all support each other. I would never have written my first novel without Don’s encouragement - we air each other’s plot problems and character glitches all the time. And Clare and I have endless discussions – to a lot of bored eyerolling from the grandchildren – about the progress of our books. I’m so proud of her career. She’s the person who reads my first draft, to make sure I’m not making a complete fool of myself before my editor sees it. Writing can be pretty isolating, I’m lucky to have people in the family with whom I can share the characters going round and round in my head - and their heads, too.
“I hope I’m improving as a writer as I go along. I’m a bit scared I’ll run out of ideas one day – although earwigging on a few train journeys should sort that out. Mobiles are such a boon if you want to overhear a stranger’s life saga.”
www.thefrankmagazine.com
A lot of artists and writers survived lockdown due to their already existing solitary work life. Was it a manageable situation, apart from the obvious worry? Yes, I think most writers were pretty well positioned for lockdown. We have to spend huge amounts of time on our own - shut out the world - if we’re ever going to get tens of thousands of words down on paper successfully. My routine didn’t change that much – apart from, as you say, the overarching worry about what is going on out there. And it was something of a relief not to have all the usual social commitments interrupting the writing week!
heroine met someone in the park and had an affair. Oddly people often say, ‘I know who that is’, when that person has never entered my head. And others, who do feature, don’t recognise themselves – phew! My characters – as with all writers, I imagine - are composites, bits of people I meet, expressions they have, nervous ticks, noses, walks. But my poor husband comes in for a lot of ribaldry about the various male characters in my books.
I have been wondering about story tellers, writers, filmmakers etc and how they will respond to the Covid-19 situation in their future projects. Will we have more period stuff and pre covid scenarios or will we be seeing Do friends or family ask if they have inspired and reading our reality? What are your any of your characters or is there an unsaid thoughts on this at large and for you rule to not go there? personally? Good question. Everyone kept asking if George – the dull, controlling husband in Thursdays in the Park – was based on my husband, Don, which used to upset him no end.
And they would wink, wink, at the fact that my
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This is the 64,000 dollar question. Everyone is talking about it and I’m not sure anyone has the answer. I can’t decide whether readers will be so sick of Covid-19 by next year that a book focusing on it will turn them off in droves. Or if they’ll be gripped by it. But the virus is a fact of life now and will have to be a backdrop, at least, to future novels. I started writing my next book back in June, and I’ve set it pre-virus, because we don’t know how Covid will pan out – what the world will look like by January 2021. I’m sure a lot of writers and artists have already penned stuff about being in the thick of it. But I’m so heartily sick of hearing the words lockdown, social distancing, quarantine, track and trace etc, that I think I’ll steer as clear as possible.
“I really love writing, so it’s no torture for me to settle down at my computer and work most days. I’m also quite disciplined by nature, which helps, I think. But I’m not someone who’s up at five or works through the night. I’m basically a nine-to-fiver.”
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H E A L T H
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W E L L N E S S
Dr Caitlin Scott at the Menopause Clinic The Mews Practice
Dr Caitlin Scott is a qualified GP from Cape Town, South Africa. After graduating from The University of Cape Town she gained over four year’s experience in hospital and private general practice. This is where her passion for women’s health developed. Her experience as a doctor and a mother of two has been invaluable in understanding the demands of women and their need for good health. Since moving to the UK and working at The Iron Clinic, she has established a wealth of experience in intravenous iron therapy to patients of all ages. She has grown her experience of women’s health promotion through running courses to help new mums navigate their own physical, emotional and social transition into motherhood. The program includes recovering physically from pregnancy and child birth, post natal depression, understanding your changed relationship with your partner and coping with returning to work. Her interest in women’s health spans all age groups and she hopes to extend her health promotion through to include understanding your menstrual cycle and menopause. Dr Caitlin Scott currently manages inquiries into intravenous iron therapy at The Iron Clinic and forms part of the consulting team at the Harley Street clinic. She is also participating in a number of research projects looking into the symptoms of anaemia and iron deficiency. www.thefrankmagazine.com
Where does your passion for women’s health come from? It started in a tiny contraceptive clinic room in South Africa. I was struck by the number of women that were ushered in and out, in a robotic manner, without any control or participation in the decisions that were made about their reproductive health. I became passionate about educating women about their bodies. About their menstrual cycle and about fertility. I felt that in empowering women with information about the way that their body works, that they would then be in a far better position to understand why they felt the way that they did and why that changed through the weeks of each monthly cycle. The mood changes, breast changes and changes in the consistency of the cervical fluid. As women, our body gives us physical signs of how it is coping. As my experience in women's health increased, I wanted to gain a deeper understanding of all stages of a women's life and help women to navigate all of those changes as comfortably as possible.
What is it about this field that excites you? I was feeling frustrated at not being able to help and support women who were essentially trying really hard and still feeling sub optimal. Medicine teaches us how to manage disease and disorder but has little space for optimising wellbeing and how to recognise and manage the symptoms linked to hormonal and nutritional imbalance. After spending some time in The Mews Practice and consulting with patients already under the Bio Identical Hormone service, I realised how content, well and fulfilled their lives were. I wanted to learn all that I could about it and to be able to offer that contentment to my patients. The more I learnt about hormones, the more I began to appreciate how beautifully our body works and how important it is for it to remain in balance. It is not about the individual hormones but rather about how they are working in relation to one another. Hormonal depletion in both men and women can start as early as 30 and is linked to the effects of ageing both internally and externally It is also about understanding the signs and signals that our body gives us when it is out of balance.
Menopause must be a fascinating area as although there are of course common themes everyone’s experience is different ?
It is fascinating to walk a path with a patient because each
patient is different. Each of the hormones tend to show certain signs when they are out of balance but the combination or pattern can be very different in each patient. This is why The Mews started the Bio Identical Hormone service with an hour long initial consultation. We create this background picture to get as best an understanding of the impact of the symptoms as possible and then match that up to the blood test results to know what needs balancing. We need to sift out all of the ways in which the body has responded to hormones from puberty, contraceptives, periods, pregnancy and as the levels of hormones begin to decrease. The Mews are unusual in that we approach hormones in a holistic manner. In addition to bringing balance to hormones we like to extend that into all aspects of health, thereby treating the whole person. There is greater benefit to the patient when the hormones are in perspective of overall health, as all factors can contribute towards how someone is feeling. The hour initial consultation followed by ongoing follow ups allows the clinician to get an understanding of the symptoms that patient is experiencing and will play a large part in the treatment offered. Bio-identical hormones are compounded and can therefore be prescribed taking all factors such as the general health, symptoms and the results from the blood test into account.
What sort of treatments do you offer ? The Mews offer a Bio Identical Hormone service that looks to balance out the hormones according to the symptoms and blood results at the time of the consultation. By Bio Identical we are referring to creams, lozenges or tablets that contain a bespoke prescription for the hormones that are deficient in your body. Those hormones are prescribed in the same shape and form that your body makes them so that they function in the same way that your body intends them to. The service is an ongoing journey that starts with an initial consultation, blood tests and a pelvic ultrasound and includes regular follow ups with blood tests to review the progress. It is a supported journey that we walk with you. We explore extraneous factors such as adrenal stress and vitamin depletion which may impact on the balance of the hormones and address these so as to maximise the benefit from a holistic service which gives the best possible outcome for a patient.
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What sets the clinic apart from other menopause clinics? At The Mews Practice, it is all about the patient. I am encouraged to give each patient the time that they need and I have, at my fingertips, all of the treatments and support to make them feel better. We walk the path with the patient and support them each step of the way. The Mews also works as an integrated team so that each patient benefits from the expertise of all of the staff. The time and attention that I am encouraged to give to each patient is unique and speaks straight to the heart of the way in which I have always wanted to practice medicine. The Mews can also fill in the gaps with nutritional therapy which can often bring great benefit to patients. We know that stress reactions can disrupt hormones and we can address root causes as well as the consequences.
What is their/your ethos in tackling the issues around menopause? The Mews ethos is to treat an individual and have a comprehensive focus. We take the time to get to know the patient and to try to understand the impact of the symptoms on their quality of life. We then apply the interpretation of the blood results to what we have understood as the troubling symptoms, to compile a bespoke management plan to balance the hormones and treat the symptoms. Each consultation is unique and is what the patient requires.
What are the most common questions and complaints about peri-menopause/menopause? The majority of women come in to see us because they are feeling low - low in energy, low in mood and low in libido. There are many different causes of these symptoms and it is, therefore, important to exclude nutritional deficiencies that may be contributing. The biggest complaints are that health professionals pass off these symptoms as being 'in their head'. Most women feel that they are not being heard and that their concerns are not being addressed.
It’s really only in the last few years that the very natural stage of a woman’s life is getting ‘air time’ Why has it almost been a taboo subject until recently? I think that it is similar to many other female topics. Periods, post partum issues, pre-menstrual tension,
Endometriosis, Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and sexual wellbeing were notoriously poorly managed. I think that women need not feel that they should hide the physical and emotional effects of hormones and are becoming more bold in sharing their experiences. What so many have discovered is that they are not alone in their suffering. What is more, is that they do not have to suffer and that there is something that can be done to soften the transition.
What is your advice to women when they start to feel differently? I tell each of my patients that they know themselves the best. They know what their normal feels like and the way that they normally respond to stress and pressure. That means that they are in the best position to know when something is not right. Go in to your doctor and tell them what you are feeling that is out of keeping with how you usually feel. Ask them to check your bloods for nutritional deficiencies, organ dysfunction and hormonal imbalance. Ask them for a copy of your results. If you don't feel that you have been heard then ask for a second opinion. The common symptoms that women describe are low or reactive mood, anxiety, headaches, bloating, low libido, fatigue, low energy, hair loss or reduced hair quality and breast tenderness.
If you are seemingly sailing through the menopause, manageable hot flushes, not having a rollercoaster of emotions etc should you still be tested for hormonal imbalances and should you still tackle that? Many symptoms develop gradually over time and we often only recognise them once they have become severe enough to impact our quality of life.. Modern life often becomes a reason for the symptoms e.g. working hard, young families etc .Women therefore tend not to seek help and get used to a new normal rather than aspire to optimum wellbeing. Practising health optimisation means that we take the time to look for those minor first glimpses, recognise them and address them to maintain health and wellbeing. Whilst treating symptoms for patients is important, the ethos at The Mews is to empower women to have the tools to live more full lives and feel the very best without accepting a mediocre existence as normal. www.themewspractice.com
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NEVER MISS AN ISSUE
FRANK M A G A Z I N E
''Frank is for women who want to be informed, inspired, amused, look good and be healthy.'' thefrankmagazine www.thefrankmagazine.com
H E A L T H
&
W E L L N E S S
A new advanced approach to ageing Sara Palmer Hussey The Cambridge-educated PhD and research scientist has always been intrigued and inspired by the body’s ability to heal, beyond traditional understanding. When she started to notice her own energy levels waning in her midthirties, along with her first few wrinkles and a weakened immune system, she set out to find a legitimate solution to help other people going through the same thing. Fascinated by the human body and the role nutrition plays in health, Sara created a range of supplements that carefully support existing body functions and deliver multiple benefits using the most effective ingredients that nature has to offer.
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When did your interest in skincare first begin? It was born out of frustration at not being able to find simple, effective skincare. Every skincare proposition involved a 7-step routine and was specific to a particular skin concern. I wanted to use just 2 products to cover all my skincare needs. I set out to create a cleanser that could double as a mask, removed make-up and gently exfoliated all in one. It had to be 100% natural and contain potent botanicals to nourish the skin. I also wanted an oil that was 100% natural and packed with potent botanicals to nourish the skin. Well-nourished skin is healthy skin and so rather than addressing specific skin problems (too dry, too oily, redness, etc), by supporting the skin’s optimum health, these imbalances disappear.
What inspired you to launch Lumity? I wanted to offer effective products that delivered tangible results and not just empty promises. My approach of supporting the body’s health with targeted nutrition was yielding great results for me in terms of higher energy, a stronger immune system, clearer skin, better hormonal balance and better sleep, so I wanted to offer these results to others through my products.
