CC logoWhole lotta links this week!

How adorable are these makeup and fashion illustrations?  They're also available as gift tags and stickers! 

Beauty High gives us a nice round up of creatively packaged cosmetics.

– Also, here's a student concept for sustainable Sephora packaging

– Look, a whole post and thread about beauty based on famous artists.  This gives me an idea for a new series here at the Museum.  ;) 

– Speaking of artists, happy 125th birthday to one of the Curator's favorite artists, Marcel Duchamp! 

– Loved this article on new and old beauty contraptions (via The Hairpin).

– This new book is on my Amazon wishlist.

– Bella Sugar mentions a museum devoted to fragrance that I hadn't yet heard of. 

– So excited to see the new Bikini Kill record label and releases in honor of the their 25th anniversary!!

Some Baltimore stuff:

– Did you know we're one of the best cities for your skin?

– Pleased to see this shout-out to Bergers Cookies.

– Apartment Therapy provides an excellent guide to Charm City. 

– Here's a peek inside the new J. Crew at Harbor East.  I also need to check out the new Anthropologie.

Anyway, this was the reason my posts were so tardy this week:

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As you can see, I was extremely busy on mermaid patrol.  It was so nice to get to the beach after not having been for five years!  The Curator is a huge beach bum and was very grateful her parents treated her to a few days in Atlantic City.  Yes, those are my feet and I'm wearing Dior St. Tropez polish.  🙂

CC logoLinks from this week and last…having so much trouble keeping up lately!

– Beautylish introduces us to a new makeup brand that recognizes cosmetics can and should be gender-free.

– I don't think all beauty bloggers are depressed, I think perhaps it's just beauty bloggers for XO Jane. 

– This Alexander McQueen-inspired dress is as good a use for gummy bears as any.

-Beauty High reports that Charlotte Ronson and Nivea have teamed up and are offering you the chance to design your own lip balm packaging

– I still have mermaids on the brain.  These mermaid tails that you can actually swim in are meant for children, but the company makes adult sizes as well.  I would totally rock one if I had access to a pool! 

– A Helmut Lang-inspired red lipstick is the result of a collaboration between online art boutique House of Exposure and Lipstick Queen.  Great color, but not nearly as interesting as the exhibit devoted to red lipstick that went along with its release. 

– I'm excited for the Olympics but even more excited for this 30-minute AbFab Olympics special.  Looks hilarious!

– Bella Sugar has a nice little slideshow of vintage summer beauty ads

– I must make a pilgrimage to the Gelato Museum in Italy.

– New MAC collection coming next spring – are you a Betty or a Veronica?

– Finally, we've got a glimpse of the products for the much-anticipated Shu Uemura/Karl Lagerfeld collaboration, coming in October.

Shu.uemura.karl.lagerfeld(image from kissandmakeup.tv)

Maybe it's the influence of my Dora-loving three-year-old niece, but the "Mon Shu" girl (Lagerfeld's take on a Japanese manga character) sort of looks like Dora the Explorer to me. 

How are you doing?  What's been catching your eye lately, makeup-related or otherwise?

Mum.cc.3pp Happy belated 4th of July!  I hope everyone had a nice day off full of barbecuing and fireworks watching (and staying as cool as possible during this ungodly heat wave that doesn't seem to want to end).  Here's what was catching my eye the past 2 weeks.

– In the spirit of Independence Day, here's a rap about George Washington.  "He'll save children but not the British children"…cracks me up every time.

– July is National Ice Cream month, according to Serious Eats.  I kicked it off by making pineapple ice cream with caramel sauce.  Yummy!

 - Great article on how museums get visitor feedback.  I think for the Makeup Museum I'd have people leave feedback by writing their comments with eye liners and lipsticks.  🙂

– I was going to do a post on Rescue Beauty Lounge's latest collection, which was inspired by an iconic 20th-century female painter (a collection that draws on an artist is always Makeup Museum gold!), but now I don't feel comfortable writing about it.  RBL founder Ji Baek lovingly created a beautiful collection out of pure admiration for the artist and then this happened.  I, along with many other art and beauty fans, am pretty angry at the situation.

– It's interesting that more men are buying cosmetics and skincare items intended for women, even though men's grooming products already exist. 

– Say it ain't so!  A whole exhibition devoted to vajazzling?!  Really?  Ugh. 

– Bloomin' Beauty had a great little write-up of '70s makeup trends.

– But the biggest news is that the Museum will be welcoming a new staff member!!!  Say hello to Power Babo!

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(image from tomopop.com)

I've pre-ordered him from E-bay and I can't wait till he gets here so I can squeeze him silly introduce him to the other staff.  I'm a little sad that I have to order these special edition Babos – I'd love to go in-person to pick them out.  All plushie owners know that even though most stuffed animals are mass-produced, the faces can vary, and I want to pick out the one with the best face.  When we're talking Babos though, they're all adorable.

What have you all been up to? 

CC logoWhew, another super busy week flew by.  Here are the links.

