Medine began writing online in 2009 while a student at The New School. After studying abroad in Paris, she started a blog called Four Months in Paris, later renaming it Boogers + Bagels.[11]
Man Repeller
Medine started the Man Repeller blog in May 2010 .[12] The idea for the blog reportedly came during a shopping trip with a friend. Medine recalled, "We were laughing at how everything was so man-repelling: acid-washed harem pants and enormous shoulder pads, and I just said, 'That's it! That's the blog.'"[13]
A few days after it launched, the blog was featured on the fashion website
Refinery29.[14] Medine began collaborating with magazines like Lucky and Harper's Bazaar.[13][14]
In 2012, Medine appeared in a
Forbes 30 Under 30 list.[15]Man Repeller was included in TIME's "25 Best Blogs of 2012",[16] and received "Best Overall Blog" at the 2012
Bloglovin' Awards.[17]
Initially, the blog was written solely by Medine but later grew to include contributions from several writers and editors.[18] In September 2013,
Grand Central Publishing published the book Man Repeller: Seeking Love, Finding Overalls.
Medine announced in June 2020 that she would “step back” from her involvement in Man Repeller after allegations of racism.[19] In September 2020, the site was rebranded to Repeller. On October 22, 2020, it was confirmed that Repeller would shut down due to financial constraints.[20][21]
Medine currently maintains a
Substack newsletter about "how to get dressed (mostly)."[22]
Brand Partnerships
Medine has collaborated with designers on limited collections of clothes and accessories, including Gryphon, shoe companies Del Toro and
Superga, jewelry line Dannijo, and clothing line PJK.[23]
In 2012, Medine signed with the
Creative Artists Agency, an entertainment talent agency headquartered in Los Angeles, California.[23] In 2016, Medine collaborated with
Net-a-Porter to launch the shoe line MR by Man Repeller. Later, Medine created her own shoe line Leandra Medine.[24]
On October 29, 2019, Medine launched a partnership collection with
Mango.[25]
Publications
Medine Cohen released her first book, an essay collection, and a memoir titled Man Repeller: Seeking Love, Finding Overalls, in 2013.
Personal life
In December 2011, Medine announced her engagement to Abie J. Cohen, a financial advisor at
UBS, whom she had met when she was 17 years old.[26][27][28]
Medine and Cohen married in June 2012.[29] They live in the
East Village.[30] In a Man Repeller article published in December 2016, Medine revealed she had suffered a
miscarriage.[31] On March 1, 2018, Medine gave birth to twin girls, Laura and Madeline.[32]