What is the mission of the brand? The brand is focused on healthy ageing. Our products are targeted at supporting the body’s best health through the years. A strong immune system, high energy, strength and endurance and great skin, hair and nails all contribute to living our best life whatever our age.
“The brand is focused on healthy ageing. Our products are targeted at supporting the body’s best health through the years. A strong immune system, high energy, strength and endurance and great skin, hair and nails all contribute to living our best life whatever our age.” www.thefrankmagazine.com
“I am inspired by anyone who has achieved something notable in their lives, who has overcome adversity and still contributed significantly to others. I am inspired by my daughter to be a better example to her. She motivates me to make better choices.”
What makes Lumity different from other supplement brands?
My perspective in formulation is different from other brands I see on the market. Most anti-ageing brands identify free radicals as the enemy and the principal cause of ageing and so are largely just mega-doses of antioxidants. Ageing is the accumulation of damage and What does your daily supplement routine look inefficiencies in the body that depends upon multiple, interdependent causes. The body itself has a balanced like? solution to these causes and Lumity products seek to support what the body does to help it overcome Lumity morning capsules with breakfast and Lumity inefficiencies and repair damage so that it can perpetuate night capsules before bed. optimum health through the years.
What's your everyday beauty routine (skin + makeup)? It’s very simple. I just use Lumity cleanser and oil. If I have time in the evening, I leave the cleanser on as a mask, then I wash off and massage in some Lumity Facial Oil. My skin feels better than ever on this pared down routine. I’m no good at applying make-up so generally I don’t wear it, but, when I do, it just involves a little eyeliner and mascara.
How should someone who's totally new to supplements find the right match for them? I would identify any issues (low energy, hormonal issues, sleep, gut health, etc.) or any potential deficiencies and target those with a high-quality supplement. Lumity is the right supplement for anyone who is starting to experience signs of ageing, feeling less than their best and struggling to feel on top of their days. It delivers vitality, strength and balance, so that you can feel and look your best every day.
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Your favourite Lumity product and why?
Who or what inspires you?
I don’t have a favourite, they’re all absolutely essential. The supplements, the cleanser and the oil are my health and beauty go-to kit. I depend on all three to look and feel my best.
I am inspired by anyone who has achieved something notable in their lives, who has overcome adversity and still contributed significantly to others. I am inspired by my daughter to be a better example to her. She motivates me to make better choices.
Any advice for sticking to your supplement regimen? Make it a habit – if you take your supplements at the same time every day, make sure they’re in a handy, visible place so that you don’t forget. I keep the morning capsules in the kitchen by the breakfast things and the evening capsules on my night stand.
What is your greatest passion? My greatest passion is sharing what I have learnt with others whether through new products or research. I am fascinated with the subject of health and all that contributes to sustaining health through the years.
What does beauty mean to you? What is a day in your life like? It’s basically all work. I sit down at my desk before 8am and keep going until lunchtime. After lunch, it’s the same until around 4/5pm, at which time I stop, do some exercise, have dinner, watch some tv or read. I also usually take a long walk by the sea or in the woods either before I start work or in the evening.
For me, beauty is what radiates out from a person. Someone can be physically beautiful, but if that external beauty is not matched by inner substance then it can soon seem ugly, whereas someone can lack all the physical attributes we associate with beauty, but the depth of their warmth, compassion, generosity, integrity and humour render them beautiful.
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F R A N K
H O R M O N E S
Oestrogen Matters: How to make it work for you
W
By Emma Bardwell Registered nutritionist and health writer
hile it’s true that all hormones play an integral role in women’s health, oestrogen (in particular, oestradiol) is perhaps the biggest hitter. Often referred to as the master regulator, it’s best known for its role in reproductive health but actually impacts every single cell in the body, including those in the brain, heart, muscles, gastrointestinal tract and skin. Oestrogen can make you feel energetic and vibrant; it maintains healthy hair, skin and libido, plays a role in controlling insulin sensitivity and immunity, and helps you feel mentally on top of your game. Picture your hormones as a chemical symphony that control vital bodily functions such as metabolism, heart rate, sleep cycle, hunger, reproduction, growth and movement. Throughout the day these hormones fluctuate in rhythms; when all are in tune you have a tremendous sense of wellbeing, but when one is off-key it can trigger a cascade of bum notes, resulting in you feeling flat and out of sorts. We’ll talk about low levels of oestrogen later, but it’s important to recognise that high levels can be negative too, impacting certain conditions like fibroids and endometriosis. If you suspect your oestrogen is dominant, keep a diary of symptoms, track your cycle using an app like Clue and take your findings to your GP. Due to our menstrual cycle, we have more hormones than men and feel their influence more readily - including, unfortunately, when they go off-piste. This is perhaps one of the reasons women are twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with anxiety, three times more likely to suffer from an autoimmune condition and four times as likely to get migraines. We’re also more at risk of strokes, osteoporosis and dementia. The common denominator in all this? Menopause, the lifestage when oestrogen dramatically drops.
So what can we do to help bolster oestrogen levels? The short answer is: HRT. Body identical hormone replacement therapy is the first line treatment for many perimenopause conditions - from hot flushes and anxiety to bone health and palpitations, but whether or not you go down the pharmaceutical route there are a wealth of powerful nutrition and lifestyle options to embrace. Here I look at some of the ways in which oestrogen affects the body and what you can do to counteract the side effects when levels dip during perimenopause
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Brain health Oestrogen and the brain aren’t two separate entities, they’re closely connected and in constant communication. There’s a common misconception that hot flushes, anxiety and night sweats stem from the ovaries, in reality it’s the brain adjusting to fluctuating hormone changes. Oestrogen energises neurons and fires up the brain, without it brain cells don’t get stimulated, leading to conditions like brain fog, memory issues and lack of concentration. Without wishing to sound alarmist, two out of every three Alzheimer’s sufferers are female and dementia is the number one killer of women in the UK. Neuroscientist Lisa Mosconi argues in her book The XX Brain that Alzheimer’s actually starts manifesting in midlife, but the symptoms don’t show up until much later - somewhere around our seventies or eighties. The take home message: we need to look after our brains.
People often talk about nuts and seeds containing omega 3. While this is true, the form they contain is a short chain fatty acid - called alpha linolenic acid or ALA -which needs to be converted before it can used effectively by your body. This translation isn’t very efficient and up to 75% gets lost in the process, so while foods like walnuts, chia seeds, flax and hemp are good sources of vitamin E and fibre, they’re not great sources of omega 3.
Heart of the matter After menopause, heart disease rates in women escalate, partly due to low oestrogen, which helps to maintain healthy levels of cholesterol in the blood. Oestrogen has the additional benefit of making blood vessels and arteries malleable, allowing them to accommodate more blood flow. This is possibly why many perimenopausal women suffer palpitations and high blood pressure.
Eat your heart out
The power of fats Your brain is 60% fat, so it makes sense to include plenty of healthy fats in our diet. Interestingly, many studies link the long chain fatty acids, EPA and DHA - both derived from omega 3 - with improved mental health. In fact, in one randomised double blind controlled study 1000mg of EPA was shown to be as effective at controlling depression as fluoxetine (a well known antidepressant). DHA , on the other hand, is important for the actual structure of brain cells - ie it lets the good stuff in and keeps the potential pathogens out - and it also helps the way cells function and signal to each other. keeps the potential pathogens out - and it also helps the way cells function and signal to each other. Low levels have been linked to memory problems and research points towards an association between robust levels of DHA and a lower risk of developing age-related dementia. DHA is also important for serotonin production, our happy neurotransmitter, something we want as much of as possible during times of hormonal unrest! So where do you get Omega 3 from? The best source is oily fish: salmon, sardines, mackerel, pilchards, herring, kippers, anchovies and whitebait. The recommendation is two servings a week, but if you don’t like the taste of fish you can supplement with fish oil capsules (most are completely tasteless) such as Bare Biology. Vegetarians and vegans might want to go for an algae based supplement.
Reduce saturated fats by cutting down on red meat and butter and incorporating more unsaturated fats into your diet like oily fish, olive oil, avocados, nuts and seeds. Fibre is crucial for heart health so make sure you’re getting plenty of fruit, veg, wholegrains and pulses like lentils, beans and chickpeas throughout the day. Be mindful of your salt intake, the upper limit is 6g or one teaspoon a day and it’s mostly found in shop bought, processed foods. According to the British Dietetic Association, plant oestrogens (also known as phytoestrogens) can have a mild oestrogenic effect in some women so can help with certain perimenopause symptoms, in particular hot flushes. Aim for a couple of portions a day from soy products, linseeds, flax, chickpeas and edamame beans. These foods have the added benefit of being heart-friendly so it’s even more worthwhile seeking them out and including them in your diet. Be aware that it can take a few months to see a difference and they seem to work better for some women than others, possibly due to differences in the gut microbiome.
“Oestrogen can make you feel energetic and vibrant; it maintains healthy hair, skin and libido, plays a role in controlling insulin sensitivity and immunity, and helps you feel mentally on top of your game.”
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Skinside out Loss of oestrogen during our forties can accelerate age related changes in the skin. The thickness of both the epidermis and dermis is reduced and collagen and elastin levels decrease. Collagen provides structure to our skin think of it as scaffolding - and declining levels mean skin looks visibly less firm and lines, wrinkles and sagginess start to become noticeable. Studies have reported a rather jaw dropping loss of up to 30% of our skin’s collagen content within the first five years after menopause, which continues to decrease yearly by 2%. You may notice that it isn’t just the skin on your face that becomes drier, if you’re peri or postmenopausal, vaginal dryness, dry eyes and stiff, tight joints are also common laments.
Skinfluential foods Stay well hydrated and fill up on plenty of antioxidantrich fruits and vegetables: think fresh, colourful and, ideally, seasonal produce. There seems to be emerging evidence linking a number of skin related issues with the gut, which is another reason to #eattherainbow and while probiotic supplements aren’t necessary for everyone, you can make sure you’re getting your fix of good bacteria through fermented foods such as kefir, sauerkraut, miso and kimchi. Healthy fats are your skin’s best buddies, so make room on your plate for things like mackerel, salmon, avocados, extra virgin olive oil, walnuts and flaxseeds. Refined carbs that are high in sugar have been shown to damage skin through a natural process called glycation. The sugar in your bloodstream attaches to proteins to produce harmful free radicals called advanced glycation end products (AGEs). As AGEs accumulate, they damage the proteins around them so enjoy them in moderation and consider checking out the research on omega 7 (sea buckthorn oil) which has been shown to alleviate dryness (particularly vaginal dryness), reduce inflammation and promote elasticity, although it should be noted that the sample sizes in human studies to date been small.
our fifties one in three women suffers from osteoporosis. According to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) around 10 million people in England may have low vitamin D status potentially leading to higher incidence of health and osteoporotic problems. People with darker skin are particularly at risk and during winter months and an estimated 75% of adults from Asian or African and Caribbean backgrounds may not be reaching optimal levels.
Prevention is better than cure It’s never too early to start a bone-friendly diet and lifestyle, in fact the foundations for good bone health are laid down in your late twenties. This is one reason why we must educate our children on the importance of eating and exercising right. Vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, vitamin C and weight bearing exercise are all prerequisite when it comes to maintaining strong bones for life. Make sure you’re reaching your calcium targets: 700mg if you’re under 50 and 1200mg if you’re over. Take a vitamin D3 supplement throughout the winter months as food sources are not reliable - at least 10mcg daily is recommended but if you’re unsure get your levels checked by your GP. Additionally, try incorporating a couple of strength training or weight bearing sessions into your weekly fitness regime - skipping, walking, running, dancing and trampolining all count, swimming and cycling don’t. Good calcium sources include dairy, fortified plant milks (check labels especially on organic products), calcium set tofu, sardines, broccoli, nuts, sesame seeds and lightly steamed green leafy veg.
