Welcome to KISS KISS. We are a London-based magazine exploring romance in all its complexity, not the fairy tale, but the messy, lived experience. KISS KISS traces the many ways intimacy shapes our lives, challenging how we think about romance, identity, and connection. Stylish, intelligent, and unafraid to look at love with open eyes. KISS KISS moves through four movements: The Rush, The Routine, The Reckoning, and The Repair. From first-date nerves and situationships to secure intimacy, toxic patterns, and heartbreak, we trace the ways love shapes our lives today. Inside, you will find personal stories, cultural observations, and reflections on identity and desire. We explore the thrill of attraction in Scent or a Scam? The Truth About “Pheromone Perfume” (p.12), the comfort of routine in Garlic Bread is Better Than Sex (p.32), the challenges of obsession in Are We Dating… or Just Replaying? (p.40), and the subtle art of reinvention in How Dementia Changes Love (p.60). Fashion, culture, emotion, and love intersect here, reflecting how a generation fluent in the modern digital world experiences romance. This magazine doesn’t romanticise love. It documents it unapologetically, honestly, and with style. Because even in a world of fleeting moments, love is still urgent, still compelling, and still worth noticing. Kiss Kiss invites you on this journey. We hope you enjoy this first issue as much as we do.
"Attachment theory is the best known explanation of love and relationships"
You meet someone new. The conversation flows easily, the excitement builds, and everything seems effortless at first. Yet as time passes, the emotional rhythm of the relationship can begin to shift. The early spark slowly gives way to uncertainty. Moments of closeness are followed by distance, and emotional clarity becomes difficult to find. Even when we meet different people, many of us recognise this pattern. The faces may change, but the emotional experience can feel strangely familiar. Modern dating culture often intensifies this dynamic. Dating apps, texting, and social media have changed the way relationships begin and develop. Connections can feel emotionally intimate before they are clearly defined, and feelings may deepen quickly while commitment remains uncertain. Within this space of ambiguity, even small signals begin to carry emotional weight. A delayed message invites interpretation, a short reply feels loaded with meaning, and even silence can feel like a response.
For Andrea Oskis, a London-based psychologist specialising in attachment theory, these reactions are not surprising. "Attachment theory is the best known and most significant explanation of love and relationships." She explains. “Your attachment style influences how you connect with others, how much closeness or distance you prefer, and whether intimacy feels safe or anxiety-provoking.” In other words, the emotional responses we experience in relationships are often shaped by patterns that developed long before modern dating culture existed. To understand why certain relationships feel strangely familiar, researchers often turn to one of the most influential frameworks in relationship psychology: attachment theory.
Attachment theory was first introduced by British psychologist John Bowlby, who proposed that our earliest experiences of care shape the way we approach relationships later in life. In simple terms, attachment theory suggests that the way we experience closeness as adults is influenced by the relationships we formed as children. Psychotherapist Jane Halsall explains that these patterns often develop very early in life. “From infancy, children seek closeness and safety from their caregivers,” she says.
"The responses they receive help shape their attachment style, usually before the age of five." When caregivers are consistently responsive and emotionally available, children tend to develop secure attachment. They learn that relationships can be trusted
AMO and that emotional needs will be met. However, when care is inconsistent, distant, or unpredictable, children may develop different strategies for emotional safety. Some individuals up feeling anxious about relationships, constantly seeking reassurance that they are valued. Others learn to rely on independence and emotional distance to protect themselves from disappointment.
Over time, these early experiences create what psychologists often describe as internal templates for relationships. “These early experiences shape beliefs about whether others are reliable,” Halsall explains. “They also influence whether someone feels safe expressing emotions and whether they believe they deserve care." Although these patterns form in childhood, they often continue to influence adult relationships in subtle ways. Few people consciously think about childhood when they start dating someone new. Yet the emotional expectations formed early in life can quietly shape how individuals respond to closeness, uncertainty, and vulnerability. In this way, relationships are rarely experienced on a completely blank slate. Instead, they are filtered through patterns that have been developing for years.
While attachment patterns originate early in life, modern dating culture has created an environment where these patterns can become particularly visible. Digital communication has transformed the pace and structure of relationships. Conversations now unfold through messages, notifications, and social media interactions. This constant connectivity can create the illusion of closeness. But it can also introduce new forms of uncertainty.
Messages can be read but unanswered, replies may arrive hours later, and tone or intention are often difficult to interpret through text. According to Doctor Andrea Oskis, who studies attachment and emotional development, these conditions can heighten emotional responses.