GRRRL STYLE ISSUE 1MMuusshhyy MMooddeellss -- PPooppppyy BBeelllliiss -- SSkkuunnkk -- TTaappppeedd OOuuttEElliissee KKoohh -- FFlloorreennccee HHiinndd
interviews from:Mushy Models(pages 3-6)Poppy Bellis(pages 7-8)Skunk(pages 9-12)Tapped Out(pages 13-14)ffeeaattuurriinngg::writing from:Elise Koh(pages 15-17)11
GRRRL STYLE ISSUE 1hello!!! this is the firstissue of grrrl style, sothank you very much forreading!!! I started thiszine cause A) now my examsare nearly done i’ll bedoing nothing for 3months, and B) In a worldso dangerous for women,queer people, people ofcolour and anymarginalised group, Iwanted to create somethingto celebrate people inthese communities, as wellas just all the good inthe world in general!!!if you want to getinvolved, DM us oninstagram @grrrl_style [email protected] !!!pls enjoy??22
““II''mm aann aanniimmaattiioonn ggrraadduuaattee wwiitthh aa hhuuggeeppaassssiioonn ffoorr hhaarrddccoorree aanndd ccrreeaattiinngg aarrtt.. IIlloovvee hhoorrrroorr ffiillmmss aanndd sseerriieess!! CCrreeaattiinnggmmyy cchhaarraacctteerrss aanndd bbrriinnggiinngg tthheemm ttoo lliiffeeiiss mmyy ffaavvoouurriittee tthhiinngg ttoo ddoo aalloonngg wwiitthhttrraaddiittiioonnaall ppaaiinnttiinngg.. II ssppeenndd aallmmoosstt aallllooff mmyy ffrreeee ttiimmee mmaakkiinngg aarrtt bbuutt II eennjjooyyppllaayyiinngg ggaammeess wwiitthh ffrriieennddss!! MMyy ffaavvoouurriitteeggaammeess aarree NNiigghhtt iinn tthhee WWooooddss,, FFeeaarr aannddHHuunnggeerr aanndd OOxxeennffrreeee.. II aamm aa bbiigg ffaann ooffccaarrttoooonnss aass wweellll aanndd AAddvveennttuurree TTiimmee iissoonnee ooff mmyy ffaavvoouurriitteess ooff aallll ttiimmee ::))””“I'm an animation graduate with a hugepassion for hardcore and creating art. Ilove horror films and series! Creatingmy characters and bringing them to lifeis my favourite thing to do along withtraditional painting. I spend almost allof my free time making art but I enjoyplaying games with friends! My favouritegames are Night in the Woods, Fear andHunger and Oxenfree. I am a big fan ofcartoons as well and Adventure Time isone of my favourites of all time :)”MMuusshhyy MMooddeellssaarrtt ++ aanniimmaattiioonn@@mmuusshhyy__mmooddeellss33
““MMyy aarrtt iiss ffoorr ffaannss ooff aammiixx ooff tthhee ccrreeeeppyy aannddccuuttee.. II uussee mmaannyy ddiiffffeerreennttmmeeddiiuummss ttoo ccrreeaattee mmyy aarrttssuucchh aass 33DD aanniimmaattiioonn aannddccllaayy.. MMyy bbeesstt sseelllliinnggppiieecceess hhaavvee aallwwaayyss bbeeeenn mmyyccllaayy mmooddeellss wwhhiicchh aarreennoorrmmaallllyy ffiigguurreess ooffcchhaarraacctteerrss..””“My art is for fans of amix of the creepy andcute. I use many differentmediums to create my artsuch as 3D animation andclay. My best sellingpieces have always been myclay models which arenormally figures ofcharacters.”““MMyy ffiillmmAAlltteerriittyyaalltthhoouugghh aabboouutt aaddiiggiittaall wwoorrllddwwaass aallssoo aabboouuttddiissssoocciiaattiioonnaalloonngg wwiitthhccoonnffuussiioonn iinniiddeennttiittyy..II hhaavveessttaarrtteeddbbrraanncchhiinngg oouuttiinnttoo ggrraapphhiiccddeessiiggnn aannddccrreeaattiinngg ggiiggffllyyeerrss ffoorr SSOOHHCCsshhoowwss..””“My filmAlterityalthough about adigital worldwas also aboutdissociationalong withconfusion inidentity.I havestartedbranching outinto graphicdesign andcreating gigflyers for SOHCshows.”