Food Fashion Friends, BY FLEUR WOOD, PENGUIN, $59.95.
If you’ve yet to discover Sydney-based fashion designer Fleur Wood and her soft, slightly bohemian but always elegant sense of style, this book is a good place to start.
As well as making great frocks, Wood is a fervent home cook and her passion shines through the pages of this photographic storyboard of her stylish life. With recipes, entertaining tips and ideas for events from baby showers to kids’ parties, country weekends and cocktail parties, plus dreamy pictures to help put it all together, prepare to
A new solution to rid the skin of scarring, known as punch grafting, has become one of the most effective ways to treat scarring, the UK’s Daily Mail reported.
The process involves using skin from behind the ears as a skin graft over acne scarring.
Dr Puneet Gupta, a GP with a special interest in dermatology, said despite there being other treatments out there, punch grafting is particularly suitable for those who have severe acne scarring.
“Over the past five years, laser treatment, which stimulates the production of collagen, has been used very successfully as a treatment for acne scarring,” Dr Gupta said.
“However, for people with very deep craters, even strong laser treatment is not enough. They are usually in a very visible part of the face, are hard to camouflage even with make-up, and, as a result, patients often feel very self-conscious.”
But there are some downsides to punch grafting. There is a risk of the graft not taking as well as it should, the area that has been grafted may end up higher than surrounding skin and the grafted skin may not match perfectly.
Website acne.org.au reports that acne affects 85 percent of Australians aged between 15 and 24 years and is the most common skin disease.
While chemists’ shelves bulge with expensive weight-loss treatments, researchers have discovered that something as simple and cheap as drinking two glasses of water before every meal could be just as effective when trying to slim down.
Instead of messing with your hormones or playing with your body’s chemistry, this weight-loss technique is childishly straightforward: the water simply fills up the stomach.
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The US researchers compared weight loss in people who drank half a litre of water before every meal with those who merely watched what they ate, the UK’s Daily Mail reported.
Over a three-month period, the water drinkers lost an average of 7kg, 2.25kg more than the non-water-drinkers, the American Chemical Society’s annual conference was told.
“People should drink more water and less sugary, high-calorie drinks. It’s a simple way to facilitate weight management,” said researcher Dr Brenda Davy of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
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In a previous study, Dr Davy also found that water drinkers ate up to 375 fewer kilojoules per meal, which over a day can add up to 1250 kilojoules, or a Danish pastry.
Your say: Do you have any simple weight-loss techniques? Share them below.
The cliché of a moment on the lips meaning a lifetime on the hips has been given credence by a new Swedish study that shows that even short periods of binge eating can leave the body more susceptible to weight gain for years to come.
Previous studies have linked weight-gain to the ageing process, but this is the first to “overfeed” its subjects with junk food to monitor the long-term effects, the UK’s Daily Mail reported.
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Researchers from Linkoping University took 18 slim and healthy people in their early twenties and got them to almost double their kilojoule intake for one month.
The volunteers ate junk food and did very little exercise.
A second group of similarly young and active people were told to go about their lives as normal.
At the end of the month, the first group had gained an average of 6.4kg each. Six months later they had lost most but not all of this weight.
However, the interesting results came when both groups were weighed two and a half years later. The first group were on average more than 3kg heavier than they had been at the start of the experiment, while the control group had not gained any weight.
The researchers also noted that much of the extra weight was stored on the hips.
“The change in fat mass was larger than expected. It suggests that even short-term behavioural changes may have prolonged effects on health,” Linkoping University’s Dr Asa Ernersson said.
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It is not yet known why these binges produced longer-term weight gain although it has been suggested that junk food actually changes a person’s physiology.
Another suggestion is that people can acquire a taste for junk food quickly because of the addictive qualities of the ingredients.
One criticism of the study, in addition to its small size, is that the kind of people who agreed to participate could have been less concerned about their bodies than average people, the Daily Mail reported.
