Table of contents for Issue 913 in Grazia

Email us at feedback@graziamagazine.co.uk Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @GraziaUK I ENJOYED READING Abigail Bergstrom’s Sisters: Friends and frenemies (21 July) as it reinforced the feelings I had for my sister. Heather was the closest person to me (apart from my husband and son) and when she died suddenly aged 41 my world changed forever. All the shared knowledge and memories have gone and there’s no one to check the facts with. We were never allowed to fight as children and we had to share everything and be kind to one another. We were extremely different in every way, but the bond we had cannot be replicated. If you are lucky enough to have one, give your sister a big hug and be grateful to have her. (Love…

LILY ALLEN ANNOUNCED, during a recent episode of Miss Me? her (top notch) podcast with Miquita Oliver, that she couldn’t remember how many abortions she’d had. ‘I want to say five? Four?’ she said. After which, all hell broke loose. Criticism of Allen ranged from: how careless she must be to have had so many unwanted pregnancies (ever heard of a condom, love?) to: how callous, for forgetting those abortions, for not having each and every one etched across her soul like heartbreak. Me? I felt shocked at first. It’s rare to hear a woman being so honest about abortion. Until Allen, the only person I’d known to be publicly casual about her multiple abortions was me. And even I hadn’t forgotten how many I’d had (three). But then? I…

ONE LAST MUSING ON summer wardrobes before everyone jets off for good: never underestimate the clout of an exceptional pair of sandals. Not exactly groundbreaking? Perhaps. But it’s still worth repeating. Few accessories hold the transformative sway of a sandal. And the pleasing twist? This season’s line-up spans from delightfully offbeat (yes, even the rubbery, toe-thonged kind fashion types now co-sign) to the elegant resurgence of near-extinct icons. All fully sanctioned for both sunlounging in Santorini and sweating it out in the boardroom. Think flip-flops with fashion credentials, vertiginous wedges (they’re back), spaghetti-thin straps and utilitarian rope hybrids. Your pedicure has officially been put on notice.…

EARLIER THIS MONTH, Judge Lewis J Liman dismissed Justin Baldoni’s £300m countersuit against Blake Lively and The New York Times claiming defamation and civil extortion, brought after Lively had accused him of sexual harassment and of creating a hostile workplace on the set of their film, It Ends With Us, in her own lawsuit back in December. It was a legal victory for Lively amid an arduous back and forth that saw both parties’ reputations decimated online. Despite the sensitive nature of the allegations, Lively’s formerly golden girl reputation has undoubtedly been tarnished by the legal saga. For a long time, she was riding high thanks to playing Serena Van Der Woodsen in Gossip Girl, marriage to Ryan Reynolds and an A-list friendship circle that cemented her status as a…

EVERY MONDAY FOR the past four years I’ve had an appointment with my therapist. Why would I not? She has helped me to change my life and assess the cards I’ve been dealt with clarity and compassion. Some weeks I feel like I have nothing to talk about, while others there’s an avalanche of topics and dilemmas that would spill over my allotted 50 minutes. But what if you could access therapy 24/7? That is the tantalising prospect being dangled by the tech world with the emergence of AI as a kind of digital therapist. As well as AI-powered services, such as Wysa and Noah AI, there’s an increase in the number of people running their problems through ChatGPT, which is literally at their fingertips. Dr Stephanie Fitzgerald is a…

WHEN THE MERCURY rises, most women’s thoughts turn to linen and cotton to keep the heat at bay. For Kaia Gerber, however, there’s only one way to stay cool – by wrapping yourself in thick two-inch ribbons of elastic. Nor is the 23-year-old model-slash-actor the only A-lister to be making like an Egyptian mummy. Peri-menopausal women might want to look away now, because it’s set to be a bandage girl summer. Not to be confused with a bondage girl summer (though it’s definitely adjacent), this body-conscious, body-confident trend is currently enjoying a revival, thanks to a slew of high-profile fans. Kaia kick-started the trend last September, appearing at the Toronto Film Festival premier of her film Shell in a long white bandage dress that, according to her stylist, Molly Dickson,…

I’M AT AIRPORT security staring at my tray on the conveyor belt and feeling smug. My crisp-packet-sized plastic liquids bag is sealed and full, but not bursting – my skincare has been decanted into mini containers recycled from last year’s beauty advent calendar and anything over 100ml is in my checked-in suitcase, a 26kg behemoth. Honestly, this is Charlotte York levels of organisation; Carrie Bradshaw could never. After years of spending a fortune on airport toiletries that I couldn’t fit in my case, skipping SPF reapplications because I hadn’t packed enough (the sting of that last-day-of-holiday burn still haunts me) and scorching my parting because I couldn’t be bothered to factor in an extra hair wash, I now have my pre-holiday haul down pat. I have curated a packing list…