““RReecceennttllyy II hhaavvee ssttaarrtteeddaa sseerriieess rreeccrreeaattiinngg bbooddyyoorrggaannss iinn mmyy oowwnn ssttyylleewwhhiicchh II hhaavvee ffoouunndd ssoo ffuunnaanndd rreewwaarrddiinngg.. II wwaanntt ttooffooccuuss oonn aa mmoorree rreeaalliissttiiccggoorree//hhoorrrroorr aapppprrooaacchh ttooaarrtt aass aa ffoorrmm ooffeexxpprreessssiioonn aanndd mmeettaapphhoorrssffoorr ccoommpplleexx iissssuueess lliikkeemmeennttaall hheeaalltthh..””“Recently I have starteda series recreating bodyorgans in my own stylewhich I have found so funand rewarding. I want tofocus on a more realisticgore/horror approach toart as a form ofexpression and metaphorsfor complex issues likemental health.”✧✧ ━━━━━━━━⊱⊱??⊰⊰━━━━━━━━ ✧✧✧✧ ━━━━━━━━⊱⊱??⊰⊰━━━━━━━━ ✧✧44
II hhaavvee bbeeeenn mmaakkiinngg aarrtt aallll mmyy lliiffee.. AAss aakkiidd II lloovveedd ffiinnggeerr ppaaiinnttiinngg aanndd uussiinnggccrraayyoonnss oorr cchhaallkk ttoo ddrraaww aanndd iitt aallwwaayyssggoott hhuunngg oonn tthhee ffrriiddggee.. II aamm lluucckkyy ttoohhaavvee ggrroowwnn uupp wwiitthh tthhee mmoosstt aammaazziinnggffaammiillyy wwhhoo hhaavvee aallwwaayyss eennccoouurraaggeedd mmee ttooppuurrssuuee mmyy ppaassssiioonn.. MMyy bbiiggggeesstt aarrttiinnssppiirraattiioonn hhaass ttoo bbee tthhee yyoouuttuubbee sseerriieessDDoonn''tt HHuugg MMee II''mm SSccaarreedd wwhhiicchh II wwaattcchheeddwwhheenn II wwaass 1100 aanndd sshhaappeedd mmyy aarrttssttyylleeffoorreevveerr.. II tthhiinnkk tthhee ccrreeaattiivviittyy ooff tthheesseerriieess aanndd hhooww iitt ppeerrffeeccttllyy bblleennddss tthheelliinneess ooff mmiixxeedd mmeeddiiuummss aanndd hhoorrrroorr iiss ssooiimmpprreessssiivvee..I have been making art all my life. As akid I loved finger painting and usingcrayons or chalk to draw and it alwaysgot hung on the fridge. I am lucky tohave grown up with the most amazingfamily who have always encouraged me topursue my passion. My biggest artinspiration has to be the youtube seriesDon't Hug Me I'm Scared which I watchedwhen I was 10 and shaped my artstyleforever. I think the creativity of theseries and how it perfectly blends thelines of mixed mediums and horror is soimpressive.how long have you been making artand what inspired you to start?TThhee hhaarrddccoorree sscceennee hhaass cchhaannggeedd mmyy lliiffeeffoorreevveerr!! II hhaavvee ssuuffffeerreedd wwiitthh sseevveerreeaannxxiieettyy mmyy wwhhoollee lliiffee aanndd nnooww wwhheenn II tteellllppeeooppllee iittss aammaazziinngg hhooww ssuurrpprriisseedd tthheeyyaarree!! II ddiiddnn''tt rreeaalliissee II aamm sseeeenn aass ssuucchhaann oouuttggooiinngg aanndd aapppprrooaacchhaabbllee ppeerrssoonn iinntthhee SSOOHHCC sscceennee aanndd tthhaatt iiss aallll dduuee ttooggooiinngg ttoo ggiiggss bbuuiillddiinngg mmyy ccoonnffiiddeennccee.. IIhhaavvee ssttrruugggglleedd ffiittttiinngg iinn tthhrroouugghhoouutt mmyytteeeenn aanndd aadduulltt yyeeaarrss aanndd iitt iiss ssoo nniiccee ttooffiinnaallllyy bbee iinn aa ccoommmmuunniittyy wwhheerree II ffeeeelllliikkee II bbeelloonngg.. bbeeiinngg aabbllee ttoo mmeeeett lliikkee--mmiinnddeedd ppeeooppllee aanndd ffrriieennddss wwhhoo lloovvee tthheessaammee mmuussiicc iiss tthhee bbeesstt aanndd ggeettttiinngg ttoo sseeeemmyy ffaavvoouurriittee bbaannddss iiss aallwwaayyss tthheehhiigghhlliigghhtt ooff mmyy mmoonntthh.. HHeellppiinngg oouuttBBeettrraayyeedd BByy LLiiffee rreeccoorrddss aatt mmyy ffiirrssttOOuuttbbrreeaakk ffeessttiivvaall iinn 22002255 wwaass tthhee mmoossttiinnccrreeddiibbllee eexxppeerriieennccee aanndd ii''mm ssoo ggrraatteeffuullttoo LLeemm aanndd LLuu ffoorr tthheeiirr ssuuppppoorrtt.. IIwwoouullddnn''tt hhaavvee hhaadd tthhee ccoonnffiiddeennccee ttoo