WELCOME TO 2019. YOU MADE IT.
The new year is gleaming in front of you like
a shiny new pair of boots, just waiting to be tried
on for size. Oh, the places you’ll go. The new
heights you’ll reach. Those shoes are so box-fresh
it’s tempting to want to throw everything else out
and start again. But while we love a wardrobe
cleansing metaphor as much as the next fashion
obsessive, the trouble with starting over is that you
lose all the good bits as well as the bits you’d like
to let go. The same goes for sweeping New
Year’s resolutions that vow to overhaul your life,
your look, your livelihood. Chances are, you’re
already pretty damn amazing. (In fact, if you’re
reading ELLE, we can guarantee you are!) And
we’re guessing it’s the small tweaks that are going
to make all the difference to the year ahead.
After reading our beauty and wellness director
Janna Johnson O’Toole’s guide on
new ways to be well, I’ve decided
those tweaks, for me, are going to be
getting serious about sleep, switching
my phone to “do not disturb” mode
more often and uncrossing my legs
(who knew?). For Lara Worthington,
who radiates confidence on this
month’s cover, it’s about looking
ahead, embracing change and livi
life on her own terms. With two
beautiful boys and a home base
in LA, the Australian model mogulis redefining what is important by evolving her
beauty brand The Base in order to shine a light
on the causes closest to her heart. At 31, she
is finally feeling as though she’s exactly where
she needs to be: incredibly content and
comfortable in her own skin. And it shows.
If there’s one message that jumps out from every
page this month, it’s optimism. From the most
inspiring women in music — Cher, who’s finding ever
greater success in her seventies (p54), Lily Allen,
who’s revelling in her return to the spotlight (p36),
and Beth Ditto, who details her positive relationship
with the gym (p130) — to the uplifting summer fashion
and beauty buys that will inject freshness and fun
into the coming weeks, which will hopefully be filled
with swimming, snoozing and sipping lambrusco
(culture director Elle McClure calls it as the new
prosecco in the ELLE Hot List on p46). And at a time
when finding hope and meaning is more important
than ever, Lauren Sams asks, “Who’s Your Guru?”
(p52). Right now, I’m looking to astrologer
Susan Miller, who returns with her horoscope
guide to the year ahead (p155) and says I have
every reason to feel optimistic about my financials.
So that shiny new pair of boots isn’t completely out
of the question, then. Lucky, because I already have
an Isabel Marant pair earmarked (p78). Enjoy.NEW YEAR,
NEW YOU?
WE THINK THE
OLD ONE IS JUST
FINE
A_LEEKng@ GENEV R APhotography: Darren McDonald. Lara wears: dress, $4,660, Alexander McQueen, alexandermcqueen.com/au