CC logoLinks from the past 2 weeks.  Sigh.  I wish I could blog more consistently!

– This eye makeup would come in handy if you're stuck in a boring meeting – you can close your eyes but still look totally awake.

– In a previous Curator's Corner I mentioned Japan is inching closer to using 3D printed human tissue for cosmetics testing.  Looks like L'Oreal is following suit.

Happy 100th, Maybelline! To celebrate the occasion the company is releasing some limited-edition products, which I am very interested in getting my hands on.

– I'm truly amazed at the makeup skills of this blind (!) beauty vlogger.

– It's only the beginning of summer but I'm already salivating at Paul & Joe's fall collection, pictures of which you can see over at Rouge Deluxe.

– Sephora employees dish on the most returned products.  I was surprised by most of them.

– Rainbow streaks are old news. Meet the "half and half", the newest way to wear crazy hair color.

– Here's a short but thought-provoking piece on the use of cosmetics as either a "shield" or a "weapon".

– InStyle provides a brief history of one of beauty's most relied upon devices.

– The Hairpin has an excellent compilation of links for further reading and actions you can take regarding nail salon conditions.

– More on the ever-growing men's grooming and cosmetics market

– XO Vain rounds up the best beauty-related sketches (other than the instant classic "Girl You Don't Need Makeup) from Inside Amy Schumer.

 

The random:

– This Jezebel staffer cried at a Sleater-Kinney show. I'm glad I'm not alone!

– Speaking of my heroes, Bust has an exclusive interview with Kathleen Hanna and the Julie Ruin.

– This book is up next on my reading list.

– Feast your eyes on some beautiful baked creations, courtesy of Brooklyn's Burrow Bakery.

– Lots of upcoming exhibitions and books on the art and history of tattoos.

Swimming with a mermaid tail is tougher than you'd think – those things are heavy!

What have you been up to?

CC logoLinks from the past few weeks.

– I'm developing a serious girl crush on Amy Schumer, as I've been greatly enjoying her show, but this video takes the cake.

– Makeup artist Lisa Eldridge will be releasing a book on beauty history in the fall. *mutters something about not having enough time/connections to write and publish my various beauty books*

– Check out this Kickstarter to bring back a lipstick from the 1940s.

– The New York Times published a must-read article on the horrendous working conditions in nail salons.

– This perfume company will bottle the scent of your deceased loved ones.  As someone who worries constantly about losing family members, I actually find this extremely comforting and not creepy at all – I know I'd be clinging to their clothes otherwise.

A new drug has been approved to "treat" your double chin.  Not sure how I feel about this as side effects may include "trouble swallowing, uneven smile and nerve injury in the jaw."  Yikes.  On the other hand, I wonder if it's really any more dangerous than Botox, which is scary since you're essentially injecting a form of botulism into your face.

– Sideburns: the latest beauty craze?

– Here's an article on a series of workshops focused on how curators and conservationists deal with objects that are tricky to preserve, including things like soap and toothpaste. I'd love to get their opinion on how to preserve makeup, an issue I've explored before.

– You know, it's really not that shocking that men aren't good at applying makeup on women. I wear it nearly every day and I still can't do someone else's makeup for squat.  I mean why would you be skilled at something you've never done before?  I'm just not getting the point of that exercise.

– The latest installment of beauty history at Jezebel covers the 1930s.

– Have you tried this self-esteem-destroying age guesser?  Me neither.  But I bet you'll feel better after seeing how much Photoshop goes into a single magazine ad.

The random:

– The ladies of Broad City are writing a movie.  Not a Broad City movie, but if they're involved you can guarantee it's going to be hilarious.

'90s game Tamagotchi is back in a thoroughly 21st century format. 

– In other '90s news, Kids in the Hall made an appearance in Baltimore.  I was a little wary of seeing them as I was afraid they were going to be washed up and sad, but they brought it! They're still just as goofy and funny as ever.   We tried taking a pic of Buddy Cole (my favorite KITH bit) but for the life of us we couldn't get a good picture, despite having good seats.   He opened with, "So, Baltimore, I hear your curfew's been lifted…so has mine!"  Oh, that naughty Buddy!  There was more topical Baltimore humor too which the crowd thoroughly appreciated and enjoyed, as we welcomed a laugh after all that's happened in the past couple weeks.  As a side note, the husband and I ate at Lost City Diner before the show and brought Sailor Babo with us, so you can see his tasty adventure here.

