✧˖°ˈ·Have faith in your own bad taste ✧˖°ˈ·
http://www.polyesterzine.com/
[email protected]
Nothing ‘Casual’ About It: Chappell Roan, Ethel Cain and Why Female Stans Need to Look Inward 🤳
In the last couple of years – and even months – q***r female artists like Ethel Cain and Chappell Roan have stepped away from the public eye, citing their obsessive fan bases as a significant factor.
✍️
Read the full article at the 🔗
💃 Why Chicago will Always Be Famous 💃
💃 Chicago has as much impact today as it did when the musical was written in 1975. Whether celebrities distract us from their misdemeanours, governments bury bad policies behind cultural events, or politicians gloss over war crimes, the court of public opinion is notoriously fickle. 💃
✍️
Read the full article at the 🔗
Where are All the Fat Social Media Chefs? 🍱
It isn’t a coincidence that the return of impossibly thin body standards that we have seen across fashion and social media in the past couple of years is coinciding with a culture obsessing over what we eat.
Dieting and starvation used to be glamorised, but now the inverse has become an equally impossible standard. We are expected to be thin and foodies; to indulge in food and love it, but not ‘look’ like we do.
✍️
Read more in the 🔗
🥊At Outbreak Festival in Manchester, the day after she played Glastonbury, we caught up with Sophie aka to talk about her thoughts on camping festivals, the differences between US and UK audiences, and her upcoming album Evergreen which is out October 25th 💥
See the full feature via the 🔗
Words:
Photography:
on Reviving Her Band X-Cetra, Working with John Cena and Improv-ing Her Way Through Life 🎞️
Mayeri is the rising comedic star of the moment, bringing her fresh and eclectic lens to each memorable role. This specific blend of realism and whimsy is what makes Mayeri’s work so compelling.
✍️
See the full feature via our 🔗
Photographer: Sandy Honig
Production Design: Elaine Carey
Styling: Andria Bush
Hair: Nikki Providence
Makeup: Cedric Jolivet
Videographer: Jennie Butler
💘 Is the Era of the Movie Star Returning? Or Is It Just Glen Powell?💘
💘 Move over rodent boyfriends, a new man is in town. One who’s jacked, stereotypically attractive, and has the kind of charisma that can enchant even the most cynical of people.
Yes, of course, we’re talking about Glen Powell.
✍️ .dh
See the full feature on our Substack via our 🔗
Climate anxiety is real and an ever growing threat without any real answers being offered to what we can do to help. Heads spin with questions like Are we doing enough individually to play our part for the environment? If not, how do we get more involved? And how do we stay hopeful in the face of issues that can make us feel so hopeless?
To try and give guidance on these seemingly insurmountable problems, we’ve enlisted author and climate justice activist .
Mikaela has been at the forefront of the UK climate movement for years, having taken the UK government to court and challenged billionaires on their intentions for environmental activism. If anyone is well placed to answer climate-related dilemmas, it’s her.
Read the full conversation with for the Jade Issue via our 🔗
Photographer: Lewis Vorn
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson .hair
🟪How to Win ‘Dress To Impress’ on Roblox: A Guide For Noobs Who Want To Slay
Keep losing at Dress To Impress on Roblox? Need some help? Do not worry, the Roblox Polyester guide is here
✍️
See the full guide on our site 🔗
After growing up in Jamaica, Queens and spending the last 33 years stomping around an infamously chaotic New York City, Richie is the perfect pick to help guide us on our journey to becoming It Girls ourselves.
Read the full guide to being an IT girl in print in the Issue via the 🔗
Words: Gina Tonic
Photo Assistants: Maxwell Menzies and Lou Salazar
Stylist: Briana Andalore
Stylist Assistant: Alexandra Harris
Hair: Sean Bennett
Makeup: Rommy Najor
🍦Coney Island brings a moment of respite to the busy cityscape of New York. Famous for it’s sea-side attractions, it represents a by-gone era of cirque du soleils, sticky ice-cream and kisses under boardwalks.
🎡With it’s hyper-surrealist style, Coney Island features outerwear perfect for the unpredictable weather that the seaside life brings.
Photographer: Kyle Berger
Stylist: Meg Summers
Model: Irene Bueso
Clothing: Adhere To Studios
Shoes: Dirt .dirt
In her book Decolonising My Body, takes readers on a global exploration of ancestral rituals and traditions to uncover the evolution of mainstream beauty standards. From puberty rituals to getting her first tattoo at 40, she channelled her ancestors by reexamining the notions of body hair, waist beads and scarification.