In the most recent figures, Australia is number six in a league table of most obese people per capita, behind Greece, Slovakia, the UK, Mexico and the US.
Obesity is defined as having a Body Mass Index higher than 30.
Your say: Do you think that junk food is addictive? How easy do you find it to keep off weight once you have lost it?
Photography by Chris Colls. Styling by Judith Cook
Morning TV star Melissa Doyle opens up to Bryce Corbett about her parents’ divorce, being raised by her dad and the brush with illness that caused her emotional breakdown.
At the end of 2008, Sunrise presenter Melissa Doyle disappeared mysteriously from our living rooms. One morning, she was there on our TV screens, her vivacious smile and infectious personality radiating across breakfast benches all over the nation, the next, she was gone.
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For six weeks, she went missing. No explanation for her absence was given, no reason was offered up. The show went on without her, as the TV machine is wont to do – but the undisputed star of morning television was too busy, too distracted and too distraught to notice.
Melissa Doyle’s life had been turned upside down. She had been plunged into a kind of personal hell the likes of which she had never experienced before. She suffered, in her own words, “a total breakdown”. “I just completely fell apart,” she remembers now. ‘I’ve never talked so openly about any of this – you’ll have to bear with me.”
Out of the blue and completely without warning, the happy world of television’s sunshine girl had been shattered. It’s not for nothing that Mel Doyle is the reigning queen of breakfast telly. When most of us are bleary-eyed, unkempt and either shuffling about in pyjamas, wrestling with recalcitrant schoolkids or rushing out the door to work, the 40-year-old TV presenter is a picture of poise and composure.
In the bubblegum universe of Sunrise, where segments on tsunamis are juxtaposed with next season’s nail colours and where everyone and everything is perpetually perky, Mel and her electric smile puts the sun in our early morning rise.
A winning combination of authority and accessibility, a clever mix of coquettishness and homeliness, plus looks that are at once model-impossible and girl-next-door, have made Ms Doyle morning TV gold. Yet, for someone who is in our lives daily, little is known about her. For a person who makes a living asking questions of others, she’s done a convincing job of evading them for the better part of her high-profile life – until now. “I’ve never been comfortable talking about myself,” she confides. Yet she has such a compelling story to tell.
When Mel Doyle was two years old, her parents, Robert and Virginia, divorced. From the age of two to 11, she spent weekdays with her mum and weekends with her dad. It was her “normal”, just as it is the everyday reality of many thousands of Australian children with divorced parents. In this age of “blended families”, so far, so unremarkable.
Then Mel’s mother remarried and decided to move from Sydney to live on a farm halfway between Cooma and Canberra. Mel spent six months down on the farm, commuting to Canberra every day for school, before she started pining for Sydney, her friends and her father. She moved back to the big smoke and went to live with Dad. It was the early ‘80s. She was about to hit puberty and she was throwing her lot in with a man who – sensitive and loving as he undoubtedly was – was a child of the 1950s, who had been raised on a beef cattle farm in northern NSW. And so, in the face of convention and against all odds, a two-person, self-contained, atypical family unit was formed. It was Mel and her dad versus the world.
Your say: What do you think of Mel Doyle? Do you watch Sunrise? Share with us below.
Read more of this story in the September issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
Julie Prior and Mel Gibson were teenage sweethearts. Here, she tells Michael Sheather about the five happy years she shared with the charismatic young man who became one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
For Julie Prior, love’s first bloom is no romantic cliché. Tucked between the pages of a yellowed, time-worn photographic album rests the now fragile stem and petals of the first rose that her teenage boyfriend – a handsome, chisel-jawed youth with a fine crop of curling shoulder-length hair – gave her more than 37 years ago.
That Julie, now 53, kept such a memento is not so remarkable, but the identity of the boy who gave it to her is. It was Mel Gibson, the man who would, in later years, conquer Hollywood, win Oscars and accolades, and become for millions of women around the world the sexiest man on the planet.
