As anyone who followed her “conscious uncoupling” saga knows, Gwyneth Paltrow isn’t one for conventional relationships. After separating from her first husband, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, the actress and Goop mogul remarried to Glee and American Horror Story co-creator Brad Falchuk—and the new couple spends a lot of time with Martin and his girlfriend, Dakota Johnson. Which, honestly, is kind of refreshing—who says you have to be mortal enemies with your ex? According to a new interview, the amicable relationship between the two couples isn’t the only unconventional aspect of Paltrow and Falchuk’s marriage.
In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, Paltrow shared that she and Falchuk don’t share a home together—full time, at least. Instead, he stays with her four nights a week; the rest of the week he spends at his own place.
Paltrow explained that divvying up their living space—literally—has been healthy for the marriage. Her intimacy teacher, Micaela Boehm, said the arrangement increases “polarity” in a long-term relationship, which sounds important.
Paltrow added that her friends approve of the situation too: “All my married friends say that the way we live sounds ideal,” she said.
Paltrow and Falchuk married last November in a private California ceremony. She shared many of the details of their wedding ceremony on Goop’s website the week after. (Where else?) They started dating in 2014.
Demi Burnett established herself early on this season as one of The Bachelor‘s most controversial contestants. Her attitude toward the “older” women on the show—any woman over 27, that is—was not well-received, nor was that “Fantasy Closet” stunt she pulled at the expense of Tracy’s time with Colton.
Her boldness, though, shouldn’t have come as a surprise to viewers. Her first statement to Colton when she exited the limo on night one was out there, to say the least. “I haven’t dated a virgin since I was 12 but looking forward to giving it another shot,” she said to him, who’s only response was, “Boy, I’m in trouble.” She was also quite open about her family: Her mother, at the time the show premiered, was in prison for embezzlement and only a short time away from release.
But ultimately, Demi’s journey was short-lived on the show. After telling Colton she was falling in love, he realized he wasn’t feeling the same way and sent her home. It’s been quite the ride for the 23-year-old Texas native, who says she doesn’t even remember signing up for The Bachelor in the first place. “I think me and my girlfriends were having wine one night, and we got on [the site]. I didn’t think anything would ever come of it, but it did. So that was very exciting,” she tells Glamour.
Demi admits she didn’t know much about Colton before going on the show, but her dad did some research. “My dad approved, and that’s all I needed to hear,” she says. “I usually don’t bring a lot of guys around or anything, so he ensured me that [Colton] would be worth it.”
Going into this process, Demi says she was most afraid of getting her heart broken—though that fear faded away the more she thought about it. “Heartbreak is a part of life, and that’s something you can learn from,” she explains. “I choose to be pretty optimistic.”
It’s unclear what—or who—is in Demi’s future, but she’ll have her family, including her mother, to lean on. “Family is huge for me,” she says. “I think that without your family you don’t have a lot of people that truly have your back. Your family is a very, very strong core that you need to have in life to survive in this world.”
To learn more about Demi Burnett, follow her on Instagram here.
If I had to guess, I’d say Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton probably have the same relationship you’d share with a sister-in-law. You’re not best friends—because you have separate lives—but you’ll happily bond at Thanksgiving over the Netflix show you’re both binge-ing or look at photos of her kids. (Especially if they have hilarious Instagram fan accounts.)
The rumor mill, however, has been working overtime to create some type of feud between the Duchess of Sussex and the Duchess of Cambridge. Never mind that Kensington Palace released a statement denying any ill will between the women. If a random website says Kate left a bridesmaids dress fitting for Meghan’s wedding “in tears,” then it’s obviously true, right?
And the stories keep getting more and more wild—so much so that the latest one doesn’t even make sense. According to Us Weekly, Kate and Meghan had a chat on Christmas Day where they aired out their grievances. Can we confirm or deny that? No, but what comes after this has me like…???
“Kate opened up about feeling like Meghan had used her to climb the royal ladder,” a source reveals to Us Weekly.
Sorry, but I’m confused: Was Kate the one flying to Toronto every few weeks to visit Meghan on the set of Suits? Was it over a roasted chicken Meghan made that Kate decided to propose? Did Kate put on a really convincing ginger beard and wig for her royal wedding to Meghan?
No, really: How did Meghan use Kate to climb the social ladder? Meghan dated Prince Harry. She got engaged to Prince Harry. She married Prince Harry. The closest I’ve ever been to London is listening to Rita Ora’s album, Phoenix, but I have a feeling marrying Prince Harry is a pretty quick way to jump rank with the royals. No help from Kate is required.
And this is all assuming Meghan is trying to social climb, which she probably isn’t. Have you seen the way she looks at Prince Harry? That’s true love. She held an umbrella for him one time, for goodness sake. Do you know what that means? It means, “I love you even though the only throne in your future is Game of Thrones season eight.”