Them bones Oestrogen is bone protective, with high levels helping to keep bones strong and resilient. Oestrogen influences how the body uses calcium and is crucial in helping to repair damage and rebuild bone, so it’s not surprising that after www.thefrankmagazine.com
Weight up
Stress tips
Oestrogen is what gives us our feminine curves; it shapes our breasts, buttocks and thighs. When levels peter out, we notice a redistribution of fat around our mid-section. This is down to many things but a significant factor is that as ovaries produce less oestrogen, fat cells start to take up the slack, producing small amounts of the allimportant hormone to try and make up the deficit. The reason it’s so much harder to shift belly fat in our forties is that your body is hanging on dearly to every last bit of oestrogen it can get.
A well balanced, nutritious diet is important for good hair days and, as an added bonus, your nails will benefit too. My main piece of advice when it comes to avoiding hair loss is to steer clear of rapid weight loss. One of the biggest culprits for thinning hair that I see in my clinic are faddy diets which eliminate whole food groups, often reducing energy intake - and therefore micronutrients - to such a degree that it manifests some four months down the line as telogen effluvium (hair shedding). Hair is mainly protein so make sure you’re getting enough from good sources spread out through the day (around 1.2g 1.5g per kg of bodyweight depending on lifestyle requirements). Complex carbs are needed for scalp health and healthy fats can help to keep hair in follicle longer (the telogen stage). In terms of supplements, the most commonly cited is biotin (B7) which is effective but only if you’re deficient. Other measures to consider are getting your thyroid and stored iron (ferritin) levels investigated and, if you’re vegetarian or vegan, definitely invest in a B12 supplement, whether you’re experiencing hair loss or not.
Sleep on it Sleep isn’t the first thing you necessarily think of when it comes to weight management but it plays an integral role. A night of tossing and turning can play havoc with your ghrelin (hunger hormone) and leptin (satiety hormone) with poor sleep resulting in you feeling hungrier than usual but finding it takes more food than usual to make you feel full. Research suggests we eat an average of 400 extra calories when we’re tired. The added kicker is that being fatigued often means we reach for quick-fix, refined carbs which aren’t always nutrient dense. Night sweats can interfere with sleep patterns so try to avoid drinking alcohol or caffeine too close to bed time and note if hot, spicy foods mess with your body temperature control. Silk pillowcases, cotton bed clothes, cooling gel pads and sipping ice cold water or sage tea can all help you keep cool in the bedroom. Hair today, gone tomorrow It’s completely normal to lose 50-100 hairs every day but many women (up to 40%) will find they notice hair thinning around perimenopause. This can be massively stressful in what is often already a bewildering time of life and can add to a woman’s sense of identity loss. It seems that, just like the rest of the body, hair is subject to ageing. Oestrogen is thought to support hair growth, so during menopause there is often a marked shrinkage in hair follicles. Ageing means hair also becomes finer and the total number of hair follicles is reduced - this can happen not just on the scalp but on the body too. Other causes include: genetics, traction alopecia (from tightly pulled back hairstyles), alopecia areata, PCOS, certain auto immune conditions like lupus, chronic stress, shock and certain medications such as SSRIs and blood pressure treatments.
Take home messages:
* Think about a vitamin D supplement if you’re not already taking one * Strength training is vital for muscle and bone health * Seek out good sources of omega 3 * Avoid faddy, crash diets * You don’t need to be vegan but aim for a plant focused diet * Fibre is important for heart, gut and hormone health: 30g a day * Prioritise sleep for your mind, body and weight management * Don’t be afraid of fats: your hormones and your brain are made from them Emma Bardwell is a registered nutritionist and health writer with clinics in London and online. Always seek the opinion of a health professional before embarking on a new healthcare and lifestyle regime, including starting new supplements. www.emmabardwell.com Instagram @emma.bardwell
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R A D I A N T
H E A L T H
Dr Louise Wiseman
Louise is a former NHS GP, now medical writer, editor and author of her first book ‘Your Best Life – A Doctor’s Secret Guide To Radiant Health Over 40’. She worked with specialists on the frontline of all aspects of medicine to present a motivating book about what real women can do at home to optimise health, happiness and potentially live longer with a wealth of easy lifestyle tips.Dr Louise Wiseman MBBS BSc(Hons) DRCOG MRCGP www.thefrankmagazine.com
What made you write this book? I felt there was a real need for a straightforward but ‘future-proof’ guide to health for real women. There is a massive sea of info out there and I wanted to strip it back. My friends constantly ask me everything about ageing. I think real women over 40 see through fads, diet shakes and miracle cures – they need up to the minute, cutting edge information for women from solid medical resources to make them think differently about their bodies. It’s all about control and being passionate about feeling great. If you know why things work, you are more likely to make that change and exercise, eat well and so on. Women don’t want to be preached to, they want to live their lives and they have so much to deal with. They need motivation, fun and reality – I write from experience and some of it is gritty.
book, I then interview 45 fabulous prolific women over 40 from around the world (including you of course!) about their life, their confidence and health, how they look after themselves – everything really!
Why did you leave the NHS?
I was 38 when I had severe pneumonia in hospital, with very low oxygen. I recovered after a week of treatment and some months at home but that brush with my own mortality shook me. I found it excruciating to leave my children in the morning when I went back to my beloved work as a GP partner. With my husband’s amazing support I left the NHS after 15 years to write a medical thriller! It was tough leaving my patients – many of whom I still wonder about. That novel was half finished when the concept for this book emerged and took over my life! I am currently pondering my next career move – the How is it different to other books out there? NHS is all I have known, loved and respected and the pull to go back is immense. I do however feel such passion to It starts with my own brush with mortality when I connect women together and I need to explore where this caught pneumonia out of the blue and how it changed my new writing career takes me - I love nothing more than way of thinking about health. Medical training teaches us talking to a huge group of women in a hall about health to ‘treat illness’ but actually what about also taking a and lifestyle whether they are 90 or 40! step back and preventing it? Educating ourselves to know signs of disease but also to nurture our bodies – even the parts we can’t see and feel. “I wanted to look at how to boost I wanted to look at how to boost happiness for real – what makes us calm and happy despite the immense happiness for real – what makes us calm stress we might be under. and happy despite the immense stress we I wanted to look at menopause and real women’s experience - how lifestyle might affect their transition might be under. through that time. I think that begins many years before I wanted to look at menopause and real the final menstrual cycle. I wanted to look at natural beauty. Ingredients in women’s experience - how lifestyle might products that have mega strong evidence and why they affect their transition through that time. work. I am not opposed to interventional stuff - it just isn’t my expertise – I wanted to look at how you can I think that begins many years before the change your skin from what you eat, put on it, how you final menstrual cycle.” protect it. Not a fast fix but actually a fairly speedy one! I worked on all areas of health with some amazing specialists – I learned so much! After the top to toe health guide that is two thirds of the www.thefrankmagazine.com
knowledge? What can the model teach the oncologist? What does the fashion professor know that could help the self-care expert? The interest is in the diversity and you will find all these women in my book. That ‘Real Housewife’ you see on a TV franchise is running a rocking business and has a highly academic career – did you realise that when you saw the glam? Every woman has immense depth and we should have confidence to share our unique knowledge. I am proud to be female and love glamour and beauty, but I believe raw health and happiness are integral parts of the mix. You can’t just paste over cracks, you have to embrace life and get to the root of problems.
What do you think women need to know that they don’t already? That what they do now, can affect next month. How they eat, rest, exercise, think, meditate will affect the central working of their body for their next birthday, next decade. A lot of control is at our disposal but some of us Has the book changed you? chuck it away every day with bad habits. I have been When I came up with the idea, I had been a ‘stay at home there, done that and bought the t-shirt, I am not mum’ for a couple of years. I had left work to be with the virtuous – just a realist living her life! children but when they were at school, I looked at my How has writing this book surprised you? Have own identity. Being a doctor was a major part of it – more than I had admitted! I wanted to use all that you learned anything about yourself in this knowledge – my years as a GP (and before that an process? Anaesthetist). I had learned from my patients that people age very differently and I knew there were secrets The immense female support, the interest. The generosity which I had to unlock ‘for real’. of everyone who helped me. Those who let me look deep Without medicine I had lost a part of myself. I needed to build a medically related career that would work around family life and writing seemed the answer. I used my Consultant contacts from my work as a kickstart and everything snowballed on social media. I was suddenly working with women whom I would have admired from afar – different fields to mine – and they actually wanted to be interviewed and share their opinions. It became a massive project! I made some truly fabulous friendships and got to live out my dreams of brushing with the glamorous world of fashion and beauty, getting to question writers, scientists, gurus, media stars. Yet I was seeing the real women in it for what they were. Normal, hard-working, self-effacing women like me with their own dreams, worries and journeys. My confidence grew as I realised they were as fascinated by what I was doing as I was with them! It was the first time (other than my girlfriends cheering me on) that I felt the power of women together – it’s phenomenal. Why not pool resources and share all this
into their souls and answered my questions. I have learned I am stronger than I thought, have immense stamina to work longer desk hours than healthy - those following me on social media in 2019 know I spent 16 hours a day at my desk at the end! I feel totally fulfilled as a mother, but in those hours when the children have their own lives, I grasped at a new life and bloody well went for it.
“Without medicine I had lost a part of myself. I needed to build a medically related career that would work around family life and writing seemed the answer.”
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“It was the first time (other than my girlfriends cheering me on) that I felt the How do you feel about ageing generally? power of women together – it’s It’s a privilege denied to many. It’s weird that you gain just when you start to appreciate the things you phenomenal. Why not pool resources maturity may be losing!! and share all this knowledge? What can was a ‘skinny minny’ at school - after kids things went the model teach the oncologist? What does Iback pretty much to normal but over 45, for me, it’s the fashion professor know that could harder. The changes are real and most women I spoke to the same. You can ‘work it’ to overcome this, get help the self-care expert? The interest is said stronger, fitter and that’s what I have learned. Being in the diversity and you will find all aware of your bones and everything underneath is mega important – not just a fad. I love a woman who is these women in my book.” confident. You ask the women about confidence in their 20’s and now in the book - how about you?
You won’t often see me without my makeup but that makes me feel good - many women wow barefaced. Everyone is different -that’s what is so fabulous! As one of In my 20’s I qualified as a doctor and the hard work broke the women in my book said she ‘welcomes the day we can all sit on the beach and just know all our bodies are me in. I was determined, ambitious and learning on the beautiful for what they have achieved/facilitated/allowed job. It was an amazing time and a rollercoaster of us to do in this privileged life’ - just make sure it is your adrenaline. That was then replaced with experience and best one! job satisfaction. I was confident but always a perfectionist and highly critical. With age, comes a little Dr Louise Wiseman interviewed many incredible women more slack on the reins. I try to tell myself that I am from around the world so you can find out if anyone can enough, but I have proved there is always more to really ‘have it all’ in health and happiness and how research – to learn – to improve. Working for Netdoctor they do it. has thrilled me with the variety of topics I can work on. www.troubador.co.uk What I want women to see is that their life experience is valuable and a new start is possible at any age. Follow Louise on Instagram @drlouisewrites Twitter @drlouisewrites How do you feel about being over 40? I literally didn’t think twice at my 40th Birthday party – I was just thrilled to be alive. At 47, I just want to reach higher, emulate some of the fabulous women I have met in enthusiasm, love for the journey not just the end product.
