Your mag
Recognized in Spring 2012, YOURMAG ’s goal is to promote knowledge of the magazine industry by giving students the opportunity to be responsible for all aspects of a monthly lifestyle publication. With an audience of urban college students in mind, members create content across a broad range of topics and mediums, including style, romance, music, pop culture, personal identity, and experiences. YourMag’s overarching aim is to foster a positive, inclusive community of writers, editors, and artists.
volume 22 | issue 3 | December 2024
HAILEY KROLL
Managing Editor
ALEKS CARNEY
Creative Director
Siena Yocum
Asst. Creative Director
REBECCA CALVAR
Art Director
JULIA MAGDZIAK Co-Head Stylist
ANNA BACAL PETERSON Co-Head Stylist
SEBASTIAN OLIVO YMTV Director
PALOMA CASTRILLO
Asst. YMTV Director
SASHA GAYKO
Asst. YMTV Director
GRIFFIN WILLNER Editor-in-Chief
MOLLY DEHAVEN Co-Head Designer
LAUREN MALLETT Co-Head Designer
ISABELLE GALGANO Editorial Director
Sofia Misisco Asst. Editorial Director
Emilie Dumas Photo Director
ISABELLA CASTELO Living Editor
Lucy Latorre Co-Web Editor
GRAY GAILEY Co-Web Editor
SYDNEY SWANN Diversity Chair
SOPHIE HARTSTEIN Copy Chief
IZZIE CLAUDIO Head Proofreader
VARA GIANNAKOPOULOS Romance Editor
ELLA MORDARSKI Style Editor
VIVIAN NGUYEN Social Media Director
COLETTE ROGERS Asst. Social Media Director
LEO LUKASZEVICZ Marketing Manager
NATHAN KAHN Asst. Marketing Manager
Copy editors: callie liberatos, payton montaina, kai etringer, aylin isik, kyleigh wanzalek, Lauren Mallett
GRAPHIC designERS: Briana Cordon, AbIGAIL Tangonan, Audrey COleman, Isabella Chiu, Hailey Kroll, Izzie Claudio
Proofreaders: Addison Brewer-Hay, Hailey Kroll, Isaiah Flynn, Madison Lucchesi, Sophie Hartstein
Dating for the Plot
Query for Queers: Have We All F*cked Our Friends?
Dancing Around Gender Norms
ASK YM: The Love Letters
Pity Party
What the Pluck: The Expressionism of Eyebrows
Thanks! I Made It!
Collage en Plein Air
Your Closet
Garden of Eden
Confessions of a Sorta-Untalented Semi-Ex Theater Kid
My Dad's Spaghetti
Preschool on 15th Avenue
Your Moments
Major Arcana
Lack of Queer Joy in the Media
My Body, Writer’s Choice
London Calling Your Quiz
LettersfromtheEditors
And just like that, another Fall semester has come and gone, as has my time at Emerson College. To say that being a part of this magazine and working my way up the ladder was both challenging and rewarding would be an understatement. What I have learned from this time is that adaptation is necessary for success. Sometimes there will not be enough proofreaders, or enough pitches, or enough time to write––it is during these moments where one must buckle down and work with others to find a solution. I am as thankful for what I have learned as I am thankful for these challenges. Being able to produce three issues each semester is no easy feat! The real success, however, will be found when I am sitting in my childhood bed and looking through my final issue and smiling as the global warming-melted sleet drips on my window. I encourage everyone to pay attention to every detail of this issue. I thank everyone who has worked with me in this organization and given me the chance to laugh, to cry, to write, to edit, and to survive the arduous pitfalls of college writing. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you all.
This issue was a labor of love. Emphasis on labor. Not in spite of but because of the challenges that came with navigating my first print issue as Managing Editor, I sit here feeling proud. I am proud of what our amazing team of writers, copy editors, artists, photographers, graphic designers, and proofreaders have put together in such a short amount of time. The YourMagazine production cycle is swift, demanding, and oh-so-rewarding. We did it! The issue that is currently in your hands was created by you, for you. As you flip through these pages, remember that, and feel relieved that your hard work has paid off.
After reeling in a tough semester—let's be honest, tough semesters—we were reminded why we do this. We come together as one community to create not only because we need it, but because we can. In a world full of so many uncertainties, this is something that we can control. This is an outlet for so many of us to speak and express ourselves free from judgment and the constraints of our minds. This magazine is yours and nobody can take that away from you.
In this issue, we explore the jewel-toned sides of the color wheel, while representing our ideals of diverse sexuality and gender. Our minds glittered and our design team carefully coordinated each spread to match. Our writers explore a broad range of topics while narrowing in on each of their personal experiences. After we explore dating as a tool “for the plot,” queerness comes into question quite a lot. Our Romance section shimmers with the writings of folks all in their senior year. Our Romance Editor provides us with illustrious advice in the form of love letters. Our Style writers pluck our eyebrows to perfection, sew each word with precision, and dive deep into personal narratives and modern trends; all the while, our Style Editor takes the time to explore the closets of our Emerson community. Our Living writers fantasize about their golden years on the stage, across the sea, and in childhood. In our Living additive, we are bestowed with the crown jewel of a photograph collection provided by you, our readers. Our Arts & Entertainment section does not fail to entertain and educate us with pieces about queer representation, abortion in media, the archetype of the frazzled English woman, and a quiz to match readers with our media recommendations.
Jumping off these pages are jewel-tones of garnet, emerald, and gold. Our editorials pay homage to feeling somber when joy is all around you, queer guilt with the loss of religious innocence, exploring potential through tarot, and pushing back at gender norms in the form of free-flowing periods. Our YMP3 playlist features melodies to inspire introspection and celebration while dancing underneath the blood moon. Highlighting an EUDT favorite, our Artist Statement exemplifies dynamic storytelling through dance and emphasizes the need for artistic expression through the connection of body and mind. We end this issue by uplifting seniors of our own, closing out their YourMagazine chapter, through celestial entities. Our semester bedazzled, as did everyone who has worked within this community. We hope you enjoy the effervescent wonders of our jewel-studded print issue.
Love in perpetuity, Griffin Willner
With all my love, Hailey Kroll
Dating for the Plot
WRITTEN BY ANNA BACAL PETERSON
My friends always called me the shy one in middle school. It’s a funny thing to be told that you’re shy when you’re far from it. What they really meant was, “Anna doesn’t talk to boys.” They were right about that. I was too scared and too anxious. It was never a rejection thing, the boys I pined after always liked me back, but I was just too afraid to say “hello.” Too afraid to make it real. So crushes came and went, experiences I could have had passed me by, and I stayed stagnant, internalizing the shy facade that was thrust upon me.
When college came around, I found I was a million miles behind my peers, though I was no longer as sheltered as I once kept myself. I discovered in junior year of high school that I was a million times more confident when drunk, and that all men weren’t immediately deterred by my personality. I downloaded Tinder at 16, hooking me on the drug of male attention at way too early an age. But, that’s as far as I let myself get. Actually meeting up with people seemed like a foreign concept to me, something far in the distance that I didn’t think I would ever be able to achieve. My fear of intimacy ran too deep, eye contact may just have well been second base. How could I go on dates when the thought of having a one-on-one conversation with someone of the opposite sex sent me into full panic mode?
Inevitably, my Tinder messages went something like:
“What are you looking for on here?”
“Compliments!”
*Unmatch*
It was a never-ending cycle of matching, hearing repetitive pick-up lines, and then ghosting until I had successfully fumbled every man in the city of Boston. It wasn’t until I was twenty that I broke the cycle. It wasn’t until him
They say to never go out with your co-workers, and they would be right. The summer of ’23, I found myself agreeing to go out with the brunette boy with the acoustic guitar at the camp where I worked. It was harder to run away from men who asked me out in person rather than through the phone, and trust me, I tried. After five dates the summer ended, and so did the fling. It would have never worked out in the first place. I don’t do long distance, and he was in love with his ex-girlfriend. But there was one valuable lesson that I learned from this short-lived love affair: I was so incredibly
PHOTOGRAPHED BY ANNIE FAIRALL
charming. I had nothing to worry about at all.
I came back to school and finally felt ready to take on the world of online dating. I waited for my acne to clear and my confidence to boost, and I was ready to play the field. I was already in my 20s, too old for a sickly-sweet teenage romance. I didn’t want my youth to slip away from me again without truly indulging in it. I found myself swiping right on everyone with one redeeming feature and saying “yes” to everyone who asked me out. It didn’t matter that I had to think really hard about whether I liked their smile or if they said something off-putting as their first message, because all that mattered was testing to see if I could actually get myself to go. Now that I knew I could really do it, all I cared about was seeing how far my comfort zone could stretch. First impressions are never good judgments of character. The real question was, am I?
The guy who made a Nazi joke, the guy with no shoes, the guy who looked like Balloonie from Phineas and Ferb, all three guys named Andrew, the guy who serenaded me with his guitar. No romantic connections, but at least I now had stories to trade. There was no love and hardly ever second dates, just new ways to entertain and horrify my friends. Still, I saw people around me start to settle into their long-term relationships, and again, I found myself far behind. I was dating, sure, but I was still doing it wrong. I was stuck in a harmful cycle of “exposure therapy” disguised as some sort of twisted form of self-discovery. I wasn’t dating for love; I wasn’t even having fun. I was counting the seconds on my fingers until the date was over and consistently made excuses to go home. I thought I owed it to myself, to force years of experience in one sitting. I was unaware then that dating didn’t just have to be challenging, it could also be fun.