– Finally, happy Mother's Day to all the moms, especially mine!  She is the bestest.  šŸ™‚

How have you been?

CC logoThis week's links.

– Where are they now?  Late '90s/early 2000s beauty trends, that is.  The Hairpin finds out

Rouge 18 shares a 2,000 year old Roman face cream.  Here's the story behind it

– Glad someone decided to parody that ridiculous Dove ad I mentioned in last week's Curator's Corner.

New York's MTA needs to STFU.

– Here's a makeup artist recreating album art on her face.  Other cool beauty stuff is this very elaborate and animated (!) nail art.

– Selena fans, rejoice:  a new MAC lipstick may be released in the pop singer's honor. 

New cosmetics legislation has been introduced with the intent of giving the FDA to have some authority over the industry.   

– The makeup-applying robot was kind of a bust but this new shampoo robot might have some promise. 

– Ylang ylang, a key ingredient in Chanel's No. 5 perfume is quickly becoming scarce.  Don't fret though!  While it doesn't contain ylang ylang, Chanel's new Misia fragrance has something even better: what they're calling a "lipstick accord".  Perfume that smells like makeup?  I'm in. 

– I don't know about you, but between the new huge LUSH flagship store opening and Fortnum and Mason revamping their beauty department, I'm about to hop a plane to London.  (And I still want to see the McQueen makeup exhibition!)

– Ramen or sake?  No, I'm not offering you Japanese cuisine, but rather the latest spa treatments there:  A ramen noodle bath and a sake soak.

The random:

This post reminded me that the Makeup Museum site could use a refresh. And by "could use" I mean "desperately needs" a makeover.  But I have no idea even where to start.

– I am not running at the moment (still, ugh!!) but I was still mentally cheering on those who ran the Boston marathon earlier this week.  Here's the history behind the first woman to force her way in.

– In '90s nostalgia, Friday turns 20.  Bye, Felicia.

– Awful confession time:  on a whim the husband and I decided to give Mike Tyson Mysteries on Adult Swim a go and…it's hilarious.  I KNOW.  The man is a convicted rapist.  I shouldn't be watching the show in the first place, let alone find it funny.  *turns in feminist card*  Just needed to get that off my chest, not endorsing the show in any way.

Happy 4/20.

How was your week?

CC logoMany, many links from the past two weeks. 

– If you're in Charlotte, NC I strongly encourage you to visit the Body Embellishment exhibition that opened last week at the Mint Museum.

– I have to say that beauty advertising has been getting on my nerves lately.  While this French commercial for Garnier warning women that they can look older in a matter of hours and Dove's latest campaign encouraging women to walk through entryways marked "beautiful" and "average" seem to have little in common on the surface, they're both equally obnoxious.  Plus, a beauty writer resigned over a (spot-on) critique of the Dove ad.  Let's just go back to ads that feature pretty products artfully arranged, shall we?  (As a side note, I really wish I had been one of the women in the Dove ad – just to f*ck with them I would have asked where the "ugly" entrance was.)

– R.I.P., Dr. Brandt. :( 

– Please don't bathe in pig's blood to preserve your skin's youth. 

– In less gross wacky beauty ideas, there's a new Japanese collagen-infused beer, a makeup-applying (badly) robot, a perfume that actually helps you smell better as you sweat, plus NARS is offering a chance to win their newest goodies from a virtual, futuristic piƱata of sorts

– Who's never had their mascara smudge or lipstick smear after a long night?  Disney princesses, that's who. But if you want to know what they'd look like with slightly disheveled makeup, this illustrator's latest project is right up your alley.

– A very scary reminder to always wash your makeup brushes and don't use anyone else's without washing them first!

– "'That lipstick started to give them back their humanity.'" In honor of the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp this week, Autumn at The Beheld writes a moving piece based on an excerpt from one soldier's account of the evacuation.

