When I left university, the first time, I was lucky enough to receive an overseas internship. It was incredibly exciting – and tremendously scary...
I wasn’t taught about the history of our country in the way that I should have been.
At...
A former editor once told me ‘Clickbaity headlines are fine, so long as they’re backed up by quality content.’
I think she was right. As...
I was first cast out when I told my fellow students in primary school that my family sometimes ate...
This month, Instagram are testing out a significant change to their app in certain countries, including New Zealand. You can no longer see the...
With things like social media and online petitions helping to engage people in politics, more people than...
For my money, the best piece of cinema to come out of 2018 was the opening minute of Beychella . My partner and I watched the Beyoncé Coachella...
The one thought running through my mind every second of every day at the moment is, “I’m cold. I’m cold. I’m cold.” That’s it, on repeat, all day...
What do you do when your friend’s substance use (of alcohol or other drugs) starts affecting their relationships, work, finances, or ability to...
It just makes me nervous, you know? What with Hannah Tamaki taking up the reins of the Destiny Church Party (sorry, Coalition New Zealand) and...
I’m going to start with the obvious: the best approach to drug law reform will be one that most effectively minimises harm.
The approach...
We all remember it, the all-encompassing dread and deep-seated boredom of a school assembly with a guest speaker. Pretending to pay attention to...
An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life. The customer is always right.
What a...
The days following the Notre Dame cathedral fire were fraught with grief and shock as the world watched...
Tall poppy syndrome has been a part of New Zealand culture for nearly as long as we’ve been a country...
Joan Didion, speaking on her husband’s shock death in 2003, said she was afraid for the next year to begin. Once the next year began, her husband’...
It’s bizarre that until recently skincare was an area of my life in which I’ve never taken an evidence-based approach. Over the years, I’ve bought...
I’m writing this from my flat in Christchurch. Only two streets over...
On Saturday afternoon we commemorated the Christchurch terror attack with a vigil in Auckland. A sea of Aucklanders poured into the city. We...
Remember when Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, confessed to grabbing people by their...
Allow me to tell you about my quintessentially kiwi adolescence. From the ages...
Let’s be honest – pop culture hasn’t always been kind to women. Or...
I kept diaries when I was younger. I leaned them against my knees and wrote in them nightly. When I was a child I wrote about my friends at school...
Hey, sister with a heavy heart.
I’m so sorry about the things you’ve been through.
Know that I feel you, and I hold you in my...
I don’t think about my birth certificate much. It’s a struggle when I have to drag it out...
First published on Sunday the 9th of December, 2018, this piece comes in at number 1 in the top 30 most read...
First published on Wednesday the 18th of April, 2018, this piece comes in at number 9 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Friday the 29th of June, 2018, this piece comes in at number 12 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
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First published on Monday the 5th of February, 2018, this piece comes in at number 13 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Thursday the 29th of March, 2018, this piece comes in at number 17 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018....
First published on Monday the 26th of November, 2018, this piece comes in at number 19 in the top 30 most read...
First published on Tuesday the 31st of July, 2018, this piece comes in at number 20 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
First published on Saturday the 12th of May, 2018, this piece comes in at number 21 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
First published on Monday the 28th of May, 2018, this piece comes in at number 25 in the top 30 most read Villainesse stories of 2018.
I...
What a year. I don’t know anyone who isn’t staggering to the finish this December, counting down the days until they can finish work and fall face...
New Zealand has a problem with violence against women. This will come as no surprise to anyone who has watched the news recently. New changes to...
New Zealand is not great in terms of mental health or support for those with mental illness. That’s putting it lightly. OECD statistics shows how...
Earlier this year, I did some research for Tonic on the use of cannabis to treat symptoms of PMS, namely period pain. Since then, I’ve started...
The midterms were an exciting sign of change for America. Representation for women and...
Dear Mike Hosking,
Hey buddy what’s up? I’m a long time sufferer listener, first time caller.
“Blonde!” I told them, “Completely blonde!”
When I went through my last big breakup several years ago, I booked myself a salon sesh almost...
As a society, we’re bad at coping with sexual harassment. Helping survivors and holding perpetrators to account is not our strong suit. If that...
“We’re all born naked – the rest is drag.”
So said Ru Paul once upon a time, gifting the world a fabulous Instagram caption as well as a...
The way Australia handles...
I want to get one thing out of the way right up front. I’m not saying you can’t have or share an opinion. Everyone can freely express their...
When people call parenting the ‘hardest job in the world’ I often pick up a faint whiff of condescension. It seems like something people think...
I’m a white woman who maintains a biweekly yoga practice, and to be honest, I feel pretty uncomfortable about it.
As with many things, the...
If you’re anything like me, you probably made some kind of New Year’s resolution to read more books in 2018. Well, guess what? It’s almost...
It's a weird and wonderful time to be a woman, depending on where in the world you live. The likes of the #MeToo movement, the Free The Nipple...
Abortion holds a unique space in our society. Few other medical procedures are wished to be both ‘legal’ and ‘rare’. Few medical procedures sit...
Most of us reach a point in our lives where we look around, and suddenly realise that all our mates are either engaged or married. We’ve been so...
A few years ago I had no idea what the term ‘TERF’ meant. It popped up occasionally in my Twitter feed...
There’s a big gap when it comes to teaching young women about money. We don’t do it because money is like sex or peeing in the shower - people get...
Put down your phone. Stop focusing on the tasks you have to do. Think about why you’re here. Breathe.
It sounds simple. But… I’m really...
For the first time ever, this Queen’s Birthday weekend, the number of women receiving honours outnumbered the...
Blood, women’s suffering, and endless parallels with current events. I frequently ask myself why I’m...
“What are you going to do with that?” When I tell people that I study English at university, that’s the response I get. If I mention that Law is...
When you hear the word ‘nice’ what do you think about? Does it denote kindness? Is it vanilla? Is it male? Is it female?
I have a problem...
New Zealand has a party culture. Whether you like that culture or not, it undeniably exists. Binge drinking is a rite of passage and for a lot of...
Last week, Villainesse caught up with Minister for Women Julie Anne Genter. We wanted to know what work was happening in our government towards...