I thought I was making myself strong, that I was making myself more confident so that in the future, I would be able to prioritize the real thing without so many nerves. In the process, I got rid of the first-date jitters and forgot the feeling of butterflies altogether. I spent so long trying to force experiences that I wasted time that I could’ve spent falling in love. Any sort of heartbreak would be worth feeling anything at all. Instead, I’m back to where I started, waiting for when I will catch up to everyone else, and wondering if I will ever let myself get that far. YM
Query for Queers
Have We All F*cked Our Friends?
WRITTEN BY BROOKE HARRISON PHOTOGRAPHED BY KJ HALPERN
Iknow that the phrase “incestual friend groups” is kind of disgusting, but it helps to paint a picture of the groups we know all too well.
While it’s not uncommon for non-queer friend groups to also fuck each other, it does (from my experience) happen at an insane rate in queer ones. We can go from a kiki to a kiss kiss at such a natural yet rapid pace that it can be hard to keep up with who’s been with who.
This isn’t to shame, it's to illuminate a common theme that I see happen in our community. I want to discuss all the possibilities and reasons that lead to the stereotype of queer circles homie-hopping left and right.
I am no stranger to sleeping with my friends nor am I immune to crushing on them. When I was first exploring my queer sexuality, it was girl friends of mine that made me feel comfortable exploring it with them. They were never weird about me asking questions or taking my time (I still take my time, FYI) and I have also been some of my friends' first experiences and served as a guide for them too (with pleasure). It felt very natural and safe knowing I was exploring this part of myself with someone I knew cared for me, and I for them. Experiencing it all with friends at the beginning made sex really beautiful and special, it gave me more confidence in my identity and in having queer sex in general.
There’s a reason that friends-with-benefits-to-lovers and friends-to-lovers are popular tropes. When you have that comfortability with someone who you’re not only connected with by choice, but bonded forever with because of shared community; it makes sense that the physical chemistry could match in that intensity.
Having a crush on a friend can be scary, though, especially for someone like me who has never had a real queer romantic relationship. I do believe that queer relationships do usually have instant understanding of each other, and in a romantic setting can tend to move very quickly because of that. For someone who is (a little) avoidant, it can be easier for me to transfer those feelings towards something more physical than emotional, hence the friends with benefits begins.
The argument could be made that “incestual” queer friend groups can happen out of necessity or forced proximity because we tend to stick closely with fellow queers near us for safety, understanding, and community. Also, due to safety concerns, many of us cannot afford to approach someone randomly to ask them out; it makes sense that we develop feelings, romantic and/or sexual, for those we don’t need to
have a guard up around, which would be our friends.
To give this idea some perspective, we must understand the historical context that gay marriage was only legalized universally in the states in 2015. For most of queer existence, the possibility of being granted the privilege of our love being recognized and accepted under law was just a fairytale. The community was not prioritized to be shown love or even humanity, so medically eroded throughout the ’80s that when we see old queer couples or just old queer people we get emotional and can’t believe our eyes. This is all to say that the stereotypes of the queer community being overtly promiscuous, sexually adventurous, and having nontraditional/non-monogamous relationships can be attributed to the fact that the community created lemonade out of lemons and made, shared, and felt love in all the ways they felt they actually could.
The reason this topic struck a chord with me is because over the years I’ve been trying to make the conscious decision to not fuck (or do anything romantic or sexual with) queer people that I want to be my friend, am becoming friends with, or is currently my friend (or friends of friends, but I do fear that ship has sunk a little already). The experiences I had when I was first exploring queer sex were amazing, but after those few instances I quickly got into the habit of blurring the lines of friend and fling when it came to my relationships with queer Assigned Female At Birth (AFAB) people. In most cases, it was either dulling the friendships and I would start to view them more as a hookup than a friend, or I would start to develop feelings and distance myself to not ruin the friendship.
Now clearly that is not a long-lasting nor healthy pattern, so in recognizing that I try to focus on who I truly see as a real potential friend and who I see as a new potential partner that I get along well with.
Have there been people that I'm friendly with that I have ended up getting with or want to get with? Well, duh, I’m human, and double duh, it’s easier to flirt with people you already mesh with. What matters to me more now is trying to be intentional with the flirting and the fucking, and perhaps toeing that line instead of crossing it.
To fuck or to not fuck your friends has been the question. And the real answer is everything in moderation and as long as you're communicating and everyone involved is comfortable, it doesn’t matter what an outsider thinks (This is not enabling you to fuck your friend group up via orgy or any other mischievous things y’all might be thinking). YM
Dancing Around Gender Norms
WRITTEN BY GRIFFIN WILLNER
Ihave vividly dreamed of my wedding day, particularly my first dance, since childhood. I remember gathering my animals in a line and sending them down the aisle one by one on multiple occasions. Dance, to me, is a tying of souls. I imagine placing my head on my husband’s shoulder covered by a dark, fancy fabric that perfectly matches my outfit. I picture moonbeams glistening as heavenly lights reflect off our golden rings, symbolizing our union as a reality. I see our bodies parallel to one another and adjacent to our spirits, swaying in tandem. Really, my perfect scene only has two problems: first, I am not a very smooth dancer, and second, how are people outside of heteronormative gender roles supposed to partner dance?
After coming out as gay eight years ago on October 20, 2016, I began navigating the uneasy terrain of seeking same-sex romance; a love that does not fit into the traditional binary gender norms of our society. When I walk the tightrope of my queer romances, I find it difficult to understand which guidelines do and do not apply. Queerness allows for freedom, but the lack of standardization can be confusing. Even the simplest norms, like “Who are my friends supposed to be?” can make everyday interactions complex; add romance into the mix and it becomes a whole other monster.
ART BY HAILEY KROLL
institutions of the arts do not often portray queer romance through dance. I remember seeing ballet performances such as The Nutcracker during my closeted childhood and wishing to be held by the male performers opposite Clara or the Snow Queen. In the darkness of the theater, I would picture myself spinning in pirouettes until I fell into my lover’s arms––it all seemed so romantic! That image faded as I realized I was not “a Clara” nor “a queen,” at least not in the hetero-definition of the word. If I had known of any men dancing arm-in-arm, hand-in-hand, perhaps I would have felt less taboo.
In high school, at the height of my theater career, I had the opportunity to be directed by an openly queer woman and professional dancer-choreographer, Adriana Pierce. Pierce pushed me to twirl, contort, express, connect, and feel more joy than I ever had while dancing. Like I said, dancing was not my forte. Though I have moved beyond dancing under stage lights, I have not yet lost my belief in the artistic power of dance.
how are people outside of heteronormative gender roles supposed to partner dance?
I find that a great example can be found in the realm of dance. In traditional partner dances—an act that portrays carnal passion—heteronormative rules decide which person should hold and which person should be held. Men lead and women follow. This practice is stereotypical, obviously, but the truth is that many heterosexual couples follow this norm. For queer couples, what are we supposed to do?
I remember once pretending to dance with a man while alone in his apartment, dimly lit by the television. I put my hands on his hips, as I had done so many times with my femme-identifying friends, but I felt a sense of discomfort. His hands then went to my hips and we bumbled around before bursting into laughter, accompanied by “Fade Into You” by Mazzy Star. Though intimate and silly, the interaction demonstrated an utter lack of exposure.
I have always loved dancing. My background, like so many other queer folks, began in music and musical theatre. While the arts are a common interest in the LGBTQ+ community,
Since then, Pierce founded an initiative titled Queer the Ballet. This project has created a ballet space for queer women as well as trans and nonbinary performers. Using works by queer artists and performed by queer dancers, she shows that ballet and dance, like other art forms, can include voices outside of traditional binaries. Furthermore, this initiative breaks the traditions of the male-female pas de deux, the partner dance of the style. When I see videos of their performances, I am awestruck by the connection and the chemistry of the pairings. It gives me hope that the question of how gay couples dance will arise less and less as more representation emerges.
I highly recommend that any readers, especially queer ones, check out works from this initiative. Seeing these images, the question of rules exits stage right. I imagine myself in the arms of my future partner surrounded by my family and friends as my fears fall away. Partner dances, after all, should be about connection. All of us, queer or otherwise, deserve to feel love through expressions of dance, and we deserve to know that it is possible! It may seem miniscule, but when we interrogate each of the ways queer couples fall out of bounds, we see that representation is an important tool for education. It might just save my wedding day! YM
Ask YM: the Love Letters
Sex & relationship advice from our Romance Editor based on anonymous questions submitted to a Google Form
NOTE FROM THE EDITOR:
I want to remind readers that I am not a licensed and practicing professional in regards to advice, sexuality, or psychological analysis. Nothing I say should be taken as fact, rather as advice from a peer. Sex and romance can be awkward topics of discussion, but it helps to talk about it with people of the same age. In answering these questions, I hope to open up the conversation of sexuality and help to destigmatize wanting to know more. The more we know, the more prepared we can be to be intimate.
Stay curious, and remember that sex and love are different for everyone!
Yours,
Vara Giannakopoulos
“I have a desire for some sort of spark, but I'm getting crazy burnout from dating apps! I can't seem to stick to a conversation... Is this normal?”
