AstroTwins Interview - Tali And Ophira Edut

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Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock said it best: "It takes two." And while we're fairly sure the rappers weren't prophesying about our weekly horoscopes, the AstroTwins have certainly helped proved their point.

Tali and Ophira Edut, like us, were once just obsessed with reading their scopes, but soon they switched their fascination into legit astrological insight. The sisterly duo taught themselves the ins and outs, angles and alignments, and every single star sign in the universe. But don't write these ladies off as hokey soothsayer. The two have become a trusted go-to source for all things astrology-related, are the voices behind Astrostyle, and you've likley caught them hanging around R29 recently, as well.

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While their scopes are served up with style and humor, Tali and Ophira — now working respectively from Seattle and NYC — will be the first to tell you that there's a very specific formula when it comes to reading the stars. One that applies to their own lives, as well. They divulged it all in this one-on-two, plus let us know why horoscopes always seems so right, when they go wrong, and how these identical Astro-insiders ultimately address the haters.

What's your history in reading horoscopes? When was it that your interest piqued?
Tali: "It was actually an accidental career, we both went to art school at the University of Michigan and while we were there, we started a women's magazine and one of the things that always came up in our meetings was astrology, like trying to figure out the traits of people we were dating or people we were interested in. It was the ultimate guy tool. But, it was a friend who gave us our first astrological chart, which is a map of where all the planets are at your time of your birth, as a present. We knew we were Sagittarians but we then discovered we had all these planets in Scorpio and it was just like 'What?' And so, this obsession began with figuring out what it meant, why it was so scarily accurate, and how you could find out so much about people just from their time of birth."

So, how did you eventually turn your interest into a career?

Tali: "We started doing our friends' charts and it was really just an obsession/hobby and we never thought of it as something we'd be doing for a living. But one of our friends from our magazine got a job at Teen People — that was our first writing gig. She was like 'We need astrologers, you guys should do this!' And we haven't stopped since, and that was 12 years ago. It totally makes sense in retrospect that we're doing this because we've always been interested in things like human psychology and relationships and mysticism and enigmas. The universe kind of put the pieces together for us and then we just started reading everything we could on it. We're self-taught."

Do you think there is something innate or does it take a special gift to accurately read horoscopes?
Tali: "Anyone can learn. The system of astrology is actually very mathematic. So, you have to have a talent for math, or at least geometry and patterns. But the interpretation is where the gift comes in because you have to be able to look at the patterns and know how to apply it to a person's life. Our approach is that we like to bring the stars down to earth. What's the point of knowing that your moon is in Scorpio, if you have no clue how that applies to your real world?"

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Were you adamant horoscope checkers before you became astrologers?

Tali: "I've been checking my horoscope since I had a paper route when I was 11. I would always flip to it, and funny enough, Dear Abby."

Walk us through the process of reading horoscopes. What are you looking for? Tali: "The planets are orbiting around the planet [Earth] at different speeds. And so, at any given time they are connecting to one of the 12 zodiac signs. You can almost think of it as the hands of a clocks. The moon changes signs every two days, so we look at the moon a lot when we are doing daily horoscopes. But then other planets, like Jupiter, will change signs once a year, and Saturn every two and a half years, so that's a pretty big deal when one of those planets shift from one sign to another. Also, the angles that planets form between each other gives us information. If the moon is at a right angle to Venus, for example — the moon is emotions and Venus is love and beauty and socializing — there is a challenge in your emotional realm. And if there's a 60-degree angle then everything's smooth and it's a good day for making headway. That's a little bit technical, I know. Basically, it's what sign the planet is lining up with, and whether it is making any significant angles to other planets in the sky?"

How do we know what energies are connected with these planets? And, that inevitably, it can affect not only our mood, but possibly what we can expect from our day, or month ahead?
Tali: "It's an ancient system that was designed by the first astrologers and developed by the Greeks. I mean, it really is legend. It's based on mythology, as well. The planetary names are all named after gods, and the goddess Venus."

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What's your advice for someone who is reading their horoscope. How should they interpret it and what should they look for?
Tali: "One thing I should say is what you read when you read the horoscopes…it's the broad stroke. If you really want to get granular, you'd have to do a birth chart, which you can actually do for free on our website, and find out what your rising sign is and what your Moon sign is. [For] the people who are reading the daily horoscopes, look for horoscopes that inspire you into action."