Her acclaimed debut, Brit(ish) (2018), explores her thoughts on race, identity and belonging. Following the book’s success, she formed her own production company, Born In Me. Inspired by Kwame Nkrumah’s assertion that Africa is “born in me,” Hirsch is dedicated to telling African stories and empowering others to reclaim their narratives. sat down with Afua Hirsch to discuss everything from Cleopatra and bikini waxes…
Get your copy of The Jade Issue via the 🔗
Photographer: Lewis Vorn
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson .hair
🩷 To , the model, photographer, creative director, writer and icon, an It Girl is a necessity to society.
🩷 She enthuses that we - the royal We, we as a culture - need someone to place on a pedestal and it’s all the better when it is someone who deserves to be adored.
See the full guide to being an It Girl in the Jade Issue via our 🔗
Words: Gina Tonic
Photo Assistants: Maxwell Menzies and Lou Salazar
Stylist: Briana Andalore
Stylist Assistant: Alexandra Harris
Hair: Sean Bennett
Makeup: Rommy Najor Najor
🏠️This Editorial Asks If Life in Plastic Really Is Fantastic
Photographer Danin Jacquay and creative director Miranda Monroe enter the Dollhouse with an eerie, plastic fantastic look at family dynamics around the dinner table, wrapped in a plastic-sheen velour.
Joined by a star studded cast of some of LA’s funnest creatives, this surreal editorial embraces the artificial and pokes fun the uninhibited nature of family get togethers.
See the full editorial via our 🔗
Photographer, Art Dir: Danin Jacquay
Creative Director/Concept, Producer, Stylist: Miranda Monroe .xo
Makeup: David Velasquez , Gabi Alvarez
Hair: Autumn Skibinski
Set design, Prop Stylist: Krystall Schott
Lighting: Kevin Sikorski
PA: Gabby Lovazzano
Models: Love Bailey , Brasko , Pink , Brooks Ginnan , Kyn , Miranda Monroe .xo
✝️Cyber Evangelism: Navigating the Cringe Nature of Religious Social Media Content✝️
The endless and high-speed revolving doors of trends and pop culture obsessions means that the ways spiritual peddlers and evangelical people are fighting for our attention is shifting. Are they earnest videos that find virality by accident, or is there an underside to the earnestness of religious content that seeks to be pushed as far and wide as possible?
✍️
Read the full piece via our 🔗
🎀Nadia Alexeev on Unabashed Authenticity, Online Activism, and Nadia News
“I think being unapologetic about things that interest you can go a long way on any social media platform. Music is my biggest interest and the form of entertainment that I value the most. I read and hear a lot from my followers that the way I listen to/appreciate music is similar to how they feel when they hear it. I also get told often that the way I dance in my room for everyone to see is how some of my followers feel dancing in their room in private.”
See the full feature via our 🔗
Photographer: Dara Feller
Stylist: Branden Ruiz .ruiz
Makeup: Rachel Hopkins
Hair: Gabriella Mancha
Video: Hannah Ceisler
Lighting: Ethan Benavidez
Video Assist: Caroline Dunphy
💘 Mark Indelicato on Ugly Betty, Hacks, Gay Superheroes and Tumblr💘
💐 Babe wake up, new Non-Threatening Boys* just dropped!
💘 has funny bones. He’s never without a quippy comment, and humour practically oozes from his every word and gesture. That’s what happens when you’ve been a comedian for most of your life – after all, we first saw him on TV 18 years ago, as the lovable, fashion-obsessed Justin Suarez on Ugly Betty.
See the full feature on our Substack via our 🔗
Words: Sihaam Naik
Photographer: Lili Peper
Photographer Assistant: Andrea Nieto .c.nieto
Stylist: James Gallagher
Makeup: Caitlin Krenz for Exclusive Artists using R+Co
Production Designer: Sophia Apt
💚Palestinian-American artist blends Middle Eastern influences with Western sounds. Her breakthrough single, ‘THE SNAKE,’ went viral in March 2023, racking up nearly seven million Spotify streams. The track is sung in Arabic and English, and the mix is a perfect example of Lubany’s unique musical vision.
💚Lubany’s journey from Palestine to the UK, where she studied music and settled in London, has been marked by a commitment to her heritage and a drive to innovate. She’s known for her compelling performances and stage presence, though as she divulges in a conversation with , her journey is not just about music. It’s about building community and advocating for change.