Dear Digitally Drained,
If your dating app conversations have the lifespan of a houseplant in a freshman dorm, you're in good company. App fatigue is perfectly normal—there's only so many times one can exchange pleasantries about majors and weekend plans before feeling like a pre-programmed chat bot. Consider this permission to close the apps and venture into the wild world of organic connection. Join a club (non-Emerson clubs count, too), strike up a conversation in your study spot of choice (or maybe a different one so you don’t risk “contaminating” your go-to spot), or simply exist in public spaces without your phone glued to your palm (mission impossible). Sometimes the best connections happen when you're not desperately hunting for them. And if you do stick with the apps, remember: quality over quantity. One good conversation beats twenty "hey"s any day.
“My partner is graduating before me, how do I calm my nerves about dating when we're at different places in our lives?”
Dear Calendar Concerned,
First, congratulations on finding someone worth worrying about—that's no small feat in itself. The anxiety about different life stages is valid, but consider this: in the grand scheme of things, a year or two's difference in graduation dates is minimal. What matters is how you both approach the transition. Have honest conversations about your expectations, fears, and hopes. Plan for the practical aspects (visits, career goals, communication), but don't let anticipatory anxiety rob you of your present joy. Your relationship isn't on a deadline just because one of you is on a different academic timeline.
“I have a crush on someone in my class. How do I approach asking them out without making things weird?”
Dear Academic Admirer,
Ah, the classroom crush—where suddenly you find yourself volunteering to analyze Victorian literature at 8 a.m. just to snag the seat nearest them. The key to keeping things from getting weird is to maintain plausible deniability until you're sure of mutual interest. Start with class-related conversations, graduate to casual coffee invitations, and read the room before making any declarations of love (save those for your slam poetry night). If they seem interested,
PHOTOGRAPHED BY KAI ETRINGER
great! If not, you've just made a study buddy. Either way, you've managed to avoid the dreaded semester-long awkward dance of avoidance. Remember: confidence is attractive, but so is the ability to gracefully accept a "no."
“What's the best way to juggle college with a long-distance relationship?”
Dear Geographically Challenged,
The good news: modern technology makes long-distance relationships easier than ever. The bad news: even the best WiFi can't replicate a real hug. Long-distance college relationships thrive on intentional connection and mutual support of each other's individual growth. Regular communication is key—find your rhythm, whether it's good morning texts, evening calls, or weekend FaceTimes. Share your experiences, celebrate each other's achievements, and remember that growing separately doesn't mean growing apart. Find ways to share experiences despite the distance (simultaneous movie-watching, sending care packages, sharing playlists), but don't forget to fully engage in your own campus life. Your relationship should feel like a source of support, not a source of FOMO.
"There's someone I've been interested in for months, but we only see each other at club meetings. How can I turn it into something more?"
Dear Club Contemplator,
So you've found someone who shares your passion for [insert niche interest here], and now you're wondering if they might also share an interest in you. The good news is you already have built-in conversation topics and regular meetings. The bad news is you risk turning your Tuesday evening escape into an emotional obstacle course. Start by suggesting collaboration on club projects or (similarly to my suggestion to the Academic Admirer) grabbing coffee after meetings to "continue the discussion." If they seem receptive, great! If not, you can always fall back on your mutual appreciation for medieval board games (or whatever brought you together in the first place).
"My roommate's friend is really cute and we've been flirting, but I don't want to mess up anyone's living situation. Should I pursue it?"
Dear Dormitory Dilemma,
We all know the delicate dance of crushing on someone in your roommate's circle—where one wrong move could turn your living space into a sitcom subplot. This requires more strategic planning than securing a study room during finals week. First, gauge your roommate's feelings about the possibility. If they give you the green light, proceed with caution and clear communication. Remember: if things go south, your roommate shouldn't have to play Switzerland in their own room. And if it works out? Well, let's just say your roommate's matchmaking skills deserve a spot on their resume.
"We've been hanging out for a while, but I'm not sure if we're actually dating. How do I bring this up without making things awkward?"
Dear Status Uncertain,
So you've been "hanging out" for weeks, you've memorized their class schedule, and your friends have started referring to you as a unit, but you're still not sure if you're dating? Welcome to modern college romance, where defining the relationship is sometimes harder than parsing through a philosophy textbook at 3 a.m. If you're spending significant time together, making future plans, and feeling relationship-adjacent anxiety, it's probably time for "The Talk." Be direct but casual: "Hey, I really enjoy spending time with you, and I'd love to know if we're on the same page about where this is going." Best case: you get clarity. Worst case: you can stop pretending you enjoy their experimental noise music playlist.
"Everyone seems to stick to their own bubbles at Emerson. How do I meet and date people outside my major?"
Dear Cross-Campus Cupid,
Ah yes, the great departmental divide—where WLP majors and VMA students exist on entirely different planes. But here's the thing: some of the best college stories start with "I never thought I'd end up dating a [insert major here]." Break free from your floor of P-Row or Colo and venture into the wider Emerson ecosystem (but since we’re campus-less, let me know when you find it). Take an elective outside your comfort zone, hang out in different campus spaces (the Iwasaki Library is neutral territory), or join one of those interdisciplinary clubs that somehow combine theater with environmental activism. The beauty of a small arts school is that everyone's creative in their own way. Your future person might just be creating in a different medium. Besides, think of the collaborative projects you could make together. Nothing says romance like a marketing major helping a theater student promote their latest production.
PITY PARTY
DIRECTED BY MORGAN
BURKE
PHOTOGRAPHED BY MORGAN
BURKE
STYLED BY JULIA
MAGDZIAK
MAKEUP BY ANABELLE ROSENBERGER
MODELED BY TY REILLY, NYLA ANDERSON, AND NIKLAS BERGER
THE ‘PITY PARTY’ EMBRACES THE FUNKY, VIBRANT, AND WHIMSICAL AESTHETIC OF VINTAGE CLOWNS, WHILE THEIR EXPRESSIONS ARE IN DIRECT CONTRAST. THE COLORFUL CLOWNS AND BIRTHDAY PARTY ENVIRONMENT AGAINST THE SOMBER FEELING CREATES A BEAUTIFUL JUXTAPOSITION AND OPENS A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE UNIVERSALITY OF FEELING SAD ON YOUR BIRTHDAY.
What the Pluck: TheofExpressionism Eyebrows
Raised, furrowed, arched, lowered, drawn up: beyond protecting the eyes from dirt, sweat, and rain, eyebrows are one of the most telling facial features of emotion. Serving as a system of communication, eyebrows have their own language. Raise one eyebrow, and it’s clear you’re skeptical or playful. Raise two, and all of a sudden you’re surprised. Lower both and emanate anger or confusion. Draw up the inner corners and you’ll depict sadness. In addition to being a useful way of reading someone’s emotions, eyebrows have long become a source of self-declaration regarding fashion and statement-making.
Not all eyebrows are created equal. According to my mom, I was born with prominent eyebrows and used them to my advantage as a baby. She recalls me raising my eyebrows and being very expressive in my first moments of life. Later, I would grow into my brows. At the age of ten, I began experimenting with different makeup and filling them in. During these experiments of self-expression, I made sure to shy away from tweezers. They made me nervous: how could such a small contraption make such a big difference? Barely onethird the size of my palm, tweezers intimidated me to the extent that I swore them off at a young age.
Only a few years later did I venture out into the world of plucking. Why the delay? I was in no rush to adhere to the tamed style I’d seen in fashion magazines, the thinly manicured brows of models like Bella Hadid. My mom had warned me from an early age that there’s a thin line to cross when it comes to eyebrows. It’s very easy to go from manicured to measly with one swift tweeze.
My mom didn’t want my eyebrows to irreversibly grow thin such as hers. Like many women who followed the razor-thin eyebrow trend that Drew Barrymore led in the 1990s, my mom was left with permanently sparse eyebrows. Curved in the shape of two half moons due to the damage of her hair follicles, the result of over-plucking.
Her tale served as both a warning and a lesson that I have
taken into account ever since. It was only a few years later in middle school that I first thought of manicuring my eyebrows. I set out to convince my mom to let me get my eyebrows done. Begging, more begging, and some more begging before she finally brought me to a professional waxer. Though my mom’s lesson is one that has stayed in the back of my mind, that isn’t to say I haven’t experimented. I’ve slit my eyebrows, gone thinner, and gone blockier (thanks, Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade!). At the end of the day, these trials and errors have led me to appreciate my natural eyebrow shape even more. Being able to “try on” different eyebrows with the help of makeup, tweezers, and eyebrow razors has allowed me to test which styles I like most.
At the end of the day, eyebrows are a fashion statement more than anything else. Apart from the thin brow trends written all over the ’90s, and the bushier look made famous by Cara Delevigne in 2016, eyebrows have even become an art form.
Eyebrow piercings exploded in popularity in the 1990s and early 2000s and have made a comeback within the past two years, in part because of Jacob Elordi’s character in the movie Saltburn, released in November of 2023. Bleached brows, originally a trend in the high fashion scene in the ’90s, has also revived in the past few years with the help of fashion-forward celebrities such as Julia Fox and Kendall Jenner.
The circling trends of thinning, piercing, filling, and bleaching eyebrows have seen different prioritizations of the styling of eyebrows that can often seem impossible to keep up with. As a fashion statement in their own right, it’s important to remember that now more than ever we have the freedom to choose how to wear our eyebrows. So, wear them proudly! Or don’t wear them. But you should show them off: they’re yours to decide what to do with. And I promise not to raise my eyebrow at you if you tweeze yours a little too much. YM
WRITTEN BY HEATHER THORN
PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMILIE DUMAS
"Thanks, I made it!”