The rose that Mel gave Julie was the first indication of his affections for her, an affection that lasted throughout their teenage years, from 1971 until Mel ended their relationship five years later, after he entered the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).
“Mel was my first boyfriend, my first love in that teenage sense,” says Julie, who also has a silver friendship ring, a present from Mel on her 16th birthday. “He was a huge part of my life. We were virtually joined at the hip for five years.
“I kept the rose all this time because I was in love with him and he was with me, too. People say that you never forget your childhood sweetheart.
“I think that’s true. Mel was my childhood sweetheart and I haven’t forgotten him, but it would be difficult to forget being sweethearts with Mel.”
Of course, Mel Gibson’s star doesn’t burn as brightly these days as it once did. His reputation in Hollywood and, perhaps, across the globe, hangs in tatters after a series of outbursts and scandals that have seen him labelled as anti-Semitic, misogynist and dangerously close to the edge.
Your say: what do you think of Mel Gibson? Do you think he is still the superstar he once was? Would you go and see a film with him in it?
Read more of this story in the September issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
Julianne Moore loves life at almost 50. Here, she talks to Elaine Lipworth about family, career, Botox and getting older – plus her latest film, The Kids Are All Right, a family drama in which she plays a lesbian parent opposite Annette Bening.
It’s 8 o’clock on a Sunday morning and Julianne Moore is exuberant when she arrives for our breakfast meeting at an LA hotel, to discuss her new film, The Kids Are All Right. It’s an unearthly hour to be looking presentable – let alone glamorous – but she looks beautiful, dressed in a floaty silk bottle-green top over narrow cargo pants and towering cage sandals.
Julianne turns 50 later this year, but she looks a decade younger – her glossy trademark red hair swept up into a high ponytail, drawing attention to her high cheekbones and creamy complexion. She has few lines and there are no signs of Botox, either. When she smiles, which is almost constantly, her forehead moves.
Julianne seems to be genuinely happy and philosophical about the prospect of approaching a milestone that would fill most actresses (most women, for that matter) with dread. “December 3rd, I will be 50, yeah,” says Julianne, beaming, when I tentatively broach the subject. “The fact that I have a family and career I love is great. Having a family was really urgent to me and I wanted to be an actor.
“Fifty is an interesting place to be. Middle age is about having more of your life behind you than you have ahead of you, so you kind of have to go, ‘Wow!’. I think you’re really conscious about your mortality. Now, just to warn you, I am going to get really maudlin here. Our life expectancy is what… 80?”
I pull a face at this point, telling her that I am already over 50. “Sorry,” she says, laughing, cheerfully continuing, “So that means you’re lucky if you have 30 years left. Women in their early 40s talk about how they’re not middle-aged. How long are they expecting to live? If you’re lucky, you get to live to your 80s. If you’re unlucky, like my mother, you don’t.” Julianne’s mother, Ann, died last April, when she was only 68, and the actress has clearly decided to live her own life to the full.
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Married to her second husband, director Bart Freundlich, Julianne has two children, 12-year-old son Caleb and eight-year-old daughter Liv. She radiates optimism, which is understandable. One of a handful of actresses over 40 who is constantly in demand, her highly acclaimed films include Boogie Nights, Robert Altman’s Short Cuts, The End Of The Affair, Far From Heaven and A Single Man. She has been nominated for Oscars four times and there is already talk of another nomination for her latest film.
Critics in the US have all praised The Kids Are All Right, a riveting, poignant and very funny story about a middle-aged lesbian couple. Julianne gives an extraordinary performance as an unfulfilled mother, while her co-star, Annette Bening, is equally formidable in her role as a doctor, the traditional and controlling breadwinner in the family. The women have two teenagers who decide to track down their biological father (played by Mark Ruffalo) – their mothers’ sperm donor. They meet him, become friends and the lives of the entire family are turned upside down, with dramatic and unexpected consequences.
