EDITOR’S LETTER
Crack open the champers: finally, there’s something to celebrate. Summer’s here, COVID’s calmer (in many places), borders are opening, Trump’s been cancelled, and we’re counting down to a very special Christmas reunited with family and friends.
Better still, we can soon kick 2020 to the kerb and focus on fresh beginnings, new horizons, a clean slate, and all the other optimistic idioms associated with a new year. For some, 2020’s been a time to rethink, rejuvenate and reinvent; for others, it’s been a long, hard slog tinged with tragedy. Wherever you sit, I think we can agree when the clock strikes midnight on December 31, everyone will exhale a sigh of relief. Which is why we’ve abandoned our tradition of dedicating this issue to reflecting on the year that was. Instead, we have our eyes firmly on the future, from all the fashion, beauty and lifestyle trends you need to know, to our extensive horoscope special brimming with sage advice (page 81).
In keeping with the theme of new beginnings, we’ve decided to shake things up. From now on, we’re doubling our front-of-book section, Fashion First, to offer a luxe line-up of hero pieces and new looks; turn to page 19 for a stylish skip-through of what to buy now and what to covet next. Then flip to page 95 for your sartorial playbook on sun-drenched days ahead: boho beachwear, tropical florals, sleek swimsuits and pretty, ’60s-inspired looks.
Still on the topic of style, we ask six Australian women to showcase their most-prized item of clothing, and reveal the stories behind these much-loved pieces (page 56). For activist and author Aminata Conteh-Biger, the choice was simple: the traditional Guinean dress gifted by her beloved mum as she fled war-ravaged Africa.
I also urge you to read Alex Carlton’s report on the incredible women fighting child exploitation (page 52). This year, we’ve seen many arrests of men in paedophile rings across Australia – a gobsmacking 130 offenders on 1101 charges just from March to September. And while the nation’s been appalled, spare a thought for the investigators, many of them mums themselves, trawling day after day through thousands of abhorrent photos and videos, images that would give the most hardened cops nightmares. Why do they do it? “To save that one child,” says forensic examiner Jennifer Garcia, a Sydney mum-of-one. “This is my driving force in life; how could I leave this?” True heroes indeed.
Of course, there’s plenty more to devour in this jam-packed issue – including a revealing interview with Killing Eve star Jodie Comer – so dive in! And as we say sayonara to the most extraordinary of years, I wish a blissful break to all – god knows you’ve earned it (and that bottle of bubbles). See you in 2021!