We’ve spent a lot of our 20th birthday year talking to Grazia readers about their lives and one of the things that comes up time and time again is beauty. It’s clear you’re all constantly on the hunt for a trusted recommendation of a product that really works, the beauty holy grail, if you like. If that sounds like you, I hope you’ve found Grazia Beauty – our standalone beauty issue that’s on sale now for another few weeks. Do also consider joining our Beauty Club, which gives you access to products, content and events with the crème de la crème of the industry. Earlier this month, members got a hands-on make-up masterclass at Charlotte Tilbury. Closer to home, don’t miss our head of beauty Annie Vischer’s brilliant guide to…

1. Up SARINA WIEGMAN Overseeing the Lionesses Euro campaign with classic passion, poise, signature ponytail and (even more) signature eyewear. 2. Non-mover CATE BLANCHETT Whose cameo right at the end of Squid Game season three has spawned a bazillion theories re: why? And what comes next? 3. Up WEE WILLIE WINKIE Everyone, from Sabrina Carpenter to Megan Stalter in Too Much, is wearing their nightie in public. But let’s please remember who did it first. 4. Up ALMOST EVERY ACTRESS IN THE WHITE LOTUS Carrie Coon, Parker Posey, Natasha Rothwell and Aimee Lee Wood are all up for a Best Supporting EMMY. We wouldn’t want to choose. 5. New in DISS POETRY It’s the new diss track. Father Pat Brennan, late of a Catholic Church in Coventry, just wrote one…

RIGHT NOW, FASHION’S plat du jour isn’t a cult buy, nor is it a new trend. No, the most overused concept is the styling hack. A phrase once confined to makeover montages, it’s now imbued with the honourable effort to get more out of your wardrobe without falling into the trap of overconsumption. Just the other night, at a dinner party heavy on fashion people and low on carbs, no fewer than four guests had tied silk scarves around their waists in a knowing nod to Alexa Chung, who kick-started the trend when she gave us the blueprint for the look earlier this year, updating her jeans and T-shirt combo with a Gucci scarf slung around her hips. Now we’re all for rethinking what you own by reimagining the humble…

IF ANYONE KNOWS the importance of confidence, it’s Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. The 38-year-old mother of two started modelling at just 16, her first campaign for Levi’s jeans, and had become the face of Victoria’s Secret by 19. ‘In my early career, I was really fortunate to have a few key people who helped guide me,’ she tells Grazia. ‘Having mentors who believed in me made a huge difference and they offered advice, support and sometimes just a listening ear when things got challenging. Those challenges included critical casting agents. Like so many models, in the early days of her career, she was told to lose weight and even sent home from shoots for being ‘full-figured’. She was also rejected from jobs for having ‘too much of a personality’, and told she…

AT THIS POINT in the summer, we’ve fully hit our groove. We’ve identified the outfits we feel great in; the drinks that quench our heatwave thirst; and the topics we need to discuss in depth with our friends – and we’ll be repeating those ad nauseam until some point in September. The likelihood is that what’s working for you in this long, hot summer is also working for me, because good ideas catch on: in other words, it’s a time of year when we understand that some things are deservedly popular and we’re not ashamed to be basic. So, as we surf into the second half of the season, let us celebrate everything we’re loving en masse as we embrace our status as summer 2025 clichés. "ELDERLY MILLENNIALS AND GENX…

THE ONE FOR FASHION KUDOS LII STUDIO Having already dressed the likes of Ayo Edebiri and Greta Lee, Zen Li – the man behind Lii Studio – is fast becoming fashion’s name to know. His designs are sculptural without being severe, feminine without cliché and offer unexpected colour pairings and silhouettes. Watch this space. THE ONE FOR TREASURE HUNTERS APOC STORE Consider Apoc Store the internet’s best-kept secret, now with a postcode. A platform spotlighting the most compelling under-theradar designers, it brings together jewellery, fashion, accessories and homeware you’d usually have to discover via an algorithminduced scroll. And now it has a permanent space, in London’s London Fields. THE ONE FOR NU-KNITS KHADE STUDIO This brand has long held pride of place in the wardrobes of Dua Lipa and Kim…

