Heroine chic: Reclaiming our media mirror
Plus: '90s chunky platform sandals are back! Our recommendations to resurrect this iconic look • The ways the world is designed for men
BeWell | The Midst beauty, style & wellness newsletter
Exclusive for subscribers to The Midst Substack
We grew up with the words “heroin chic” on the covers of magazines — and it was a good thing. After all the boobies and high-cut bottoms of the ’80s, fashion was starving for something different, something grungy, something that no woman could ever healthfully maintain — and it was everything our impressionable eyes thought we should be.
All of the Diet Cokes and Parliament Lights I could stomach never made me that chic. Barfing up Dairy Queen and midnight concoctions didn’t do it either. But dammit if I didn’t try to fit to make those 1994 low-cut jeans work. And then! I became all too aware and much too angry, speaking up in women’s studies classes, making feminist art, and trying in my little world to rework the narrative, the Gaze, and the media mirror in which we see ourselves.
Now 30 years later, Gen X still sees very little of who we really are in media. Our mission at The Midst is to empower women in midlife. Part of that empowerment, in my opinion, is positive and real representation. But you know what? As we’re creating stories and content, there are very few (stock) images that look like you and me. (Go ahead and look us up: “lifestyle photos of women in their 40s or 50s.” Looks like we might be giving up on life, huh?)
Call for midlife models
Our readers are a diverse group of women spread all around the world, and we want to represent our community as much as possible. This is our first step.
We’re asking if YOU would like to submit photos of yourself so we can feature them in our stories. We hope to create a media library of “real” women so that we can publish these images in place of stock or sometimes hard-to-get photos. I know it’s revolutionary, and I think it’s needed.
If you’re interested, please shoot me an email (lauria@the-midst.com) to say hey, and I’ll follow up with all the details. We’re building a community, not just a brand. Thanks for helping however you do you — by reading, by contributing, by subscribing, or by (hey, GAL, hey!) modeling!
When will we be seen?
Nutrition expert and The Midst writer Sally Duffin posted the following book review on her LinkedIn page last week. First, I ordered it on Amazon. Next, I asked Sally if I could publish her post in this newsletter.
Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
Sally writes:
“It was published in 2019, the same year I ran as an election candidate for the Women's Equality Party.
While campaigning I met quite a few ‘charming’ gentlemen who really could have done with reading this, even if just to understand the world their wife/daughters/sisters/mother lives in.
So many everyday things that we take for granted have been designed with no thought for females.
Seat belts.
Car safety tests.
Prescription drugs that give women more side effects because they were only trialed on men.
Care responsibilities.
The working week.
Police body armour.
Parks and play spaces.
Too many things to mention here.
I still haven't read it all because I get really cross after each chapter and need to go calm down.”
Wait for it …
Your favorite ’90s sandals are back!
By Anne Holub
Just like clockwork, things we enjoyed in college are back in style again, from the tease of a low-rise jean (shudder) to the fabulous “Princess Diana Outfit” of an oversized sweatshirt paired with biker shorts for a few quick errands. But also it’s come for your favorite clunky, crunchy, and possibly ankle injury–inducing ’90s summer sandals. Just see what’s for sale in the year 2024 and try not to hum the theme song to Dawson’s Creek.
Chunky Fisherman Sandal at Old Navy ($30)
Jelly Sandals by Melissa at Amazon ($69)
“The Wedge” Strappy Sandals by Rothy’s at Anthropologie ($179)
Low Wedge Sandals by Crocs at Amazon ($37.50+)
Ankle Strap Wedge by Sorel at Zappos ($139.50)
Steve Madden Slinky30 Wedge at Amazon ($89)
Lug Sandal by Wild Fable at Target ($35)
Thanks for reading BeWell!
X, Lauria, The Midst Beauty & Wellness Editor
The Midst is a woman-owned business on a mission to empower women in midlife.