– Now, you know I spare no expense when it comes to beauty items, but really, Clé de Peau, a $13,000 lotion?  For heaven's sake, you could get a host of fancy dermatalogical treatments or even plastic surgery for that price, and I'm sure they'd be more effective than than a moisturizer!  At less than 2 oz. per jar, even if one bought all three jars that are being produced, it wouldn't last very long either.

– A local business writer declares Lululemon to be the winner in a battle with Under Armour, which I was glad to read.  Baltimore is such an Under Armour town but I hope the tide is turning to Lulu's favor.

– Since Pulp Fiction is the Curator's favorite movie, I greatly enjoyed this remix

– I have no idea why I didn't see this site before, but it is hilarious.

– Well, duh!  I think any makeup addict worth their salt knows how filthy cosmetics counters are, so this isn't really news to us.  I hardly ever use the testers at makeup counters and if I do, I only swatch on my hands (never my face) and make sure to thoroughly wash them afterwards.  

– Finally, last Sunday Museum Advisory Committee member Sailor Babo visited the tall ships in the Inner Harbor for the Sailabration.  You can read all about his adventure here.

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How was your week?

CC logoAnother crazy week!  I mean seriously nuts workwise.  Here are this week's links, plus lots of pics from a very busy and fun day here in B'more. 

– This exhibition of couture dresses constructed out of paper looks interesting. 

– Remember that it's Father's Day tomorrow.  Here are some cute cards for dear old dad.

– The Curator is a pizza fiend, so the idea of being able to get pizza from a vending machine is quite intriguing! 

– I got up super early this morning to run my second race, the Baltimore 10-miler.  You may recall that I ran my first race a little less than 2 months ago (also a 10-miler) and I managed to shave nearly 5 minutes off of that time!  I'm still slow as molasses and I think the Baltimore course was easier than the one I ran for my first race, but I was still pleased.

Here I am waiting to run…is this thing going to start or what?

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Then we were off.  It was a really fun race and some parts were very pretty and scenic.  I will say that parking was an absolute nightmare – if I run it again next year I will have to leave at like 6am for a 7:30 start, even though we live only about 15 minutes away.

Heading towards the finish line – I like this pic because it finally looks like I'm running.  Every other picture taken of me while running I look like I'm walking (I guess because I practically am since I'm so slow!):

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All sweaty and posing for pics for my parents, who drove 2 hours to see me finish!  Yes, my dad is carrying my mom's purse – she gets tired of holding it and makes him carry it on occasion.  Poor guy.

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Afterwards we walked around a bit and I got my official time and my race swag (a very nice white pullover with a Baltimore 10-miler patch on the one sleeve).  We tried to get the two free beers each runner is allotted, but the line was about 100 people deep so we just went home. 

Then it was off to the Charm City Craft Mafia's Pile of Craft show!  So much fun.

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I had been wanting a silver necklace with my initial on it for a while, so when I spotted these from Metamorphosis Metals I had to get it.

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I also picked up this pretty little terrarium from Planted.  I don't care how much fun F*ck Your Noguchi Coffee Table makes of them, I thought it was so cute!

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Since I love anything miniature, it was the teeny lady in yellow that made me buy it.  I like to pretend she's having some kind of spiritual journey through the desert.

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After some delicious sandwiches and matzoh ball soup at Attman's, we headed back home where my parents gave me some things they had picked up on their trip to China, one of which was an ad for a Guerlain makeup exhibit (more on that later).  Then sadly they had to skedaddle since it was almost time for the Baltimore Pride parade and they didn't want to get caught in detours and traffic.  After they left I was going to take a nap since I had been up early for the race (and didn't sleep well the night before because I was nervous) but as this was the scene outside, it was a bit too noisy for me to sleep.

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And since it's Sailabration weekend, I also had to contend with the noise from the Blue Angels flying overhead.  They sounded like they were going to fly right into our building, yikes!

How was your week?  Any fun weekend plans you'd like to share?

CC logoSince I totally fell off the blogging wagon last week, links today are from the past 2 weeks.  I hope to be more on the ball with posting this week, but I can't promise anything as it's shaping up to be the busiest week I've had in a while.  To say my life is in flux would be an understatement.  Anyway, I hope you enjoy this huge batch of links.

– I want to get this adorable Marks and Spencer palette for my mom – she loves owls so this would be perfect, but I don't think I can get it stateside.  Hmph.

The Art of Scent exhibition opened at the Museum of Arts and Design in NYC.  How about an Art of Makeup exhibition?  I know someone who could curate it.  😉

Beautylish rounds up "international Klein blue"-inspired beauty products.  I'm embarrassed that as a former art history major I had no idea there was a brilliant shade of blue invented by Yves Klein.

– In the world of themed days, last Friday was National Punch a Hipster Day.  I can't decide if I like that more than National Talk Like a Pirate Day (September 19).  And this past Wednesday was National Running Day.