You have interviewed some pretty high power women - did this intimidate you? I had preconceptions about some of the women but in a starstruck way! Everyone surprised me. The Dr in front of my name probably got me through the door, but those who were slightly wary soon saw I was not a predator; I was just a channel for them to tell their own story. They are the stars of the show for that part of the book. Every woman I interviewed fascinates me! www.drlouisewiseman.co.uk
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W E L L B E I N G
The Return to Origin (Embodiment and The Root Chakra)
By Michelle Adams BSc (Hons) MBAcC LicAc MSc Traditional Chinese and Five Element Acupuncturist, Nutritionist
T
he human body is a cavern of treasures, a container for ancient secrets, and expansive exploration...a return to origin and our individual fractals of divinity. We are often pulled from the soothing caress of the body into the harsh terrains of the mind. The mind contains all evidence of our domesticated living, including all of our insecurities. It can also be the very source of illness when manifesting the worry, grief and other emotions that carry strong tones on our emotional paint palette of life. These tones often do not complement our canvas of life, but rather muddy the beautiful piece of art that it deserves to be. We spend so much time trying to clear the mind that we still end up spending a majority of time inhabiting it, living above the shoulders. It can be akin to being on a subway at rush hour, with nowhere to sit and nowhere to turn, just the Photos eyesofanomad melange of energy all trying to reach a destination along the line. www.thefrankmagazine.com
Spending so much time sitting in the throne of the mind leaves little exploration of the body, or embodiment, to feel the body and receive the subtle whispers of its wisdom.
The Root Chakra is named M l dh ra in Sanskrit and is the first of our energy centres, forming the basis and starting point of our development in this realm.
There is often scarce amounts of time to return to the Soma (the human body, the senses, emotions and unconscious physiological responses). When we spend so much precious time out of the embodied wisdom of the Soma, we can find that we are slipping into a dance of repetitive chronic or acute emotional patterns. We can also bare witness to the manifestation of deficiency or fullness in the body leading to physical illness and weakness in the same way as our emotional states.
The potent life force energy of the Root Chakra begins at conception, continuing with life force energy and dividing the cells during embryogenesis. The spinal column begins to develop from the bottom (root chakra) moving up to (crown chakra), and then organs follow. It is this chakra that controls our animal nature and is governed by the predominant survival senses of smell and taste. This is also a manifestation of the Metal/ Earth Element within. This is our very primitive sensing of the world, our rooting. The M l dh ra is associated with the adrenal glands, colon, kidneys, skeleton/bones, muscles, and arterial blood that flows through the left chamber of the heart, carrying oxygen and nutrients to our body tissues.
Let’s view embodiment as the opportunity to fully inhabit ourselves in our physical matter, as well as our subtle bodies and energetic centres. Our energetic renters often get pushed by the wayside, as they can not be perceivably seen. However, they can be felt when brought into our awareness. They are not only a source of stagnation for our physical matter when deficient and contracted, but can cause a tornado of volatile emotion when not in their full integrity. Let’s explore one of these energy centres through the chakra systems. Let’s examine how to nourish it, and embody the frequency in order to bring us into wholeness and excellent holistic health.
The centre of focus here is the Root Chakra. Feeling into and nourishing this centre can help support a return to the body when we get pulled out of it by the scared geometry of life. Subtle energies flow in and out of us through the 7 chakras, also thought of as our psychic centres. The spine can be compared to a rolling steam and our chakras our liken to delicate blossoms unfurling from this stem and through the body. The digestion of our emotional and mental thought processes is inextricable linked to the flow of energy through these centres, as is our physical health.
The potent energies of the Root Chakra support and aid us in feeling grounded and connected deeply to the earth. If provides us with a place for our beautiful lives to take root and propel us forward and into our life’s journey.
“We are often pulled from the soothing caress of the body into the harsh terrains of the mind.”
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When these energies become blocked, stagnate or imbalanced, the very essence of our zest for life become compromised.
Here are some crystals that can be used in supporting root healing:
Black Tourmaline: grounding, protection, helps to clear An imbalance in this centre can manifest as a restlessness, and cleanse energy blockages and deep lethargy. These may begin to birth into your reality as anxiety, worry, panic and depression. Patterns Blood Stone: strength, removes energy blockages & of frustration and anger may arise, as well as a disconnect negativity from one’s own survival in the world. Being associated Garnet: increases energy, vitality and regeneration, with the adrenal glands, colon, kidneys, skeleton/bones, balances emotions, protects against stress muscles, and arterial blood, when a stagnation in this centre occurs, you may manifest physical pathology in Hematite: grounding, balance, protection, transforms these areas. An imbalanced root chakra can also cause a negative energies into positive vibrations, balances the weaker immune system, sexual dysfunction, and a meridians tendency to have cravings or addictions. When in alignment, this energy centre not only supports the health Obsidian: highly protective stone, absorbs negative of the life support systems above, but allows us to energy (make sure to cleanse often) increase a sense of deep belonging in the world. It accentuates our ability to stand in sovereignty and feel Red Calcite: reduces stress, soothes imbalances that cause secure in or actions and choices. In enabling this exhaustion and fatigue, grounds & strengthens life force sovereignty, self-worth also begins to flourish and expand. Red Carnelian: courage & strength, increases self-worth, clears & dispels negative energy, grounding There are many connections with creation that give opportunity to bring this centre back into integrity. Being associated with a rootedness to the earth, crystals and stones can be used to vibrate their frequency into the paradigm of this chakra, supporting homeostasis. These can be worn as jewellery, used in mediation, or simply kept in a pocket.
Red Jasper: security & balance, grounding, strength & vitality Smoky Quartz: grounding & stabilising, helps to overcome feelings of fear, depression & anger, helps release old wounds.
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“An imbalanced root chakra can also cause a weaker immune system, sexual dysfunction, and a tendency to have cravings or addictions. When in alignment, this energy centre not only supports the health of the life support systems above, but allows us to increase a sense of deep belonging in the world.� Utilising our senses as a direct portal to healing can also expand and strengthen our Root. The powerful healing capacity of our sense of smell allows us to invite the mighty wisdom of aromatherapy into the foundations of healing and supporting our root chakra. These can be used in a carrier oil to anoint the skin and also used in salt blends for a healing bath. Whether rolled on or vaporised into your home, the alchemy of bringing in the healing justice of aromatherapy is bound to unfurl your root chakra in gratitude.
Check out some vital, yet yummy options below:
banishes negativity and brings protection, perfect to use when feeling worn out, aids in memory, improves blood circulation Rosewood: natural antidepressant, improves alertness and blood circulation, aids in digestion Thyme: provides natural pain relief, inspires bravery and courage, helps with respiratory irritation, boosts immune system Vetiver: tranquil, grounding, helps to calm and stabilise, helps to bring awareness
White Fir: alleviates pain in sore muscles and joints, Cedarwood: helps with connection and loneliness, helps to energies the body and mind, helps with respiratory calm and relax, natural decongestant, grounding earthy function, brings feelings of stability, energy and aroma empowerment, helps to stimulate mind while relaxing the body Clove: joy, prosperity, abundance, treats digestive and respiratory problems, energising, fights bacteria and Ylang Ylang: soothes fearfulness, evokes optimism and fungus cheerfulness, lessons tension and stress, helps to balance Cypress: creates emotional balance, helps with feelings of anxiousness, aids in calm feelings while also energising
hormones.
Frankincense: helps treat depression and anxiety, provides tranquil, calming and spiritual grounding, helps deepen meditation and calm the mind, immune and respiratory support Ginger: stimulates circulation, helps digestion, antinausea, used for natural pain relief Myrrh: brings focus, harmony and aides in cleanliness, relieves stress, provides relief for upper respiratory infections, helps to relax and sooth sore muscles Patchouli: grounding, stabilising, inspires self-confidence and love for your body Rosemary: aids in transitions and with adjusting,
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“Fruits and vegetables that are red in colour help the nourishing of the root chakra in many wonderful ways. The root chakra is red, and fascinatingly, eating red coloured produce can help regulate the root chakra.”
Food is the most intimate form of fuel for our human form. All the food we consume into our vessel is of great matter because it holds a vibration that has an influence on the energy centres within our physical and emotional bodies. The root chakra is strengthened by tribe. Finding pleasure and enjoyments in expanding in a relaxing meal with friends and family can have a profound and almost alchemical effect on the process of our healing. Also, finding the intention of gratitude in every mouthful of food we ingest is a great way to connect deep into the magic of the root chakra. Protein has a grounding effect and strengthens the physical body: Lentils, tofu, black beans, quinoa, amaranth, soy milk, green peas, hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, tempeh, hemp milk, edamame, spinach, black-eyed peas, broccoli, almonds, spirulina, tahini, chickpeas, and peanut butter are all excellent sources of vegan proteins. The root chakra’s element is Earth/Metal, so a mineral-rich diet supports the creation of stability.
Fruits and vegetables that are red in colour help the nourishing of the root chakra in many wonderful ways. The root chakra is red, and fascinatingly, eating red coloured produce can help regulate the root chakra. Most red fruits and vegetables are a good source of Vitamin C. The root chakra being connected to bone, skin, and the adrenals all need Vitamin C to thrive. Red apples, strawberries, pomegranates, cherries, tomatoes, red cabbage and beets, are just a few of earths harvests that help expand our frequencies. Root vegetables are a vital resource because they are grown in Earth’s soil and contain the grounding and stabilising energy of Earth. Potatoes, beets, carrots, onions, garlic, and parsnips all have a positive effect on the root chakra.
In order to know and appreciate where we venture in life, we must first know where we came from. Returning to the body and rooting deep in the mystery of our unconditional connection with creation, and as part of it, can help elevate some of the stress of the brain game that is life, and create a foundation for a healthy holistic life.
michelle@thecloudgate.co.uk
www.thecloudgate.co.uk The Cloud Gate, The Woods Studios, Unit 15-24 Botanic Square, London City Island, London, E14 0LH
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F R A N K
F I T N E S S
Are you ready to feel epic? Caroline Girvan
is a mother to two young children and a Certified Personal Trainer based in Northern Ireland. She has many years experience in health & fitness helping a diverse range of people achieve their goals one on one in her small boutique studio, from running their first marathon to performing their first pull up! She has been sharing her at home workouts daily on YouTube since late April and has gained a global audience and community consisting of people using the challenges and workouts to help motivate and improve their level of fitness. Caroline shares HIIT every Sunday morning, a 1 hour full body workout every Friday and she mixes it up the rest of week from heavier dumbbell routines to plank challenges to all types of push ups!
arm burpees to intense ab & core routines! Though most of the workouts are focused on encouraging you to try new movements and holds that you normally might not consider or have seen before! Her passion for fitness being fun is evident. And the Community that is joining her in the workouts are 100% behind this ethos too!
“Muscle is more dense than fat, so you can look ‘leaner’ yet weigh heavier than someone who hasn’t gained muscle! Interestingly the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate and the more calories you burn resting!”
The workouts range from plank challenges performed at the end of her workouts everyday for a month, to single www.thefrankmagazine.com
What kick started your YouTube fitness videos? As a Personal Trainer, when the global pandemic occurred and could no longer train those in my gym, I decided to help where I could and record my at home workouts to send to clients, friends and family to provide some inspiration and ideas of how to train at home. I had an old YouTube log -in and uploaded there so it would be easily watched on their televisions.
However, with resistance training you are able to target specific areas, helping increase strength and overtime contributes to changes in the body’s overall composition but this is only one of the many benefits of resistance training.
Lifting weights and using bodyweight (full body and muscle group isolation exercises) as resistance all contribute to building strength and, when combined with a healthy nutritional intake and cardio, with dedication, I presumed this would be a short-term way to help those I consistency, training with intensity & focus, and of course patience, changes occur. These changes include knew, however gradually views climbed and today it is quite unbelievable that so many people are joining me for improvements in strength, posture, core strength, flexibility, endurance, body composition and a more these home workouts in my living room from every positive mental outlook. continent! It has been an honour to provide these workouts to such remarkable people all across the globe who just like me, put on their gym kit, roll out the mat and get ready to challenge their minds and bodies! They are all my real workouts so plenty of ups, downs & sweat! I am continuing to share my at home workouts for the same reason I decided to become a Personal Trainer in the first place…to help provide guidance and simple information as often people are bombarded with so many products, diets, quick fixes and ‘lose weight fast’ media that rarely is sustainable or effective long term. Also, there is unfortunately so much emphasis on aesthetics and the ‘current body shape’ rather than the powerful positive effect and benefits of exercise physically and mentally. I am a huge advocate for body weight training and combined with lifting weights, higher intensity sessions at least once per week, being more active aside from workout specific, attention on flexibility, mobility, and a balanced nutritional intake all contribute to an overall sustainable, enjoyable and fulfilling heathy lifestyle.