– Beautiful with Brains gives us a few centuries-old recipes for blush, while XO Vain recaps the most popular nail shapes throughout history.

Aerin Beauty released a lipstick duo inspired by one of Gustav Klimt's most well-known portraits in conjunction with an exhibition focused on the history of the artwork at Neue Gallery.  (The exhibition opened a day after new film Woman in Gold premiered, which also tells the history of the painting.) It's not unexpected, however: it was Ronald Lauder that founded the Neue Gallery in 2001 and donated the Klimt piece 5 years later.  All in the family, as they say.

The Cut interviews the founders of Fantastic Man magazine, who explored the idea of men wearing makeup in their latest issue.  Yes, it actually includes spreads of made-up dudes sporting blue eye shadow and full-on lipstick skillfully applied by Dior's Peter Phillips.

– What does black eyeliner mean to you?

– Enjoy some beauty haikus.

The random:

– April 9th marked the first Riot Grrrl Day in Boston. Let's make it a national holiday!!

– Speaking of national holidays, in honor of National Equal Pay Day, a pop-up store in Pittsburgh is charging women 76% of the retail price of items, while men are charged the full price.  I think this is a genius way to call attention to the wage gap (yes, it still exists!)

– More praise for Sleater-Kinney

– As someone who follows 1,180 blogs and counting, I definitely believe I suffer from binge reading disorder. (via This Is Glamourous)

Let them eat cake. ("Them" being people you hate.)

How have you you been? 

CC logoHappy Easter and Passover!  Here are some links from the past couple weeks, along with a recap of our trip to Rome, if you're so inclined.  šŸ™‚

– Here's an inside look on how lipsticks are made

– The V & A is relaunching the blockbuster 2012 Alexander McQueen exhibition (originally at the Met), and with it, a special exhibition devoted to runway makeup from his shows.  So wish I could get to London right now! (via British Beauty Blogger)

– Refinery 29 rounds up some of the best beauty memes

– Not impressed with these "odd" beauty jobs (lice-picker, anyone?) – how about a consultant who works with makeup companies to select artists for collaborations?  I'd be so good at that.  šŸ˜‰

– Yahoo! Beauty reports on the rise of "boy beauty", a.k.a. blogs run by men focused on male grooming.  It's no surprise this is catching on, as both Cosmetics Design and Beauty Packaging constantly report on how companies are forever trying to tap the men's market. 

– XO Vain has a great piece up on feminism and makeup, sparked by the excellent book Fresh Lipstick:  Redressing Fashion and Feminism (which has been on my "Recommended Reading" list on the left side of the blog for ages but that I've never reviewed.) 

– Very informative article on makeup trends in the early 20th century.  I'm kinda bummed though as I feel I should have been the author (and the author of all the other subsequent articles as well – apparently this is the first post in a series.)  Hey Jezebel, I'm more than qualified to write some beauty history posts for you, and I'd do it for free.

The random:

– Another very positive review for Sleater-Kinney.

– I love these breakthroughs that allow the blind to more fully experience works of art and the colorblind to see color

– I'm usually not into April Fool's Day pranks but this was a good one.

– My parents, as usual, have bestowed way too much Easter candy on the husband and I so I'm looking forward to using up some of the Cadbury eggs they gave us in these recipes.

And finally, if you're interested, here's a recap of our vacation in sunny Roma!  While Paris and Amsterdam ultimately won out for our honeymoon we decided to take on the Eternal City for our five-year wedding anniversary.  Technically that's not till August but we didn't want to wait until then since we heard it gets quite hot and crowded in the summer months.  As a former art history major I've been wanting to go to Rome for years, plus Italian is my favorite cuisine – can never get enough pizza and pasta (I eat pizza literally once a week and go a little nuts if I don't have my weekly pie.)

Our hotel was situated near the Spanish Steps, which are lovely, although unfortunately teeming with street vendors aggressively trying to sell you selfie sticks and other crap.  Towards the end of the trip I was about ready to forcibly take a selfie stick from one of them and beat them senseless with it.

Spanish Steps - so crowded!