– This Serious Eats post on Mack's pizza at Wildwood's boardwalk got me nostalgic for my childhood vacations at the Jersey shore.

– '90s woman that I am, I cracked up at these Clueless candles.  "You're a virgin who can't drive."  "That was way harsh, Tai."

– Love the idea of having a museum mascot.  Surely one of the Museum's staff members could fill that role but I couldn't bring myself to choose! 

The award for the most exciting beauty news of the week goes to the Shu Uemura/Karl Lagerfeld collaboration coming up for the 2012 holiday season.  Can't. Wait.

And the award for the most exciting fashion news of the week goes to my favorite store, who is now FINALLY offering online shopping in the U.S.  Previously the only way to get my paws on it, short of a trip abroad or to NYC, was to order by phone from one of the few U.S. stores.  My credit card is weeping.  Here's my haulage (all shirts), as modeled by museum staff.  And I will be picking up more, of course, now that the buying process is easier.

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As I mentioned in my post on Anna Sui's pirate-inspired summer collection and as these next 2 pictures will demonstrate, I'm a bit obsessed with skulls.  Just a little.  😉

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How was your week?

CC logoWoohoo!  It's officially summer!  Not crazy about the stifling heat and humidity, but I love having all this daylight.

Here are this week's links.

– I'm so excited for this Georgia O'Keefe-inspired nail polish collection.

– Please, Karl, can't we just agree once and for all that fashion is art

– I think the new Is This Feminist? Tumblr may be funnier than Feminist Ryan Gosling.

– There were two excellent posts over at Museum Unbound:  one discusses what your "museum manifesto" would be; the other explores how getting more involved in your community yields more interest in your museum.

– It's always sad when a museum has to close, but it's even sadder when it's in your town

– Speaking of Baltimore, it's Deathfest this weekend.  Since we live so close to the club where the shows take place, we see a lot of interesting characters walking around.

– Work stuff has been stressing me out A LOT.  I think I need this installed in our living room.

Dont.worry
(image from toomuchart.tumblr.com)

How was your week?  And how will you be enjoying the long weekend?

CC logoBusy, busy week!  Work stuff has been killing me!  I'm also slightly distracted because I miss my parents so much – they're on a trip to China and I can't talk to them (only text) since it's so expensive, and I'm not used to that as I talk to at least my mom every day.  :(  (Her texts are hilarious though – I think I might start a Tumblr because they are too funny not to share them with the world).  Anyway, here are some things from around the web this past week.

– The 4th winner of the Shu Uemura Artist Award has been announced.  I hope they'll do a collaboration that has awesome packaging.   

– I'd love to attend this conference!  Or better yet, submit a paper on the cultural meaning of cosmetic items.

– This Wisconsin man got kicked out of an all-you-can-eat restaurant for eating too much.  I shouldn't laugh, but that is literally the plot of one my favorite Simpsons episodes – if you don't know what I'm talking about you must watch this clip.  "That man ate all our shrimp, and two plastic lobsters!"  "'Tis no man, 'tis a remorseless eatin' machine, aaarr!"  I wonder if he went fishing after getting thrown out.

– These vintage Natty Boh beer ads made me smile.

– Amazingly hilarious video of pinning gone mad.

– Finally, I'll leave you with this:

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Me too, Art History Major Cat, me too.

Oh, one more thing – this coming week will be what I've dubbed On the Water Week.  It's a precursor to the unofficial start of summer on Memorial Day and will celebrate fun summery aqua-related things – swimming pools and sailors and campy pirate stuff!  So stay tuned.

CC logoThis week's links. 

– I thought this mural was a nice way of memorializing children's book author Maurice Sendak.

– I'm hoping Christian Louboutin's new makeup line will have a variety of reds to match the soles of the lovely shoes he makes. 

– A little teaser video for the Andy Warhol and NARS collaboration, out in the fall.

– An article pleading with Hollywood to stop making Baltimore look bad. (via bmore media)

– Don't forget Mother's Day!  Cute cards aplenty here.

– Finally, in case you missed my Tweet, a certain Museum Advisory Committee member has developed a full-blown crush.  MAC's Hey Sailor collection just can't get here fast enough for the little scamp!

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Have a great weekend!

CC logoWhew!  Another far too busy week for me.  Here are this week's links.

– I'd love to see this Christian Louboutin exhibition at the Design Museum in London.  Of course, I might try to run off with the shoes.  😉

– Interesting article on how Pantone does color forecasting. 

– I'm in love with Armani's summer Eyes to Kill eye shadows.  Stay tuned for a new Armani page as well as reviews and swatches of these shadows in the Product Reviews section. 

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– I couldn't take my eyes off this gorgeous patisserie in Spain – this is what I envision for the Museum's café. 

– Finally, Museum Advisory Committee member Sailor Babo wishes everyone a happy Cinco de Mayo!  As you can see, he is greatly enjoying flipping through this book of Mexican street graphics.

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(cross-posted at Postcards from Sailor Babo)

How was your week?