2020-01-01_InStyle_Australia

CB: We’re saying what other people want to hear; just being

clever about it. People are tired of being hit over the head...

told what to believe in. I just want people to have a laugh, and,

also, “Hey, maybe now you feel better!” I never started this to

be a body-positive thing, but I’m so happy and proud that it

has turned out that way and I am caught up in that movement.

It’s that adage about if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. Speaking

of which, Celeste, is it accurate that you had a bit of a cry

following your hilarious shoot with Tom Ford in September

2018, when you were one of his runway models?

CB: I didn’t have a little bit of a cry; I stood in the shower at the

hotel they put me up in and sobbed like a baby. It was one of

the most satisfying things I’ve ever done in my life creatively. He

was an absolute delight. When I came in, I was immediately on

his level. And I heard him talking about me when he didn’t know

I could hear him, saying, “She’s incredible. Just keep the camera

on her.” And he would just laugh and let me totally control it

because he trusted me. That’s why I cried later, because I was

like, “Wow, I really stepped into my power here, and I’ve been

validated by the sexiest, gayest man in the whole wide world.”

You’ve both had serious health scares. [Jamil had an eating

disorder when she was younger and was involved in a car

accident at age 17 that left her unable to walk for almost

two years. Barber had emergency open-heart surgery

when she was 25.] Has that caused you to re-evaluate

what you want to put out into the world?

JJ: For sure. It’s obviously a really upsetting thing to go through,

but I’d never take it back. I feel free because of what my body

has been through. I [still] struggle with body dysmorphia, but

it’s nothing compared with what it would’ve been if I hadn’t

been forced to look at my body as this incredible machine that

does so much for me. I believe we can’t do enough to teach

people about gratitude. I hope that other people don’t have to

go through what Celeste and I have gone through to get that.

Enjoy this life while you can. Also, we only get taught to think

about the outside, never the inside, and it’s not right.

CB: Exactly. The inside is an afterthought. I look great, but I’m

hungry. When I got sick, I had to have open-heart surgery, so

all I could do was focus on the inside, and it was out of my

control. When you do turn your attention inward, you can’t

then turn your back on it. And you think, “This body’s pretty

excellent and I’m going to get on with it. We’re all dead in a

minute.” When you have those sorts of scares, you’re like,

“Wow, what am I going to do to make this life better?”

JJ: Most of my health problems came from what I did to myself

while trying to be thin. I have a kidney that is always in trouble,

literally because of all the detox and diet products I took. I have

bone-density problems because I didn’t eat enough when

I was in my teens and 20s. My heart is thinner than it should be

because when you don’t eat enough, your body stretches muscle

before it stretches fat, and your heart is muscle. I feel like it’s my

responsibility to educate. That’s why I rally so aggressively—I’m

living in the body I hurt because society told me my size was

the most important thing in the world and it wasn’t.

What do your respective families think about your being

so outspoken and visible? Celeste, you have kids. Do they

ever say, “Oh, you’ve gone too far”?

CB: My family’s like, “Yes, finally! People can finally see what

you’ve always been doing.” I’m very lucky. I’ve also retired my

husband, so he is very supportive. He’s now a full-time dad.

We have a five-year-old and an eight-year-old, and he also

has his teenaged daughters, so, you know, I’ve retired him

from that job and put him onto the other job.

Do you have people you follow who are your confidants?

JJ: My top three are Celeste, Jonathan Van Ness and Sam Smith.

CB: Aw, yes! So happy I made the list. The industry, to me,

is comedy and acting. I am known for Instagram, but where I

want to be and what I’m getting more into is writing and acting,

the stuff I’ve been trained in and doing for the past 15 years. The

people I gravitate toward are Tina Fey, Melissa McCarthy,

Maya Rudolph, Amy Schumer, those kinds of excellent women.

But I’m exactly like Jameela when it comes to social media.

I have a handful of accounts I go to to make me laugh. Jameela

definitely, Gary Janetti, Overheard LA...okay, back to this shoot.

What have been some of your best nights out?

CB: This is going to sound annoying, but mine was my

wedding. We got married in Bali and it was the best. We

danced until 3am. That was six years ago.

JJ: One of my best nights out ever was New Year’s Eve a couple of

years ago with my mates. I’d never had a good New Year’s Eve,

but this was a pyjama party where everybody had to bring their

own feather pillow, and instead of kissing each other at 12am,

we had a massive pillow fight. I wish there were more things

like that, with the focus on fun rather than social pressure. ■

I NEVER STARTED

THIS TO BE A

BODY-POSITIVE

THING, BUT I’M SO

HAPPY AND PROUD

THAT IT HAS TURNED

OUT THAT WAY”

— CELESTE BARBER

JANUARY 2020 INSTYLE 83