#ProperFans, self-care and Nasty Women: what I’ve saved on Instagram this week

Every Monday, our Deputy Digital Editor trawls through her saturated ‘saved’ folder on Instagram and recaps her thoughts on the week’s weird and wonderful social media happenings. 

#ProperFans make themselves known at the Ladies’ Football Final

With 2019 seeing the launch of 20×20, a nationwide campaign to increase the visibility and prominence of female athletes by next year, it made sense that all eyes were on the biggest sporting weekend of the year to see results. The Dublin and Galway ladies’ teams were no doubt crestfallen to hear that the men’s replay had been scheduled for the same weekend as their final, but it didn’t dent their hopes for a high turnout. As it happens, 2019’s Ladies’ Football Final saw a record-breaking number of supporters turn up to Croker — 56,114, compared to 50,141 in 2018. What a great pick-me-up for a wet weekend, and as a Dub, a particularly sweet sight after celebrating the Drive for Five.

JVN and the love of Queer Eye

Since coming out as non-binary earlier this year, one-fifth of the Queer Eye Fab Five Johnathan Van Ness has become more daring with his red carpet outfits (to my continual delight). Heading to the Emmys in a gorgeous bow-detailed Christian Siriano gown, JVN stunned alongside his co-stars, but it was his Instagram post detailing the group’s friendships and mutual support that really filled my heart this week. The Fab Five can always be counted on to show their guests the power of emotional support and friendship, but the fact that they show eachother that same love is gorgeous to watch. I’m also still on the edge of my seat as to whether Antoni and Johnathan are really an item, but that’s a story for another day.

Paul Costelloe’s technicolour dream palette

The Irish takeover of London Fashion Week so far has been fabulous to behold, and there have been too many highlights to count (all will be revealed in our coverage later this week). The 60s and 70s styles have dominated the runways across the board, but it was Dubliner Paul Costelloe’s bright and beautiful prints that really caught my eye. Not pictured: shaggy beehives and large-scale cat eyes to finish the look. Perfection.

#SelfCare #Goals in a post that’s actually not cringey

I’ve seen this image doing the rounds of multiple Insta-stories this week, with similar sentiments echoed throughout — this little kitten is absolutely self-care goals. But when you venture onto collage artist Natasha Correia’s fun-filled Instagram (handle is @mariamelancolia), you find that pink fans and perfume bottles are just the tip of the iceberg. Kitsch prints, classic film stars and Tumblr-esque layouts make this the perfect destination for an evening of aesthetic escapism.

The buzz is growing around Netflix’s The Politician

How excited are you to watch Netflix’s latest golden offering The Politician? It’s literally all I’ve been thinking about since seeing the trailer last week (apart from, you know, the essentials like feeding myself). The drama following a high-school election in an upmarket Santa Barbara neighbourhood has an absolutely stellar cast headed by Ryan Murphy at the creator’s helm. Among them, the three deliciously nasty women Jessica Lange, Gwyneth Paltrow and Lucy Boynton (who is worth following for her impeccable beauty looks alone). The series hits Netflix on September 27.

Devastating Dublin news as the Bernard Shaw announces closure

All that was on anyone’s lips last week was the enraging news of the Bernard Shaw’s closure. A Dublin stalwart of the creative scene, anger spread throughout the city’s fans last Monday, and we wondered what the fate would be of Dublin’s soul. Joining the ranks of some of the best nightclubs and bars of the past few years, many Instagrammers took to social media to voice their unrest.