WHEN SHE LOGS on to our video call, Cara Delevingne is channelling old Hollywood glamour – brushed-out waves, softly lined eyes. She is in Cannes, representing L’Oréal Paris at the film festival, having been a brand ambassador since September. ‘I have always looked up to L’Oréal Paris,’ she tells me. ‘One of my first beauty memories is the smell of Elnett. My granny loved Elnett, so that’s a very visceral memory for me.’ Delvingne landed her first big modelling job aged 10 – a shoot for Vogue Italia by Bruce Weber. Nothing like starting small. Five years later she caught the attention of Storm CEO Sarah Doukas, who famously discovered Kate Moss. Doukas signed her in 2009 and, two years later, she was striding down the Burberry runway, an appearance…

The last book I read… Can’t Get Enough by a Black female author, Kennedy Ryan. It’s the third in a trilogy following three friends’ love lives. It’s smutty, sexy stuff. The last song I listened to… Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears for Fears. It’s my seven-year-old son’s favourite song – he has mature taste! The last box set I binged… MobLand. I’m a big mafia underworld girl. The last item I added to my wardrobe… Huge, faux leather cherry-red balloon pants from The Frankie Shop. The last beauty product I finished… La Roche-Posay Anthelios suncream. The last meal I cooked… Jamaican Saturday soup. It’s chicken, corn, plantain, dumplings. It’s hearty. The last day off I had… I was in Brooklyn and went for a run, then to Flatbush, which is…

GISÈLE PELICOT HAS REDEFINED WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A VICTIM Gisèle Pelicot has been given France’s top civic honour as part of Bastille Day celebrations. She was among 589 people named knight of the Legion of Honour, which recognises merit-based national service. The 72-year-old became a global symbol in the fight against sexual violence after she waived her right to anonymity and publicly testified at her mass-rape trial last year. ‘The shame isn’t ours to feel, it’s theirs,’ she told the court. She gave a voice to survivors and her courage sparked women across France to rise up against ‘rape culture’. Gisèle took a stand not only for herself but for all women. She couldn’t be more deserving of her award.…

THE LASTACT and the first act, the veteran designer versus the newcomer – this July’s couture shows had all the makings of a Shakespearean play. Consider this the initial revving up to what will be a rip roaring ready-to-wear season come September when The Great Designer Reshuffle, aka the Brand Supremacy Wars, truly begin. First to Demna’s last act, his final show for Balenciaga before handing over the crown to Pierpaolo Piccioli and heading off to Milan to take the throne at Gucci. Demna Gvasalia (who, since 2021, goes by the mononym Demna) showed the culmination of a decade’s work. It was a mindboggling smorgasbord of Demnaisms, all of which made you realise how he has influenced and changed fashion. Just how much of what we wear now – and…

1. JOIN THE DOTS Polka dots reign supreme this season, adding playful charm to any outfit. From statement blouses to chic accessories, this timeless print is easy to style. Pair with neutrals or mix with bold colours for a little flair. 2. ANIMAL MAGNETISM Animal print is still having a major moment, from catwalks to the high street. Overdone the leopard? Why not test-drive some zebra? An easy way to spice up your summer wardrobe. 3. BOTANICALS WITH BITE Graphic florals are blooming big for a fresh twist on the classic. Bold, punchy and bright, they’re a shortcut to making a statement. Think vibrant dresses, co-ords and accessories that instantly brighten your look. 4. CHECKS AND BALANCES Plaid is having a major style revival. From tailored pieces to playful skirts,…

RELAX INTO THE DANISH AESTHETIC We’re easy-going. Most of my friends wear everyday looks for going out and almost every woman in Copenhagen is in sneakers or flats most of the time. Athleisure has been a popular trend for many years, while trekking shoes, hiking sandals and sport shorts are key for summer. GET ON FIRST-NAME TERMS WITH THE BEST DANISH BRANDS Two that I really love are Skall Studio and AF Agger. They have the best, timeless items that I like mixing into my sporty wardrobe to make it more effortless and luxe. I never sell pieces from them and will keep them for the generations after me. I love cashmere knits and I have many from People’s Republic of Cashmere, which makes some of the best in both…

PEOPLE KEEP ASKING me which discovery amazed me the most during my research for my new book, How The Female Body Works. Having spent two years interviewing the most incredible experts – medics and academics, with hundreds of years’ experience between them in healing women’s bodies – as I learned more and more and more… Oh, it’s impossible for me to choose just one amazing thing. I would say, however, that one of the more useful things I learned is the impact of hormones on how we exercise. How that changes through the course of the menstrual cycle, leaving us more vulnerable to injury. How we can work with that, to mitigate it. The first person to speak to me about it was London-based physio Tom Bradley - a man…