What is that your clients aged over 40 mostly come to you about in terms of their fitness in general and key areas they would like to tackle? Many people in general would like to become more active, improve their posture, feel strong or simply feel comfortable in their bodies, however, also have the goal of a certain physical appearance such as to reduce lower tummy fat, slimmer thighs, and tighten arms. It is important to know that you can’t spot reduce…moving more and/or changes to nutritional intake are important factors.
Cardio of course is different for everyone; it could be daily walking, long run on a Sunday, HIIT sessions or swimming. I know that focusing on your performance, improvements and progressions; whether it is performing your first full push up or running that first 5 km without stopping, is a much more positive and productive way to gauge progress and encourage consistency rather than scales for example. Muscle is more dense than fat, so you can look ‘leaner’ yet weigh heavier than someone who hasn’t gained muscle! Interestingly the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolic rate and the more calories you burn resting! Another important aspect which is sometimes overlooked is activity outside of specific workouts such as daily steps, gardening; how active are you over the course of a typical week. A strong tight core is so important in day to day life to help prevent injury, low back pain, improve posture, makes day to day tasks like lifting shopping easier and of course allows you to exercise better and safer. A major focus for me is to increase ones core strength and stability but this isn’t primarily through core specific movements. Single leg work, balancing and upper body dumbbell training are other fantastic ways to increase strength of core as a whole. On the following pages are 10 exercises I have chosen that are the staples in the routines I would focus on with anyone wanting to improve their fitness, become stronger and improve their training ability. Most of these are compound movements so you work multiple muscle groups at the same time, as well as involving your core to stabilise throughout.
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This is a full body workout. 1minute on each exercise. Repeat x 2 or x 3 sets. SQUAT The squat is definitely one of my favourites, both bodyweight and with dumbbells. It is extremely versatile targeting more quads or glutes with changes to foot position, location of dumbbell, pace, depth, staggered…. widely known exercise for its many benefits including strengthening of core, improves balance & mobility, helps prevents injuries when performed correctly, improves strength and helps build muscle in the lower body!
SINGLE ARM ROW
TIP: Sounds simple but keeping gaze forward and maintain open chest. CLOSE STANCE SQUAT CLOSE STANCE SQUAT Similar to the standard squat, however extra emphasis is on the quadricep muscles. Usually you are not able to go quite as low as a normal squat. Feet should be directly under the shoulders and knees inline with feet. TIP: Only lower to where you are able to maintain a flat back. LUNGE Lunges are absolutely one of my favourites…they are within all of my lower body days! Again, so versatile; curtsey, walking, static and you can even use a yoga block or chair to deepen the lunge to target more of the glutes! Another super core strengthener due to the balance aspect, builds muscle in the legs and opens up the hips. Lunges are a unilateral movement so helps with improving muscular imbalances. TIP: Ensure feet aren’t too far apart or too close; front knee should not come past front foot. Think about lowering your body ‘down, rather than ‘down and forwards’.
LUNGE
CHEST PRESS A favourite of mine for upper body day! Perfect for beginners to those advanced. Aside from being able to target different muscles in the upper body depending on hand/incline/decline position, chest press contributes to those push up advancements!
CHEST PRESS
TIP: Begin with a light weight. Palms facing towards feet. Slowly lower arms whilst inhaling so upper arms are perpendicular to torso. Keep wrists inline with forearms. Exhale and press to starting position. BODYWEIGHT DIPS This bodyweight exercise will target those triceps and is perfect to do at home as all you need is a stable chair!
BODYWEIGHT DIPS
TIP: Bend at knees and keep feet flat on floor. Over time to progress, simply move feet further away from chair. OVERHEAD PRESS Training your shoulders is really important if you want that overall definition in the upper back and targeting all angles of the shoulders is key. The overhead press is a compound movement so it will work the muscles in the shoulders, chest, upper back and those triceps! TIP: If performing standing, keep knees slightly bent and core tight. Keep looking straight ahead.
OVERHEAD PRESS
SINGLE ARM ROW Training back is not often high on women’s lists when they are wanting to improve body composition, however there are so many benefits that go beyond aesthetics such as improved posture.
SINGLE ARM ROW
In regards upper body definition, the back contains some of the largest muscles so strengthening will improve overall shape, plus a lot of arm work is performed within back movements so win win! TIP: Think about keeping chest open, shoulders back & down, shoulder blades together! As much work is performed in the lowering part of the movement as the lifting so control the pace.
PLANK
PLANK The notorious plank! Definitely a love / hate relationship for many but the advantages of holding the plank position and gaining duration overtime are substantial. TIP: Keep the legs tight by squeezing the quads but relax the shoulders away from the ears. Think about shoulder blades not too close, but not too far apart either‌and breathe! SIDE PLANK A simple hold to target more of the obliques, and core as a whole. This can be performed on the hand position or elbow.
SIDE PLANK
TIP: Try to keep shoulder away from ear and maintain hip height throughout. CRUNCH A crunch is often unfortunately performed incorrectly, and many feel more strain in the neck than in the upper abdominal muscles. TIP: Focus on lifting the head, neck and upper back as one and keeping gaze upwards and slightly in front. Lower slowly with control.
CRUNCH
Resistance training is perfect for at home training and if short of time. 20 minutes spent focusing on certain muscle groups combined with once per week full body and cardio is a great way to begin feeling stronger, energised and challenged! Overtime, progressive overloading meaning you may need to invest in heavier dumbbells! It is important to consult your doctor or health care professional before beginning any fitness program. www.carolinegirvan.com www.thefrankmagazine.com
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H E A L T H
C O A C H
What Lies Beneath By Sandie Fredriksson
Sandie Fredriksson is the creator of
Healthy Habits for Life. She teaches busy women how to lose weight, have more energy and put their health on autopilot.
F
rom medical-grade facials to body sculpting machines, there are plenty of shortcuts available to help us look younger and slimmer, but what’s going on under the surface? The desire to look younger than our years has never been stronger. Glowing skin, shiny hair, a lean and toned body: these are things that many of us strive for as we age. And just like the rest of the animal kingdom, we are biologically wired to see these visual markers as indicators of good health.
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We are also more time-poor than ever. As I moved into my forties, a sixty-hour work week, combined with the responsibilities of being a single mother, left me little time or energy for the gym or cooking from scratch. Calling for a restaurant table or ordering a takeaway had become an easy default habit. Thankfully, my city salary meant I could take full advantage of all the treatments cosmetic clinics had to offer. What started out as a little tweak here and there soon became an obsession with all the latest procedures on the market. Monthly hydrafacials, collagen-stimulating lasers and quarterly botox; it was like I had converted to a new religion. And as my wish list grew in line with advancements in technology, so did my laziness when it came to paying attention to my health. Grateful for the compliments I was getting, I embraced ‘forty is the new thirty’ as my new mantra. I felt invincible. But I couldn’t have been more wrong. I wasn’t ageing well at all - not on the inside anyway. At just 44, I was blindsided by a breast cancer diagnosis, which I am now certain was a lifestyle-related cancer. This was a wake-up call in the hardest of ways but in hindsight, I should have seen something coming. The mistake I made was prioritising the way I looked over the way I felt. I may have been able to spend my way to the exterior of a slim(ish) thirty-something, but a toxic lack of healthy behaviours meant that my body was functioning like someone far older than my chronological age. You might think your risk of disease is down to luck or genes, but it isn’t as straightforward as that. How you exercise, the food you eat, your quality of sleep and the way you handle stress; it all matters. There’s a lot you can do to change the way you feel and the way you look. The world of aesthetics is advancing at an exciting pace but so is the science of ageing and today we have the chance to make the most of both as we reinvent what it means to get older.
Joining the dots After breast cancer, there was no going back to my old lifestyle so I left my job in the city to study nutrition and become a health coach. Driven by a mission to help other women avoid making the same mistakes as I did, I also sought out cosmetic physicians who were not afraid to give their patients practical lifestyle advice. Leading body contouring specialist Dr Gaylna Selezneva is a pioneering industry voice when it comes to the beautywellness connection. Despite being on speed dial to a number of royals and top celebrities she does not shy away from encouraging her patients to get honest about how their lifestyle is impacting their health as well as their appearance. “This double-pronged approach to beauty should be industry standard,” insists Dr Galyna. “I want to achieve the best possible results for my patients so the everyday lifestyle choices they make; what they eat, how much water they drink, how they exercise… all need to go hand in hand with the work that I do.” Something we both see with our clients is a chronic under-consumption of water and yet staying hydrated is one of the most effective ways to uplevel your health and appearance, and for the least amount of effort. As soon as my clients get on board with the hydration target I set them, they are quick to report increased energy, reduced brain fog and weight loss as well as plumper skin and brighter eyes.
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The rise of the machines
why I use an in-depth set of blood tests with my clients, to create their personalised protocol. Getting this right not With Fat freezing (Coolsculpting) and muscle-toning only helps your body to function effectively but can also devices (EMSCULPT) giving impressive results with mean fewer wrinkles and a brighter complexion. There’s a little pain or downtime, it’s no surprise they might be reason vitamin C is one of the key ingredients found in so more appealing over getting up early to hit the gym in the many anti-ageing serums. morning. But at what cost? Whilst we’re admiring our reduced muffin tops or perkier bottoms, are we forgetting Your everyday habits matter the benefits we would get from the workouts that would have got us there naturally? Such as, lower risk of The combination of busy schedules and accessible and disease, stronger bones, healthy brain function and affordable cosmetic procedures can make it easy to give improved mobility, not to mention boosting your mood up on a holistic approach to beauty as you get older. It's and improving your sex drive. not a lack of education about the benefits of exercise or Don’t get me wrong, I’m a huge advocate of the increasingly advanced technology that cosmetic clinics have to offer. And I still rely on botox to keep my frown lines in check…which is not something I feel the need to stop just because my job title says ‘health coach’. But my experiences have taught me that any treatments I undergo need to be in addition to looking after myself from the inside - not instead of it.
what food is and isn’t good for you that drives people to the beauty counter or clinic instead of the gym or the fruit bowl. As humans, we tend to be attracted to the path of least resistance. The path that takes the least amount of time, the least amount of willpower, and will cause us the least amount of discomfort.
But our bodies are an interconnected system, and studies show that our appearance and our internal health are inextricably linked. The good news is that the smallest of “I am not interested in offering quick and easy fixes to behaviour changes can create powerful results and set you replace a healthy lifestyle,” agrees Dr Galyna. “I prefer to on a new wellness trajectory very quickly. And with a bit take a 360 approach and include the biggest beauty of research or with the help of a professional, making secret, which is the benefits of wellness from within.” better choices every day does not have to feel overwhelming. Deciding to tweak and treat their appearance is something many women find empowering and most of us Beauty from the inside out is one thing, but ageing well is simply want to look like healthier more rested versions of not just about appearance. If your goal is to look and feel ourselves. But how you eat, drink and think today will younger for longer and maximise your healthspan as well affect what you look and feel like tomorrow and investing as your lifespan, head to a trail-blazing new platform for in yourself with a personal trainer, dietician or a health women called The Beauty Triangle. The monthly events coach can be a valuable component for your own fulland podcast are an inspiring indication of how this circle strategy. landscape is changing.
Supplements, powders and potions The older you get, the more likely you are to be experiencing deficiencies in your body, no matter how healthy and balanced your diet, and if you are coveting a healthy glow, it requires paying attention to your wellbeing at a cellular level. Supplementing with vitamins, minerals, green powders, protein shakes and adaptogenic herbs as worthy components of any ageingwell strategy. This is not about wasting money on the latest detox tea (please don’t do that) or stockpiling expensive bottles of capsules you’ll forget to take - without the right guidance, that rabbit hole is a deep one! Instead, I recommend taking a more targeted approach which is
“You might think your risk of disease is down to luck or genes, but it isn’t as straightforward as that. How you exercise, the food you eat, your quality of sleep and the way you handle stress; it all matters. There’s a lot you can do to change the way you feel and the way you look.”
