The Suite

Success. Life. Style. Beauty. Home.

What’s In Issue #27
Tata Harper’s Life Lessons | Be Kinder To Yourself | Streetstyle: Get The Look | Whipped Yoghurt With Roasted Strawberries & Peanut Fudge Sauce Recipe 🤤

Editor’s Note

I’m just going to come out and say it – I probably don’t speak all that kindly to myself sometimes. If I’m anxious or annoyed, I can be harsh, unforgiving, critical, maybe even a little cruel. I’d never allow anyone to talk to me that way, let alone say it to someone else and hurt their feelings. So why do I do it to myself?

They say we’re our own worst critic, and for most of us that’s true. But did you know of the 12,000 to 60,000 thoughts we have a day, 80% of them are negative, and 90% are repetitive? That’s a whole lot of crap going round and round in our brain. And we all know that what we tell ourselves on an ongoing basis not only reflects the way we think, but how we feel and act.

So, how about we mix it up from this moment forward? Let’s make a mini-pledge to each other that we say at least five... no, make that 10 nice things to ourselves every day. They don’t have to be flowery, cloying mantras into the mirror every morning (unless they’re your thing, of course), but just a kind word or comment here or there. What harm can it do? Absolutely ZERO harm. Will it give you a boost? I’m guessing 100% yes.

Speaking of boosts, I hope this issue of The Suite gives you one today. If I haven’t told you in a while, you really do mean a lot to me. Thanks for reading, see you next time.

Susan

COVER STORY

Life Lessons From The ‘Queen of Green Skincare’, Tata Harper

If you love natural beauty products, chances are you love Tata Harper’s products. Nicknamed the ‘queen of green skincare’, natural-beauty entrepreneur Harper is the founder of an eponymous skincare and make-up line she runs from her 1,200-acre property in Vermont in the US. Since launching the company in 2010, she’s transformed the former dairy farm into a state-of-the-art facility from which she’s introduced more than 60 products, overseeing every aspect of production on-site. Today, the brand keeps expanding and delivering its promises: eco-conscious, 100% natural and non-toxic, but most importantly, effective beauty products for every woman who takes green seriously.

FAMILY IS EVERYTHING: “I was raised in Barranquilla, Colombia along with my 34 other cousins, 20 of them being women. Every weekend, my grandmother would invite us all to her house for spa parties featuring her own creations like body scrubs and hair masks. I loved helping her make these products using local Colombian ingredients that came from the earth. I would watch her teach the women how to take care of their skin and noticed how much more confident they became as a result. These are the types of memories I hope to provide for my own children as they age. I cherish every moment I get to spend with my kids.”

NEVER UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF THANK YOU: “I’m a very hands-on leader and work with our in-house team on every step of the process, from conceptualisation to formulation to packaging, to create all of our products. It is very important for me to communicate with my employees and make them part of the big picture. I try to be transparent and honest and promote a positive work environment. I never underestimate the importance of saying thank you. Employees with positive attitudes are valuable assets for the success of the company.”

DARE TO BE DIFFERENT: “I admire anyone who dares to be different and I love people who are unapologetically themselves. I also admire anyone who is making a true effort to make other people’s lives better. The heart of our mission at Tata Harper is to create products that improve the lives of others, so I admire anyone else who is trying to do the same.”

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH POSITIVITY: “Much of my inspiration and vision for our business stems from how I grew up and the experiences I had in Colombia. I have always been motivated by the women around me and I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish all that we have without our strong female team.”

DO ONE THING A DAY THAT YOU LOVE: “My mom taught me beauty is not a chore, it’s about self-care. Even as a busy mom and juggling a million things, it’s important to always try to have some time for myself. It helps me to reconnect and slow down so I am ready for whatever the day brings. While it might be hard to carve out some time, I always try to do at least one thing a day that I love – whether it’s a meditation, short walk or even just unplugging from technology for a few minutes. Oh, and I like to treat myself to dark chocolate not once, but twice a day!”

SUITE LIFE

If you can’t love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else? Can we get an Amen up in here?

Be Kinder To Yourself

Have you ever listened, really listened, to how you talk to yourself? If you could record your inner dialogue and then play it back, out loud, would you smile or cringe? Odds are you might even cry. More often than not, we’re our own worst critic. When we feel anxious or annoyed, we talk to ourselves in a way that we simply wouldn’t find acceptable from anyone else. I’m an idiot. I’m useless. I don’t know what I’m doing. I can’t do anything right.

I AM GOOD ENOUGH
Many of us live with the core belief that we are just ‘not enough’ but we wrongly assume that criticism will motivate us to do better. It’s what leads to crash diets, self-sabotage, unnecessary shopping splurges, punishing hours at the office, or even the unending search for the perfect red lipstick – if I can just fix/find/own, then everything, including me, will be better, right?

