The one thing supermodels can never do.
Paulina Porizkova on Instagram tears and a rockstar marriage, invisible women, affordable style upgrades + The Perfect Couple moment we're frothing over. Welcome to your weekly dose of MID-spo.
If you remember when the only thing bigger than your mum’s shoulder pads was your hair, Rage was essential weekend viewing, and consider Scott and Charlene’s wedding as one of the defining moments of your life, you, my friend, were a child of the ‘80s growing up in Australia.
And in that case, this ad below of Paulina Porizkova will jog a few memories. Because, for many years, Paulina was the most recognised face in fashion and beauty — from her iconic Sports Illustrated cover to being the face of Estée Lauder. When she met rock star Ric Ocasek from the band The Cars at the age of 19 and later married him, it seemed like she was living the dream.
But while Paulina was as visible as she could be, she didn’t feel like she was being heard. Not by the photographers and fashion people, not by producers and directors, and not by her husband, Ric.
But then, during COVID, she became known to a whole new generation of women for an unlikely reason… crying on Instagram. It turns out that Paulina had a lot of really good reasons to cry but by sharing her grief and pain in an unfiltered, unedited video, she showed she’d committed the cardinal sin for supermodels. She’d grown older.
Of course, when Mia Freedman interviewed Paulina on the latest episode of No Filter, her first question had to be, ‘Why were you crying?’.
“I was just in a really, really horrible part of my life at this point. My husband had died. I was utterly alone. There was a pandemic raging. I had to sell my house. I mean, I was in the shittest place of my life,” Paulina says.
“Looking back at it and seeing that video now, I think oh my God, it’s really ugly. It’s really disturbing. I can’t believe that I revealed myself so nakedly to everyone. So yeah, I think there was a bit of madness involved. But it did hook me up with people that felt the same way or other women that felt like they were drowning.”
So yes, while the talk at the time was around Paulina’s tears, the low level hum surrounding that conversation was about her looks. For here was a supermodel who dared to look her age.
The once highest-paid model in the industry, named by Harper’s Bazaar in 1992 as one of America’s 10 most beautiful women, had become largely invisible until that Instagram post.
“The only way to gain visibility in our society is to look younger,” Paulina has said. “If you look your age, nobody will listen to you, and if you want to be heard you can’t look your age.”
Amidst all the talk, Paulina was still grieving her estranged husband. A husband who had committed a final act of cruelty to the wife he’d been married to for almost 30 years.
“Three big envelopes arrived at the house, one for me and one for each of my sons,” the Czech-born model told Mia.
“I opened it, and it said last will and testament. I'm barely processing anything and I've seen this note that sort of stuck in the front on top of it, and it just said in somebody's handwriting, ‘my wife is not going to inherit anything, because she abandoned me’…
🎧 Follow below to hear Paulina Porizkova’s frank, and often funny, conversation with Mia on the latest episode of No Filter.
Just because…
How could we leave the ‘80s behind without (suddenly) dropping this gem from Angry Anderson below? Good mems.
Read, watch and listen to more:
Claudia, Christy, Helena, Naomi: Where the most famous supermodels are now.
WATCH: Friday’s latest episode of Out Loud for Mia’s In Vogue: The 90s recommendation.
LISTEN: Yolanda ‘My Daughter Needs A Nose Job’ Hadid.
The 6 affordable pieces that will upgrade your personal style right now.
I'm going to let you in on a secret.
"Effortless style" is a myth. Nothing more than a made-up fashion term.
The whole concept of just throwing something on and leaving the house looking amazing? No. Not even the world's most stylish women do that.
Nobody woke up looking chic, they had to put a bit of work in.
In fact, seasoned stylists will tell you that it's actually the most effortless looks that require the most effort.
If you feel like your personal style just isn't hitting, or you've got to this age and reckon it should've fallen into place by now, then take heart: it's not you. It's probably because you don't have the tools in your toolbelt to make things *read* as effortless and stylish.