I was obliged to have a picture in front of the Sephora at the base of the steps, because, duh, that's what beauty junkies do when visiting other countries.

Mm-curator-sephora

And look at this!  Further up on the Via del Corso is another Sephora, then a Kiko, then a MAC.  I didn't go into the Sephora or MAC since we have those in the States, but I did spend a bit of time playing in the Kiko store and brought back a few goodies. 

Makeup-stores

Kiko-haul

Also, this is genius – a tape dispenser so you can swatch nail polishes!  Why don't all stores have this?

Kiko-tape

But on to the really important cultural stuff.  We covered the Colosseum and assorted sites nearby:

Colosseum

Colosseum

Rome ruins

Trevi Fountain, which unfortunately was undergoing cleaning or restoration or something. Not gonna lie, was a little disappointed.

Trevi fountain

Mouth of Truth – I absolutely had to see this since it's one of my favorite movie scenes.

Mouth-of-truth

Piazza Navona:

Piazza Navona

Vatican Museums (plus the Sistine Chapel – no pics of that since they don't allow photography in the chapel):

Laocoon

Vatican museum - floor mosaic

Rafael - School of Athens

St. Peter's:

St. Peter's - Pieta by Michelangelo

St. Peter's interior

St. Peter's - Baldaccino

Pantheon:

Pantheon

Pantheon

Villa Borghese park and museum:

View from Villa Borghese park

Bernini - Apollo and Daphne

And a bunch of fountains, which I loved since so many of them featured mermen!

Piazza Barbarini

Piazza-navona-fountain

Happy to be among the mermen!

Here's some of the food.  Oh, the food. Pizza and pasta and gelato galore!!  I was in my glory.  I feared I may have to be rolled home, despite all the walking we did.  Fortunately I still managed to squeeze myself onto the plane. 

Pizza

Pizza

Pizza

Pasta

Pasta

This restaurant was so cool – it was originally a sculpture studio for one of Canova's pupils.

Canova Tadolini entrance

Canova Tadolini restaurant sculptures

Pasta

The gelato was so tasty…I did have tiramisu one night but I think gelato was my favorite sweet in Rome.

Gelato

We were quite enamored of this gelato place.  They had liquid chocolate on tap!

Come il latte

Come Il Latte - fountains

Gelato

And the last part – reuniting with my beloved Museum staff.  We took a couple of plushies with us (including Sailor Babo – you can see his adventures here) but obviously we can't take all of them.  Giving them a good squeeze was literally the first thing I did as soon as I set foot in our place.  I worry so much about them when I'm not home and was so relieved to see them safe and sound.

Plushie-reunion

Overall, Rome is a gorgeous city and I hope to go back to see even more things – we covered so much but certainly not everything, not by a long shot.  It is truly an art historian's dream, and the food can't be beat.  I will say that it was an exhilarating but exhausting trip…I think for our next one we're going to a resort of some kind to really relax.  Don't get me wrong, we had a fabulous time and I'm so grateful I got to go (and to the husband for organizing it all – he seriously planned everything), but sitting on the beach all day would be a nice change of pace compared to our usual travels.  

What have you been up to?  Have you been to Rome or do you plan on going?  Please feel free to email me with any questions…I'm not a Rome expert by any means but I can tell you some more details about getting around, finding places to eat, things I wish I knew before I went, etc.  

CC logoLinks from the past few weeks, plus a personal update.

– Marie Claire provides a history of eyelash trends, while Into the Gloss highlights the anti-aging treatments of some of the most powerful women in history.

 - A beauty whodunnit:  someone stole 400 (!) bottles of nail polish from a Brooklyn salon.  What could possibly be the motivation for that?  Used nail polish is not worth much.

– I'm betting this new burger-scented cologne is an elaborate April Fool's joke by Burger King…at least, I really hope it is.

– As someone who hates needles I can't see myself  jumping on the beauty IV bandwagon anytime soon.

– This post is a few weeks old but I'm still laughing – check out this ridiculous '70s makeup protector.  On a similar note, Gio at Beautiful with Brains tells us that the use of fire screens to prevent makeup from melting is purely a myth

– Which skincare treatment would you try:  a breast milk facial, foreskin cells, or a placenta mask?  None of the above for me, thanks.