sseellllmmyy aarrtt aatt sshhoowwss iiff iitt wwaassnn''tt ffoorr tthheemm..The hardcore scene has changed my lifeforever! I have suffered with severeanxiety my whole life and now when I tellpeople its amazing how surprised theyare! I didn't realise I am seen as suchan outgoing and approachable person inthe SOHC scene and that is all due togoing to gigs building my confidence. Ihave struggled fitting in throughout myteen and adult years and it is so nice tofinally be in a community where I feellike I belong. being able to meet likeminded people and friends who love thesame music is the best and getting to seemy favourite bands is always thehighlight of my month. Helping outBetrayed By Life records at my firstOutbreak festival in 2025 was the mostincredible experience and i'm so gratefulto Lem and Lu for their support. Iwouldn't have had the confidence to sellmy art at shows if it wasn't for them.how has the hardcore sceneimpacted you, both as a personand in your art?55
TToo mmee II tthhiinnkk tthhee mmoosstt iimmppoorrttaanntt vvaalluueessaarree tthhee ppoolliittiiccss aanndd mmiinnddsseett bbeehhiinnddhhaarrddccoorree.. IInn aann aaggee wwhheerree rreeffoorrmm aannddrriigghhtt wwiinngg pprrooppaaggaannddaa iiss sspprreeaaddiinngg IItthhiinnkk iitt iiss ssoo iimmppoorrttaanntt ttoo hhaavvee aaccoommmmuunniittyy tthhaatt uunnddeerrssttaannddss aanndd ffooccuusseess oonnssttaannddiinngg uupp ffoorr mmiinnoorriittiieess aannddmmaarrggiinnaalliisseedd ggrroouuppss.. HHaarrddccoorree iiss aallwwaayyssaabboouutt pprrootteeccttiinngg yyoouurr ffrriieennddss aannddssttaannddiinngg uupp ffoorr yyoouurr rriigghhttss.. II aallssoo tthhiinnkkiitt iiss iimmppoorrttaanntt ttoo ccaallll oouutt yyoouurr ffrriieennddssaanndd pprrootteeccttiinngg wwoommeenn vvooiicceess iinn tthhee sscceennee!!HHaarrddccoorree wwoouullddnn''tt eexxiisstt wwiitthhoouutt wwoommeenn aannddffeemm ppeeooppllee aanndd wwee sshhoouulldd pprrootteecctt tthheemm aannddhhaavvee tthheemm ffeeeell wweellccoommee aallwwaayyss..To me I think the most important valuesare the politics and mindset behindhardcore. In an age where reform andright wing propaganda is spreading Ithink it is so important to have acommunity that understands and focuses onstanding up for minorities andmarginalised groups. Hardcore is alwaysabout protecting your friends andstanding up for your rights. I also thinkit is important to call out your friendsand protecting women voices in the scene!Hardcore wouldn't exist without women andfem people and we should protect them andhave them feel welcome always.what do you believe the mostimportant values in hardcore are?do you have any events coming up,or anywhere to find your art?II aamm llooookkiinngg ffoorrwwaarrdd ttoo sseelllliinngg mmyy aarrtt aatttthhee ttaarroobbaallll ccoonnvveennttiioonn oonn JJuunnee 1144tthh!! IIwwiillll aallssoo bbee aatt oouuttbbrreeaakk 22002266 iiff aannyyoonneewwaannttss ttoo ccoommee ssaayy hhii!! II aamm ssuuppeerr eexxcciitteeddffoorr tthhaatt ::DD YYoouu ccaann ffiinndd mmyy aarrtt oonn@@mmuusshhyy__mmooddeellss oonn iinnssttaaggrraamm aanndd iiff tthhiinnggssggoo wweellll tthheenn ppeerrhhaappss aann oonnlliinnee ssttoorree wwiillllbbee ooppeenniinngg ssoooonn...... >>::33I am looking forward to selling my art atthe taroball convention on June 14th! Iwill also be at outbreak 2026 if anyonewants to come say hi! I am super excitedfor that :D You can find my art on@mushy_models on instagram and if thingsgo well then perhaps an online store willbe opening soon... >:366
