The Sunday Digest 028
A long breath in, a long breath out.
Welcome to The Sunday Digest — a free Sunday newsletter featuring long (and some short) reads, original columns, things I’ve saved over the last week, relaxing playlists, episodes releases, exclusive product drops, and more. Yes, you can reply to this email. I’d love to hear from you. Or, if podcasts are more your speed on Sundays, we’ve got that too.
Sunday Read: The Problem With ‘Clean Girl’ Beauty
by Jordan Murray for Nylon
“Stop calling it a trend,” they say.
From Kim Kardashian to Hailey Bieber to literally every other celebrity skincare pusher, it’s all “clean” these days. Which, you know, makes a ton of sense given we’re all (justifiably) overthinking what’s in our sunscreen every time we apply it.
But as we learn from this week’s Sunday Read, this goes far beyond a list of ingredients on the back of the bottle.
When Kaelyn Montoya, a marketing strategist in Austin, Texas, saw that the “clean girl” look was trending on TikTok, she was immediately confused as to how people thought this was something new. She posted a video to her page, styling her hair in a slicked bun, saying that she was “reclaiming the clean girl bun” that Latina women had been wearing for decades. Her video amassed over a million views, but was met with controversy in the comments over whether a certain cultural group could claim a look.
“When [the clean girl trend] first came across my page, it wasn't somebody that looks like you or me,” said Montoya. “It [was] a blonde [woman], she had blue-green eyes, and she was wearing what looked like prep-wear. [She had] a bun, a little bit of a hoop earring on, and [lip gloss]. It immediately felt very familiar, like something I'd actually been doing my whole life. I thought, ‘This is a trend?”
Read in full here.
The Sunday Haiku: Blackout Blues
My phone sits silent.
Wait, does anyone like me?
It doesn’t matter.
New Episode › Retail Therapy 016: Martha Stewart, Airpods Max, and New J. Crew
Martha Stewart's unexpected collaboration with Anti Social Social Club, the stranglehold that Airpods Max headphones have over celebrities and influencers, a critical look at the new fall collection from Brendon Babenzien for J. Crew, and some wishlist items — yep, another trademark episode of Retail Therapy.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and anywhere else podcasts are found.
New Episode › New Candles, Finding Motivation, Hometowns, and More Listener Questions
This week's listener questions touch on the inspiration for today's Long Weekend candle release, thoughts on wood wick candles, relaxation techniques when travel and social calendars start to fill up, finding motivation when you feel drained, running various social media accounts in various voices, moving back to your hometown, Love Island, cheugy trends that deserve a comeback, all-time favorite airports (and my least favorite airport), go-to drinkware, favorite Tumblr follows, and more.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else podcasts are found.
Relaxing Watch: Jeremy Allen White on The Bear
Yes, I’ve been binging The Bear all weekend. Yes, I know I’m behind. Yes, I regret waiting this long. No, I would not recommend starting it on a Sunday night following a big weekend.
Things I Saved This Week
New Candle › Long Weekend
It’s summer Fridays spent driving to the lake house. It’s calling in on Monday after a weekend of sunburns and bruised legs. Whether you’re channeling your inner Coastal Grandmother or simply making the most of a much needed mental health day, who doesn’t love a long weekend?
Scent Notes: Lemon, grapefruit, sea salt, sage, orange blossom, lilac, jasmine, and warm woods.
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