The Sexy 6(ish): Some things I want to babble to you about this week.

This article originally appeared on Mia Freedman's Babble, a newsletter delivering content on pop culture, modern life and being a Gen Xer in a Gen Z world. Sign up here.

I know it’s not a popular opinion but I like stuff. I like looking at things and buying things and playing with things and recommending things. For about three years, I did a weekly video on Instagram where I shared the six things I wanted to pash that week.

It was a way to support small, female-owned businesses and to share some of the great things I had discovered in my sweep of retail or that had been sent to me by business owners hoping for some free marketing, which I provided with enthusiasm.

I did this diligently, every Sunday, even through lockdowns. And for a long time I loved it. Until gradually and then suddenly, I didn’t. Partly it was because I was bored by the repetition of the format I’d created.

I’m not sure if it’s my ADHD or my personality (it’s always hard to unscramble that egg), but I seek out routine in lots of ways in my life and WILL NOT deviate from it. Until I can’t bear it and must abandon it.

Watch: Here's Mia Freedman on No Filter chatting about ADHD. Post continues below.

Partly, I had begun to feel uneasy about always telling people to Buy More Stuff even though, as we have established, I’m a big fan of Stuff. I’m spiritually brought to you by Big Stuff. Mostly though, I was feeling overwhelmed by the responsibility of knowing I could make a tangible difference to the bottom line of a small business — and thus a real life woman running that business — if I promoted her product on my socials.

The more popular the series became, the more things I was sent by hopeful and sometimes desperate small business owners (awwwww, so much free stuff, is that a tiny violin I can hear, playing just for me?) and the more frantic and inauthentic my recommendations became because I didn’t have time to use everything and a lot of what I was sent weren’t things I would actually use, anyway.

So I wound up the Sexy 6 and frankly, it was a relief.

Is there a point to this newsletter, Mia? IS THERE?

Yeah, I think so and it’s this: I want to recalibrate the original idea of The Sexy Six which was to share reccos of things I love. Or even things I don’t love but I want to tell you about for reasons that are unclear to me but shut up.

Each week, I’m going to tell you about some things. I’m not sure how many things because counting is too much pressure. And if I’ve learnt anything about myself in the past few years is that if I want to continue doing something, I have to make it as frictionless as possible. So here we go.

1. These big comfy undies.

Image: Nala/Canva.

I love a big undie and Nala makes some of the most comfortable I’ve found. This new print is particularly joyful. I got sent a pair with the matching crop top and I’ve bought four more pairs. 

TIP: I always go a size up when I’m buying undies. Nothing worse than a pinchy waist or a hungry bum.

2. Below Deck Down Under.

I’m not a reality show fan. I honestly don’t watch them. Not because I’m better than anyone who does. Please. I’m worse than everyone, just in general. But I find the confected drama annoying. I don’t know why I started watching this but it’s just sort of dumb and soothing. I’m only up to Season One and nothing happens except they had a pirate-themed dinner and a toilet overflowed. It’s on Hayu.

3. These sunglasses.

I didn’t buy any of them but I had fun trying them on at a Brisbane shop called Camargue.

4. Something Bad Is Going To Happen.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jessie Stephens (@jessiestephens90)

My friend Jessie Stephens’ new book came out today and I read it about a month ago. Hooly dooly it’s a cracker of a read. It starts with a young woman who is in a mental hospital after having a total breakdown. It’s about depression and class and the friendship that’s possible between men and women and what it means to be in your 20s when your life isn’t turning out how you’d planned. 

It’s beautiful and funny and every single person I know who has read it has said, “this has helped me understand [insert name of person with depression] better than I ever possibly could have. Also: Jessie is an incredible writer and I couldn’t put it down.” You can read the first chapter for free here.

5. This story about the disintegration of Bardot.

Remember the song Poison? It was the first smash hit from the first reality-show girl band that was huge in the early 2000s and spawned Sophie Monk before imploding. For No Filter, I interviewed Belinda Chapple, who has written a book about her experience in the band and she told me all about the eye-wateringly small amount they earned from Bardot’s enormous success and about how the pressure to be thin sparked eating disorders. You can read the cover story here.

So what do you think of Sexy Six in Babble newsletter form? Leave a comment — I read them all! And forward this to someone who might like it if you want to support my work. 

Thanks, bye! xxx

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Feature image: Mia Freedman/Canva/Jessie Stephens/Nala/Camargue.

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