Get your copy of the Jade Issue via our🔗
Words: Sihaam Naik
Photography: Chloe Sheppard
Styling: Katie Bryce
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson .hair
“Chioma, I am so honoured to be speaking with you for this issue. There’s never been enough representation for women of colour across the board in these roles, and to see this slow but necessary shift is crucial. Seeing you, somebody with an amazing energy and that I hold in such high esteem, step into this role has been really important to me.”
Our first feature for the Jade issue is the brilliant , Head of Editorial Content of British Vogue. sat down with the editor to discuss making magazines, interviewing Rihanna, Fashion Icks and much much more…
Read the full feature on site now and get your copy of the print zine ❤️
Photography: Chloe Sheppard
Hair: Charlotte Mensah
Makeup: Natalie Gay .byappointment
“There was a formula within the band of, you know, girl power, or, ‘we don't like boys!’ – which we loved. But on my own it was more experimental, conceptually. The rulebook was thrown out the window of what a standard pop record should sound like” 💜
is our cover girly and co-editor, and she is chatting to us about going solo, forming her own team, Angel of my Dreams and lots more 🌟
See the full feature on our site and get it in print via the 🔗
Photographer: Yana Van Nuffel
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Mike O’Gorman
Styling: Zack & Jamie
Set Design: Lucy Cooper
Video: Charlotte Amy Landrum
Marsha P. Johnson with Snoopy 💘💞🎀
From 3 Women (1977) to Popeye (1980) to Faerie Tale Theatre, Shelley Duvall gave the world so many incredible performances with her talent and kindness making her beloved amongst women across the internet. 🩷
✍️
Read the full piece exploring some of Shelley’s most memorable performances via the 🔗
🪽For “Angel of my Dreams”, wanted to tap into her own experiences; not just that of a group, but hers.
🪽 “I feel like that song is, like, a three and a half minute version of my whole career squashed into a song. The opening sequence, to me, feels very like The X Factor, and then when the beat comes in it’s like I’ve been catapulted into the music industry. I wanted it to feel super theatrical. Almost like it’s got three acts.”
See the full cover feature with Jade via our 🔗 and the print issue 💘
Words: Daisy Jones
Photographer: Yana Van Nuffel
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Mike O’Gorman
Styling: Zack & Jamie
Set Design: Lucy Cooper
Video: Charlotte Amy Landrum
🪽“In a climate that’s getting harder and harder to navigate as a woman, as a person of colour and as someone conscious of growing disparities between us all, I wanted to use these pages to celebrate those who I have always found inspiration in, and whose work speaks to the issues I care about.”
🪽In this very special edition of Polyester, is our co-editor and is sitting down with an array of stunners, including…
Head of Editorial Content of British Vogue
Author and broadcaster
IT girl Richie Shazam
Musician Lana Lubany
Climate activist Mikaela Loach
Featuring illustrations by
Get the Jade Issue in print via the 🔗
Photography: Chloe Sheppard
Hair: Charlotte Mensah
Makeup: Natalie Gay .byappointment
Words: Gina Tonic
Self Portraits: Richie Shazam
Photo Assistants: Maxwell Menzies and Lou Salazar
Stylist: Briana Andalore
Stylist Assistant: Alexandra Harris
Hair: Sean Bennett
Makeup: Rommy Najor
Photography: Chloe Sheppard
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson .hair
Styling: Katie Bryce
Photography Assist: Lewis Vorn
Photography: Chloe Sheppard
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson
Photography: Lewis Vorn
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson
Photography Assist: Misha MN
Photography: Lewis Vorn
Makeup: Grace Ellington
Hair: Sky Cripps-Jackson
Photography Assist: Misha MN
The Rise of the Anaemic E-Girl: The Dangers of Aestheticising Illness 🩸
As the girlhood content stream shows no sign of being syphoned out of our algorithms, you might have noticed that the regular programming of Sylvia Plath memes, Pre-Raphaelite paintings, and images of aged diaries is being interrupted by a surprising theme: anaemia.
✍️ .manock
Read the full piece at the 🔗
“When I read the Longlegs script for the first time, I really thought I knew where it was going and then it really took some turns.”
❤️Our July cover star is scream queen and we’re sitting down with the actress to talk Longlegs, an It Follows sequel, and having a healthy distance from the industry.