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“Our bodies are an interconnected system, and studies show that our appearance and our internal health are inextricably linked. The good news is that the smallest of behaviour changes can create powerful results and set you on a new wellness trajectory very quickly."
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H E A L T H
&
W E L L N E S S
Waking Up Well Create Your Own Morning Ritual, The Feminine Way
By Luisa Skinner ‘The Yoga PT’
H
ow are you feeling about 2020 so far? Heartbroken? Disappointed? Or hopeful for the future? There is a controversial yet large-scale train of thought that the unparalleled events of this year, although tragic and devastating for more people across the world than we can ever imagine, are birthing some necessary changes for humanity. One positive of this global evolution is rumoured to be a more ‘feminine way’ of living, regardless of gender. The masculine age has ruled for the past decades…think sharp suits, hustling, striving, treading on toes, winner-takes-all, who-dares-wins type attitudes. It’s been about boundless ambition, 16 hour working days, the hallowed yet condescending title of ‘boss babe’ and an utter hunger to be at the top of our game, regardless of the fallout. And yes, a sprinkling of this masculine way of living can be beneficial, desirable, essential even. We always need balance, after all. But too much of it, combined with all the other responsibilities we carry daily? Therein lies a recipe for burnout, chronic illness, physical exhaustion and emotional collapse.
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Turning the tide on the masculine way… Instead, the feminine way is soft. Not soft as in a pushover, but soft as in malleable, adaptable, flexible. When we live a more feminine nature we rise and fall, ebb and flow along with the infinite challenges that life throws at us. We know when it’s time to work, and when it’s time to play. When living in a feminine way, we intuitively know when and how to rest our bodies, minds and souls. We are completely attuned to our own needs, whilst always being attentive of the needs of others. But we tend to our own, first. Think of the adage of putting your own oxygen mask on before someone else’s in a aeroplane emergency. We’re needed, and so we must protect ourselves in order to safeguard our loved ones. As women, we are cyclical beings. Our energy levels, sex drive, sleep quality, moods, our skin, hair, nails, and weight are all compelled by our hormones. So, let’s embrace our cyclical nature. Let’s live in tune with it. Let’s rise up, stronger yet softer, embracing it. Empowering it.
Getting in-tune with the feminine lifestyle… Being in-tune with your feminine nature still means you can carry as much drive and ambition as your personality craves, but its execution may be less blunt. You’ll think about the bigger picture, always. You’ll establish strong boundaries between work time and play time. You’ll prioritise space in your schedule for romance, adventure, freedom. You’ll probably have some kind of creative desire – for writing, singing, dancing, art or craft. You may feel strongly allied to the seasons, so that in Spring and Summer your energy levels are high, you’re full of ideas and love to carry out plans, and in Autumn and Winter you long to retreat to your cosy nest, to be introspective and reflect on the year that has passed. Perhaps you have a feeling right now, as you read this, that there is a particular job or career that you were put on this earth to do? Maybe you’re not sure what ‘it’ is yet, but you know it’s so close you can almost reach out and touch it. Possibly this whisper from your soul is frustrating. If it is, and you’re feeling a pull to live a more feminine lifestyle, try some of my suggestions below, to get in touch with your intuition and discover the magic of a morning ritual.
Being in-tune with your feminine nature still means you can carry as much drive and ambition as your personality craves, but its execution may be less blunt.
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As women, we are cyclical beings. Our energy levels, sex drive, sleep quality, moods, our skin, hair, nails, and weight are all compelled by our hormones. So, let’s embrace our cyclical nature. Let’s live in tune with it. Let’s rise up, stronger yet softer, embracing it. Empowering it. So, how do you start your day the feminine way? Even if your heart doesn’t skip a beat at the sheer rapture of waking to a new day, by establishing a feminine, morning ritual…something to suit you and no one else, something crafted with love by you, to you, a gift from your soul to light up your mind and your body, something that you can stick to with ease and minimal effort…maybe, just maybe, you will have something wonderful to wake up for. And repeat..and repeat…and repeat. Every day. You see, it’s the ritual part of this that is where the magic lies. It’s the showing-up, day after day, that turns this from: “I might do yoga a couple of mornings a week, when I can fit it in” to “I dedicate 15 minutes of precious time to myself, every morning, so that I am ready to face my day and can help support others as a result”. And you may feel the universe is particularly partial to those who dedicate, consistently, too! Here are my tips for creating a feminine-inspired, morning ritual:
1. Start some kind of ‘spiritual’ practice.
This need not be even slightly ‘woo’ (unless you want it to be, of course!), the point is you show-up and keep showing-up, but you could pick any of the following tips:
•A short yoga, or fitness, or meditation workout – 15 minutes is fantastic •Going for a short walk, or a jog, outdoors, connecting with nature •Journaling your goals for the day, or thoughts from your dreams •Repeating positive affirmations & mantras •Rreading a chapter of a book you find inspiring •Picking an oracle card •Looking at your horoscopes •Self-Reiki or lying/sitting with your favourite crystals •Light sourcing •Prayer
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2. even more movement!
If your tip 1, above, didn’t include some physical movement, do that now. As a Personal Trainer and Yoga Teacher, and someone who works with those who suffer with circulatory conditions, we all must get moving as soon as we wake, as best possible. Think about the effect lying in bed for several hours, although incredibly restful and necessary, has on your muscles, your organs, your blood. How all liquids ‘pool’ towards your back, or side, or front, depending how you sleep. We need to make our bodies aware that we are now awake. This is also vital for establishing a fully-functioning circadian rhythm, ensuring our body knows when it’s your daytime, and when it’s your night time. Dance, flow, sweat, tap your toes to the radio in the kitchen, stretch and yawn and, above all else, enjoy being in your body. It’s your safe place.
3. nourish yourself well. How many times have you started your day with half a pack of biscuits and then felt utterly deflated by 9am? I am no longer on the ‘protein smoothie only’ train, but my breakfasts do tend to alternate between green smoothie, porridge, fresh fruit and greek yoghurt, or avocado on wholegrain toast. How is this made more accordant with the feminine way of living? Well, here’s the key this is not what I eat for breakfast because I feel I should. This is not because I am ‘watching my weight’. This is solely because these foods make me feel good, and I LOVE to feel good! Fluids too, choose carefully. My go-to for an early morning cuppa is pretty saintly, either hot water with lemon, or a green tea. It can be a great practice to take a glass of water to bed with you the night before too, if you’re planning on carrying out your yoga practice, or workout, as soon as you wake up. Take a few sips first. Let your body know it’s time to move.
The ritual part of this that is where the magic lies. It’s the showing-up, day after day, that turns this from: “I might do yoga a couple of mornings a week, when I can fit it in” to “I dedicate 15 minutes of precious time to myself, every morning, so that I am ready to face my day and can help support others as a result”.
And there you have it. The ways that I wake up, as a forty-something busy wife, mum and woman, every day that I am able to dedicate that time, just to me. It’s a gentle commitment. There is room for negotiation. Gone should be the masculine-inspired days of ‘beating yourself up’ with your workout 6 mornings a week. Because, do you know what? Your beautiful, feminine body will not thank you. Mediate the time your set aside each morning well with your partner and family. Well, but firmly. You deserve it. Instagram and Facebook: theyogapt Website: theyogapt.co.uk www.thefrankmagazine.com
L I F E
C O A C H
Autumn - the season of change
By Kate Tilston
Autumn, the season that teaches us change can be beautiful and that letting go of things creates space for change and new beginnings.
A
s we head towards Autumn, children start returning children to school, we’re getting back into a routine and we realise our next real break isn’t until Christmas – it’s easy to feel despondent or overwhelmed particularly in a year where we have been trying to cope as best we can with a global pandemic.
Personally, I usually LOVE September & October. For me it’s my New Year, a time when it’s much easier to choose some goals or intentions for the year ahead. I see it as a time to reevaluate. What have I achieved this year so far? What do I still want to do? But……how do I do that this year when a large percentage of it was in lockdown and the intentions I had set myself have been less easy to achieve, particularly anything related to travel or creative activities that involve groups of people such as theatre trips etc? Traditionally, this is a time in the coaching calendar when my clients often wish to “tweak” the plans they made earlier in the year. Maybe their original goals are now not such a priority? Maybe there have been events over the summer holidays that have created opportunities for change? They too are now coming to me trying to make sense of how to keep ploughing ahead, staying positive and feeling like they’ve achieved something? Often as human beings, we are frightened of change, scared of the unknown. We’d rather stay in our comfort zone than do something that shakes us up and at the moment the unknown feels even bigger than it ever has done before. When I work with clients who are wishing to make changes in their life, I am often aware that they start from a much bigger picture - they want to make BIG changes and then wonder why it seems so scary? When you are creating change, it is far more effective to start with baby steps, to make little manageable changes that you can actually achieve, that way, once you have seen some results, however small they seem to you it is much easier to create the momentum for greater change. Whilst we are adapting to “the new normal” we need to be kind to ourselves and look at ways we can move forward positively and productively and that too might need to be different from the way we have done it before with much smaller goals to start with. What do you want to achieve in this last quarter of the year? What changes need to happen in your life that you can realistically affect right now?
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“Whilst we are adapting to “the new normal” we need to be kind to ourselves and look at ways we can move forward positively and productively and that too might need to be different from the way we have done it before with much smaller goals to start with.”
For me, I’ve decided that I want to create as much positivity around this last quarter as I can and in order to do that, I need to re-connect with that feeling of hope! I have always been someone that is optimistic but also realistic, my glass is definitely half full if not totally full and I’m known by my friends for being hopeful about most things and situations. Definition of Hope: The feeling that what is wanted can be had or that the events will turn out for the best. Doesn’t that sound good? Recently I was lucky enough to read a preview of the book “How to be Hopeful” by Bernadette Russell. The book is a wonderful combination of interesting research, fabulous storytelling and inspiring ways to find hope and hold onto it. Bernadette has written this book during the pandemic when life has felt particularly grim, she talks about hope being “an endangered species” and her quest to find reasons to be hopeful. I found the book both inspiring and moving with some great exercises that make us think about where we are right now and how we can change our thought process or patterns of behaviour. This brought me back to my own goal of positivity and hope and how I was going to create these feelings and just as importantly, support my clients who also wanted to move forward but were struggling? How was I going to feel more hopeful? I openly & happily admit to using some of Bernadette’s exercises (Life Coaches also need inspiration), I loved her ‘Hope Collection” and “Wellness Toolbox” both of which allowed me to have some fun and be creative with my goals. Combined with some of my tried and tested coaching tools, I started to feel more hopeful and could feel the first little tendrils of change, I had taken the first baby steps. So, what would you like to change? Is it something physical? Is it something emotional? Are you feeling like me, that you need to re-adjust your thoughts to cope with this new normal?
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“A vision board is a great way to create an actual physical reminder of what you’re wishing to change or invite into your life. It’s easy to do. Collect together pictures, words, colours, photos, anything that resonates with you right now. .”
My Suggestions: Firstly, get out the notebook, the new coloured pens (you’re allowed a new pencil case & pens in September) and plan, jot down any ideas down that come to mind. This can be in the form of bullet points or random thoughts jotted on a sheet of paper or even just words like “hope” or “energy” “health” or “fun.” The words and the bullet points give us a starting place, we can then look at how we create an action for that word. Maybe you want to find ways to have more fun this winter – what can you do to make that happen? Next to the word, write down what you’d like from that word i.e. Healthy – to feel healthier in the run up until Christmas. Action – to cut down on glasses of wine, plan meals better. Keep it simple and realistic. If it’s a larger goal and something you’ve been meaning to change for a long time and you feel it’s realistic to change it now, how can you break it down into more manageable chunks? Maybe mind map it out? Setting out the different elements of the goal so that you can tackle a little bit at a time... A vision board is a great way to create an actual physical reminder of what you’re wishing to change or invite into your life. It’s easy to do. Collect together pictures, words, colours, photos, anything that resonates with you right now. Try not to think too hard about the pictures you’re choosing, you’ll usually find they’re things that you want to attract into your life without even realising.
