1. This Outfit for the Met Gala 2022 – People have a lot of strong opinions about the Met Gala. Some say it’s an ostentatious event full of self-absorbed, pretentious individuals who have too much money. (After all, tickets are $35,000* a piece.)
Others say it’s a pretentious event full of ostentatious, self-absorbed individuals who have too much money. (Just kidding.)
They see it as an opportunity to showcase creativity in the areas of fashion and the performing arts.
Whatever side you fall on, you can’t deny, it’s a spectacle.
My interest is dependent upon the theme. This year I was excited about the theme – Gilded Glamour – because I love Victorian and Edwardian era clothing. I expected people to use fashion of the “Gilded Age” as inspiration for their gowns/ensembles. There were a number of incredible designers of that period (Charles Frederick Worth, Paul Poiret, Jeanne Paquin, Madeleine Chériut, and John Redfern to name a few) as well as a few modern designers who use fashion of the era for inspiration (Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Christian Lacroix.)
For the most part I was disappointed.
But then I saw Emma Corrin, wearing this outfit by Miu Miu, and, well, at least the Met Gala gave us this. Corrin did her homework (or her designer did her homework) and IMHO she won the Met Gala.
Emma’s outfit is a modern take on one worn by Mr. Evander Berry, known as “The King of the Dudes,” in 1888. He was a Gilded Age fashion icon and once changed his clothes FORTY times between breakfast and lunch. (You can click on his photo below to read more.)
There were three other dresses that I think did the theme justice – Nicola Coughlan, Cardi B., and Billie Eilish.
*Did you know that the Met Gala is a benefit for the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art? The Costume Institute, which is self funded, will be receiving $17.4 million from the 2022 gala – a record amount.
[Seen at the Met Gala and found in Vogue]
2. This Barbie Doll – It’s sold out, but if you click on the photo below you’ll be sent to the Mattel page with all the close-up photos. The amount of detail is incredible. The original cost was $75. They’re already selling on eBay for $200-$500.
[Found by Jeannie and found on the Modern Met]
Also this Barbie Doll…
Part of a quartet of Star Wars Barbies. In addition to C-3PO Barbie I also love Stormtrooper Barbie but honestly, they’re all fabulous. They were released in 2020. At that time they cost $100 each. Amazingly you can actually still find them. C-3PO appears to be the one most available. It currently costs around $150. Stormtrooper Barbie is harder to find and is priced between $225 and $450. Chewbacca is running minimally for $500. And Rey is $200+.
3. This Guy, Perfectly Copying How Specific Actors Run – no words necessary.
[Found by my “little” bro, Chuck. Thanks Charlie!]
4. This Amazon Commercial – I abhor Jeff Bezos which means, by association, I hate all things Amazon. I stopped my Amazon Prime membership from renewing and I only order from Amazon when I absolutely have to. (I always try to buy from small, local businesses.)
Having said that, even greedy corporations can do good things once in a while. And I think that is the case with the all-female delivery services they have set up in South India. Giving women employment opportunities in Kerala, Chennai, Kadi, and Gujarat is a big deal.
One thing I’ve learned in my years of supporting charities that help women: when you help women there is a much higher chance for success (i.e personal growth & advancement, health & education of their children, safety & security, etc.)
(If the video isn’t showing above click on the image below to go to YouTube.)
5. This Shel Silverstein Stamp – I don’t think that there are many people in the U.S. under the age of 60 who aren’t, at the very least, familiar with Mr. Silverstein’s book The Giving Tree, or who haven’t chuckled while reading/hearing one of his poems from Where the Sidewalk Ends.
I, along with so many other GenXers, have been a huge fan, so when I saw these stamps I knew that I had to get some. And I did, three sheets.
Being a children’s librarian for twelve years (before becoming a library director for another dozen years) I’ve read more Silverstein than the average person.
One poem that I (and pretty much every other librarian in the world) really love is his poem “Overdues” from ‘A Light in the Attic.’ Course as most libraries are now eliminating fines, some day it will be completely “dated.” Still, probably not in my lifetime, so I’m not going to worry about it!
But it seems that more people are now seeing the message of ‘The Giving Tree’ as being negative. I sort of get that. As a kid ‘The Giving Tree’ wasn’t one of my favorite books. I didn’t like that the kid used up every little bit of the tree. I thought the kid should have let the tree thrive and grow. (My favorite book was actually Mrs. Twiggley’s Tree.)
Still, the majority of Silverstein’s iconic books were only in black and white. I’m sure they wanted a picture that everyone would recognize but that also had color.
[Found on USPS]
6. This Perfectly Aligned Telescope – If you click on the picture below you can get all the scientific details but ultimately you can see, the photo on the left is the normal shot they’ve gotten in the past, and the photo on the right is with the new perfectly aligned telescope. MAGNIFICENT!
[Found on Gizmodo]
7. This Frank Lloyd Wright “Preserve” – When FLW designed homes he took every little detail into consideration. This is why most of the homes he designed included FLW furniture made especially for the house. He also was very aware of environment, making sure that whatever he constructed blended well and since he often used nature for inspiration his homes were located in green, woodsy spaces.
A couple who were trying to sell their FLW house couldn’t find a buyer. Urban creep was threatening to overtaken one of FLW’s creations. So a very remarkable solution was found.
This story made me weepy (happy weepy.)
[Seen on Sunday Morning – obviously.]
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