– Speaking of trends, apparently belly button rings are back. I didn't know they were out! I've always loved navel rings – I had one when I was a wee lass of 17, in the good old days when my tummy was still relatively flat. Of course, with my luck it ended up getting horribly infected and I had to remove it, but I seriously loved it for the few months I had it.
– I love Bumble and Bumble's Surf Spray, so I'm over the moon that they're introducing Surf Spray Shampoo and Conditioner! This will take my attempts at beachy mermaid waves to exciting new heights.
– I loved Paul & Joe's Carousel collection, but this ocean-themed glass carousel is truly amazing. I just wish they had mermaids along with the dolphins!
– The Awl links to an article containing some of the most bizarre interpretations of Radiohead songs. I do have one to add: while "Paranoid Android" is on an album that was released in 1999, I still see some of the lyrics of that song as an eerily prescient description of 9/11's carnage at the World Trade Center.
– I've been experiencing some intense '90s nostalgia the past couple of weeks. Naturally I loved this round-up of bad clothing from the earlier part of the decade, along with this 1999 pop culture supercut. It includes the gems of that year (Office Space, Futurama), along with the more cringe-inducing moments ("Mambo Number 5", Blink 182).
How was your week?
Lots of linkies this week!
In beauty:
– Exciting news for one of my very favorite bloggers, Autumn Whitefield-Madrano of The Beheld – she's writing a book!! I think she is possibly the most insightful and articulate writer on various topics related to beauty, so her book will no doubt be amazing. It also reminds me to get moving on my coffee table book, as well as another, meatier beauty book on a completely different topic. 😉
– It's a good thing Mint didn't include me in their survey of beauty shoppers; otherwise I may have skewed their results, one of which found that a woman will spend, on average, $15,000 on beauty products in her lifetime. I can tell you I will spend significantly more than that, if I haven't already. And they only shop for makeup 5 times a year?! Try 5 times a week. (via Refinery29)
– I consider myself to be fairly savvy and up on the latest beauty trends, but even I cannot keep up with this seemingly endless alphabetization of foundation/skincare mashups. You know about BB creams and possibly CC creams, but now there are DD creams? This is getting out of hand.
– Michael Kors will be debuting a beauty line in August. I have to say that all the more recent fashion companies' releases of beauty collections (Burberry, Tom Ford, D&G) are all sort of running together in my head packaging-wise, and Kors is further muddying the pool. With the exception of D&G's limited edition pieces, they're all very similar, which is disappointing.
– I meant to include this in last week's links – a guide to the best British slang. This is the main reason that I want to move to London.
– I have heard countless times that it's a terrible idea to get your Ph.D. in any humanities field, which is why I abandoned my lifelong dream of pursuing a doctoral degree years ago (and have been absolutely miserable job-wise ever since). Nevertheless, every time I read an article like this one detailing just how awful it is in academia, my response is always the same.
Once again, I don't CARE if I'm unemployed or working a crappy job the rest of my life, I want my damn Ph.D!
– While that incredibly unpleasant, dream-smashing article came via the Hairpin, the site did a great round-up of the top mermaid destinations. And guess what else, the aforementioned Deborah Lippmann Mermaid collection is up at her website! This mermaid wanna-be has ordered and is anxiously awaiting the beautiful polishes that will magically transform me into a sexy sea siren.
– Purseblog gave us a sneak peek of Chanel fall accessories and I fell in love with this bag, which is unfortunate given that I will never afford it.
– However, I did manage to buy this lovely minty fresh bag (on sale)! After seeing the makeup at Rebecca Minkoff's show (which, as you might remember, made an appearance in the Museum's spring color trend round-up), I figured the designer might carry some mint bags. It really is a gorgeous shade of mint…my pic doesn't do it justice.
– In local news, Baltimore has been ranked the 4th best East Coast city for young adults. Not bad! Also, the cherry blossoms bloomed here. Museum Advisory Committee Sailor Babo loved having his picture taken with them.