Poppy Bellismusic photography@poppyphotossTTeellll uuss aabboouutt yyoouurrsseellff..Hi! My name is Poppy-Mae, Iam 17 years old and a newconcert photographer basedin Hampshire. I am currentlystudying Fine Art, MedicalScience, and Psychology incollege, but I hope to studyphotography at university.HHooww lloonngg hhaavvee yyoouu bbeeeenn ddooiinngg pphhoottooggrraapphhyy,,aanndd wwhhaatt iinnssppiirreedd yyoouu ttoo ssttaarrtt??How long have you been doing photography,and what inspired you to start?From a young age my dad has been the biggestinfluence for me on the music scene. I grew upwith him playing guitar, showing me his prizedvinyl record collection (to one day be passed ontome) and taking me to countless concerts. At theseconcerts I found that I was always focusing on thephotos and videos I was taking, when I finallyrealised that this was something I could pursueproperly. I began taking photos with my ownprofessional camera in January this year and haveloved it more and more each gig, while alwayslearning new tricks as I go along.HHooww hhaass tthhee HHaammppsshhiirree mmuussiicc sscceennee iimmppaacctteeddyyoouu,, bbootthh aass aann iinnddiivviidduuaall aanndd iinn yyoouurr wwoorrkk??How has the Hampshire music scene impactedyou, both as an individual and in your work?For me I feel privileged to come from an area thatI feel music does genuinely have a large impact onthe community. Living near smaller venues such asWedgewood rooms and Joiners has not only given methe opportunity to watch up and coming bands forreasonable prices, but also allows me as aphotographer to grow my profile much easier.HHooww ddoo yyoouu ffeeeell aabboouutt bbeeiinngg iinn tthhee mmuussiiccsscceennee aass aa ggiirrll??How do you feel about being in the musicscene as a girl?To be able to be a part of the music scene is sucha privilege, especially during some current issuessome women face today. To be able to involvemyself in one of my biggest passions is somethingI can never take for granted and I hope that wewill reach a point in society when women allaround the world can get these opportunities.77
all photos by @poppy_bellis88
drumsSKUNKssoouutthhaammppttoonn ppoosstt--hhaarrddccoorreeWho are skunk?????freya joeccaassppeerrgguuiittaarr++bbaacckkiinnggvvooccaallssguitar+backingvocalsbass++vvooccaallssbass+vocals@@sskkuunnkkhhcc“we're skunk,a three piecehardcore adjacent punk band fromSouthampton. Our debut EP 'wenever said this was forever'releases July 24th on allplatforms.”99
wwhhaatt ggeennrree wwoouulldd yyoouu ccoonnssiiddeerryyoouurrsseellff??what genre would you consideryourself?wwhheerree ddiidd tthhee nnaammee sskkuunnkk ccoommeefrom??where did the name skunk comefrom?hhooww hhaass tthhee hhaarrddccoorree sscceenneeiinnfflluueenncceedd yyoouu aass aa bbaanndd aannddaass iinnddiivviidduuaallss??how has the hardcore sceneinfluenced you as a band andas individuals?tteellll uuss aabboouutt yyoouurr uuppccoommiinngg EEPPrreelleeaassee,, aanndd wwhhaatt iitt’’ss aabboouutt..tell us about your upcoming EPrelease, and what it’s about.ddoo yyoouu hhaavvee aannyy ggiiggss oorr ggooaallss tthhaattyyoouu’’rree llooookkiinngg ffoorrwwaarrdd ttoo??do you have any gigs or goals thatyou’re looking forward to?TThhee EEPP wwee''vvee jjuusstt ffiinniisshheedd iiss mmoorree PPoosstthhaarrddccoorree // mmeellooddiicc hhaarrddccoorree tthhaann wwee hhaavvee bbeeeennbbeeffoorree,, ttaakkiinngg bbiigg iinnfflluueennccee ffrroomm bbaannddss lliikkeeGGoouuggee AAwwaayy,, TToouucchhéé