The Reward of Sewing Your Own Clothes
WRITTEN BY RYLI STOKER
PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMMA BOWEN
It has become increasingly easier to access clothing at the press of a button. This is great for convenience, but doesn’t let you make the most of what you already have. Taking up sewing as a hobby is a great way to engage your creativity and expand the lifespan of clothes already in your closet. Though sewing is not as common a hobby as it used to be, you can pick it up anytime, and it’s not as complicated as you may think.
Making and altering your clothing allows you to take an extra level of pride in the clothing that you wear. There is no better feeling than having a person compliment you on a piece of clothing that you made (or reinvented). Your clothing will be tailored to fit exactly how you want and there will never be another item identical to yours; extra flattering and extra unique. Upcycling clothes you already own is much gentler on your bank account and on the planet. Less fabric goes to landfills, your clothes last longer, and you end up buying less.
Sewing up little holes in a sweater or replacing a button may seem dull, but they’re worthwhile skills to learn. Embroidery is another mending option, which has become a gradually more popular crafting activity on social media as of late. You can find embroidery thread and needles at almost any craft store for a dollar or less. Cute, simple designs like lazy daisies add personality to your clothes, or can cover up the stain on your favorite sweatshirt.
Machine sewing can be a more complicated and expensive hobby, but there are ways to reduce the cost and stress. Look for machines secondhand on Facebook Marketplace, eBay, or ask a family member if they have one that they don’t use. You will find one that is affordable— if not free—and functional. Having a top-of-the-line sewing machine is great for seamstresses, but not necessary when you’re first starting out.
Threading the machine may be the most annoying part of the whole sewing process. Yes, it can be tedious and a bit irritating, but it shouldn’t be intimidating. There are plenty of online guides that can help this process along. Type in the name of your machine, and “how to thread” on YouTube, and you will find plenty of step-by step-video tutorials.
With threading done, you can start sewing. There are tons of stitches you can use, but it’s easiest to start with straight stitches. These are indicated by vertical, dashed lines on your machine. They can be used to mend holes, take in clothing, shorten a skirt hem, and more! A tank top that’s too loose, for example, can be fixed by sewing straight stitches parallel to the side seams of the shirt. No need to tie the back of your shirt with a hair elastic.
Zigzag stitches, another standard setting, work best with stretchy fabrics because they are more flexible. Zigzags can also be used to finish a raw edge, keeping fabric that you’ve cut from fraying. Always go back over the beginning and end of your seams using a reverse stitch to secure the thread. The reverse stitch lever should be labeled clearly on your machine, simply press it at the beginning and end of every seam line.
These two stitch settings can take you very far, and experimenting with them is the easiest way to learn. Practicing on scrap fabric will get you acclimated to your machine’s different settings.
Once you have these basics down, the fashion world is your oyster. You can change necklines, take in waistbands, shorten skirts, add embellishments, or totally transform something you have just laying around. YM
Collage en Plein Air
WRITTEN BY JAGGER VAN VLIET
It cannot be understated that fashion today sits at an invariable impasse. For the past ten years, personal style has remained virtually inseparable from the brands and creators who defined the scene. See the wide-reaching sprawl of Abloh’s genius or the ineluctable lure of Demna’s exploits at Balenciaga. Indeed, luxury labels have done well to make themselves integral to the streetwear and personal style movements alike.
BY NAIA DRISCOLL
So, where does this leave us now? The state of fashion remains teetering between two violent extremes; two directions entailing drastically different landscapes of expression. On the one hand, we have seen the high fashion world make a stark return to minimalism, with brands beginning to divorce themselves from the logoheavy gaucheries of a more hype-beasted era. “Quiet Luxury” has now crept into contemporary lexicons, highlighting a turn to pared-down items, luxe materials, and understated excellence.
All the while, another trend rages on in virtual spaces, with the explosive profusion of stark maximalism. Driven primarily by a handful of nascent fashion influencers, a faction of young people are pushing back against this movement of timeless, yet banal, minimalism. Plucking pieces from polar opposite decades, this rise in online maximalism trots hand in hand with the thrifting and vintage upsurge that has come to define much of the recent years.
In all, fashion’s cold war has still yet to be settled. Firmly ensconced in the new roaring ’20s, neither side has made substantial gains one way or another. Truthfully, it appears as though everyone is waiting for the other shoe to drop. Yet there is every reason to question why this push and pull must remain staunchly binary. The entire concept of maximalism versus minimalism, Loewe or Louis Vuitton, pits fashion as a warped competition far removed from what truly ought to be highlighted.
We turn our attention now to an unlikely
ART
development growing out of Washington, D.C.
Visual artist and incipient fashion designer Aurelia Colvin is posing a third option. A thesis meant as an escape valve for those who have grown sick and tired of the predictable cycles of corporate luxury.
Colvin calls the movement Collage en Plein Air
Unavoidably, we all want to look good when we put on an outfit. Whether this entails flaunting trendy aesthetics or flexing high-end garments, our ultimate goal is to create a ’fit that is recognizably “of the moment.” So much of modern fashion insists upon this subtle balancing of brands and trends; in formulaic static ways. Collage en Plein Air demonstrates a complete and total separation from this phenomenon altogether.
Collage en Plein Air’s raison d'être, as it were, encompasses exceedingly impractical outfits that are more moving art installation than attire.
Colvin poses that fashion must make a triumphant break from typical conventions in favor of creating uncompromising on-body paintings. Collage en Plein Air as a movement encourages arranging one’s clothing in a way that highlights the many textures, colors, and patterns that build the foundation of the garment itself. Regardless of how an item might be typically worn, Collage en Plein Air demands that apparel be selected and worn specifically to capture a briefly beautiful moment on one’s own body.
The term Collage en Plein Air derives from the French movement of painting outdoors, or in “plain air.” Notably, Plein Air painters, such as Claude Monet, were made to endure and overcome numerous challenges when it came to painting in natural environments. Changing weather conditions and shifting light sources, all inserted an element of beautiful chaos to the simple act of capturing a moment in time. Collage en Plein Air seeks to capture this same dynamic quality in the way we create outfits.
Colvin herself, in discovering the roots of Collage en Plein Air, began to experiment thoroughly with the incorporation of various materials and everyday objects into her outfits. In order to properly reflect an ever-changing moment, Colvin felt that she had to deconstruct her fashion into a painter’s palette. Here she found her outfits began to take on entirely new shapes: thick industrial chains overlaid upon lacey tops, a collection of nacred oyster shells, fused to silver clay jewelry. It all began to capture something beyond an explore page ’fit. This was something unfailingly genuine—a moving collage of personal ornaments and textures playing in the light. Together, these elements worked to make the act of seeing the ’fit different at every single second.
Colvin’s inchoate movement is, in many ways, a call to arms; the near-revolutionary act of literally becoming one’s own objet d’art. “To create and display art in plain sight is exactly the aim of Collage en Plein Air,” Colvin says. “Your person is your vessel and your greatest artistic medium. Why should the everyday act of dressing not be an act of creation—of expressing something abstract beyond words or images—embracing patterns and colors, lines and curves, visual and textural sensations.”
This could be just what the world of fashion is missing. We have lost the plot, so to speak, forgetting that at its core personal styling is still a living art. We are not mannequins for a particularly modish T-shirt, we are canvases built for expression. To welcome Collage en Plein Air is to welcome all of the chaos, collected obsessions, and curiosities of our modern world, onto our own form. Above all else, Colvin says that Collage en Plein Air must stand, first and foremost, “in the name of living art.”
In the present-day limbo, stuck between unmoving forces, Collage en Plein Air reclaims a moment in fashion. Instead of chasing trends, we could be chasing moments, stitching all these lovely instances together into something truly artful. “Collage en Plein Air exists outside of dressing for the adoration of others but for the adoration of the body, art, and self-expression,” Colvin says, “Your body is the original canvas and how you choose to adorn it is an artistic statement you can choose to make every day.” YM
YOUR CLOSET
YOUR CLOSET
INTERVIEWED BY ELLA MORDARSKI
Salem (she/her)
How would you describe your personal style in three words?
Suspicious, neat, inquisitive. Where do you typically get outfit inspiration from?
70s/80s Panasonic advertisements, Stern Suits in the financial district, and The Fifth Element (1997). Celebrity/style icon?
Jarvis Cocker and Winona Ryder. Two people who dress for business, but something interrupted them along the way.
What movie character’s wardrobe do you identify most with?
I’m all for practicality in my wardrobe so maybe Ami from The Machine Girl (not that I have a gun, just a short skirt).
What song would you use to narrate your style? "Seedy Films" by Soft Cell, that whole album. You don’t know me and I don’t know you. Who knows if that will change?
PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMILIE DUMAS
YOUR CLOSET YOUR CLOSET
INTERVIEWED BY
ELLA MORDARSKI
Jordan (she/her)
PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMILIE DUMAS
How would you describe your personal style in three words?
Boho, witchy, and playful.
Three favorite accessories to add to an outfit?
A fun belt, tights, and a jacket.
What are three pieces in your wardrobe you can’t live without?
My purple skirt, brown leather jacket, and gray lace skirt. What is your favorite color to wear? Why?
Brown. I feel like it can go with absolutely any color and is good for every season.
If you could only shop at one place for the rest of your life, where would it be?
It would probably be T.J. Maxx. I loooove just wandering around in there and they always have something I end up “having to buy.”
Is there anything else you would like us to know?
I had so so much fun showing y’all around my closet!