I ACCEPT MYSELF
Well, of course it won’t. It’s like dressing a deep wound with a silk Band-Aid. What’s needed is true self-awareness, which is understanding the core story you’ve been telling yourself forever; self-compassion – treating yourself with the same sort of kindness that you would a friend; and self-love – the unconditional acceptance of yourself, despite knowing everything you are and are not.

I CAN DO THIS
And it all starts with self-talk. This can range from giving yourself a gentle and supportive nudge – I can do this – to reframing a trait like perfectionism – I don’t have to get everything right all the time. It’s about using a tone of kindness and giving yourself the opportunity to make the best decision you can at that very point in time. You don’t need to murmur you’re magical into the mirror every morning either. This is about finding a tone that works for you. You’re more likely to believe yourself if you use language that feels real.

I’M GREAT AT WHAT I DO

Need some inspiration when it comes to compassionate self-talk? Pay attention the next time someone you admire says something that soothes or calms you. Incorporate their words into your self-talk. Really tap into your emotions so you can understand what phrases and messages help you feel better.

CONGRATULATIONS TO ME!

Don’t wait until you’ve made a mistake to have a word with yourself. You’re only rewarding negative behaviour with attention by lingering on your failure. Distract yourself and move on to something else entirely.

Instead, really stop and notice when you succeed. Spend a minute congratulating yourself. Let your good work reflect on you. Bask in your own glow. Say all the things to yourself that you’d say to a colleague or friend who scored a big contract or reached an important goal. Sure, it might feel a little weird initially, but feelings follow actions. Slowly, over time, it’ll get easier and if you’re not already there, you might just fall in love with yourself. Imagine that.

SUITE STYLE

Get @JulieSFI’s look with: cable-knit jumper, & Other Stories; Stud Sign Shoulder Bag, Valentino Garavani; Highland Sunglasses, Anine Bing; baseball cap, IRO; camel coat, Frankie shop; curb link bracelet, Wallace Bishop; oversized denim shirt, Arket; ankle jeans, H&M; All Star Hi Trainers, Converse.

Streetstyle: Get The Look

Whether you’re freezing your bits off in the southern hemisphere, or sweating buckets up north, one thing is for sure: a neutral palette, elevated with a bold pop of colour, is always in style no matter the weather.

If it’s chilly round your parts (geographically and physically), layering is key. You can’t go wrong with a camel coat worn over a denim shirt and jeans, with a coffee-coloured knit thrown over the shoulders for good measure. Gold jewellery and a flash of bright pink – courtesy of Valentino’s boxy shoulder bag – helps break up the tonal ensemble.

If things are a little warmer where you are, then a white summer dress is essential. Look for a modern style that’s also versatile. Style it up like Laura with strappy orange heels, a statement bag and chunky gold jewellery. Or opt for a flat sandal, a raffia bag and a floppy sunhat for a beach-appropriate look.

Get @Laura_Eguizabal’s look: long pleated dress, Massimo Dutti; orange strappy sandals, Bottega Veneta; cat-eye sunglasses, Yves Saint Laurent; hoop earrings, Bottega Veneta; gold vermeil ring, Sophie Buhai; Le Chiquito Shoulder Bag, Jacquemus; signature pave ring, House of K’dor; gold-tone cuff bracelet, Chloé.

SUITE BEAUTY

The Beauty Lessons We’ve Learned From Dame Helen Mirren

Can we please take a moment to appreciate the magnificence that is Dame Helen Mirren? At 76, she’s L’Oréal Paris’ oldest ambassador – a gig she got at the tender age of 69. Since joining the French beauty brand, she has insisted that the advertisements featuring her are not digitally retouched to erase wrinkles, and she even once admitted that the moisturiser she uses “probably does f*** all”.

“I’m an eternal optimist – I know that when I put my moisturiser on it probably does f*** all, but it just makes me feel better,” she said during a promotional tour in the South of France. “I’ve always said to L’Oréal as well that I will only do what makes me feel better.”

It seems the key to Mirren’s beauty routine is something that can’t be bottled, jarred, or added to a cart. It’s simply swagger, and she brings it with her everywhere she goes (see: showing up to the red carpet with pink hair, casually taking a shot of tequila at the Oscars, or stomping down a Paris runway wearing an Azzaro suit and a bold smoky eye).

After 30 remarkable years in the spotlight, this is a woman who doesn’t want to age gracefully. “I want to age disgracefully,” she told BAZAAR.com. “Ageing is a cause for celebration and the reality is that it’s a non-stop adventure. That’s what I enjoy.”