AAmmoorréé,, eeaarrllyy SSccoowwll aannddFFuuggaazzii wwhheenn wwrriittiinngg ffoorr tthhee EEPP..The EP we've just finished is more Posthardcore / melodic hardcore than we have beenbefore, taking big influence from bands likeGouge Away, Touché Amoré, early Scowl andFugazi when writing for the EP.TThheerree iissnn''tt rreeaallllyy aa mmeeaanniinngg ttoo tthhee nnaammeeSSkkuunnkk,, wwee hhaadd aa ggiigg aanndd wwee nneeeeddeedd ttoo ppiicckk aannaammee ffoorr tthhee lliinneeuupp,, iitt wwaass aa ttoouugghh cchhooiicceebbeettwweeeenn SSkkuunnkk aanndd DDeeWWoorrmm DDeeWWoorrmm......There isn't really a meaning to the nameSkunk, we had a gig and we needed to pick aname for the lineup, it was a tough choicebetween Skunk and DeWorm DeWorm...HHaarrddccoorree hhaass ggiivveenn uuss aa ssaaffee ssppaaccee ttoo eexxpprreessssoouurrsseellvveess mmuussiiccaallllyy,, aasswweellll aass ggiivviinngg uusseexxcceelllleenntt ooppppoorrttuunniittiieess ttoo mmeeeett nneewwppeeooppllee//bbaannddss..Hardcore has given us a safe space to expressourselves musically, aswell as giving usexcellent opportunities to meet newpeople/bands.AAtt iittss ccoorree,, tthhiiss EEPP iiss aa ddeeeepp ddiivvee iinnttoo sseellff--ddiissccoovveerryy,, ppeerrssoonnaall ttrraannssffoorrmmaattiioonn,, ddeeccaayy aannddlloossss.. MMuussiiccaallllyy,, iitt’’ss aa bbiigg sstteepp ffoorrwwaarrdd ffoorruuss,, WWee''vvee bbeeeenn wwoorrkkiinngg oonn tthhee ssoonnggss ffoorr tthhee EEPPffoorr aa wwhhiillee,, tthheeyy''vvee ggoonnee tthhrroouugghh llooaaddss ooffcchhaannggeess ssiinnccee wwee ssttaarrtteedd wwrriittiinngg tthheemm eeaarrlliieerrtthhiiss yyeeaarr bbuutt wwee''vvee ffiinnaallllyy sseettttlleedd oonn tthheemmaanndd wwee''rree rreeaallllyy eexxcciitteedd ttoo ffiinnaallllyy bbee aabbllee ttooppuutt tthheemm oouutt..At its core, this EP is a deep dive into selfdiscovery, personal transformation, decay andloss. Musically, it’s a big step forward forus, We've been working on the songs for the EPfor a while, they've gone through loads ofchanges since we started writing them earlierthis year but we've finally settled on themand we're really excited to finally be able toput them out.WWee''rree aallll vveerryy eexxcciitteedd ttoo ffiinnaallllyy ggeett tthhee EEPPoouutt,, wwee''vvee bbeeeenn ttrryyiinngg ffoorr aa wwhhiillee ttoo wwrriitteessoommeetthhiinngg mmeeaanniinnggffuull ttoo uuss aass aa wwhhoollee aannddtthheessee ssoonnggss jjuusstt cclliicckkeedd rriigghhtt wwiitthh uuss,, SSooggeettttiinngg tthhaatt oouutt wwoouulldd bbee tthhee mmaaiinn tthhiinnggss,,ootthheerr ssttuuffff wwoouulldd jjuusstt bbee ppllaayyiinngg mmoorree sshhoowwss,,wwee lloovvee ddooiinngg iitt,, bbooookk uuss..We're all very excited to finally get the EPout, we've been trying for a while to writesomething meaningful to us as a whole andthese songs just clicked right with us, Sogetting that out would be the main things,other stuff would just be playing more shows,we love doing it, book us.₊₊˚˚ ✧✧ ━━━━━━━━⊱⊱⋆⋆⊰⊰━━━━━━━━ ✧✧ ₊₊˚˚1100
wwhhaatt aarree aallll ooff yyoouurr ttoopp 33 aallbbuummss??ffrreeyyaa::Deep Sage-Gouge AwayGlow On-TurnstileHeathers The Musical-World Premiere Castjoe::We’re Not Here To BeLoved-FleshwaterI Let It In AndIt TookEverything-LoatheErrorzone-Veinccaassppeerr::Shed-Title FightBurnt Sugar-Gouge AwayPreachersDaughter-Ethel Cain1111
photos by @flo.rence_hind 1122