Garden of Eden
DIRECTED BY HAILEY KROLL
PHOTOGRAPHED BY NAIA DRISCOLL
STYLED BY ANNA BACAL PETERSON MAKEUP BY NIKO RINCON AND JAMIE STERN
MODELED BY NIKO RINCON AND JAMIE STERN
INSPIRED BY JAMES BALDWIN’S NOVEL GIOVANNI’S ROOM , “GARDEN OF EDEN”
EXPLORES SEXUALITY AND GENDER IDENTITY THROUGH A RETELLING OF ADAM AND EVE IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN. IN THIS CASE, WE HAVE ADAM AND ADAM PUSHING BACK AT THE NARRATIVE OF THE “ORIGINAL SIN.” THESE PHOTOGRAPHS PORTRAY THE PROGRESSION OF THE INNOCENCE AND NAIVETY THAT COMES WITH FALLING IN LOVE, TO THE GUILTY AND SHAMEFUL FEELINGS THAT COME WITH TOXIC MASCULINITY HAVING A HOLD OVER QUEER RELATIONSHIPS.
"Nobody can stay in...
...the Garden of Eden."
Confessions from a Sorta-Untalented Semi-Ex Theater Kid
WRITTEN BY LUCY LATORRE
According to my silver 2010 Acura, I’ve starred in 32 one-woman shows. I’ve won a Tony Award for “Best Performance of Maureen Johnson at a Dunkin’ DriveThru,” and I’m rounding the corner on a second award for “Best Production of Chicago Performed While Driving on Route 17.” To its knowledge, I’m a famous Broadway star, selling out shows every night. In reality, I’m your average 20-year-old college student just trying to get to her job at the local Kumon.
I’ve had an undeniable attachment to theater for as long as I can remember. Thanks to the magical work of director-choreographer Kenny Ortega, I was trained in the art of movie musicals, knowing every single word in High School Musical 2 by the age of three. I was doing the pony to Hairspray for hours on end, bending and snapping to “Dance on Broadway” in my living room. After starring in a semileading role in fifth grade, the stage was set (literally). I was a theater kid. A hardcore, pure-blooded, jazzy-handsy theater kid, and I was going to be in it for the long haul.
In middle school, the shows got longer, bigger, and way more serious. Finally, I could show the world what I could do! I prepped for hours for my audition, busting into the room with full confidence. My eagerness got a slap in the face. I was not a soprano. My upper range left something to be desired, becoming incredibly “screlt-y" and alarmingly harsh. Whenever I tried to hit a high note, it fell flat. My chorus teacher would hide winces each time I attempted anything over an A. Low notes, on the other hand, rang loud and true. Men’s songs became a godsend, and because of an affinity for Glee, showtunes in tenor keys were very easy to find.
Then came the harder slap: the after-effects of an early puberty. Growing up as an alto with giant boobs and wide hips meant that there were very, very limited parts to play. My voice was too low to play most of the female roles, but my body was too feminine for the audience to believe I was a man. In other words, no more tenor songs. My middle ground became dancing very enthusiastically with the ensemble in an ill-fitting and unflattering costume, eternally destined for a bit role. But, I was damn good at it. The often overlooked roles became my godsend. I hooked the audience as Chutney in Legally Blonde, Narrator #3/Knife in the Front Row in Beauty and the Beast, and the Announcer Jackie Scott in High School Musical. All memorable and important to the plot, but forgettable enough as to not overshadow those with lead roles. The perfect middle ground. Or so I thought.
The theater world is a breeding ground for envy. No matter how bad I tried to suppress it, my jealous side told me that these roles were never enough. I wanted—no—deserved better roles, yet I was imprisoned in the back row and forced to sway. Sometimes I’d secretly pray for a lead to spontaneously trip down the stairs resulting in the director to cry out, “Who can we find to play the Baker’s Wife in such a short time?” allowing me to raise a humble hand,
ART BY ALEKS CARNEY
every note on file in my brain. Other times, I’d wonder if maybe the problem was myself, how I didn’t look, act, or sound like the other girls. Abrasive and over-enthusiastic, my awkward face often wore an insecure frown. I was too ugly, too fat, and too untalented to ever be the star. And that totally sucked.
In junior year of high school, I failed my driver’s test because I drove on the wrong side of the road. There was a bus in the right lane and I thought, “Maybe that’s a lane for buses.” It was not, in fact, a lane for buses. Supposedly, that’s a big enough mistake to have to retake the test even if you absolutely nail the parallel park. I screamed and cried the entire ride home. This never would’ve happened to Rachel Berry.
Two weeks later, the night before my second test, I was freaking out thinking about getting behind the wheel. I kept imagining myself getting a license, shoving it in my wallet, and never, ever using it again. After about an hour of consideration, I realized that there’s a hidden feature in cars for eagle-eyed users with vintage flair: CD players. The Rent CD that sat humbly on my shelf collecting dust finally had a purpose. The next morning, I immediately got in the car and blasted it from the speakers, singing at the top of my lungs. I had found the craziest life hack for driving anxiety in the world: musical theater.
Singing in my car began to be an outlet for other things, too. Parents fighting? The Book of Mormon. Failed a test? Little Shop of Horrors. Boyfriend of two months dumped you? Mamma Mia! Hit another car trying to park at ShopRite? Heathers: The Musical. This outlet simultaneously combatted the aforementioned jealousy problem, too. The roles that once made me feel limited became liberating again. By day, I was playing Dorothy Parker in Thoroughly Modern Millie, Girl Who Aggressively Cleans Table in Mamma Mia!, and the Butler in Joseph, but by night I was a sought-after star. I was the lead belting to a sold-out audience, and the crowd of crumbs and empty water bottles was going wild for me.
When I went to college, I tried my best to throw my hat into the theatrical ring as a Theater Education major, but to no avail. Turns out, Emerson’s theater program is filled with extremely talented future superstars who had significantly more training than a mediocre performance-on-wheels. It was time for me to reassess if performing on stage was really something I was committed to failing at, holding out hope that maybe it would work. I ultimately decided that it wasn’t. Frankly, as much as it breaks my heart to say it, I’m not going to make it to Broadway. I’m never going to be an
Annie: not the orphan, the Oakley, or even the Ado. Switching my major to writing, I chose a career option that unfortunately cannot be practiced on the road. In the meantime, I’ll always have my car. In there, I’m free to pretend. There’s no audition, no callback, and no closing night. Every ride is a different cabaret of my design. So I give my regards to Broadway. It was a fine affair, but now it’s over, and all that jazz. Sincerely, me. YM
my dad’s spaghetti
While studying abroad, there were moments when I couldn’t appreciate what was happening around me.
I’d ask, “Why me?” At first, the question wasn’t loud, barely audible inside my own mind, and I was happy. After all, when would I ever be 19 years old in Paris during the Olympics again? Never. So, it would be best if I were to just shove that question into the darkest closet of my mind.
But then I had my first pasta dish in Paris, and I remembered the taste of my dad’s spaghetti sauce.
And slowly, because the closet could barely close any longer the thoughts began seeping out, along with the memory of the taste of the sauce.
Somehow, my homesickness transformed into guilt. Guilt for being the only one out of all my siblings to study at a four-plusyear private college and having the privilege to study abroad. The privilege to have parents who are willing to financially support me.
Why me? Why me, and not them?
Each time I bit into a pain au chocolat the chocolate was sweet, but then I’d realize I don’t have someone next to me to take the next bite, and the sweetness would turn bitter. Not the tolerable kind, but the kind where you accidentally bite into a spoiled piece of broccoli (I do not recommend biting into spoiled broccoli— you will most likely get food poisoning). Then as I chewed the pastry it would turn toxic, contaminating my thoughts easily, jerking me away from being grateful for the opportunity to study abroad, to being overwhelmed with guilt.
How dare I find this taste to be bitter? I am the one who is fortunate enough to even hold this pastry in my hand. Unlike your family members, unlike your friends who do not share your privileges.
Though each new experience was something worth remembering, it felt as if I was being chipped away at, unable to truly comprehend what was happening inside my mind. It was bright and exciting to be filled with such new knowledge of what it is like to live in a foreign country, however, the brightness grew dimmer as I continued my stay.
For the last few weeks of this trip, I struggled communicating with my peers or my family on how I was feeling. I was alone, despite being surrounded by those I considered to be my friends; there was no one that I could truly be authentic with. I yearned for that authenticity, the desire was all-consuming. Instead of reaching out, trying to find the comfort of authenticity in those who surrounded me, I let myself sink further into my thoughts. I let myself be swallowed whole by the sheets of my bed and lost in my French grammar lessons.
I knew that if I were to reach out it would ease my ailment of being homesick, but I felt as if it wasn’t possible. Since everyone was so focused on their French classes, especially me.
If I didn’t have to attend any classes, I stayed in bed. And to wash the bitter taste away in my mouth, I would have a glass, or two, or three, of wine each night, just so I could attempt to sleep without the image of my loved ones gathered around our kitchen table having a bowl of my dad’s spaghetti come to mind.
Any food I made tasted bland, sometimes sour—nothing like my dad’s spaghetti sauce. On the late nights I would spend drinking, I’d sit alone at the dining table in the provided apartment, listening to others gather and celebrate their time in Paris. They’d laugh about their days and recount how lucky they are to be alive. But I sat, feeling undeserving of this experience, asking the same question: Why me? YM
WRITTEN BY ABIGAIL TANGONAN
ART BY ABIGAIL TANGONAN
Preschool on 15th Avenue
WRITTEN BY AFUA PINAMANG
Drive down 15th, speed down the hill, stop at the red light beside the lowhanging trees.