Ophira: "We don't always know what's going to happen every day, but we know what might happen, and we can give you tips on how fast you should respond. Our approach, I think that's different, is that we don't do this doom and gloom, fear mongering stuff. We more go, 'well, there might be these kind of energies, and here's how you can be the most powerful if you have to deal with anything like that.' We never make people feel like they're victims of the stars, we really encourage them to say, 'Okay, if there's a challenge that happens, then here's how you build some character, or flex a new kind of muscle.' We try to take a more philosophical, personal growth kind of approach."

Photo: Courtesy of The AstroTwins

Have you ever read someone's horoscope and totally shocked yourselves with how spot-on accurate you were?
Tali: "It has happened. I mean, we've predicted a friend was going to meet a European man and marry him within a certain time frame, and that happened. Even in our own lives— Ophira got pregnant right when Jupiter, our ruling planet, was in her motherhood house."

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Have you ever been completely off the mark?
Tali: "Not really, actually. I know that sounds weird, but I honestly haven't. I was thinking about that not too long ago, but people tend to be more in tune with the stars than they even know."

Twins are known for having a special bond between them. Do you think that's something that comes into play when it comes to working together and having the ability to read so accurately?
Tali: "Definitely. I mean we've always been tuned into each other. We even had our own language when we were kids, and so relationships and people are such an important part of our lives. We've kind of always been reading each other. We just tune into each other, and we do that with other people without even realizing. It kind of seems normal to us. Then we realize, 'oh other people don't radar in on other people like that.' We feel really lucky to work with each other, and we also have a really easy time dividing up work."

Susan Miller has been dubbed the astrologer of the fashion set by New York Magazine. Why do you think people in fashion are so into astrology anyway?
Tali: "We love Susan Miller. Part of the reason why we got obsessed with horoscopes is we've loved reading hers for years, and we think she's brilliant. People who are into fashion are into self-expression, and individuality, and learning about themselves. Fashion is about expressing yourself. People who are into fashion want to be noticed, want to be seen, you know? Astrology is much the same way. It's this booklet, this code, that's all about you. Also, I think people who are into fashion are also open to the creative realm. Fashion people are great predictors, as well. Fashion is all about predicting the future and staying a few steps ahead of the game. Astrology fits with that well."

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Do you think your sign dictates your sense of style? Do they go hand-in-hand? Tali: "Oh God yeah, absolutely. We're Saggitarians. Our personality is to be really on-the-go and active. Whereas a Libra, like Kim Kardashian, tends to be more of a lady of leisure and can wear eight-inch heels, and leather head-to-toe being five months pregnant. Certain signs have more time to fuss than others."

Some people might consider reading horoscopes, or five different horoscopes, a day to be a guilty pleasure. What are some of your other guilty pleasures?
Tali: "Totally obsessed with karaoke. Both of us. We'll rent a private room on our lunch break, and take a writing break, and go sing for like three hours non-stop. We are both obsessed with miniature dachshunds, as well. I don't know if that's a guilty pleasure."

Ophira: "Really indulgent little restaurants where everything is thoughtfully made by the chefs, and vintage treasure hunting for clothes and furniture — one degree above dumpster diving. And, I'd say watching bad teen movies and reality shows. Real Housewives."

Some people are just not into horoscopes. How do you address the haters? Ophira: "We love the haters actually. We're like, 'bring it on!' Honestly, they're always the ones who are easiest to convince. And you know, we can't blame them. Why would you believe this stuff if you don't understand how it works? It is pretty far fetched. The thing is people try to interpret Astrology through a scientific lens, but there's no way that it will work that way. So, we love doing those people's charts and we've converted quite a few haters and skeptics into astrology buffs. The real definition of a skeptic is someone who tries before they buy, it's not someone who is a non-believer, it just means to suspend belief or disbelief and see for themselves. We encourage people to be the true definition of skeptics all the time."

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So, what's next on your plate? Ophira: "We have an iPhone app already called Astrostyle Mobile. We're redesigning our website right now."

Tali: "We want to offer a featured product maybe every month that has kind of a cosmic twist. So, that's coming when our website is up."

Ophira: "We are finishing up a book for HarperCollins that's going to come out in the beginning of 2014 called Momstrology, and it's an astrological parenting guide. It's going to be about moms and kids of every sign and how they match up, and what they need."

Want more from the AstroTwins? Tali and Ophira will be dishing out weekly horoscopes just for R29 readers every Sunday morning at 8 a.m.

Illustrated by Gabriela Alford

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