All things Galentine's day

Yes, we are all aware of the famous celebratory day of love, Valentine's day, but have you heard of Galentine's day?! It may be our new favourite 'fake' holiday! A play on the name Valentine's to celebrate our favourite 'gals'. 

Whether you are celebrating Valentine's or not, have a little think about Galentine's, which speaks all self-love, showering your female friends with love and support. It promotes all things girl power, a day where we can indulge and love ourselves and celebrate the amazing women surrounding and blessing our lives. 

There is no right or wrong way to celebrate Galentine's, and that's the beauty of it. So join us on the 13th of Feb, put on your favourite movie, order in your delicious takeout, grab a glass of wine and sit back! Dedicate the day to things you enjoy doing, and if we cannot meet with our girlfriends because of COVID why not host a zoom quiz meeting? 

What is so wrong with treating yourself to flowers and chocolates? We love the idea! Maybe you have wanted to dedicate some self-care time, a nice pamper or skincare routine will do the trick. There may be a gift you want to purchase for yourself, which you can find plenty of on our website.

Are you curious of how this fabulous holiday came about? It happened around ten years ago, in 2010, and it was actually created by the fictional character Leslie Knope in Parks and Recreation. The episode is called "Galentine's day" where she gathers a group of her friends for a brunch, and ever since then women have loved this idea, a no-pressure, fun, and feel-good holiday with no gimmicks. 

Images from: pixabay.com

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Summer Playlist 19

- Bad Guy - Alex Holtti

- No New Friends - Sia, Diplo, Labrin

- I Like Me Better - Lauv 

- Dem Beats - Todrick Hll

- Run This Town - Offaiah

- My Bad - Khaid
- Wondering  - MO, Chip
Plot Twist - Sigrid 
Delicate - Taylor Swift
3 Nights - Dominic Fike
Anything I Do (Feat. Ms. Banks) CLiQ, Ms Banks, Alika
Get It Together, Drake, Black Coffee, Jorja  Smith 
Thinking of you - Calvin Harris, Ayah Marar
So Close - NOTD, Feliz Jaehn, Captain Cuts

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Women and Empowerment

Women

This week we're talking about women and empowerment! The issues of social equality, including economic, marital and historical, have been debated for hundreds of years. Many books have been written about women and their place in society. So what's the latest?

Well, it's become a bit of a free-for-all. Thanks to the internet we can share our views far and wide under the protection of the UK Human Rights act of 1998, which says that "everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions". But the overwhelming feeling at the moment is, of course, that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities in every area of society. This in itself might not seem too difficult in theory. However, another aspect of this feeling is that women and men deserve equal respect and be treated as equals. In practise this has been shown to be slightly more tricky.


    Photo credit -Tonight Josephine 

Anyway. We're not here to discuss politics (or are we?). We're focusing on women in power, women in business and women who don't give a flying squirrel what anybody thinks of them while they get on with their lives.

Allow us to introduce Serena, Michelle, Emma and Suki!

Photo credit - Stuff.co.nz

Serena Williams

A powerhouse of epic proportion and a keen advocate for equal pay and rights for women and people of colour, Williams has for a long time been kicking ass. This happens on the court and off it, and for this reason she totally belongs on this list. 

In an essay called 'How Black Women Can Close the Pay Gap', Williams acknowledged that "growing up, I was told I couldn't accomplish my dreams because I was a woman and, more so, because of the colour of my skin". She goes on to speak about the "cycles of poverty, discrimination and sexism" endemic to Western society today, and urges that reversing this will take "dedicated action" by "all of us", including men and women "of all colours, races and creeds". Click here for the full essay.

Photo credit - Newsweek

Michelle Obama

What an inspiration! She's been ranked as the 13th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes, but this doesn't begin to describe Michelle Obama's enormous efforts to do good in the world. She's unafraid to address the challenging, complex issues faced by society today, and especially by women and girls.

In her speech during Campaign Week 2016, just before Donald Trump was elected President, she mentioned her work with Let Girls Learn, saying "I wanted [the girls present] to understand that the measure of any society is how it treats its women and girls". Let Girls Learn is an education initiative "led by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)" and created by Michelle. To read the full transcript of her New Hampshire speech, which emphasises the importance of women's autonomy and power today, click here. 

Photo credit - wikipedia

Emma Thompson

This legend of British cinema has won basically every award going, including two Oscars, two Golden Globes and three BAFTAs. She has no time for sexist rubbish, and certainly no problem talking about it. Thompson has been quick to defend and applaud the women who have spoken out against Harvey Weinstein in the recent scandal, saying "I spent my 20s trying to get old men’s tongues out of my mouth". It's a gruesome image that fits an equally horrifying situation. 

Alongside her vow to "always speak up" on such issues, Thompson has dedicated a lot of effort and money to foundations such as the Refugee Council and the Helen Bamber Foundation. The former charity works with refugees and other people seeking asylum in the UK, offering "practical support and advice". More about the Refugee Council here. The Helen Bamber Foundation works with "people who have experienced extreme human cruelty, such as torture and human trafficking". More about their work here.


Suki Waterhouse 
Avid fan of Madia & Matilda, actress and model now turned singer Suki Waterhouse is a multifaceted wonder woman, with own accessories label as well. The label, co-created with best friend and business partner, Poppy Jamie, provides proof that when the sisterhood comes together, great things can be created! Find out more about their work here. We hope to see Suki in some of our designs in the future. 

Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Tartan - tastic

Simone - Chequered Print Wrap-Skirt

Here at Madia & Matilda, you might have guessed by our products that we are a definite fan of Tartan!

However, you might have missed some of our killer Tartan pieces, so here's a little reminder to refresh your memory this Spring.

                                                       Sincerely Madia & Matilda

Jessie Trouser

Lucinda - Wrap Skirt

News - Women of the Year

We felt inspired by Red magazine’s Women of the Year awards and decided to

write up about the women that inspire us here at Madia & Matilda.

The Female Boss

Bianca Miller is a true M & M babe being a real advocate of Madia & Matilda and fulltime female boss. 

You’ll recognise her from winning The Apprentice and her self-titled hosiery business that is

blooming and you can spot her on our Instagram! She’s recently started

stocking her tights in Topshop, congrats Bianca!






The Fashion Muse

Nina Nesbitt is one of our fashion muses, we love her 90s style and playing her

songs on repeat in the office. We also love her Twitter, she’s always posting

her thoughts and cute outfits.

Corinne Bailey Rae

She’s a woman who has inspired us for years, we love her music and her

personal style. She’s got a quirky elegance about her and we dream of seeing

her in M & M one day!

The Activist

Emma Watson, what a woman. As if she hadn’t already cemented her place in

our hearts through Harry Potter, her role in HeForShe will always mean there is

a place for her in our Women of the Year.

We are always talking about sustainability here at Madia and Matilda is some

way or another, so Dame Vivienne Westwood’s spot in our most loved women

is well secured. Seeing her at the Cheltenham Literature Festival talking about

her Climate Revolution campaign completely reinforced our love for the Queen

of Green and Punk.

The Internet’s Big Sister

Whilst she’s also a top female boss, there is no denying that the for younger

generation Zoella is the internet’s big sister. There is also no denying our inner

fan girl that’s released when we watch her Lush hauls.

Megan Gilbride is another big sister to the internet. Over at Wonderful You she

writes about some of the most important topics a girl can read. Mental health –

check, Smear tests – check, girl power – check she’s got the guts to talk about

it all and we love her for that.

We’d love to hear about your women of the year – be them family members or

celebrities, let us know! tweet @MadiaMatilda 

Sincerely Madia & Matilda