As we enter a new season and your thoughts turn to shopping for fresh pieces, keep in mind that it's as much about how you wear the clothes as the things you're actually buying. Everyone loves the thrill of finding something new then wearing it the next day. But you really don't need to splash out on a whole new wardrobe to look and feel great in your clothes.
I've pulled together some simple styling hacks, along with a few select pieces to update your personal style, starting now…
🎧 Want to get in on the style hacks and fashion advice that will work for you? Follow below to listen to the latest episode of Nothing To Wear on changing up your style in… *checks notes*… one minute!
Read, watch and listen to more:
You’re about to see this colour everywhere. Here’s how to style it.
A pair of white pants completely changed my style. This is why.
It’s officially silver season. Find out how to shop the trend.
HOLLY WAINWRIGHT: ‘The day you disappear’
I can do a neat trick.
I can disappear at will.
You probably can, too. It's a skill that wasn't available to us, when we were younger and eyes first turned in our direction. Sliding over us on the street, at work, in shops and bars and any space where we dared to exist us to judge, slice, categorise, conquer.
But now? Now we can slip through shops barely turning a head. Vanish instantly when leaning on a bar. And our voices, when offering an opinion? Only dogs can hear it.
I could lift a young man's phone from his hand before he noticed I was right there. I could collect sensitive intelligence from the finest spies while pretending to wordle alongside them. And I am deliciously free to walk a street without catcall or comment.
There are upsides to being invisible, you see.
But generally, it's a jolt. Do we still exist if we are harder to see? Does it matter what we say, or what we want, or what we know, if we're considered an amorphous lump of looser bodies, frizzier hair, flatter feet?
If we are invisible, not just out in the wild but in parliaments and boardrooms and on screens and in our ears and in the pages of books, were we ever even here?…
🎧 When it comes to disappearing, Jane Tara, author of the brilliant novel Tilda Is Visible, lived it. In the year she turned 50, life was hammering her - she'd been hospitalised with a significant health issue, lost her business and been dumped via text by her partner of a decade. So how did she bring herself back to life, and back into view? That's the subject of this conversation on the latest episode of MID, between Jane and host Holly Wainwright. Follow below to listen.
Read, watch and listen to more:
Nobody celebrates quite like a 50-year-old woman who thinks she’s ageing well.
At 49, my life was in freefall. On the day I turned 50, I made a decision.
LISTEN: Trinny Woodall is in her naked-on-a-horse era.
THE SCROLL 📱
5 things to feed your mind, fill your heart and nourish your soul.
1. A moment of silence for these long-suffering Hollywood friends.
2. A non-techie's guide to Apple's new iPhone, AirPods and Watch.
3. Leigh Campbell’s new fave serum for plump and hydrated skin.
4. Why everyone’s talking about Trump’s new ‘girlfriend’.*
5. Mormons are known for their strict rules. But there are a few wild loopholes.
*Psst… bonus content available here ⬇️
If you’re enjoying this newsletter (OF COURSE YOU ARE!), you might want to get even more goodness in your life by signing up for this weekly newsletter from Out Loud. Not only is it fun and funny, it also has some seriously good extra content only available for free newsletter subscribers. Such as this week’s particular take from Amelia Lester, Jessie Stephens and Holly Wainwright on the influence of Taylor Swift on the US election and whether her endorsement will make a difference. Enjoy!
We hear ya, Nicole
Are you following MID on Instagram? 10 out of 10 would recommend.
Oh, and if you want to know about the hidden details in The Perfect Couple before you finish bingeing it this weekend, reading this will 100 percent change how you watch it!
👀 ICYMI
Workplace Flexibility & Accessible Treatment — Everything To Know From The Menopause Enquiry. Harry Garside fell apart at the Olympics. Weeks later he told us something profound. Demi Moore’s daughters attended her latest film premiere. But for years, they didn’t talk to her. The $15 product that fixes flaky lips. A stylist’s instant hacks to elevate your wardrobe. Mia Freedman: ‘All the things I didn’t wear for Mamamia’s biggest event of the year’.