How was your week?
Just cannot keep up lately! Here are some random links from the past few weeks.
– Sociological Images brings us a graph depicting how many Ph.D.s are professors. The numbers are grim but I seriously don't care – I still want a doctoral degree more than anything in the whole wide world. :( The fact that I may never do anything with it is totally inconsequential.
– The Baltimore edition of Bizarre Foods aired earlier this week. I haven't seen it, but I am pleased Mr. Zimmern visited Woodberry Kitchen, one of my favorite restaurants.
– SXSW took place in Austin, where The Punk Singer, a documentary on my hero Kathleen Hanna premiered. Way back in 2011 I donated to the Kickstarter campaign to help fund the film's making, and I'm so pleased it's finally here and getting great reviews. Of course, anything involving Ms. Hanna is going to knock my socks off, including this interview at The Daily Beast.
– I always say that living in Baltimore could be worse. At least it's not Detroit. Or Cleveland. Or any place in New Jersey. Now I have proof – Baltimore did NOT make Forbes' list of the 20 most miserable cities in the U.S. Take that, everyone!
– I've scouted several new-to-me blogs that are pretty amazing and align
closely with the themes I try to cover at the Makeup Museum. Part Nouveau looks at the art historical influences in fashion, while Where Art Meets Fashion
examines fashion companies' use of artist collaborations. (I want to
ask the author for a copy of her Masters thesis, which "looked at the
proliferation of collaborations between
contemporary artists and luxury brands over the past 10-15 years,
arguing that such partnerships have evolved into strategic brand
alliances used as a marketing tool in order to achieve both cultural and
commercial objectives for both the brand and artist (as a brand)
alike." It sounds like this could provide the foundation for an
exploration of cosmetics companies' collaborations with artists, which I
write about a lot.) And The Glamourologist provides a truly unique
perspective on cosmetics history and vintage makeup, as it's written by a
trained archaeologist.
– Other things I'm digging include After Lately (I swear it's even funnier than Chelsea Lately) and Ben & Jerry's new Chocolate Peppermint Crunch ice cream. I ate the entire pint in 24 hours last week and fully intend to devour another pint this weekend.
– I'm endlessly fascinated with the illustrations on Tokyo Milk's bath and body products. Now they've introduced these gorgeous designs onto makeup bags.
– You know how much I love mermaids and how I was crazy for Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Dream nail polish last year. Well, the brand decided to expand on that shade and is making 4 new
polishes similar to it in different colors. They'll have the
same type of glitter and shimmery finish, but will come in peach, purple, pink and blue. And they
all have mermaid names!! MERMAAAAAAAAIDS!!!!
– While that news is great, there is even greater news. What's better than mermaids for the Curator? That's right, Babos!! And there's a new one coming out which we have just ordered. BAAAAABOOOOOS!!
Is it spring yet? Pretty please? I just got a Nordstrom catalog in the mail and it was stuffed with spring fashion – espadrilles and sleeveless dresses and frilly skirts, oh my! It just made me crave the warmer months all the more. Sigh. Soon…soon. In the meantime, here are some links from the second week of the longest month ever.
– Why didn't anyone tell me there's a freakin' international pizza expo?! I must make plans to attend next year.
– Jezebel proclaims that anyone can be a runner. I'm inclined to agree that nearly everyone (barring certain disabilities – and no, laziness doesn't count) can run. I'm living proof that pretty much anyone can run, what with my bad knees, asthma, and generally being the most non-athletic person on the planet who would much prefer to park her butt on the couch and read rather than do any sort of physical activity.
Now for some beauty links.
– Wild Beauty has a thought-provoking post on whether wearing makeup is unvirtuous. Obviously I'm firmly in the "no" camp.
– XO Jane has a new beauty blog, XO Vain. I don't know why I'm linking to it since I haven't really even checked it out yet, but my sense is that I'll probably like it.
