Welcome to HEYDAY
“ For quite some time, I had a wish…
That there be an engaging and welcoming
media brand for women in their midlife.
One that empowers, encourages and enlightens.
One where we share our life stories…
For women with wit and wisdom.
For women with experience and perspective.
For women with purpose and power.
For women with style and substance.
For women in their Heyday. ”
- ellie balfe, Heyday Founder, June 2020.
About heyday
Heyday is a platform created for women in their midlife, by women in their midlife. It is a meaningful media model, designed to be part of the intention economy, not the attention economy; the goal is to add to your day, not deplete you, or distract you from what is important - living the one and only life you have.
Featuring a weekly editorial offering each Saturday morning called The Edition (plus a podcast coming very soon) it is designed to be just enough - and nothing more. Heyday is designed to be a space for you to feel seen in, and part of. A space for you. Henry David Thoreau said, “ to affect the quality of the day - that is the highest of arts”, that is a concept we aspire to wholeheartedly when creating the Heyday platform; that it might add to the quality of your day.
Heyday is people-powered, both editorially, via a panel of women writers, and financially too, as it is funded by a membership model where you, our subscriber, becomes an engaged and welcome supporter of quality, original content creation across both writing and audio production. Heyday is an ad-free space where content is created according to what we feel you would like. We believe in resonance, not reach - a smaller, more intimate space where women feel welcome is the goal, as opposed to striving for huge reader numbers to please only advertisers. This place is for you. This place is for us.
Heyday is a place for conversation, a place for community and a place for companionship. It speaks to all facets of women in their midlife, and showcases life in an unfiltered, warm and brave way, taking on topical talking points that women in midlife care about: health, family, relationships, work life, wellbeing, style and beauty as well as the key experiences we all share, and topical stories of our time. And we want to hear from you - conversation is what drives life. Join us in comments and on social - let’s get talking!
Heyday is designed with purpose; to speak about life, as it really is, for women over 40.
The editorial model is a representation of what women are truly talking and wondering about as they live through their midlives. It does not preach, it does not talk down; it assumes all readers are switched on and tuned in to the world around them.
Heyday is an open-minded, progressive content platform that is not afraid of standing up, speaking out, or advocating the hell out of an issue to force change. We tell the truth on all things, and talk about the highs and the lows of our full, rounded lives with all their unique facets. Here we champion honest conversations, authentic storytelling, insightful opinion, open-mindedness and creative bravery. In midlife, we know more of life’s challenges; its gifts and its griefs; but we are strong nonetheless.
And you are so very welcome…
“this is our heyday baby, and we’re not gonna be afraid to shout”
Join us!
sign up for full access to all content and conversation in the Heyday monthly membership community
ELLIE BALFE,
heyday founder
Ellie’s career has certainly not been linear, but it has definitely brought her to a place of great life and professional experience. Beginning as a professional makeup artist working for many years in fashion, film and theatre, she then set up a makeup school with her business partner which ran for seven years. After the birth of her first daughter, Ellie began to write a beauty and lifestyle blog, which won Best Irish Blogger in established industry awards.
This led to another of her career pivots; being appointed as beauty editor for IMAGE magazine in 2011, winning her Best New Beauty Writer in the UK and Ireland beauty journalism awards. Her interest and expertise in digital evolved with her soon becoming the first editor of image.ie which won Best Digital Product for four years running, and she subsequently became Digital Director of IMAGE Publications.
In 2017, after leaving to go freelance, and to spend more time with her daughters, Ellie worked as a brand consultant specialising in editorial and creative strategy and branded content. She was approached to become Editorial Director of Irish Tatler and Food & Wine magazines and was thus responsible for leading the transformation and rebrand of the titles in a short project in 2019 before the company was sold.
The combination of this digital and lifestyle media, brand direction and strategic experience brings Ellie, who is 47 and a single mum to two daughters; Anna and Lulu, to Heyday - a concept very close to her heart, and one she truly believes in. Created during the first of the Covid lockdowns, Heyday is the result of a yearning to create a meaningful media model for women in midlife. A huge advocate for the need for more visibility for women over 40 in media and a greater diversity of age across all spheres, to Ellie, Heyday is the sum of all her parts: storytelling, strategy and creativity.
And a bit of a dream come true…
Read Ellie’s opening lines here and follow her @elliebalfe1
contributing WRITERS
dearbhla kelly
Dearbhla Kelly M.A. moved to Chicago in 2003 to pursue a Ph.D in analytic philosophy. Life had other plans and brought her to Los Angeles where she teaches yoga and writes about philosophy, neuroscience, yoga and whatever else takes her fancy. Her writing has appeared in Huffington Post, Elephant Journal, Yoga Journal, LA Yoga and numerous other publications.