Stick them all on a large sheet of paper, it can be as creative as you want, or it can just be as random as you feel. Once you’ve stuck everything down, take a step back and look to see if there is a theme? Sometimes it’s very obvious that you are looking to change a certain area in your life and the board is a helpful reminder. Other times, you have made a conscious decision to choose certain things and that too is helpful as when you look at it, it will remind you to keep focused.
The important thing is to set some realistic goals, you don’t have to change everything at once. We are still learning to cope with a whole new way of navigating our lives and inevitably there will be some curveballs so being kind to ourselves, and NOT setting ourselves up to fail is particularly important right now. We all need to feel hopeful about our future. Baby steps. Hopeful steps.
How to be Hopeful: Your Toolkit to Rediscover Hope and Help Create a Kinder World by Bernadette Russell is out now (Elliott & Thompson, £12.99)
Kate Tilston Practical Life Coaching www.katetilston.co.uk kate@katetilston.co.uk
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M I N D F U L
M E D I T A T I O N
Resilience In Challenging Times A guided meditation Switch on your imagination through this empowering, restorative and spirit-lifting mindful meditation from Michelle Langer. A mental reset to help tap into and build your strength, resilience and positivity in these challenging times. No experience needed. Just click the link for a free download of meditation app Insight Timer and it will connect you to Michelle’s 10 minute guided meditation ‘Resilience in Challenging Times’ A calming journey with nature visualisation to restore balance and groundedness through present moment awareness.
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By Michelle Langer Certified Wellbeing Instructor
F
ollow the script below to practise a meditation that taps into and expands your inner strength or listen to the guided version on Insight Timer app. growing. Slowly but surely. Feeling your own roots in your feet on the ground. Feeling your own stability from 'Follow this link for free app and your head on your neck and shoulders, down your arms, Resilience meditation’ your branches. Awareness of sensations in your ribcage or Find a place where you can sit comfortably with your back trunk, your abdomen, the control of your spine, stability in your pelvis. Noting feelings in your thighs and legs down supported and be undisturbed for a few minutes. When you have found this space allow your eyes to close or your to your feet, retuning once again to your roots. The rhythm of your breath is all that moves you. gaze to lower to beyond the tip of your nose. This is your time to practise some self-care, to remind yourself of your Whatever challenge you face, whatever knocks you endure, you have a grounded core. Whilst thoughts allow inner strength, to water it like a seed and encourage it to us to time travel through memories of the past or fears of grow and expand during these challenging times. the future, focusing on the body grounds us in the present Adjust your position so you’re sitting upright like a tree. Bring your awareness to the sensations of your breath, and moment where stress rarely exists. Right here, right now. the gentle movement it creates in your body. No control, There may be times of darkness, of light, of heaviness, wind, sun and rain but like the tree you can rest on your just letting it be, one breath at a time, moment by stability, foundation and your core to keep you upright. moment. To weather the storm and allow you to see beyond it. To Notice sensations in the parts of your body that have contact with your chair. Your seat, your back. Feel your witness the clearing of the clouds ahead. feet planted on the floor like the roots of a tree and Now come back to your seat, the core of your stability supported by the ground beneath you. together with the grounding from your feet, rooted in the ground. Feeling sensations in your spine, upright, proud, Feel that sense of connection and rootedness. Now picture a tree in your mind. An old oak tree with deep resilient. Coming back to the breath and the natural movement in your belly. The rise and fall with this breath roots and solid branches. Watch its leaves whispering in in and this breath out. Coming back to this moment. the breeze whilst the trunk, the foundation is solid and Before leaving this place of strength, resting on two quotes unwavering. Notice all the features of the trunk, the pattern and texture of the bark, grown thick and indented from beacons of resilience. over many years. Nelson Mandela said “Don’t judge me by my success, but Whatever force of nature it faces, the oak tree holds still by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” and proud. And it grows according to nature. Branches And from Maya Angelou “I can be changed by what that reach for the sun, leaning away from the wind. The happens to me but I refuse to be reduced by it.” leaves that grow towards the light. Now share that Now we’re going to take 3 deep breaths through our nose feeling of stillness and composure. Feel your own body sitting upright, rooted, feel your own strength grounded in and hold them at the top before releasing anything that’s holding us back. Breathing in now and pushing that new this moment. breath all the way down to the belly. Holding the breath. Now imagine a setting for your tree. Does it stand on its own or within a forest of other species, plants and wildlife? And let go. Pushing out every last drop. Again, inhaling deeply feeling expansion of the whole body down to the Is there a sunset projecting shadows or cascading light beams through the gaps in the foliage?Wherever it stands, abdomen. Pause. Release. One final long breath in. your tree is the tallest, the grandest, stronger in every way Notice that moment of stillness at the top. And exhale. than the rest. More established. Now imagine you are the Now breath naturally and slowly in your own time open tree, with a perspective over everything that surrounds it. your eyes. Know that you can return to this place of strength and groundedness whenever you need it. Rooted and continually www.thefrankmagazine.com
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W H A T
T O
What Read to Buy
And be Inspired by
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S H O P P I N G
Why Not Try...?
By Sam Baines
The Oak Tree These beautiful wood products are made from sustainable solid oak and can be personalised and engraved with your own slogan. From gin and tonic chopping boards, to pet bowls, swings and wellington boot stands these gorgeous wooden gifts are made with love and make the perfect home gift. Handmade in Leicestershire by Charlotte Clemons and her team, this is an independent British brand who say they do a little happy dance every time they get an order! Let's get them happy dancing all day long.
Personalise it to suit the recipient. It is sure to be admired for many years to
www.fromtheoaktree.co.uk
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Pieces Puzzle Puzzling has become the new 'in' hobby and what a lovely pastime it is too. If you want to slow down and have some puzzle time but are bored of piecing together landscapes and cartoon images then we have the answer. Their puzzles arrive in a fairtrade cotton draw-string bag, no bulky boxes in sight and as a brand they promote puzzling as a mindfulness exercise to combat stress and anxiety which sounds good to us. www.piecesofthepuzzle.co.uk
These jigsaws are made sustainably and plastic free in the UK and their collaborations with artists mean that you are piecing together a work of art in your spare time and you can even frame it when you are done!
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Olive & Betty When a brand calls their leopard print pattern 'neutral' we are already in love. These beautiful designs are digitally printed onto 100% cotton and hand sewn creating beautiful reusable napkins for your dinner table. Named after two incredible Grandma's Olive and Betty this stunning tableware brand is soon to expand to tea towels, oven gloves and more so jump on board now. www.oliveandbetty.co.uk
Because leopard is a neutral and you can never have too much of it in your home!
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Tap into colour If home renovation is keeping you going during this time then Dowsing and Reynolds can help add those finishing touches to your living space. Their colour pop bathroom taps are all over instagram and who doesn't want a pink tap for their bathroom? Luxurious quirky fittings can really spice up any space and with gold light switch fittings, stunning bubble chandeliers and snazzy taps, this Leeds based company should be your first point of call. www.dowsingandreynolds.com
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F R A N K
I N T E R I O R S
Home is where the Art is
Five Top Tips For Buying Art
I
’ve always loved curating wall art for my home. My first full on gallery wall was 12 years ago at our home in Caversham - I pulled together a selection of old family photographs, picked up a load of black frames from Wilkos and covered the wall from top to bottom. It ticked the boxes on many levels - it was a focal point for the room, it was interesting to look at, it was full of memories, plus (bonus points) it was economical to create. Spurred on by the success of my endeavours, I covered an entire wall in the kids playroom with colour photographs, stuck on with copious amounts of Blu-Tack. Looked great up, not quite so great when I removed it all and was left with a wall of oil marks. My next move? A white walled staircase gallery wall which teamed nicely alongside two storeys of Tree wallpaper from Cole & Son. Gosh, I loved that wallpaper and still do.
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By Interior Designer Lisa Dawson
Fast forward a decade and I’m still obsessed with decorating my walls. It’s part of my core style - every so often I’ll try something new but I’ll always return to the impact of art to make the rooms in my home my own. I never, ever get bored of looking at art. One of my best ever days was spent with my friend Sam walking around the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) in New York, a place that is an absolute must see if you are visiting the City. It’s stocked full of the most amazing pieces - an entire room of Claude Monet Waterlillies, Van Gogh Starry Nights so close that you can almost touch it. Literally amazeballs. Unfortunately, my family don’t feel the same way about the joy of art and would rather cut off their own heads than spend the day walking around the Tate Modern, a fact that never fails to infuriate me. Godammit. A few years ago, my husband bought me a Benjamin Murphy print as a birthday present and from that point on, I’ve started to really look at what I like art wise and why I like it. As a result, over the past couple of years, I’ve started spending a little bit more on art - not huge amounts, often no more than the price of a night out, but enough to make me feel as if it’s an investment. It’s MASSIVE fun. Instagram is stuffed full of artists and online galleries and it’s easy to fall down a rabbit hole and come out the other side with a PayPal confirmation e mail. Online galleries such as Nelly Duff, Print Club London and Jealous Gallery are a brilliant source of inspiration, particularly at the moment when it’s not always easy to hit the streets. My local art gallery in York is called The Art Of Protest – centrally located on the buzzy Walmgate stretch filled with cool bars and restaurants, it’s a hub of talent and owned by Craig Humble. I asked art expert Craig to give me his top five tips when it comes to investing in art that you truly love.
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1
Always buy what you love.
2
Start small.
3
Show your support.
Are you immediately drawn to it? Does it sing to you? If you get your art purchase right, then you will have it forever and the value of the item, whether it be in the tens, hundreds or thousands, will be paid back in pleasure. If it doesn’t strike a cord, it’s not for you.
Smaller art fairs are an excellent route. Without the overheads, there is often amazing art at a fraction of the price of a city or town gallery. Sometimes there’s a fee to enter these fairs, but this is also a location to find emerging artists who are yet to be represented so you are an early patron buying before values have been market tested. Or take a look at degree shows at Universities with established fine art courses.
Find the art you love then support it like you might a football team or your favourite band as a teenager. The value of art is built through the love of its collector base; support the creators you love. Instagram is a great place to start to find new and upcoming artists.
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4
Check out the galleries.
5
Think about the big picture. Literally.
An independent dealer in an open source gallery is going to be giving you a curation and quality assurance service so although you may have to pay a little more, they are doing a lot of the leg work for you. Popping into galleries socially to chat about what is on the walls is a good way to start.
Consider how much you spend on Sky, Amazon or Netflix, then try and remember what you watched on them three years ago. Then compare that with your relationship with a piece of art that has been in your home for a similar period of time. It’s a no brainer.
Art Of Protest Gallery, 11 Walmgate, York YO1 9TX: 01904 659008 www.artofprotestgallery.com
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F R A N K
M O T O R I N G
A love affair
The restoration of Big Red
by Photojournalist Lara Platman
T
ravelling at 55 mph down a hill is quite a thrill these days, especially as I am now driving Big Red, my 1964 Series IIA Land Rover. Three years ago, I completed an extensive nut and bolt restoration taking one year and nine months, the same time as an elephant takes to give birth I believe. She doesn’t feel like an elephant though, although she has remembered quite a considerable amount of her interesting reactions and noises as she trundles along. Big Red as you may have noticed, is indeed now Mid Grey, a fact that after many sleepless nights I came to decide upon to be her new and actual original factory colour. I purchased her as Red… well almost, and slightly mouldy green, albeit with these fascinating colours on her body. I fell instantly in love with her in the rain and in the dark one cold winters evening and ordered a pick-up truck to bring her home, only to discover that although she was straight and her engine was in good order, she wasn’t quite red and her chassis was two inches longer on the right side than the left. Oh and it was missing rather a lot of reinforcement material – such as most of the actual chassis unfortunately. However, with a change of a clutch master cylinder and a simple service, she passed her MOT within a week, and we set off for our love affair, the first stop being Goodwood Revival. Shabby chic I liked to call her as we parked up next to the Bentleys and Aston Martins outside Goodwood House after the now infamous Revival cricket match. I had given Jochen Mass, a lift from the cricket pitch to the house, and when I mentioned that my car had a horrific rattle underneath the seat box, the ex-Formula 1 driver replied, “Well when the rattle stops then you have a problem.” Another admirer commented on how relaxed she looked parked up next to a Pre-War Bentley, which I suppose was a kind reminder that I had ought to run over and turn her wheels or put her brakes on (more) as she was rolling into over a million pounds worth of his metal.