– Have you tried out any of Jo Malone's new dessert-inspired scents? If not, you really need to if you like gourmand fragrances. I tried all of them but the only one that worked with my chemistry (but fortunately, the one I was most excited to try) was the Bitter Orange and Chocolate. It's absolutely delish.
I like it so much, in fact, I may have to buy another bottle (or 5) since it's limited edition.
What's up with you this week? And don't forget to turn your clocks forward!
So much to catch up on! Here are some links from the past 2 weeks.
Interesting beauty news:
– NARS announced that its holiday 2013 artist collection will be based on Guy Bourdin.
– I'm all for inventing new and creative scents, but a fragrance made from combining every single perfume released in 2012 just sounds like it would give everyone within 50 yards a migraine.
– The Riot Grrrl collection at the NYU Fales Library (which I have yet to make a pilgrimage to) is getting its own book. Speaking of NYC, I also need to plan a trip to see this exhibition.
– 'Tis Girl Scout cookie season, and this year they've started taking credit cards. God help me – as someone who rarely carries cash, the only thing prohibiting me previously from buying dozens of boxes of cookies was the lack of credit card capability.
– Vote for the ugliest shoes of all time at Shoewawa. Warning: it's going to be harder than you think!
– Finally, posts have been short here at the Museum and things might be quiet for the next week as I make the final preparations for the special exhibition. Here's a peek of the mock-up of the displays I'm working on.
Can you guess what the theme is now? I gave a little hint a few weeks ago, but I think now it's clear! 😉
This week wouldn't have been so bad if my normally stellar immune system hadn't faltered and allowed some nasty bug to get in. It's been five days of fever, headache and a horrific cough that will not budge. As of last night the virus seems to have settled into my nose, which is at least better than the dizziness and nausea earlier this week. I had a good run – I honestly can't remember the last time I was sick. And even though I was/am ill, I managed to gather quite a few links.
– Stereogum rates the albums of my all-time favorite band (yes, I'm aware they broke up in 2006…I have yet to encounter any band that so enthralls me). Can't say I agree with the author's listing. At. All.
– Damn, my name is the "most poisoned" baby name these days? (Thanks to my former colleague Phil for passing this along!)
– Also via The Awl, a new study suggests that a "safe" dose of caffeine is much smaller than originally thought. I KNEW it! Caffeine is evil, at least for my body. It's also incredibly unfair given how much I love chocolate.
– Threaded has an informative post on the rise of makeup in the flapper era, while Meli at Wild Beauty shares a fascinating history, complete with patent illustrations, of the eyelash curler.
– Bust Magazine asks the tough questions, including why secretary is still the top job for women. And I don't mean the "good" kind of secretary, like Secretary of State. I still wonder about this myself as most of my professional life has amounted to secretarial-like drudgery.
– Superbowl celebrations are still in high gear for us Baltimore residents. Museum Advisory Committee member Sailor Babo reveled in the glory.
– Finally, I am on the hunt for a new camera and am too lazy to do much research, but I need it quickly to have it in time for the Makeup Museum's upcoming special exhibition. I want something that's better quality than my current 4 year-old point and shoot but not anything too crazily expensive. Any suggestions?
Lots o' links this week!
– Ravens fever is in full swing in our little town!! Who cares that we're among the country's most dangerous cities? We're going to the Superbowl! In less exciting news, I got an email about a new-to-me race, the Charles Street 12-miler in August. I'm so running it since Charles Street is my regular running route!
– The Huffington Post lists the worst beauty product names. They failed to include my least favorite – Clinique Chubby Sticks. I don't care how good a product is, I'm not putting something called a "chubby stick" anywhere near my face.
– Rouge Deluxe posts about an adorable new collection from Shu coming in March…I see yet more cleansing oils in my future!
– I'll leave you with this positively awesome minature makeup.
Links from this week and last. 