– In creepy-cool news, a company in Japan is working on 3D printing of human tissue.  Besides the obvious medical applications, 3D printing of human tissue could make animal testing for cosmetics obsolete. 

– Speaking of Japan, the latest beauty craze there is, in my opinion, even more unappealing than the "no makeup" look.  Then again, every time I attempt a more natural look I appear ill, so this new trend wouldn't be too much of a stretch for some of us.

– For you perfume junkies, Harrod's is launching a "fragrance garden" at the Royal Horticultural Chelsea Society Flower Show.  

– Reviews:  A while ago I vowed to include links to reviews of new products in every Curator's Corner, since that's what brings in the most blog traffic (sadly, not a lot of people come here to read the actual museum-y content).  I've come to the realization that this is an exercise in futility.  I will still attempt to include reviews, but certainly not on a regular basis.

The random:

– Watch Sleater-Kinney talk about feminism with SNL's Vanessa Bayer (a.k.a. media coach Janessa Slater).  Hilarious.  Also, Carrie Brownstein's memoir is due in October!

Broad City's costume designer shares her favorite fashion moments from season 2.

– In things that make me feel old/'90s nostalgia, both Elastica's self-titled first album and Radiohead's The Bends both turned 20 on March 16th.

– Um, really?  Another Kickstarter project that began as a joke earned over $2,000 worth of financial support.  At least though they're putting the "museum" in their home, which is what I do – proof that I'm not completely insane.  And I have to admit it's a great topic, '90s nut that I am.

More and more museums are prohibiting selfie sticks.  I covered the topic of museum photography previously and I'm still on the side of allowing photography, but I definitely would ban selfie sticks.

This story made me tear up.

– And finally, a personal update:  As you can tell from the sporadic posting I'm still not feeling great.  The complete lack of any cardio activity has taken a severe toll on both my physical and mental well-being.  Physical therapy has been a nightmare in that I can't seem to find a practice that both takes my insurance and is a good fit for me, so I'm making no headway in getting this injury healed for good, and I'm bound to miss the same races I did last year.  The eye inflammation also refuses to budge despite 4 rounds of various prescription drops, and it looks like I'm going to have to stop using my precious Latisse since the doctor seems to think that's the cause of the reaction rather than my contacts.  In the meantime I still can't wear my contacts regularly due to the chronic irritation which is also driving me insane.  And I'm not looking forward to having to deal with wearing mascara every day now, which is what's going to happen upon ceasing usage of Latisse.  As I said before, I'm grateful none of these things are fatal but I've been dealing with them for the better part of a year, and I'm SICK of it. I'm just so defeated and fed up with everything I'm not even excited for spring, or the trip to Rome the husband and I have coming up in a few days.  šŸ™

Anyway, if you made it this far, thank you.  I'm off to get some cheese to go with my whine.

CC logoThis week's links.

– Did you know there's an entire museum dedicated to miniature perfume bottles?  I had no idea until the Mini Museum contacted me on Twitter.  Now to find out how they made the leap from a virtual museum to a brick-and-mortar one. 

  – In bizarre beauty news, Pizza Hut launched a line of pizza-inspired polishes.  I love pizza and I love nail polish but this is just weird.  (Sidenote:  I misread the headline and thought the word "scented" was in there, so I was like, pizza-scented nail polishes? So. Gross.  Fortunately there was no attempt to make them smell like pizza.) 

– The new hair trend for fall 2015 is apparently "naked hair", i.e. the equivalent of no-makeup makeup.  I really wish this silly idea would die already – so boring.  Who wants to look like they just woke up?

– All the best makeup looks from the Oscars here.

– A photographer travels the world on a quest to find beauty in 37 countries (and counting) for a project she calls the Atlas of Beauty.

The random:

– Here's an intriguing new exhibition on the rituals of cleanliness and bathing.

– Mood lipstick is nothing new, but what about color-changing jackets?

– This week's dose of '90s nostalgia:  20 things you might not know about Office Space and 18 things you might not know about Wayne's World.