I’ve seen these trees grow and change, adjusting to the world around them. Their roots bubble up, seeping through the cracks of the concrete which once laid flat. I watch as a group of four-yearolds pour out of the preschool building's doors. Suddenly, my eyes blur and I escape into a memory of when I was small and mighty too.
I went to that same preschool two blocks east of my house. It’s also where my mom taught for 21 years. I don’t remember much about my childhood demeanor, but my mom says I was social, bossy, and kids knew not to mess with me. I laugh because it sounds like she's describing the leader of a biker gang rather than her youngest child. I have flashes of being the kid who raised their hand first to sit on Santa’s lap. Or when I got upset and told a classmate, “You can’t just be a mom when you grow up.” She had to pick a real job, I demanded. I was also the kid that refused to take a nap.
The classroom was larger than life—granted, that was my fouryear-old perception—and being in the 40th percentile for height, everything was as if I was a pawn on a giant chess board. A huge, blue rug was laid in the room for daily circle time, where we read books and sang nursery rhymes. At lunch, I traded regular milk for a sweeter, chocolate one. The play area took up most of the space. An arts and crafts section that smelled sharply of half-broken, well-loved miscellaneous crayons. Play kitchens and stores fully equipped with plastic versions of things we preschoolers were never allowed to touch. The girls played house or store and parroted our parents, displaying our understanding of the world. “You’re the baby and I’m the mom today,” I hissed at a friend.
The limitless supply of four-year-old energy was to remain subdued at nap time and I respected that. I sat upright picking at the woven strands of the bright blue sleep mat. Occasionally, I’d dart my eyes to the clock pretending I knew how to read it. Hearing the tick, tick, tick of the long red hand was proof enough that time was passing. I was unfazed by the steps of my teacher checking to see if the kids were sleeping.
In my memory her face is blurry, but her words are sharp. “You should be asleep, Afua. I’ll let your mom know later,” she said as she walked away. All three of my teachers knew my mom outside of the parent-teacher relationship—they were co-workers, attending trainings together and gossiping about other classrooms at pick-up. My nepotism
gave me a confidence boost. I felt a sense of closeness to all my teachers because of this. I wasn’t just any student, I was Ama’s daughter. This was my chance to exercise my privilege and confidently correct my teacher. How was she to know my brother was picking me up instead of my mom? I earnestly corrected her with no alternative motives of brattiness or sass. I knew I made a mistake when I saw her turn back to me and firmly say, “I’ll tell him then.” Uh-oh! I was shocked by her change in tone.
I waited anxiously for the end of the day. Hoping my teacher would forget about our little scuffle—it was the first word out of her mouth when she saw my oldest brother, KB. As he walked us home, I dragged my feet through the leaves, reveling in the sound they made against my shoes. I thought it would annoy him, but when I looked up he remained tall and unbothered, my fearless leader. He is 10 years my senior so I hung onto his every word and followed behind him like an imprinted baby duck.
Walk past the low-hanging trees, walk up the hill, look both ways then cross over on 15th Avenue.
As we crossed the street, I reached for my brother’s hand in a robotic muscle memory movement. He didn’t look down at me; we just clung together like magnets. I had walked this path a million times, but now I had a pit in my stomach approaching our red door.
When my brother flatly told our mom about me “talking back” during nap time, I expected more dramatics from both of them. I was prepared to ramble on, excusing my behavior. Being four-and-a-half years old, I barely understood the rules of the world. Adults don’t like when you lie, but they also don’t like when you tell the truth. Nothing makes sense and it’s frustrating.
My mother, probably tired from a day’s work taming her own flock of preschoolers, was curt in her retort to my alleged disobedience. I don’t remember her exact response, but knowing my mother—or “the broken record” as my brothers and I call her fondly—it was probably one of her many wisdom one-liners. “You’re there to listen and learn, not to talk back,” or “All you have to say is ‘okay,’ nothing else.”
Heeding my mother’s advice, the next day I walked to school having learned a vital lesson: the art of not talking back! Even if my teacher was dead wrong, let her be wrong. I walked into the classroom and, with a nudge from my mother, I uttered an apology. It was sincere enough to get by, but I was still unsure about what I did wrong. YM
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AFUA PINAMANG
YOUR MOMENTS
A COLLECTION OF YOUR digital MOMENTS FROM YM readers and collaborators THIS SEMESTER. From On campus to the greater boston area, your moments are worth sharing.
DIRECTED BY EMMA BOWEN
PHOTOGRAPHED BY EMMA BOWEN
STYLED BY ANNA BACAL PETERSON
MAKEUP BY HENRY WACHS
LIGHTING DESIGN BY OTTO PRESSLER
MODELED BY DANIELLE COHEN, JESSICA KNOWLES, KELLI BRENT, JAYDA WEAVER, AND ZEKE MANRY
“MAJOR ARCANA” DRAWS INSPIRATION FROM THE WHIMSICAL AND MAGICAL NATURE OF TAROT CARDS. EACH CARD IS STRIKING AND DIFFERENT, ALL WITH DIVINE ANSWERS TO ANY OF LIFE’S QUESTIONS, WHICH ARE DIFFERENT FOR EVERY PERSON THAT PICKS ONE UP. THE DANCERS ARE SET IN STONE, CAPTURED IN TIME, AND IT IS UP TO YOU, THE VIEWER, TO INTERPRET WHAT THAT MEANS FOR YOURSELF.
Lack of Queer Joy
in the Media
WRITTEN BY TY REILLY
The smash Broadway musical Rent was on tour at the PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. I was 15 years old and deeply in the closet, a part of an Irish Catholic family. At heart, I was a young theater kid faking it as an athlete, but I was ecstatic to attend my first musical! I adored Angel's personality. He was the most genuine and caring character in the musical, and I was thrilled to see a queer character in love on stage. I watched Angel's fever dream as the young drag queen was dying from AIDS. I will never forget the tears streaming down my face, and holding my breath for as long as possible so my mom wouldn't know I was crying. My expectation for happy queer characters was so high, and it was heartbreaking watching their stories tragically end over and over again. I became numb to it.
The term "pride and joy" has been used since the early 1800s when Sir Walter Scott used it in his poetry. These terms have evolved over the years, but I believe queer pride is deeply connected to joy. As a genderqueer person who is pansexual, I have been numbed to the fact that all queer representation in the media is depressing, tragic, and an excuse for representation. The issue can boil down to simple queerbaiting, which is a term for when writers tease, but never actually show, queer representation or joy.
Looking at representation versus joy, it isn't all bad. There are queer characters in the media that introduce the concepts of liberation and self-discovery, but too often it is at the cost of the life or happiness of one or more LGBTQIA characters. GLAAD, or Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, does in-depth research on representation, specifically in the media. This year, there are 42 regular and recurring transgender characters tracked across all three platforms (broadcast, cable, and streaming). Of those, 20 are trans women, 14 are trans men, and eight are nonbinary characters. For a fourth year in a row, LGBTQIA people of color (58 percent) outweigh white queer people on broadcast, continuing to meet GLAAD's previous challenge of ensuring that more than half of LGBTQIA characters were also people of color. GLAAD director Megan Townsend said in an interview with Marie Claire that "since the beginning of 2015, we've lost more than 50 queer women on television— often in violent ways that benefit somebody else's story." Queer relationships are always depicted as tragic because, more often than not, the life of a queer person starts with homophobia and struggles with identity and expression. Queer joy may not occur until adulthood when a chosen family and queer community are found. Unfortunately, a variety of artists and creators believe they are being accurate when they describe the "trauma of being queer," which is nowhere near the truth. There is a way to showcase queer struggles while still celebrating queer joy. There are many examples of queer representation, but their stories always end tragically, or have an air of tragedy
ART BY LAUREN MALLETT
surrounding them. Brokeback Mountain. Rent. But I'm A Cheerleader. The Miseducation of Cameron Post Call Me By Your Name. I can keep going in all genres: film, TV, novels, music—you name it! Whether I was watching Heath Ledger crying into Jake Gyllenhaal's denim shirt at the end of Brokeback Mountain or the conversion therapy plotline in But I'm A Cheerleader, these stories showcased that queer joy was lacking. Joy is subjective, and character arcs can be interpreted in several different ways. For example, Heartstopper didn't ignore the difficulties of being a queer teen but had many examples of queer joy. It acknowledged the bullying and inner anxiety many face, but it didn't shut down their happy ending. It showed the queer joy of a crush, the butterflies of a first kiss, the power of queer friendship. Heartstopper isn't the only one: Bottoms, Queer, All of Us Strangers, Modern Family, Love, Simon already exist, and hopefully many more will be developed.
TJ Klune, the author of The House by the Cerulean Sea, has called for more positive (joyful, happy) queer media. He was asked if it was challenging to begin breaking down the queer narrative that had become closely associated with sadness and grief. Klune said, "when I started writing, I knew that no matter what happened in the book, no matter how rocky the road would be, the queer characters would get happy endings. Because that's what we deserve. Hell, I'll even go so far as to say that's what we're owed. We are owed our happy endings because if we don't create them for ourselves, nobody's gonna give them to us.