See the full feature via our 🔗
Writer: Alison Rumfitt .zone
Photographer: Morganne Boulden
Styling: Tabitha Sanchez
Hair: Jake Gallagher
Makeup: Liv Mardorma
Video: Camille Mariet
Sunday moodboard 💐🦓🪽
1: Ugandan Princess Elizabeth of Toro, photographed by Yale Joel in New York, for LIFE magazine, 1969. via
2: Nicole Kidman photographed by Firooz Zahedi (1996) via .nasty
3:
4: Givenchy spring 1997 couture designed by Alexander McQueen via
Marguerite Duras and the Quiet Destruction Of Cinematic Norms 🎞️
A major retrospective of the work of Marguerite Duras is taking place at the ICA between July and August, showing work by the French literary eccentric that is rarely seen. Marguerite Duras is known as one of the leading authors of the Nouveau Roman movement, but when she began as a filmmaker, her experimental musings were praised, yet they remain wildly underrated.
✍️ Arijana Zeric
Read the full essay at the🔗
💘For our second Non-Threatening Boys* feature over on Substack we are taking a look at Kyle MacLachlan’s recent social media antics, from dancing to Chappell Roan to hanging out with Charli XCX.
We love Kyle, an ultimate non-threatening boy, but can his social media manager let him rest? Wear pink in your next video if you need help! 🩷
✍️
Read the full piece via our 🔗
“It’s so interesting where you find Jay in the ‘It Follows’ sequel - it’s gonna be surprising, cool, sad, scary.”
❤️Maika Monroe is our July cover star❤️
🎞️From the modern classic It Follows (2014) to Longlegs (2024), the new obsession for horror fans everywhere, continued to provide us with unforgettable performances while taking centre stage in the most unnerving films of the past decade.
See the full feature via our 🔗
Writer: Alison Rumfitt .zone
Photographer: Morganne Boulden
Styling: Tabitha Sanchez
Hair: Jake Gallagher
Makeup: Liv Mardorma
Video: Camille Mariet
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Polyester Zine posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Send a message to Polyester Zine:
💚 This one is for my two years late to the coquette train girls 💚 This week on The Polyester Podcast @ionegamble and @princessgeorgina give their thoughts on Charli XCX's BRAT, the album that has had a marketing campaign like no other and is being eaten up by the chronically online. Listen to the full episode via our 🔗 or wherever you usually get your podcasts
The phrase 'queerbaiting' is being thrown around more than ever, has it lost all meaning? For this months column @mx_misha explores how we are losing our way with the commodification of pride and that we need to shift our focus from calling out the film Challengers for queerbaiting and start remembering what actually matters. Read the full piece via our 🔗
💻️The Pleasures of Online Research and the Labour of “Googling” Surfing the web used to require some work and thought, digging through results until you hit the jackpot. But has it gotten too easy and lost its once adventurous spirit? ✍️ @black_carrie_bradshaw Read the full piece via our 🔗
📚With growing online communities like BookTok, more celebrities creating book clubs and high fashion brands like Miu Miu giving out their summer reads, readings seems to have become an it girl activity. This has come with criticism as well as snobbery with what counts as ‘actually’ reading, but shouldn’t we just be glad that more people will be inclined to pick up a book, whatever it is? In this episode of The Polyester Podcast in partnership with @fitzmuseum_uk , @ionegamble and @princessgeorgina are exploring the literary it girl, the changing depictions of reading and more. Listen now on your fav podcast streaming platform!
📽️Film Fatale: Solaris, World on a Wire, and the Allure of Vintage Science Fiction Before that Reddit post about the lamp, there was Rainer Werner Fassbinder's World on a Wire (1973), a stunning science fiction with big hair, glamourous makeup and the terrifying notion of unknowingly living in a simulation... Read the full piece by @charlottealandrum via the 🔗
📚Once a private act, it is now almost impossible to scroll through social media and not see your local it girl reading the most recently trending book. Whether it is Didion or Hoover, personalities are intertwined with bookshelf snaps and bookstore tote bags. But this is not the first time reading has been a spectacle, seen at the Women Reading wall at @fitzmuseum_uk Listen to the full episode of The Polyester Podcast with @ionegamble and @princessgeorgina wherever you get your podcasts!
