HOT 5 - 4/16/21
Hey HOT Friends,
Here's this week's HOT 5:
1. Yayoi at the New York Botanical Gardens
2. Brooches or Pins?
3. Worn Stories
4. Going Going Going Gray!
5. The Allure of the Allure Beauty Box
1. Yayoi at the New York Botanical Gardens
I've been a huge fan of Yayoi Kusama, a Japanese contemporary artist who works primarily in sculpture and installation art, for a while now. And what's not to like? She employs huge biomorphic shapes, thousands of polka dots and bright graphic color! I have been so excited ever since I heard about her new exhibit, Cosmic Nature, which just opened at the New York Botanical Garden last weekend. I have my tickets for the end of April and will take tons of photos but in the meantime enjoy these fantastic pics of the exhibit from the art website This is Colossal. And read all about her fascinating background here.
2. Brooches or Pins?
Whichever name you call them by I don't think you can find a piece of jewelry that adds as much personal expression to an outfit! In an article entitled "The Brooch is Back, Baby" in the New York Times a couple of weeks ago we learned that sales to new customers such as men and millennials were driving the renewed interest in the "brooch". Previously considered old ladyish and hopelessly dated, pins are experiencing new life as people search for unique and authentic ways to express themselves. A fantastic quote from the article that really sums up their appeal is "these days a brooch is better than a tweet". I've collected brooches for years and we have some great new and vintage ones on the site. See the photos above for some inspiration on how to wear them.
3. Worn Stories
As we all know our clothes basically tell the stories of our lives, they're so much more than just body covering and I'm loving this new Netflix docuseries called Worn Stories which certainly proves it!. It's an incredibly quirky look at the most meaningful clothing items for a diverse group of people. Created by Kenji Kohan of Orange Is the New Black fame and based on the book by Emily Spivak, there are 8 half-hour episodes that feature everyone from Simon Doonan and his Stephen Sprouse bike shorts to an astronaut from Queens and his lucky Columbia sweatshirt. Strangely, the first episode is about a couple who are avowed nudists (trigger alert, they're naked!:) and hate clothing which doesn't make a lot of sense for a show about meaningful clothing items but try and stick with it. It took me a minute to get comfortable with the format, pacing, and whimsical animated bits but once I did I found it astonishing and uplifting. Trust me, you'll love it and I've even been inspired to write my own Worn Story so watch this space. :).
4. Going Going Going Gray?
The struggle is real! And I know I'm not alone. After over a year of not coloring, I now face the decision of do I actually go back to it? Or do I use this pause to embrace the new me? Is this in fact the new me? It was definitely nice not to be a slave to hair color and even though my hair is a few different not very flattering colors including about 30% gray, it does seem stronger and healthier than it's been for years. My friends are shocked that I'm even debating this since I've been a "never going gray girl" forever but I have to ask myself, why is it fine for all those women I admire (like the 3 above) but not fine for me?? Here are two articles arguing each side, one for and one against. I'd love to hear what you think!
5. The Allure of the Allure Beauty Box
I have a confession to make..... I recently succumbed to a subscription beauty box! I've always tried to avoid any kind of subscription plan after a PTSD-inducing experience with a record subscription scheme when I was a teenager. :) Lately, subscription boxes for all types of products and services have really taken off (everything from bacon to soap) and I have definitely been tempted by quite a few. Last month Allure caught my attention with a box that included a full-sized vitamin C product from the luxury skincare brand Skin 111 which I have been using and love. For the relatively small amount of $23 (which I easily spend monthly on a couple of drugstore beauty products) I receive 6 or more makeup or treatment products (3 are full-sized!) which I'm genuinely excited to try. For someone like me who is always on the hunt for something new, this is heaven!
Terry xoxo