PHOTO: Getty Images
Can we just let Kate and Meghan go back to making idle chat about the weather in peace? It’s what we all deserve in 2019.
Not to brag, but my skin is the best it’s ever been in my life. I credit that 100 percent to a round of accutane I embarked on last year. The medication worked wonders on knocking out my constant hormonal acne, and for the first time since middle school I feel comfortable leaving the house without makeup.
Before that, though, the only time my skin had ever been remotely as good as it is now was when my derm prescribed me a topical retinol in hopes of wiping out my acne without resorting to the medication (spoiler: it didn’t). Retinols are the gold standard for treating both wrinkles and acne, as they help accelerate skin regeneration and stimulate collagen.
While the retinol didn’t work for me to fight off cysts, it did wonders on fading the pigmentation old breakouts had left behind. My skin was evening out and my pores looked smaller, and I got a glimpse of what life could be like with “good” skin.
Flash forward to this summer, post Accutane. I had no active breakouts, but my skin was riddled with scarring, particularly on my left cheek where I had an explosion of breakouts. My face was also extra sensitive, as Accutane is notorious for drying out your skin. In hopes of lightening the damage, I reached for my trusty retinol. Disaster stuck. Even easing myself in (derms recommend using it once a week and slowly building up to everyday use), my skin wasn’t having it. It was red, dry, irritated and peeling, even in the middle of the sticky New York summer.
I swore to myself I would never reach for a heavy-duty retinol again—until the Drunk Elephant’s new A-Passioni 1% Retinol showed up on my desk. Like the rest of the Internet, I’m steadily becoming a convert for the cult of DE. The brand’s Vitamin C Serum and D-Bronzi Serum are everything, and people swear by the line’s efficacious yet gentle formulas. Given that, it’s no surprise why Reddit threads and beauty bloggers have been freaking out about the brand’s foray into retinol, which officially lands in-store at Sephora today.
Even still, it took the ingredients label to convince me it’d be gentle enough on my skin. It’s got the obvious—vitamin A—which does come in a more potent 1% formula than some of the more lower-strength 0.5% options. But that’s offset with additives like nourishing kale and winter cherry, skin-strengthening peptides, and marula and jojoba oils to help prevent any peeling that comes from retinol. It’s also a vegan, plant-based formula, which Dr. Zeichner, Director of Cosmetic and Clinical Research Department of Dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital, says are becoming increasingly popular for the fact that they’re less likely to irritate your skin.
I’ve only been using it one to three times a week—depending on how my skin is feeling—for the past month, and I’ve definitely noticed a change in the appearance of my skin. My pores are more refined and my skin looks more even, and if I do say so myself, I’m glowing. The creamy texture goes on so nicely (it almost feels oily, in a good way), which I’m sure is thanks to all the hydrating ingredients in the formula.
The most exciting thing is the pigmentation from all my acne scars is starting to lighten and my tone is looking more even all over. Oh, and not only that, I’ve had no zero irritation, redness, or dryness.
That said, it might not knock out breakouts entirely for you at first. I’ve still gotten a few spots on my cheeks and chin. I consulted Dr. Zeichner, and he said it’s normal for some people to get new breakouts after starting a retinol routine because the ingredient causes your skin to purge itself of any blockage in your pores. The best results for most retinol regimens are seen after six weeks of use. And if it is too harsh for you at first, the brand says you can mix small amount with other products (like a hydrating moisturizer) to help temper the effects. (You can read more on “retinol buffering” here.)
Until then, I’m going to keep putting this to the test to see if I can fade my scars for good, but for now I’ll be enjoying the glow.
Kendall Jenner is doing a lot of things in her latest Instagram post. She’s sitting inside what looks like the richest bathroom on Earth, naked, with a towel around her head. She’s drinking wine. She has her knees contorted in a way that would send me to the emergency room if I attempted. A very uncomfortable-looking floral pillow is placed on her marble sink, its purpose unknown. Does Kendall lounge on that pillow? Is it just for decoration? Does she scream in it whenever Rob Kardashian re-gifts her Christmas presents? Who knows!
What Kendall isn’t doing in these two photos, however, is napping. You know about napping, right? It’s the third greatest activity of all time, only bested by “brunch” and “mindlessly watching old Friends episodes on Netflix.” Napping, for the uninitiated, is when you sleep in the middle of the day for a short period of time. It typically involves pillows, blankets, and probably a mattress or couch. Unless you’re some kind of witch, you can only do it when you’re unconscious. Naps are fun and cozy and one of the last good things we have in 2018.
I take a lot of naps. Catch me every Saturday between 1 P.M. and 6 P.M. napping. I’m basically an expert, which is why I’m confident that what Kendall is doing on Instagram isn’t napping. Why is it, then, that she captioned her post, “I love naps?”
