Seventeen Magazine vs. Teen Girls of America
Having grown up reading teen magazines, I’ve actually given a lot of thought to whether I’d want my hypothetical future daughter reading the selection of teen glossies out there today.
And by “selection” I mean Teen Vogue and Seventeen since, due to the demise of CosmoGirl!–a far more commendable publication, in my opinion–they completely dominate the market.
On one hand, both mags seem intent on training girls to become superficial pieces of shit, feeding them such vapid editorial content as “Flirty Text Messages!” and “Weird Boyfriend Behaviors!” (note: I didn’t add the exclamation points).
On the other hand, as much as they might prey on the all-consuming insecurities of teen girls, they definitely make an effort to ameliorate them with the health/sex Q&As and articles like “Make Peace With Your Body,” a slideshow of “Real Girls” in bikinis who have drawn peace signs on the body parts they’re most proud of (note: all the girls are attractive and skinny).
Either way, I’m all for the new online petition launched by a 14 year-old girl from Maine calling on Seventeen to print at least one unaltered photo spread each month.
“For the sake of all the struggling girls all over America, who read Seventeen and think these fake images are what they should be, I’m stepping up,” writes campaign leader, Julia Bluhm. “I know how hurtful these Photoshopped images can be. I’m a teenage girl, and I don’t like what I see.”
Bluhm is also a member of SPARK, a girl-led activist movement that works with organizations to put an end to the sexualization of women and girls in media.
So far, over 50
thousand people have signed the Change.org petition, which comes just days after the international editors of Vogue signed an agreement to portray models with healthy bodies and the pledge that Glamour made last month to no longer alter body size in photos they commission.
Unfortunately, after Bluhm and her friends staged a little protest outside of Seventeen’s headquarters last Thursday, the magazine’s editor-in-chief Ann Shoket sat down with her and proceeded to rejected the request while also refusing to comment on what exactly their Photoshopping practices are.
Seriously Seventeen? All this girl is asking for is ONE measly a month that doesn’t distort a girls appearance. As far as I’m concerned, for a publication that reaches 13 million young women each month, that’s the least you could fucking do. Perhaps it’s time someone started a petition against the entire magazine.
Anyway, in other news, I’ve officially decided that any hypothetical future daughter of mine will not be allowed to Seventeen. Guess she’ll just have to re-read The Feminine Mystique each month.
Local Vintage Enthusiast Shares Her DIY Style
Last week, PW Style invited readers to submit any sort of DIY fashion or design project they were working on for the chance to have it featured on the blog. Sadly, only one reader accepted this invitation. This would have been much more disappointing however had that reader not been Veronika of Tick Tock Vintage.
Not only has the South Philly resident and third grade teacher amassed an enviable wardrobe of amazing vintage finds, but her expertise on second-hand shopping and restyling garments has been solicited by websites and magazines like Seventeen, ModCloth and Forever 21’s The Skinny.
On her blog, Veronika shares advice and photos of her latest alterations and thrifting adventures as well as her love of Philadelphia. I can’t tell you how much time I’ve spent the last few days just going through her beautiful photos of the city and very vintage wedding (which included many items that she re-purposed or handmade). You can also see and purchase some of her thrifted finds on Tick Tock Vintage Closet.
“Whenever I take a trip somewhere, I always Google thrift stores in the area,” Veronika says. If a garment doesn’t look or fit quite right, the skilled seamstress will find a way to make it work. “My mom taught me to sew when I was five or six and I would make costumes for my guinea pigs,” she laughs.
Should you see her creations below and and suddenly feel inspired to revamp your own garments, Veronika offers this piece of advice: “It’s best to keep projects simple if you’re just starting out—work on just hemming a skirt or changing out buttons.”
So anyway, without further adieu, I present Veronika’s three latest DIY style projects…
XXXL Choir Robe to Mini-dress
“It was an XXXL choir robe-ish dress with giant shoulder pads, the frumpiest neckline and possibly the worst sleeves ever. I first took the white panel in the bodice apart and cut it much shorter. I made the sleeves shorter, took the bottom hem up, and made the overall dress smaller.” More…
Suede Skirt to Clutch with Tassels
“It was a pretty simple project; I wanted a triangle shape at the bottom of the purse, like a real envelope. I also wanted to incorporate tassels somehow, and decided to use them as a weight to keep the top flap closed. The suede was not very stiff, so I cut Ikea placemats ($2.99 for a set of four) to the size of the rectangles in the front and attached it with spray adhesive. You can’t tell that they are there because the lining covers it all.” More…
Early 80’s pioneer woman dress to Russian sarafan-inspired dress
“I used RIT dye to change the color. I was originally going for navy blue but the color didn’t seem to hold very well. After washing, it turned to this light cornflower blue, which I’m okay with. I searched Jomar for colorful trim and added it along the waist, neckline, sleeves, and hem. There are five different kinds of trim in all.” More…
Impressive, huh?