Marie Kelly
Marie began her career in print magazines more than 20 years ago at Hearst Magazines in London. Since moving back to Ireland 15 years ago, she has contributed to titles including The Irish Times, The Sunday Independent LIFE magazine, The Irish Independent, YOU magazine and Cara magazine. She was features editor at The Gloss before assuming the role of fashion director at IMAGE Media in 2015, departing the publishing house in 2019. Marie is now a freelance writer and editor.
@mkelly.fashion.ed
yvonne cassidy
Yvonne Cassidy was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland and moved to New York in 2011. She is the author of four novels published by Hachette and her personal essay Tuesdays was published in Grabbed, an anthology on sexual assault, empowerment and healing published in 2020. She has taught creative writing extensively and currently teaches for the Irish Arts Center and the Jewish Community Center in Manhattan. She lives on the Upper West Side with her wife Danielle.
@yvonnecassidyauthor
nikki walsh
Nikki Walsh was born and raised in an Irish community in North London in the 70s. She came to Dublin in 1993 to read English at Trinity College and never quite made it back home. With over twenty years experience in print media, she has edited a range of titles, whilst also regularly contributing to the likes of the Irish Times and The Sunday Times Style supplement. She is currently working on a collection of short stories, as well as a number of children's books.
@nikkiccwalsh
SYREETA CHALLINGER
Syreeta is creative change consultant, a lifestyle brand founder and a writer. Hope, love and aesthetics are at the core of what she, and her husband Rob, create at Moments of Sense & Style, where her powerful talent for both visual and written storytelling have found a home.
Read More…
Jennifer Coyle
Jennifer was born in Dublin in 1975 and educated at Trinity College and the Sorbonne. She was once Sleeping Beauty at EuroDisney, Marie Claire’s ‘What’s hot and What’s Not’ girl, and has also globe-trotted as a travel journalist and feature writer for The Observer.
Read More…
Simone Gannon
Simone is a Creative Strategist and Writer from Galway. When she’s not spending every penny she earns on skincare; she’s hanging out with her son Charlie, her husband Adrian, and their two dogs.
Yahaira l.reyes
Yahaira is a 42 year old writer, lawyer and current criminology master’s degree student. As self-proclaimed ‘citizen of the world’, her life story so far has brought her from the Dominican Republic, via Holland, to Ireland where she found love and now lives.
Jennifer Stevens
Jennifer is a journalist, editor, and MC. A former editor of Irish Tatler, U and Irish Country magazine she is now a features writer, digital content consultant for brands and event host. She lives in Kildare with her husband and two daughters.
Allison Keating
Allison has been a Chartered Psychologist for 19 years, specialising in compassionate, solution-focused therapy to help people make sense of how the past has shaped them, and how to personally evolve beyond it. She has been Director of The bWell Clinic since 2004, and more recently the author of ‘The Secret Lives of Adults’, her book about our seven key relationships. She is a regular media contributor on relationships and mental health.
Ailbhe Lynch
Ailbhe Lynch embarked on her makeup artistry career when she began studying makeup for Film, TV and Theatre in IADT, Dublin in 1993 (alongside Heyday founder, Ellie!). With her natural flair and love of beauty and fashion makeup, her talent is in constant demand. With a career now spanning over two decades, she continues to be one of Ireland's busiest, professional makeup artists. She brings that experience to her beauty commentary on Heyday.
marion bergin
Marion is an interdisciplinary filmmaker and photographer living between Dublin and London. Educated in Histoty of Art at Trinity College, Dublin, her work lies in the intersection of fashion, art and documentary. A yoga teacher and writer, Marion contributes to Heyday on areas of self-exploration.
readers Write…
Heyday is about chronicling and celebrating the female experience in midlife in all its grit and glory. It is also about building a strong, vibrant community of companionship, support and the sharing of our ideas, opinions and stories.
So, with that spirit of connection at the core, we would love to hear from you also. It doesn’t matter if you are not a ‘writer’, or if you don’t have any qualifications in communications - if you have a story that you feel our community will relate to, and you want to get it into the world, tell us.
We are a motley crew of writers and editors, as well as psychologists, makeup artists, yoga teachers and philosophers - between us, we can edit your words and get them published on Heyday.
Whether through a comment under an article, an emoji on our social, or a fully-fledged, ready- to-rock 1000 word article: hit us up through our contact page and let’s get it going.
Heyday is a place where we co-create together.
So, tell us, what’s your story?