Your say: What is your favourite Julianne Moore film? Will you go and see The Kids Are All Right? Share with us below.
Read more of this story in the September issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly.
Mark McInnes with David Jones Ambassador Megan Gale
The $37 million sexual harassment lawsuit brought against iconic retailer David Jones has not only dented its name, but served notice on the boys club at the big end of town, writes Jordan Baker. Yet the bigger issue remains – why does harassment still happen?
They’re known as the Masters of the Universe, the chummy clique of corporate princes who run the business world, yet even the most masterful among them would have envied Mark McInnes. By age 45, the young chief executive was a runaway success. He had restored the dignity and profitability of one of Australia’s most hallowed brands, David Jones, and was richly rewarded for his efforts. He was wealthy, charming and feted by celebrities, socialites and fashion designers.
To his high-flying mates in the testosterone-laden worlds of mining and banking, one of the most enviable perks of Mark’s job was his proximity to beautiful women. He was surrounded by them; from the assistants at the cosmetics counter to models at star-studded fashion parades, where the likes of Miranda Kerr, Megan Gale and Natalie Imbruglia would hang off his arm.
It was a dream job – and he threw it away. At two work-related events this year, Mark propositioned a junior staffer, Kristy Fraser-Kirk. The 27-year-old says he slipped his hand under her blouse, touched her bra strap and tried to kiss her. He invited her back to his flat, even though his partner was pregnant. She turned him down and she claims he tried again. Kristy alleges he told her he had passed up sex with another woman so he could have it with her.
After Kristy complained to her bosses and eventually brought in her lawyers, Mark resigned. Humiliated, shamed and unemployed, he slipped out of the country as his disgrace became known.
The circumstances surrounding Mark McInnes’ fall from grace at David Jones have been extraordinary, but his actions themselves were not. From the factory floor to boardrooms, most working women have stories about harassment from bosses or co-workers. Their tales range from sleazy to criminal and the only common denominator is that most are swept under the carpet by women who are too frightened of losing their job or damaging their career to object.
Your say: What do you think about this story? Share your opinions below.
Read more of this story in the September issue ofThe Australian Women’s Weekly
The actress cuts loose while an embarrassed Ashton looks on, writes Matthew Denby.
They say you’re only as young as the man you feel, and super cougar Demi Moore didn’t look anywhere near her 47 years as she partied like a teenager in a Malibu street last week. And it was her much younger husband, Ashton Kutcher, 32, who ended up looking like an embarrassed parent.
The veteran actress showed she’s still very much the life of the party as she stumbled out of a friend’s house into the road in the early hours of the morning, clutching a beer.
At first amused by his wife’s high spirits, Ashton watched as she danced around the road, holding her drink aloft – before apparently thinking better of her very public partying and confiscating the bottle.
Perhaps she made the mistake of drinking on an empty stomach.
Read the full story in this week’s Woman’s Day, on sale August 23, 2010.
See more celebrities behaving badly here!
Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher
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Demi lets loose on the dance floor with Emilio Estevez
My friend Louise never does anything by halves, which didn’t really bother me until she became a mother. Up until then she’d been as much of a beer swilling meat-eater as the rest of us, but giving birth transformed her into the ultimate organic, free range, ‘my body is a temple’ sort of bore you’d never wish to meet.
The rest of us gave up drink while pregnant but still had the odd glass to see us through the long sleepless nights, but that was simply not good enough for Louise and if it hadn’t been for her husband Steve working with my husband Grieg I would have dumped her without a second thought.
That makes me sound really shallow, but until you’ve endured one of Louise’s lectures about how we owe it to the future generations to embrace only everything that’s good and pure you cannot actually imagine expiring through sheer boredom.
All of us had kids at the same time and suddenly socialising was based around going to each others’ homes for easy suppers, which were usually fairly relaxed, even with Louise in full flow.
After witnessing her shake her head in horror over anything meat-based most of us were reduced to always adding a dish of plain pasta and salad to everything else on offer, but even this wasn’t enough and she started bringing her own tasteless meals.
