When Vancouver model Shereen Jupp had her baby girl, Adaline, last year, one of the first things she looked for was a magazine that would keep her in touch with the things she loves – fashion, art, design and poetry – while being aimed at mothers. “I’ve always been inspired by beautiful magazines like Vanity Fair, Porter and Kinfolk, but after I became a mother, I found they were less relevant to me.” Jupp says.
“When I looked around, I found a lot of ‘What breast pump should I buy?’ articles, and stories that were negative about motherhood, but nothing that was high fashion with real mothers, inspiring and arty, and not just digital. A magazine I can hold in my hands,” she explains.
Not to be defeated, she decided to fill the niche herself and five months ago, Mother Muse, a quarterly coffee-table magazine, was launched.
Jupp was relatively young – just 24 – when she had her daughter, and found the early days isolating. “My family, my husband’s family and, of course, my husband were very supportive, but I couldn’t talk to my girlfriends about motherhood,” she explains. “I had post-partum depression and a huge lack of confidence. Self-care was very significant in restoring my self-esteem,” she says.
She hopes that Mother Muse will be helpful in doing the same for other women. “When you become a mother, you have to adjust your lifestyle, but you still need to take care of yourself. I think mothers are often overlooked in society and seen only in relation to their babies, but I wanted to turn the focus onto the woman.”
The magazine includes fashion spreads, interviews with inspiring mothers, original art and poetry. All the models are real mothers interacting with their own children. Authenticity is hugely important to Jupp, as is showing diversity in women’s bodies. “I started modelling in my late teens – I was signed to three international agencies, worked in LA, Toronto and New York and appeared in campaigns for brands like Urban Outfitters and magazines like Nylon. But it’s not the healthiest industry. I struggled with anorexia, though my eating disorder stopped when my daughter came along,” she recalls. “Thankfully I think the industry is changing and becoming more body positive, and that’s something I’d like to encourage with Mother Muse.”
Jupp continues to model, selectively, though, because the magazine takes so much of her time – she does almost everything, including writing, design, proofreading, marketing and social media, herself.
It’s hard work, but it’s paying off – the magazine’s profile is rising and it has influential fans like actress Jaime King, the July issue’s cover star. “She commented on a photo we had put on Instagram and I reached out to her,” Jupp says. The issue also has an interview with Caitlin Crosby, founder of social enterprise The Giving Keys.
Mother Muse goes out to a global audience, with readers in the US, Australia, Poland and Spain. “It’s really cool and inspiring to know that there are these women out there reading the magazine in places I’ve never seen and would love to go to,”says Jupp. “The magazine is connecting women all over the world, and that makes me happy.”
• To purchase a copy of Mother Muse, click here.
Fashion Fix with Shereen Jupp
Inspiration: I love the French/Parisian style: timeless classics.
Go-to outfit: My favourite look right now is black dress pants (skinny fit) with a striped turtleneck sweater, mules and Ray-Bans.
Evolution: Pre-motherhood I would invest in trend pieces, whereas, now, I shop around – I’m not an impulse buyer – and look for things I know I’m going to wear over and over.
Priorities: When it comesto buying clothesI’m interested in ethics, comfort, style and price point – I don’t want to spend $300 on a T-shirt.
Shopping: I shop a lot at thrift stores.My favourite place for timeless basics is Oak & Fort. I also love Christy Dawn and Kinga Csilla, both of which use only dead stock fabrics. Rouje Paris gives me that Alexa Chung/Audrey Hepburn look. In terms of beauty, I mostly go to Whole Foods – I love the Andalou Naturals 1000 Roses Floral Toner. I’m also a fan of the Eightbrook Charcoal Mask and Ayu hand-pressed perfume oils: my personal favourites are Carnal and Ode. For makeup, I like all-natural brand Bite Beauty.