That's the thing about being queer—there are no rules. Our joy is a community experience that spreads quickly as we celebrate each other's wins, seeing my queer friends find love and discover their identity right beside me. College is the place for us to build our queer community that can span states and countries. Even through social media, we can appreciate the happiness of others and connect with members of the LGBTQIA community. I feel protected in my queer community and like I can truly be myself. I get fuzzy and warm inside seeing everyone flourish and spread queer joy."
These tragic trends and canons of LGBTQIA representation won't change until we have more queer writers, showrunners, directors, and producers in every nook and cranny of the entertainment industry. The queer community has a vital lens and imagination to contribute to mainstream media. I hope to one day be a part of that lens and advocate for queer joy on screen. Queer representation is not a box that needs to be checked off in the demographic section or a consolation prize, nor is any historically marginalized community. The more variety of voices we have in these areas of imagination and creativity, the more grounded, whole, and fulfilling stories we will have for our children, families, and friends on screen.
My Body, Writer’s Choice
WRITTEN BY ELLA MORDARSKI
Put yourself in a television writer's shoes. You are developing the upcoming season of your critically acclaimed show and need to add a little drama to the plot. You already have a sexually active female character and want a plot point that will cause shock, confusion, and controversy. So, you write in a pregnancy storyline. But wait… she can’t actually have a baby, that would cause way too many shifts in the plot. As the saying goes, “a baby changes everything.” So, she’ll get an abortion. Simple, right?
They were never pregnant. They have a miscarrige. They back out at the last minute. They become ill and die. They are forced to continue. They decide adoption would be a better fit.
Television will do anything and everything to avoid actually depicting a character actively getting an abortion. Walking right up to the line, or rather the clinic door, before turning around and never discussing it again.
This issue is particularly prevalent in what I like to refer to as, the “How to Be a 20-Year-Old” genre of television. These shows focus on a group of friends, usually women, who live in a major city experiencing all the ups and downs of being in their 20s. From sexual missteps and baby showers, to weird first dates, and every embarrassing experience in between. In some rare instances these characters creep into their 30s, but there is always a hyper focus on the fading of post-college youth. Examples of this self-appointed genre include Girls, Sex and the City, The Bold Type, and Broad City
Why are these shows so popular? Well, there are two main reasons people watch television: for an escape from reality and to see themselves in characters. The “How to Be a 20-Year-Old” genre may fall under both categories for some, but prevalently they showcase characters real-life people can see in themselves. Hence, why you hear viewers identify as a “Hannah” or “Jessa” to friends. This is why shows like Girls and Sex and the City are such incredible vessels for social change. Change as small as a
ART BY ELLA MORDARSKI
new shoe trend to as critical as abortion rights.
However, even shows that have been praised for their modern, unfiltered portrayal of women shy away from an abortion storyline. In the first season of HBO’s Girls, which premiered in 2012, one of the protagonists, Jessa, finds herself pregnant, wanting an abortion. Her friends, Hannah, Marnie, and Shoshanna, support her in this, joining her at the clinic office. But before even arriving for the appointment, she begins bleeding, supposedly getting her period or losing the pregnancy. In the same vein, during Sex and the City’s run, Miranda finds herself accidentally pregnant by a post-testicular cancer Steve. She makes an appointment, but decides to keep the baby, leaving a fertility-struggling Charlotte in tears. While both of these storylines created an open dialogue, with other characters like Carrie discussing their own experience, we as an audience still never actually see a character get an abortion.
Behind the closed exam room, bathroom, and bedroom doors are where the stigma of abortions primarily lie. It is an unknown front lacking education, visibility, and acceptance in popular media. Television writers tend to address the before and after of an abortion, but not the during. Many women in their 20s don’t even know the difference between medicinal and surgical abortions or why a D&E might be necessary. Today, it is arguably more important than ever for television shows to showcase in-depth abortion storylines, with Roe v. Wade having been overturned in 2022 and states condeifying abortion bans at frightfully rapid rates.
What if Miranda had gone through with the abortion?
If the writer’s of Sex and the City had shown her having the procedure and recovering? Well, then maybe a viewer would have seen herself in Miranda. Someone who has a successful career, owns an apartment, and is unsure what they want in a romantic relationship, but has friends that would never judge her choices. YM
LONDON CALLING
The Rise of the Frazzled English Woman 2.0
WRITTEN BY VARA GIANNAKOPOULOS PHOTOGRAPHED BY LAUREN MALLETT
Picture this: a woman in her early 30s, hair in a messy bun that's one faulty bobby pin away from total collapse. Her mascara slightly smudged from yesterday's cry session over a tub of ice cream, stumbling into her quaint London flat with an armful of paperwork, and a splash of coffee on her wrinkled white shirt. That, dear reader, is the epitome of "frazzled" in the world of rom-coms. It's that delightful state of being perpetually overwhelmed yet somehow endearing, like a human embodiment of a scribbled to-do list with wine stains.
In recent months, social media platforms have been buzzing with a curious revival: the "frazzled English woman" aesthetic, a character trope popularized by romantic comedies of the early 2000s. This resurgence has captivated a new generation, sparking nostalgia and inspiring lifestyle choices that would make Bridget Jones proud. But what exactly is driving this obsession, and why has it struck a chord with today's audience?
The frazzled English woman archetype typically features a charming, slightly disheveled protagonist navigating the chaos of her personal and professional life in London. Often portrayed by actors like Renée Zellweger, Kate Winslet, Kiera Knightley, and generally any of Hugh Grant's rotating cast of love interests, these characters embody a relatable blend of ambition, insecurity, and endearing quirkiness that have us all wishing we could pull off bed head as effortlessly.
Now, here's where it gets interesting (and slightly ironic). This whole frazzled English woman obsession? It's about as American as apple pie served with a side of rose-tinted anglophilia. While we're over here romanticizing the idea of spilling tea (literally and figuratively) in a cozy London flat, actual English people are scratching their heads, wondering why we're so enamored with this caricature of their daily lives. It's a bit like watching your awkward teenage years being celebrated as the pinnacle of cool— flattering, perhaps, but also deeply confusing.
The reality of a frazzled English woman is less about endearing clumsiness and more about navigating the mundane challenges of everyday life. Instead of quirky mishaps in picturesque bookshops, it's more likely to involve cursing at the self-checkout machine in Tesco or battling with an umbrella in gale-force winds. The irony isn't lost on us that while these characters are meant to represent "real women" and celebrate imperfection, they're still a heavily romanticized version of reality. We've taken the concept of authenticity and bedazzled it with Hollywood glitter.
But why the resurgence now? Well, blame it on Gen Z and our insatiable appetite for all things cozy. This trend is essentially
cottagecore's urban cousin—same desire for comfort and whimsy, just with more wine and fewer chickens. As Gen Z enters our early-to-mid 20s, there's a longing for the simpler times of the early 2000s before smartphones and social media turned us all into curated versions of ourselves. The pandemic only amplified this desire for comfort, making the cozy, imperfect world of these characters feel like a soothing balm for our collective anxiety.
In an era where Instagram perfectionism reigns supreme, there's something refreshingly rebellious about embracing your inner frazzled English woman. It's like giving a middle finger to the algorithm, one mismatched sock at a time. The aesthetic has influenced everything from fashion (oversized sweaters, humongous scarfs, and all things suede are back, baby!) to home decor (cluttered bookshelves are no longer a sign of hoarding, but of intellectual chic). Even music playlists are getting the frazzled treatment, with Norah Jones and Natalie Imbruglia making unexpected comebacks. It's only a matter of time before we see TikTok tutorials on how to achieve the perfect "I just got caught in the rain, but I'm late for my date, although I bet they've already arrived" look.
Of course, we can't talk about frazzled English women without mentioning their uncanny tendency to be writers. Seriously, was there a shortage of other professions in early-2000s London? These characters were always penning diary entries, working on columns, or struggling with writer's block on their magnum opus. It's as if the only way to be charmingly disheveled was to have ink-stained fingers and a deadline looming over your head.
The appeal of the frazzled English woman lies in her relatability and authenticity. In a world that often demands perfection, these characters remind us that it's okay to be a work in progress. They navigate love, career, and self-discovery with humor and heart, making mistakes along the way but ultimately growing from their experiences. It's like watching a human version of a motivational poster, but with better dialogue and a killer soundtrack.
As we navigate the complexities of modern life, the frazzled English woman serves as a comforting reminder that it's possible to find love, success, and happiness without having everything figured out. In embracing this aesthetic, we give ourselves permission to be imperfect, to prioritize joy and authenticity over polished appearances. So go ahead, embrace your inner frazzled English woman. Just maybe don't try to fake the accent—that's where we draw the line. YM
YOURQUIZ:
Which mythical creature would you be?
A Fairy
B Vampire C Mermaid
A B C
What is your ideal night out?
Solo trip to a jazz club
Raving until the early hours
Going to a concert with friends
Choose a hobby!
A Collecting bottle caps
B Dancing
C Scrapbooking
What is your go-to style?
A Practical
B Minimalist
C Colorful
What is your favorite shape?
A Octagon
B Rectangle
C Star
A B C
Pick a color palette!
Sage green, light brown, and terracotta orange
Maroon, black, and dark purple
Magenta, neon green, and teal
What is your favorite place to enjoy a cup of coffee?