– Here's an informative interview with the ladies of Broad City.

– I saved the best for last.  As a Bob's Burgers fan and the biggest Sleater-Kinney fan ever I greatly enjoyed this video.  (Oh, and…I'M SEEING S-K WEDNESDAY NIGHT OMG OMG OMG!!!!!) 

What have you been up to this week?

CC logoSigh. As you might have guessed I'm not still not feeling great.  I'm hoping come spring both of the health issues I've been dealing with since last summer will be solved and I'll be posting more regularly, but for now I'm still just trying to keep my head above water.  Anyway, here are some links.

– Some very big and sad beauty news:  Bonne Bell is closing its doors.  It has been bought by another company so it's not completely disappearing, but I'd guess that their legendary Lip Smackers formula will never be the same. 

– There are so many effective, affordable acne treatments available that don't involve bodily waste, so why someone would put urine on their face to clear up pimples is beyond me.  

– The no-makeup look started as a charity campaign, so I'm wondering if a new trend of smeared lipstick will be taking over as a result of this "smear for smear" effort.  

Christian Louboutin opens his first nail polish boutique in Paris and it is every bit as gorgeous as you'd imagine.

– It's nice that some airlines are trying to make flights as soothing as possible for their passengers by infusing the cabin with a custom lavender-chamomile scent, but I must say that no amount of air freshener is going to make the truly plane-phobic among us calm – Ativan is the way to go. 

– Valentine's Day is over, I know, but I had to mention these adorable makeup-shaped chocolates.

– No reviews this week – on top of everything else I'm dealing with I came down with a cold yesterday and have zero interest in trying to write coherent reviews while on cold medicine.  Meh.

The random:

– I got chills reading the setlists for Sleater-Kinney's recent shows…t-minus 10 days till I get to experience them live!!

– Speaking of women I worship, here's a great interview with another one of my idols.  And look!  Paper dolls of Abbi and Ilana.

– In art/fashion news, I enjoyed Viktor & Rolf's Van Gogh-inspired collection at Paris fashion week, along with a history of the ruff in paintings (via Art History News).

– In '90s nostalgia, here's a review of a new '90s art exhibition at the Montclair Museum of Art in NJ, an ode to Office Space, and a list of 20 movies turning 20 in 2015.

How are you doing?  Is it as cold where you are as it is here?  We're looking at single-digit temps for most of this week and I'm not happy about it! 

CC logoSo much to catch up…still feeling pretty bad but trying to post on occasion. 

– There's been lots of beauty history  floating around in the past few weeks.  The Atlantic brings us a history of hair dye, while Into the Gloss provides a history of blush.  There's also an account of a more contemporary product – Guerlain Meteorites.  Beautylish covers the odd 1920s trend of knee rouge, and going further back in time, XO Vain discusses Victorian-era beauty practices. Finally, I stumbled across Medievalists.net while looking for more blogs to add to Feedly (as if the 1,167 I already follow aren't enough – I'm not exaggerating, that's the actual number) and found this post on makeup in the middle ages

– Now this is a DIY that Makeup Museum staff can get behind.  Then again, they'd probably try to eat my eyelashes.  Behold, "mascara" made from Oreos.  

– Remember that really cool video that showed 100 years of beauty trends in a hot minute?  There's a new one out featuring 100 years of black hair history.

– This invention sounds like an even more nightmarish version of a magnifying mirror, which is certainly not kind to your reflection.  Thank goodness it's still years away from actually being put into production.  I'll take a skinny mirror any day of the week over that – I'd much rather have a mirror lie to me than point out every little thing that's wrong with my appearance.

– I sort of understood the MAC Marilyn Monroe collection, but I don't understand having Ms. Monroe serve as a brand ambassador.  I would think a makeup company would choose someone who is, I don't know, actually alive.  In more positive brand ambassador news, '60s model Twiggy was chosen to be the new face of L'Oreal.

– Meet the latest in skincare technology: the Oku smart tool (sort of like a FitBit for your face).  I'll be curious to see reviews of this, as I'm obviously not shelling out $250 for it unless I know it's useful.