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money, whilst applying some Botox on her 52 years of metalwork. Bring Big Red back to life you can probably tell that I have already humanised her, well having discovered how incontinent she is, how reluctant to obey orders, such as stop at T junctions or please let me have some dry ankles once in a while, I decided she would either appreciate the transformation or be just as obstreperous on completion.
Luckily I live in the next village to Adrian Wynn, an independent Land Rover and vintage vehicle specialist, and deciding that I wanted to do most of the work myself, or at least as much as I possibly could, he devised a scenario where I could work at his garage and be his apprentice (albeit rather annoying and rather slow).
The question of ‘for what purpose is this restoration about?’ in the sense of a quick restoration and sell on (bearing in mind no restorations are quick), a car to use (as she was at the moment), or a concourse specimen that would shine for fields and fields with not a backfiring piston in the wind (again doubtful both on money and my patience). I had decided I would want to use her, and to keep the restoration cheap and short (both of these words to be ignored as soon as they are read). I had aimed for the next Goodwood Revival meeting to be her debut (another sentence to ignore). We replaced the crabbing chassis and put on new brake pipes and simply put the body back on as there was nothing really that wrong with it. Oh, except the hideous cut out wheel arches, the paint colour and the rotten bulkhead, and the Tropical roof that insisted on dripping water into my neck and cuffs at any given moment. Did I mention the passenger door that preferred to swing open at roundabouts rather than when stationary with a person accompanying the door handle? Not much else really.
The actual moment came on the decision to either restore or adore her was when I took a visit to Islay in Scotland where, I had met Andrew and Kathy Wills (granddaughter to Spencer Wilks, the designer of the first production Land Rover back in 1948) at their distillery in Kilchoman, proudly driving around in some very shiny Series I and II vehicles, all driving straight and not crabbing (as Big Red was so fond of), with one colour of paint rather than patches and brakes that would stop. It was time to put Big Red into a program of love and
“I rented a garage, booked off two weeks in the spring and began work on Big Red.”
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Whilst the body was off, here was the decision, do I use this chance to repaint her? Well how hard can it be? Time. That is how hard it is. Pure and simple. Time. Well, patience and time. Adrian had a good (“it’s too good for your car” he kept telling me) rear tub lying around to which I quickly adopted, stripped and began to prepare for a prime coat of paint.
across the garage floor and I wonder if my decision to restore was too difficult – purely on a timed basis.
The bulkhead was to be my Achilles heel, standing triumphantly in the garage, covered with tarpaulin, I was petrified to uncover this beast, the brain of the car and the piece of body that needed the most work. Last to come off and first to go on, so oughtn’t I to deal with this in the first instance? I often uncovered and covered the plastic to This older tub was green so my decision to repaint was made and the sleepless nights of worry of Red or Mid Grey reveal the devastation of footwell in disbelief (from the began. A professional car body painter would be doing my endless amounts of brake and clutch fluid pouring all over it). It looked a nightmare. Finally I asked Adrian to help priming and top coats of two-pack, whilst I would be doing all the body preparation. I rented a garage, booked me get the thing ready for a paint. off two weeks in the spring and began work on Big Red. I arranged to deliver to Andy, the painter, at the end of July (still ridiculously thinking Goodwood Revival was my deadline) and took some examples of my bodywork to show Andy for his approval. On an instant first glance of my flattening, it was in fact I that was flattened, to an ant. He said there was not nearly enough elbow grease put into it and he promptly showed me how it was supposed to be done. Visions of Big Red parked up next to the Bentley in the following autumn flew straight in and out of the garage and the realisation of time took its place. My two weeks booked off of work soon ended with just three pieces of metal achieving their flattened status. A whole car in pieces, lay sprawled out
“Did I mention the passenger door that preferred to swing open at roundabouts rather than when stationary with a person accompanying the door handle?”
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“The dash panel was actually the most satisfying part of the restoration despite the fact the wiring loom was curlier than my hair.” The dash panel was actually the most satisfying part of the restoration despite the fact the wiring loom was curlier than my hair. With pizza boxes holding the masking taped loom wires and jewels of instruments firmly in place, this would be fairly a precise part of the rebuild that I could understand. I used as many original parts from her that were correct (and reusable) and those that needed replacing would be of ‘Original Engineered Manufacture’ and correct of period. I soon learnt that Chinese imports were not fit for purpose. Lights for my 1964 model were a hard discovery, everyone was trying to sell me the wrong sort (from glass Morris 1000 lamps to round plastic efforts). What first started as a flight of fancy became an obsession and every minute of my social life began eating into my working day. After almost two years Big Red reverted back to factory conditions (probably better). Celebrating an MOT pass over a champagne breakfast with my parents, she is once again my daily and my love for her is greater than ever.
“She has made me realise that we can achieve anything if we really want to”
However, what she has become is a living – yet mechanical creature that I am so proud of, that I never imagined that I could actually restore on my own, yet I did. She has made me realise that we can achieve anything if we really want to and that what was initially something that coincided with my realisation that I would not be having a child – due to age and circumstances, has since become everything to me and I can’t wait to travel, showing her my favourite places around the United Kingdom. So much so, Big Red gets invited to places in the hope that I will drive her there, she has her own following and somehow, I am now defined by her. That’s ok. I think she is something extraordinary and I am so very happy to be known as Big Red and Lara.
Lara Platman can be found on twitter at @photofeature
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B O O K S
The READING List By Eleanor Tattersfield
Putney by Sofka Zinovieff This modern day Lolita is set between a rambling bohemian house on the river in Putney and Aegina in Greece. A young man is introduced to a new colleague’s household and forms an immediate and life long infatuation with their young daughter. Zinovieff explores this relationship from three points of view; that of the perpetrator, the victim and her best friend which lends value to the exploration, which the subject needs to warrant. The greyer areas of their more innocent early friendship almost lull the reader into the grooming too, which is a clever device. But soon the explicit and sexual conduct that you hope is not inevitable crashes us all down to reality. For the victim this takes many many more years, enough time for her to have had a daughter of her own. The trauma of accepting abuse is slowly but meticulously unravelled. This is not an easy subject but sadly it is one that has resonance for so many. Although this is fiction I feel it may be a helpful read for those affected. For others it is a well written and powerful portrayal of abuse from many angles.
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The Hungover Games By Sophie Heawood This a very funny and moving account of a young British music journalist in LA living hard and striving to stay on the tail coats of celebrity movers and shakers. In a classic LA scene of debauchery she accidentally falls pregnant by a musician at the Chateau Marmont who wants no part of parenthood. She is left with no choice but to call it quits, leave her fellow hipsters off their tits at Coachella and relocate to Homerton with her new baby. Heawood has not held back with the darkest details of her one night stands, drunken escapades, countless rubbish dates and hopeless months she lived through; the glory is in her honesty and resilience. Ultimately the message that we are tough old cookies and we can all overcome‌ more readily so with a good sprinkling of humour!
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Untamed, stop pleasing, start living by Glennon Doyle There was so much hype around this book and friends spouting quotes left right and centre. I don’t know what to expect. I was aware it was a follow-up memoir to a memoir. This memoir I thought was about the author meeting the love of her life at a book signing for the first memoir. It was the first time she had fallen for a woman - so strong was the attachment she had to leave her husband and children to pursue this love. But in equal measure it is also about her constant struggle with depression. She has strong views on following your dreams, staying sane and taking control of your own happiness. Certainly I can see that these views could resonate so strongly with some so as to be game changing! I enjoyed it and certainly take my hat off to her dramatic life changes and choices.
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The Ramble Book by Adam Buxton
I never listened to the Adam and Joe Show, so largely “Buckles’ was unknown to me until I happened across his podcast, The Adam Buxton Podcast. I immediately loved it, I think it was the first podcast I listened to that had me chortling out loud on the tube. This, his first book and memoir is largely one long extended podcast. ( Especially and I recommend it as an audio book) His cultural references as almost exactly aligned with mine having also grown up during the same time in white middle class privilege in London. (Something he goes to lengths to apologise for). His love of 80s pop culture; music and film especially and the details he remembered make you often say, ’oh yeah’ out loud. It is also a affecting account of his relationship with his father and the processing of his death. It’s honest and often extremely funny and he has that rare skill of making the reader (and listeners) feel like he is just speaking to them. Adam. Buckles. I’m looking forward to more rambles; your easy listening musings, sharp wit and warm voice are a winning combination, however short you are.
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F R A N K
O N
L O C A T I O N
STORY OF A SHOOT CLOUDBUSTING, shot at the River & Rowing Museum, Henley on Thames
By Annabel Kerman
The Museum
We shoot our ‘CLOUD BUSTING’ story at Oxfordshire’s River & Rowing Museum, a pleasing juxtaposition of awardwinning modern architecture and the beauty of the riverside at Henley on Thames. The museum is an impressive wood panelled structure, designed to create a visual reference of boats, with entire walls of glass that serve as a ‘window to the Thames’ looking out to the weeping willow trees and meadows of the riverside. Visitors can browse the galleries - the museum hosts visiting exhibitions from the National Portrait Gallery and The V&A to name a few alongside its international rowing collection, and a ‘Wind in the Willows’ gallery that has led the museum to be voted as one of the top family-friendly UK museums. Alternatively the beautiful and almost entirely glass walled Thames Room can be hired for events, meetings and weddings, with the dreamy option of arriving by boat, taking cocktails in one of the galleries, and ending with a moroccan style chill out area on the decked terrace. It’s enough to put us entirely off our day’s work and propose to the next passer by. Museum opening times: Thursday - Monday 10am-4pm Whats on: rrm.co.uk/whats-on Events and weddings: rrm.co.uk/rrm-venue www.thefrankmagazine.com
The Shoot
Using the modern backdrop of the museum and the lush countryside surroundings of the River Thames, this month’s story explores the idea of ‘post lockdown’ positivity: The idea that rather than wallow in Sunday clothes indefinitely, the start of a new season brings with it the opportunity to visually boost our outlook with colour, texture and creativity. Set entirely outside (where else!), and ignoring Autumn’s usual eclectic weather, our 40 + models Betsy and Hella juggle umbrellas, rowing boats and interested passers by, while social distancing, looking fabulous and wearing a selection of vertiginous heels. Multitasking ticked.
The Food
Our crew lunch of baguettes and excellent coffee is provided by the decadent sounding Chocolate Cafe, the newest addition to the museum, also with an outpost along the riverside. Shooting schedules don’t permit it to be a leisurely affair, but the very British menu, that includes ‘The River & Rowing Museum Royal Cream Tea’ and an impressive list of home baked cakes, means a return visit is mentally earmarked. Thanks To River & Rowing Museum, Henley-on-Thames rrm.co.uk Hobbs of Henley hobbsofhenley.com The Chocolate Cafe www.rrm.co.uk
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“When women lose themselves, the world loses its way. We do not need more selfless women. What we need right now is more women who have detoxed themselves so completely from the world's expectations that they are full of nothing but themselves. What we need are women who are full of themselves. A woman who is full of herself knows and trusts herself enough to say and do what must be done. She lets the rest burn.� Glennon Doyle, Untamed
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