A In the comfort of my living room
B Sitting at the counter in a late night diner
C A small, family owned cafe
Movies
- Amélie
- Frances Ha
- This Beautiful Fantastic
MOSTLY A
Songs
- This Is the Day by The The
- Tire Swing by Kimya Dawson
- Small Town Moon by Regina Spektor
- Mushaboom by Feist
MOSTLY B
- Suspiria
Movies
- Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me
- Fallen Angels
Songs
- Babooshka by Kate Bush
- Crimewave by Crystal Castles
- Lady Grinning Soul by David Bowie
- Mushrooms & Roses by Janelle Monáe
MOSTLY C
Movies
- But I'm A Chee rleader
- Bottoms
- Marie Antoinette
Songs
- Here and Now by Letters to Cleo
- Mediocrity Rules by Le Tigre
- P.U.N.K. Girl by Heavenly
- Bells Ring by Mazzy Star
DIRECTED BY AZUCENA SOTLEO
PHOTOGRAPHED BY AZUCENA SOTELO
STYLED BY JULIA MAGDZIAK
MAKEUP BY HAZEL ARMSTRONG-MCEVOY
MODELED
BY
HOLLIE RAPOSO, ALTEA BULAJEWSKI, AND RYNN DRAGOMIROV
BLOODY
MENSTRUATION HAS BEEN A TABOO FOR THOUSANDS OF GENERATIONS. IT RULES WHAT WE DO AND WHAT WE WEAR. BY HAVING THE MODELS POSE IN THEIR STAINED CLOTHING, WE ARE TAKING CONTROL OF THE NARRATIVE. WE ARE STATING “FUCK OFF, WE DON’T CARE. WHY ARE YOU SO AFRAID OF THIS NORMAL PROCESS OF THE HUMAN BODY?"
BLOODY
ARTBYMOLLYDEHAVEN
Real Life - The Marias
Bad Girls - Blood Orange
Moves - Suki Waterhouse
Glory Box - Portishead
Shades Of Cool - Lana Del Rey
Dreams - The Cranberries
Two Slow Dancers - Mitski anything - Adrianne Lenker
Moon Song - Phoebe Bridgers
Lust For Life (with The Weeknd) - Lana Del Rey, The Weeknd
Some things Cosmic -Angel Olsen
Gilded Lily - Cults
Edge of Seventeen - Stevie Nicks
Palm Dreams - Hayley Kiyoko
Chateau (Feel Alright) - Djo
Champagne Coast - Blood Orange
In The Night - Childish Gambino
Is There Someone Else? - The Weeknd
MY EYES - Travis Scott
The Bomb - Florence + The Machine
‘tis the damn season - Taylor Swift
I Want You - Mitski
Attention - Doja Cat
To Forget You - Z Berg
Season Of The Witch - Lana Del Rey
Witchy Woman - The Hollies
Time of the Season - The Zombies
Teardrop - Massive Attack
The Wind - PJ Harvey
Time in a Bottle - Jim Croce
Paulina Poteet Artist Statement
Describe your work in one sentence:
“My work combines storytelling with dynamic, rhythm-driven movements to create emotionally engaging hip-hop choreography.”
What inspires you?
“I’m inspired by the world around me—music, street culture, and everyday emotions. I find that hip-hop, with its rich history and community, allows me to explore themes of identity, resilience, and expression.”
What does your creative process look like?
“My process usually starts with the music. I repeatedly listen to a song to feel its energy and message and then let the beat guide the choreography. I like experimenting with different styles and incorporating personal experiences or narratives into the movement.”
How and when did you each start dancing and creating choreography?
“I started dancing about seven years ago at a sleepaway sports camp, initially as a way to express myself through movement. As my passion grew, I began choreographing for my school’s performances and have since developed a deeper connection to dance by creating pieces that resonate with different audiences.”
What do you feel makes your work unique?
“My work blends hip-hop with storytelling, adding layers of emotion and meaning to every movement. I focus on creating routines that showcase technical skills and connect with the audience on a personal level.”
Paulina’s Favorite Pieces
“Some of my favorite pieces I worked on were a 90s hip-hop routine I choreographed for the theme “nostalgia” and my very first piece for the theme “revival” during the spring of my freshman year. The 90s hip-hop piece was special because it allowed me to celebrate an era that I’ve always loved. The music, the fashion, and the energy of the 90s had such a bold and playful vibe, and translating that into movement felt like a powerful way to connect both with the past and the audience. It was a crowd favorite, and I think it stood out because it was fun, high-energy, and full of character. My “revival” piece was deeply personal. It was my first time choreographing in college, so it marked a turning point for me as a dancer. The theme of revival spoke to the idea of starting fresh, which mirrored my own journey as I was just finishing up my freshman year of college. The process pushed me out of my comfort zone, but the result was a routine that felt like a reawakening—not just for me but for the dancers I worked with. That experience gave me the confidence to continue choreographing and set the foundation for everything I’ve created since.”
What advice would you give to people wanting to start creating choreography?
"My advice would be to trust your instincts and take inspiration from everything around you. Don’t be afraid to experiment, even if it feels uncomfortable at first. The more you create, the more you’ll discover your unique voice and style."
Where
do you see yourselves in 10 years?
"In 10 years, I envision myself thriving in a career in fashion marketing, working with innovative brands that inspire and challenge me. I hope to drive impactful campaigns, build strong brand narratives, and contribute creatively to the fashion industry. I want to continue dancing alongside my career, potentially performing professionally as a backup dancer or choreographer. My goal is to balance both passions, finding ways to merge the creativity of dance with the dynamic world of fashion marketing."
YOURMAG SENIORS
WE'RE ALL STARS
DIRECTED BY HAILEY KROLL
PHOTOGRAPHED BY HAILEY KROLL
MAKEUP BY HAILEY KROLL, LAUREN MALLETT, AND SOFIA MISISCO
MODELED BY GRIFFIN WILLNER, ALEKS CARNEY, JULIA MAGDZIAK, AND SEBASTIAN OLIVO
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
WILLNER
He/They
These past three and a half years, I have heard professors say the same phrase in my writing and literature courses: “The word ‘essay’ comes from the French word, ‘Essayer,’ or ‘To try.’” I have always found this concept to be quite interesting, that an essay’s purpose is to take chances and to try. As corny as it sounds, ‘trying’ as my only goal while writing is liberating. ‘Trying’ acknowledges that we cannot expect perfection, rather a solid attempt at expressing what we wish to be expressed. My time at YourMagazine can be characterized in a similar way.
Since starting at YourMagin my freshman year, and working my way through a variety of roles, I have constantly made a commitment to stepping outside of my comfort zone. I started submitting my pitches before even switching my major to creative writing. I learned how to proofread as a means of joining the organization, then learned how to edit, and sent in far more pitches and wrote far more than I probably should have. I am especially fond of my collaborative creation, Rom in the Com, with my great friend Gabby Goode––we challenged ourselves to approach strangers with absurd sex and romance questions. I am also proud of my sex advice column from previous semesters. I could not have learned how to step out of the box without the help of so many amazing collaborators: Gabby, Lily Brown, Isa Luzarraga, Ashley Ferrer, Lauren Mallett, Izzie Claudio (who I know will do great as EIC), and so many more. And of course, I could not have made it through my last role as Editor-in-Chief without Hailey Kroll! I am so proud of what we have made together.
I will forever be grateful to YourMagazine for allowing me to experiment, to make mistakes, to grow, to succeed, and to try. When in doubt, one can always try something new in this community. Being a part of that is my proudest accomplishment of all.
Love in perpetuity, Griffin Willner
ALEKS CARNEY THEY/THEM
Creative Director
Dear YourMag ,
When I first joined as a staff artist sophomore year, I had no idea I'd end up leading the creative direction of this publication; working my way from illustrations to Art Director to Creative Director. I’m honored to have had the opportunity to bring your stories and visions to light.
It’s the executive board and each and every one of you who pitched that kept my creative spark alive. I’ve learned new styles, watched design push boundaries, and witnessed how visually compelling stories can be while cranked out under pressure—it is nothing short of impressive. As a result, all of those things challenged me to improve myself and for that, I say thank you.
Looking back, the best part wasn't the work itself—it was the people. Some of my closest friends and my girlfriend started as just faces across the conference table during issue reviews. Funny how sharing the stress of deadlines and the pride of finished issues brings people together.
To the next creative team: trust your vision. This magazine has always evolved with each new group of visionaries, and I'm excited to see where you take it.
Thanks for everything, Aleks
JULIA
Looking back on my two years as co-head stylist at YourMag, I feel so grateful for every moment spent with this incredible team. From brainstorming ideas to bringing concepts to life, working alongside such talented and passionate people was both inspiring and fulfilling. It’s been an amazing experience to be part of a group that celebrates creativity and collaboration at every step.
One of my favorite memories was directing a photoshoot—it was so rewarding to watch an idea come to life from start to finish. But, what really made these two years special were the friendships, memories, and lessons I’ll carry with me long after. I’m proud to have contributed to the legacy of this magazine, and I’m excited to see how YourMag continues to grow and thrive in the future.
Thank you, YourMag, for an unforgettable journey and for giving me the chance to be part of something so meaningful.
With love, Julia
Olivo Sebastian
Being a part of YourMag has been more than just a role; it’s been an experience that has truly shaped my college years. Reflecting on my journey here, I’m immensely proud of everything we’ve created together. From the late nights editing to the excitement of seeing our stories come to life, every moment has been a lesson, a challenge, and a joy. I leave with a heart full of memories and gratitude for each and every person who made this experience unforgettable. Thank you, YourMag , for the inspiration, the friendships, and the opportunity to grow. Though my chapter here is ending, I will carry these moments and lessons with me always.
Seb