Is Kendall confused, or does “napping” mean something completely different in the Kardashian-Jenner universe? Maybe Kendall, Kylie, Kim, Kourtney, and Khloé’s definition of “napping” is drinking wine in the shower. They do so much, after all (to name a few of their endeavors: reality TV shows , video games, songs called “Jam”). Maybe “quiet bathroom time with wine” is the closest thing they can get to actually sleeping.
If only Kendall knew what naps actually were, though. Who’s going to tell her about them? Kris Jenner? Scott Disick? Maybe Stormi Webster should! Babies know all about naps. Sleeping during the day is one of the few absolute joys we still have on this planet. I hate that Kendall is missing out. Just imagine how powerful she’d be if she napped like us mortals! Contrary to what the Kardashian-Jenners might believe, they’d actually get more done. Kendall would 100 percent write another sci-fi novel if she started napping. Do it for the Pulitzer, girl! We need you.
We’re only three episodes in The Big Bang Theory‘s final season, but already major bombshells are dropping. (Consider that your warning: Huge spoilers ahead!)
In tonight’s episode, “The Procreation Calculation,” the first big news happens when Raj gets engaged to Anu after knowing her all of five minutes. Yes, this was an arranged meeting by Raj’s father in hopes of it leading to marriage—but I didn’t expect Anu to propose so soon. Then again, Raj did sweetly tell her he’s a hopeless romantic who wants a great story to tell his future kids one day. And they’re both over-the-moon happy. Plus, now we have 21 episodes left to see how this will play out and whether or not this will lead to marriage.
PHOTO: Michael Yarish
The other big—and perhaps even more moving—reveal of the episode? Penny doesn’t want to have kids.
Now, if you’ve been following The Big Bang Theory closely (or paying attention to executive producer Steve Holland’s interviews), then it shouldn’t have come as a total surprise that kids weren’t in the cards for Penny and Leonard. After two seasons of pregnancy stories for Bernadette and Howard (and two never-seen babies), Holland has made it clear that he doesn’t want to repeat what’s already been done. Last season he told Glamour that “while it’s always a discussion…we’ve now done two seasons of pregnancy stories. I can’t say exactly what season 12 holds, but I’m not super excited to tell another pregnancy story right now.”
Of course, when you have four characters—Sheldon, Amy, Leonard, Penny—in their 30s, married, and successful…the topic of starting a family is going to come up. “At some point, these characters have to be real people and have things going on in their lives,” Holland said at the time. The question is, how and when do you decide to give the fans want, while also staying true to the characters?
In tonight’s episode, Penny stayed true to herself. While she’s proven to be a great “Aunt Penny” to Bernadette and Howard’s kids, she’s never talked openly about a strong desire to have kids of her own. And even Kaley Cuoco wasn’t on board with Penny becoming a mother. At Paleyfest this year, she told the audience that she didn’t want the Hofstadters to start a family.
PHOTO: Michael Yarish
While the decision may have been right for Penny—and the show as a whole—it was still heartbreaking for Leonard, who thought he’d be a dad one day. He’s disappointed, but by the episode’s end he reckons that he has other amazing things in his life he never thought he’d get, including his hilarious, smart, and beautiful wife.
One could make the case that Leonard and Penny should have talked openly about having kids before they got married. (And maybe they did—after 250-plus episodes, I can’t keep track.) But guess what? Life happens, and viewpoints change. Penny may have thought there’d come a time when she would want to be a mother. She’s still entitled to change her mind. And even if Leonard wanted to be a dad, it’s not up to Penny to give him that if she doesn’t feel it’s right for her.
The show tackled the discussion beautifully and honestly—and with its signature humor. Case in point: When Penny’s friends Bernadette and Amy lashed out for their own selfish reasons rather than thinking about whether or not this was the right decision for their friend. “My kids were going to be friends with your kids!” Amy screamed. “We were going to be barf buddies [during pregnancy]!” Bernadette didn’t back off, either. “It’s not crazy [not to want to have kids],” she said. “It’s just wrong.”
“I know I’d be great,” Penny countered. “I just don’t want to be one. Not everyone needs to have kids to be fulfilled.” Penny didn’t go into details about why she didn’t want kids, but she doesn’t have to. If it’s none of Amy’s business, as Penny told her, then it’s certainly not ours. The decision to raise a child is an extremely personal one, and women shouldn’t be made to feel less than if they decide it’s not what they want.
Later in the episode, Penny and Leonard have a heart-to-heart and admit that as long as they have each other, they’ll be OK. However, the writers left the door open for a much larger discussion by bringing in Keith Carradine (Penny’s dad) for a brief cameo to express his disappointment that he won’t be a grandfather. What will be interesting to watch, should the show go that direction, is how Penny responds to outside pressure not just from her friends but her family. To that I say, continue to do what’s right for you, Penny. You’ve more than proven that.
