Question Time: Eilidh MacAskill

Work: Editor of
InStyle UK magazine

Life: Married with two children: Ellis, six, and Daniel, one

Balance: I still haven't found one

What are the best and worst aspects of your job?

I love the energy of working with a talented, creative team and the fact that every month you start largely with a blank slate. Plus, I have to say I love both the madness and the importance of the fashion industry.

Worst aspects?

Trying to pack clothes for the fashion weeks and dealing with the disappointment of a shoot gone wrong. It doesn't happen very often but when it does, it kills me.

What was your first break?

I edited a Scottish wedding magazine called Bliss. I styled the shoots, wrote the copy and at one point even designed one of the issues. It was priceless experience but a bit of a cowboy operation. BBC Scotland made a documentary on us and I have never looked back – even though the footage implied that I only ever sat in taxis!

Who in the industry would you most like to work with?

My team.

Do you have a dream job?

It would have to be editing New York magazine. For that I would move back to Manhattan, where I worked for the US edition of InStyle.

How do you relax outside of work?

I hang out with my family and watch a copious amount of horror movies – although obviously only when my children are in bed.

What key things have you learned from the US?

New Yorkers put the same effort into their weekends as they do their working weeks. I also learned not to be quite so scathing of their innate confidence or indeed their patriotism – after six months I was quite pleased that my daughter could recite the pledge of allegiance.

What are your desert island media?

New York magazine, The Observer, Women's Wear Daily (WWD), National Enquirer, my back issues of the much lamented Domino – an American interiors magazine that shut this year – and a box set of the US drama Damages.