– As much as I love free stuff, I draw the line at dumpster diving for beauty products.  Would you do this?

– Speaking of free stuff, if you're attractive enough there is actually such a thing as a free lunch.  Um, what? 

– Reviews for the week are for Davines.

The random:

– One of the things that's keeping me going right now is the new Sleater-Kinney album, which was available to stream in full at NPR 2 weeks ago and was officially released this past Tuesday.  Of course, the album been getting rave reviews (more here and here, and this is my favorite piece).  I've only listened to it a handful of times (their reunion is making me surprisingly emotional – I literally can't get through the album without bawling) but I can say that just when you thought S-K couldn't get any more fierce, BAM! No Cities to Love proves to be their most intense, ferocious album.  I think All Hands on the Bad One is still my favorite record overall but obviously I'm loving their newest.  Check out a video of some friends singing the title track, along with appearances on Letterman and Conan.  Oh, and Entertainment Weekly talked to them about what they listened to growing up.  I also adored Corin and Carrie's totally accurate and very succinct (only 30 seconds) explanation of Riot Grrrl.  Guess I didn't need to write a 120-page thesis on it.

– In other excellent news, Broad City is back and has been receiving so much love.  Some odes to Abbi and Ilana can be found here and here.  Not only that, but it's already been renewed for a 3rd season, and there are even Broad City emojis on the way.  And as if all the current awesomeness wasn't enough, this happened.  As you can imagine, my head nearly exploded. 

– The issue of forged art is at the forefront of the museum world right now, so it's appropriate that a museum in England played "spot the fake" with visitors, while FIT has an entire exhibition devoted to counterfeit couture.

– Other art stuff includes two reviews of the Alien She exhibition at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, a way to put your face (or your pet's) on a classic painting, and 10 weird museums around the world, a few of which I hadn't heard of.  There's also a massive #conservationfail involving the gold funerary mask of poor King Tut.  Honestly, they might as well have used duct tape.  SMH.

– Things I cannot wait to eat include these 3 new flavors from Ben and Jerry.  I'm especially curious to see how the Speculoos one compares to Trader Joe's cookie butter ice cream. 

– In '90s nostalgia, here's a video highlighting the most memorable pop culture moments from 1998.  How many do you remember? 

Hope you've been having a good week. 

CC logoWelcome to the Makeup Museum's first Curator's Corner of 2015!  Actually it's my very first post of the year!  I wish I could say that 2015 is off to a great start, but I can't.  I'm dealing with two chronic, very lengthy and difficult to treat health issues.  They're nothing life-threatening and of course I'm extremely grateful for that, but they're definitely impacting my quality of life, i.e., I just found out the injury I've been struggling with for 7 months is worse than previously thought and my running future is very uncertain.  :(  I'm really at the end of my rope.  Plus I hate the post-holiday winter season – nothing much to look forward to, just a long, dark, cold wait till spring.  So posting might be a little spotty until things improve. 

Now that I've got that update out of the way here are some links.

– XO Vain discusses some of the strangest animal-based ingredients in skincare, while Bust matches up ancient beauty ingredients with their modern-day counterparts.

– Another major cosmetics company gets slapped with a lawsuit allegating racism

Into the Gloss reviews a new exhibition at MoMA PS1 that imagines Roman busts in color…I love the idea that ancient statues were colorfully painted! 

– Gwyneth Paltrow allegedly spends $20,000 a month on beauty treatments.  As with Jessica Simpson, I'm not sure why the cost of celebrities' beauty regimens is anyone's business…they're paid to look good! 

Lady Gaga will be the new face of Shiseido this year, and the ad campaign will include her selfies.  I hope the campaign retains at least some of her weirdness.

As for product reviews, I got through some Tom Ford lipsticks.  The rest will be posted next week.  At some point I'll get a review up for the Nude Dip quad as well.

The random:

– Here are some crazy animal-inspired high heels

– So many good points in this piece that celebrates 2014's women in punk.

Fifteen things you may not have known about Portlandia (but I knew most of them!)

– Meet the very first street style photographer, dating all the way back in 1906.

How's 2015 treating you so far?  Did you make resolutions and if so, what are they?