TTAAPPPPEEDD OOUUTTWWhhoo aarree ssoommee ooff yyoouurr bbiiggggeessttmmuussiiccaall iinnssppiirraattiioonnss??Who are some of your biggestmusical inspirations?AArree yyoouu rreeccoorrddiinngg aannyy mmuussiicc,, aannddiiff ssoo,, hhooww hhaass tthhaatt bbeeeenn ffoorryou??Are you recording any music, andif so, how has that been foryou?HHooww ddoo yyoouu wwaanntt yyoouurr aauuddiieennccee ttoovviieeww yyoouu aass aa bbaanndd??How do you want your audience toview you as a band?DDoo yyoouu hhaavvee aannyy ggooaallss oorr eevveennttssttoo llooookk ffoorrwwaarrdd ttoo??Do you have any goals or eventsto look forward to?SSiixx FFtt DDiittcchh,, BBuullll DDoozzee,, GG..OO..DD,, GGooddss HHaatteeWWee’’rree ccuurrrreennttllyy iinn tthhee pprroocceessss ooff ssttaarrttiinngg oouurrEEPP.. ccoommppoossiinngg aanndd wwrriittiinngg aallll tthhee ssttuuffff wwaass ffuunnbbuutt nnooww,, iitt’’ss ttiimmee ttoo ggeett eevveerryytthhiinngg rreeaaddyy ffoorrbbaannddccaammpp,, ssoouunnddcclloouudd,, eettcc.. iitt’’ss bbeeeenn ssttrreessssffuullbbuutt ii’’mm ssuurree iitt’’llll bbee aa ffrruuiittffuull pprroojjeeccttWe’re currently in the process of starting ourEP. composing and writing all the stuff was funbut now, it’s time to get everything ready forbandcamp, soundcloud, etc. it’s been stressfulbut i’m sure it’ll be a fruitful projectDDoonn’’tt ttaakkee uuss sseerriioouussllyy..WWee’’rree jjuusstt fflluuffffyy tteeddddyybbeeaarrss ffuullll ooff ssttuuffffiinngg,, wwee ddoonn’’tt mmeeaann nnoo hhaarrmmDon’t take us seriously.We’re just fluffy teddybears full of stuffing, we don’t mean no harmPPllaayyiinngg aa ffeeww mmoorree sshhoowwss aanndd rreelleeaassiinngg aann EEPPsseeeemmss lliikkee aa ggoooodd aannsswweerr bbuutt,, rreeaallllyy,, wwee jjuussttwwaannnnaa sseeee aass mmaannyy ppeeooppllee ggeett ssppiinnkkiicckkeedd ttoo oouurrssoonnggss aass wwee ccaann.. lliiffee iiss aa hhiigghhwwaayy.. PPlluuss ggeettttiinnggssiiggnneedd ttoo RRuucckkttiioonn RReeccoorrddssPlaying a few more shows and releasing an EPseems like a good answer but, really, we justwanna see as many people get spinkicked to oursongs as we can. life is a highway. Plus gettingsigned to Rucktion Recordsggoossppoorrtt bbeeaattddoowwnn@@ttaappppeedd__oouutt__hhcc1133
photos by @flo.rence_hindecholucashayden1144
Beauty is Discomfort - Elise Kohssuuppaa ccooooll tthhiinnkk ppeeiiccee!!!!elise!!!!this is elise koh!!! shesbeen helping out with thezine, and one of the mostpassionate people I know, soi really wanted to includesomething of hers!!! shewrote a think piece aboutthe beauty industry andbeauty standard thorughouthistory so ya… enjoy!!!“But if I gave up on being pretty I wouldn’t knowhow to be alive”- Mitski, Brand New CityWhen do you feel the most beautiful? Is it afteryou get out of the shower, with just yourself andyour bare face in the mirror's reflection? Or is itafter you’ve plucked your eyebrows and waxed yourarms and squeezed into a dress 2 sizes too small?To be beautiful is to be in a state of constantdiscomfort.Dazed digital reports that the phrase ‘beauty ispain’ originates from the 1800s French phrase: ‘ilfaut souffrir pour être belle’, or ‘one must sufferto be beautiful’. Although the phrase has beenaround for over 200 years, the ideology of ‘beautyis pain’ existed long before that. Like how QueenElizabeth I may have died from blood poisoning in1603 due to her toxic makeup (a foundation that wasa mixture of vinegar and lead, and black eyelinermade with coal). Or how in China, foot bindingbegan in the Sung dynasty (CE 960 –1280), whereyoung girls‘ feet were tightly bound with bandages,as small feet, or ‘lotus feet’, became a statussymbol and a sign of female