📚️Legacy Russell Wants You to Think Critically About Black Memes @ellerustle compellingly argues that Blackness is not just a cultural identity, but a driving force behind the evolution of digital culture. ✍️ @sihaamn Read the full interview with the author of Glitch Feminism: A Manifesto and Black Meme via our 🔗
After attending Miss Bill’s Bikini Kill, an evening of feminist mud wrestling from @farfrompresents and @miss.bi11 , @gabriellesicam explores the joy of dirt. 📹️Event footage by @mabelmcl 🧨Head to @farfrompresents to catch the next event Read the full piece on our site 🔗
🖌️Creators of AI art generating machines believe they are helping 'democratise' creativity... A strange take if you ask us. 🎧️Listen to @ionegamble and @princessgeorgina discuss the world of AI art in this weeks episode of The Polyester Podcast wherever you usually listen to your podcasts or via our 🔗
🎮️Machine Chic: How Hardware is Shaping Visual Culture From Hunter Schafer playing the Switch in Vogue to Anya Taylor-Joy's GQ cover with a flip phone, gadgets are IN. ✍️ @dweismantrophy Read the full piece via our 🔗
🔮Is TarotTok Repackaging Patriarchal Messaging? Welcome to TarotTok - a place where users gain millions of views and likes by giving you algorithmic tarot readings. Videos start off with "If this is on your FYP, it is not a coincidence!" and hooks users in with the special brand of TikTok spiritualism. ✍️Charlotte Rickards Read the full piece via our 🔗
Modelling is precarious, unpredictable work, so when Yasmin El Yassini @opheliathanatos isn’t shooting she seeks grounding structure. In her @polaroid photo diary, she takes us on a nature walk with her dog, explains how the natural world inspires her, and shows how taking self-portraits helps her to reclaim her image when she spends so much time being photographed by others. See more on our site. #CaptureRealLife
🖌️Beryl Cook’s work provides an archive of the visual traces of a fading night-time culture, but experiencing it also provides an opportunity for viewers to step onto the shared carpet for themselves. Confronted with her laughing, sweating, dancing subjects, we might mirror them, let our pints overspill, and bask in the pleasures of the so-called lowly. To do so is to reject the classist imposition of so-called good taste, and look towards an art-history of our own. ✍️Jennifer Jasmine White Read the full piece via our 🔗
🔮Is TarotTok Repackaging Patriarchal Messaging? Welcome to TarotTok - a place where users gain millions of views and likes by giving you algorithmic tarot readings. Videos start off with "If this is on your FYP, it is not a coincidence!" and hooks users in with the special brand of TikTok spiritualism. ✍️Charlotte Rickards Read the full piece via our 🔗
📺️Reality TV like Vanderpump Rules and Selling Sunset offer up all the trash TV tropes, but whilst we sit and judge their antics, it is also valuable to recognise the double standards of these shows. ✍️Colette Fountain Read the full piece via our 🔗
🐈⬛“I had my cake, loved it, masticated it, chewed it and had everything I wanted.” Grey Gardens is a piece of cult media for many reasons, one of them being that Little and Big Edie offer female viewers an alternative look into a life where cats and raccoons and dancing around in dress-up replaces the typical domestic married life. ✍️Ciara Farmer Read the full piece via our 🔗
💔 Has a romantic media obsession from a young age warped your perspective on love? @susan_books_etc is exploring the complex nature of finding love in a time where self-care and 'loving yourself' is seen as the be all and end all. Read the full piece via our 🔗
🥀Misery, Complexity and Thinness - the Hidden Holy Trinity in Sad Girl Media It is not just how we show bodies that is important, but how we write them, too. Maya Heuer-Evans explores how bodies are depicted in the Sad Girl Lit universe, and why it needs to change. ✍️ @maya.hevans Read the full piece via our 🔗
🎪 Running Away with the Circus: Chappell Roan Through the Lens of Angela Carter Our fav @chappellroan has perfected circus chic, but why does those who are usually considered an 'outsider' feel so at home in the circus setting? Read the full piece now via our 🔗
🔪 Who’s afraid of Melissa Barrera? We're are getting into the Final Girl trope, loving Ireland, the unexpected similarities between musicals and horrors, and lots, lots more with @melissabarreram See the full feature on our site via the 🔗 Photographer: Kirt Barnett @wavykirt Words: Halima Jibril @h.alimaa Creative Direction: Ione Gamble @ionegamble Hair: Sami Knight @samiknighthair Makeup: Lilly Keys @lilly_keys Stylist: Tabitha Sanchez @tabitharsanchez Lighting: Ethan Benavidez @ethanbenavidez Styling Assist: Jess Mcatee @jessmcatee BTS + Photo Assist: Celeste Arroyo @lipstick.tracess Video Editor: Charlotte Landrum @charlottealandrum
Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company?