What we enjoy, apart from her incredible career, her love for other women (and the occasional curse word), her sexiness and her style, is the way she looks at beauty. Here are some of our favourite lessons courtesy of Ms Mirren…

Beauty (Mostly) Comes From Within
“It’s those moments when you’re well-rested and you feel that the world is a wonderful place to live in that you’re at your best, isn’t it? It’s not an outer beauty, it’s an inner feeling of peace. Having said that, I also feel pretty beautiful when I’ve just spent two hours in hair and make-up!” Women&Home

It’s The Simple Things
“Castor oil’s amazing. A tiny bit on your hair gives it a little shine, a little separation. [I use it on my] eyebrows, eyelashes, fingernails — just rub it in.” People

Have Fun With Beauty
“I love being creative with my hair and make-up, because nothing is permanent. A few years ago, I had this gorgeous pink and gold Elie Saab dress. I thought, ‘Ooh, maybe I’ll do my hair the same colour’. It was completely my idea: hair can be an accessory, too. The pink was wash-in, wash-out. At 6pm I was my hair colour, by 7pm I was pink and by 11am the next morning I was my colour again. Why not?” The Telegraph

It’s All About The Brows
“I’ll tell you what I had done recently, which I love – I got my eyebrows tattooed. I was fed up of my brows barely being there, and when one of my girlfriends got it done, I thought they looked great. They’re very lightly and delicately done, but it means when I get up in the morning and I have no make-up on, at least I have eyebrows! It’s made a huge difference.”

Smile
“It was a long time ago but I remember the moment – I learned to smile. I always had fat cheeks (and I still do!), so I was always sucking my cheeks in. But you can’t suck your cheeks in and smile at the same time! It’s absolutely impossible. So I guess I never smiled. Then I discovered that, actually, it’s nice to smile openly and with freedom, not a tight little smile, a big one. It certainly has served me in good stead.” Vogue

HOME SUITE HOME

We don't know about you but ALL we can think about right now is peanut fudge sauce. We'll say it again: Peanut. Fudge. Sauce.

Whipped Yoghurt With Roasted Strawberries & Peanut Fudge Sauce Recipe From Ixta Belfrage

The lime-roasted strawberries and peanut fudge sauce are essentially a refined combination of peanut butter and jelly, and boy do they sing together! Here I serve them with a simple whipped yoghurt, but you could serve with plain yoghurt or shop-bought ice cream. If you’re feeling wild, pile the whipped yoghurt, roasted strawberries and fudge sauce on top of a caramelised roasted crumpet and dust with cocoa powder to offset the sweetness.

INGREDIENTS

Roasted Strawberries
300g frozen strawberries, defrosted (frozen strawberries will produce a redder syrup, but you can use fresh strawberries – stalks removed and roughly chopped – just make sure they’re extra ripe)
50g caster sugar
½ lime
2 cinnamon sticks, roughly broken

Whipped Yoghurt
150g mascarpone, fridge-cold
200g yoghurt, fridge-cold
½ teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Peanut Fudge Sauce
50g smooth peanut butter
1½ tablespoons cocoa powder (15g)
75g maple syrup

1 teaspoon soy sauce (or tamari)
1½ tablespoons water

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 200°C fan/220°C.
For the roasted strawberries, place all the ingredients in an ovenproof dish just big enough to fit the strawberries in a single layer. They should be snug, but not piled on top of each other. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring halfway. Set aside to cool.
Place the mascarpone, yoghurt, vanilla paste and maple syrup in a large bowl and whisk together until completely smooth. Keep the bowl in the fridge until ready to serve.
For the fudge sauce, whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl until smooth. You may need to add more water or maple syrup, depending on the thickness of your peanut butter. You’re looking for a smooth, thick but pourable consistency.
In individual glasses, layer the chilled yoghurt with the warm strawberries and the fudge sauce and serve.

Extracted from Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage (Penguin Random House, $55). Photography by Yuki Sugiura.

SUITE NEWS

China is incentivising women to have more children to combat its population decline by offering tax and housing credits, educational benefits, and cash. But unmarried, single mothers are excluded from these benefits and often discriminated against for their unmarried status.

Heathrow, the UK’s largest airport, has asked airlines to stop selling tickets for this summer as it tries to dig out from long lines and frequent delays. On average 104,000 passengers are departing from Heathrow every day, less than the pre-pandemic average of 110,000 to 125,000, but officials say that a decrease to 100,000 is necessary given shortfalls in staffing.

NASA released a bunch of full-colour images from its powerful new telescope, including one that reveals thousands of galaxies despite only covering a spot of sky the size of a grain of sand.

TikTok introduced a new content rating system called “Content Levels” in an effort to make the app safer for younger users. The system will classify content on the app in a similar way to the age rating system used for movies.

SHORT & SUITE