purity. This practicecan still be seen today, with the last few womenwith bound feet still residing in the ruralvillages of the Yunnan province.This shows how women's suffering in the name ofbeauty and acceptance has been passed down forgenerations. For centuries, women and girls arebrought up in a society that teaches them thatbeauty is a form of social currency which can onlybe earned by feeling discomfort or agony - from theblisters that heels bring, to the fact that usingsunbeds before the age of 35 increases the relativerisk of melanoma by 75%. 1155
A few weeks ago I tried on my prom dress forthe first time after buying it last August.But I didn’t feel beautiful in it. After afew moments of staring at myself in themirror, I realised why. It's because itwasn’t tight enough. It wasn’t uncomfortableenough.After that, I began to wonder - why do I haveto endure pain to feel beautiful? Most beautypractices, involve some sort of pain. Laserhair removal, plastic surgery, waisttrainers. Even makeup, which involvessmearing chemicals on your face, denying yourface from fresh air for 8 hours, constitutesa sense of pain. The self appreciation wefeel from beauty outweighs our discomfort andpain. But are we even appreciating ourselves?Once we’ve plucked our eyebrows and waxed ourlegs and endured endless workout routines tochange our rectangular body shapes into morehourglass ones (they didn’t work), are weappreciating our own bodies - or do we justenjoy the validation that comes from ourpain?The beauty industry is constantly changing.That’s a given, with the increasing speed atwhich trends come and go. But with everytrend and fad that comes and inevitably goes,it seems that the finish line for ‘truebeauty’ becomes further and further away,with the race that we need to run to evenattempt to reach the finish line becomingincreasingly violent and painful. Forexample,‘Looksmaxxing’ for both men andwomen shows how society’s desire forperfection is getting more and more selfdegrading by the day. The trend of ‘bonesmashing’ involves repeatedly hitting yourface with a blunt object in order to changeits shape. Even the connotations of bonesmashing present it as violent. I, too, havetried to achieve my ‘optimum appearance’through looksmaxxing. It was awful. Theinfamous technique of mewing promises asharper jawline, when in reality, all itleads to is chronic jaw pain and recessedgums.1166
The internet and social media constantlypush women to be skinnier, fitter,taller, or whatever is in trend duringthat time. The methods used in order forwomen to reach their optimum beauty areobjectively unhealthy, causing short termand long term pain. But we stillcontinue. We still endeavour to reachthis state of perfection, when deep downwe know that if we get too close to thefinish line, society will simply move itfurther away, until we just return towhere we started. The patriarchy makes itso that you must undergo a myriad ofexercises and procedures and hacks inorder to reach true beauty. And eventhen, your beauty is only envied byothers for a quick second, until a newtrend comes around. Our bodies are nottrends to be constantly scrutinised andperfected. Perhaps, a woman’s painfuljourney when striving for beauty comesfrom an urge to regain a sense of valueand acceptance from society.In the end, I chose to not alter mydress.1177
GRRRL STYLE ISSUE 1follow all these epicpeople oninstagram!!!Mushy Models/Yaz:@mushy_modelsPoppy:@poppyphotossSkunk:@skunkhcTapped Out:@tapped_out_hcElise:@e1isekoh1188