Links for the week, plus some long overdue pictures. 🙂
– Autumn at The Beheld discusses customer loyalty programs, using Sephora's VIB program as a case study of sorts.
– This week the Beheld also featured a post by the author of an excellent new-to-me beauty blog, Beautiful in Theory. Definitely check it out!
– This is pretty awesome. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam held its first Rijksstudio Award this year, and the winners (out of a whopping 820 entries) were two designers who created a makeup line inspired by five portraits of women at the Rijksmuseum.
– Bust brought to my attention the work of artist Jessica Ledwich, whose latest series of (very graphic) photos takes on the demands placed on women's bodies, from childbearing to beauty standards.
– Forking over nearly $2,000 for a facial treatment made of liquid gold is certainly excessive to us average folks. But I have to admit that if I was a supermodel like Bar Refaeli I might just try it, if only out of sheer curiosity.
– Makeup for men is trending strongly, according to Bella Sugar and Total Beauty. Meanwhile, Jane at British Beauty Blogger reviews The Art of Male Makeup, a book by Illamasqua head of product development David Horne.
The random:
– Dying to see this exhibition on high heels at the Brooklyn Museum.
– This traffic sign encouraging Monty Python-style "silly walks" is absolutely genius.
– Happy 2nd birthday, Grumpy Cat!
– On the local front, I'm so excited the Baltimore Farmer's Market re-opens tomorrow.
– Finally, I managed to pull some photos off my phone of the Philadelphia Flower Show, which was over a month ago (!). My awesome parents took the husband and I since they're members of the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society and could bring 1 guest each for free. This year's theme was "Articulture", in which the exhibits connected art and horticulture.
Some highlights include this Kandinsky-inspired display:
Mondrian:
Caricatures of Frieda Kahlo, Van Gogh, Warhol and Dali:
Of course, what captivated my attention the most were the miniature displays depicting various themes encased in one of the walls. I love anything miniature and the details on these were amazing – the plants and flowers used were spot on. There were about 10 of them but these were my favorites.
The Lady of Shallott:
Hitchcock's The Birds:
The gardens of Babylon:
There was also plenty of swag to be had. I ended up getting a plain t-shirt with just the show name and date on it, but I got a kick out of these:
And look! Real 4-leaf clovers!!
My parents knew we'd love this show because of the art theme, but I could totally see us going every year no matter what the subject is. (Note to Mom and Dad: let's make this an annual get-together.) Oh, and after we hit up the legendary Reading Terminal Market for some delicious lunch and sweet treats. We also took Sailor Babo to the flower show and market – you can see his escapades here.
So what's new with you? Are you excited that spring is actually starting?