Again, most of us would have just ignored that and got on with it, but it was difficult especially as a dinner couldn’t go by without one of her lectures. Steve’s a lovely guy so we didn’t really want to dump him, and as Greig reminded me a few times, he’s also my husband’s boss so keeping him onside was always going to be a good move.
Having exhausted all her attention-seeking moves, and finally becoming aware that we were all now tuning her out or changing the subject when she starting droning on, Louise decided that anything non-organic, vegetarian or free range was making her ill.
She sprung this on us one night when Wendy had cooked, and we were halfway through the meal when Louise leaped to her feet, clutching her throat dramatically and gasping.
The table was in an uproar with everyone thinking she was choking and after much coughing and wheezing she turned to Wendy and gasped “Oh my God, what was in that dish?!”
Poor Wendy was absolutely mortified and stammered that the food was totally vegetarian.
“But not organic? said Louise, “Oh Wendy, I’m so sorry. I should have told you that anything non-organic gives me a terrible reaction. I can feel my throat swelling up but it’s all my own fault!” and she thumped down dramatically in her chair, waving a paper napkin in front of her face.
Wendy was practically in tears and I wanted nothing more than to throttle Louise, but instead I suggested that everyone come to our house for dinner the following month. I reassured Louise that my past experience stood me in good stead as waitress for the evening. “Trust me,” I said firmly, “I’ll make you all a vegetarian meal you’ll never forget.”
I thought long and hard about my menu for that evening, utterly convinced that Louise was talking complete nonsense about bad reactions to non-organic food but unsure how to put an end to her behaviour once and for all.
Eventually, when I realised that the Monday after my dinner party was going to be the school open night I realised I had the perfect opportunity to make such a fool of her that she’d never abuse someone as timid as Wendy again.
So when everyone arrived at our home they were greeted by huge pitchers of homemade organic beer and banana chips and although Grieg wasn’t the only one making anguished retching faces I ignored the murmurs and made a huge fuss of Louise.
“Rather than serving two lots of food and drink I thought we could all have a vegetarian night!” I announced briskly, “We’ve got spinach and ricotta bake and soya lasagne, so tuck in!”
I could see everyone helping themselves to tiny portions and then the look of surprise on their faces as they realised the food was absolutely delicious in comparison to the foul concoctions of vegetable crumble and meat free casserole that Louise served, but that was hardly surprising as I’d spent a fortune on steak mince for the lasagne and added a rich chicken stock to the ricotta bake.
The so called organic beer was one of the cheapest lagers I could find decanted into jugs and Louise was drinking glass after glass with no ill effects, as well as having second portions of the lasagne.
There was an awkward moment when I brought in the massive strawberry cheesecake and she stopped for a second to say “You didn’t use gelatine for this, did you?”.
“Of course not’ I frowned, “I made sure it was just lemon juice as that’s such a good setting agent with the cream” and she piled her plate high.
When we reached the school on Monday night Louise was at the home baking stall, in full flow to all around her.
“We really need to address this issue of catering for different dietary requirements” she said loudly, “I’m not the only one who suffers terribly as a result of this but with a bit of effort everyone can lead as normal a life as possible. Emma made a wonderful meal on Saturday and I enjoyed every bite, knowing that there was nothing there which could make me ill” she beamed approvingly at me.
“Are you sure you were fine?” I asked imploringly and she beamed, “Absolutely. I felt marvellous. Why do you ask?”
I looked round at all the interested faces, especially those who had witnessed her behaviour at Wendy’s.
“I’m so sorry” I said earnestly, “I made two lots of everything and thought I’d frozen all the meat based food. But I froze the wrong lot and everything we ate on Saturday wasn’t just non-organic but had meat in it, even the beef gelatine. But thank God you’re alright – at least it means all your allergies have cleared up.”
She might still be a vegetarian but if she is she never talks about it.
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