Things That Make You Go Hmmm: Perfume in the (Luxury) Bathroom

I don’t know why I even bother to read the Real Estate section of The New York Times. I’m not looking for a new place, and even if I were, I’m certainly not in the same income bracket as the people they feature in columns like “The Hunt” or articles like today’s “The Gold Mine in the Hall,” about older apartment buildings that repurpose former hallway closets or unused stairwells as additional rooms for existing apartments.

Here’s the story behind the bathroom in the picture above:

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Quick Read: “International Velvet” in The New York Times

One sure sign that it’s the end of summer: The New York Times Style Magazine, which is always printed on the last Sunday in August.

Velvet is apparently making a come-back in fashion—did it ever really go away?—and the magazine features a cultural history of the fabric, compiled by Carolina Irving, Charlotte di Carcaci, and Miguel Flores-Vianna. It ranges from fashion history to film to art, so it’s right up my alley. You can view this feature here. (There’s also a video, which I found less interesting.)

Things That Make You Go Hmmm: Sephora “Drop Dead Gorgeous” Clutch

I was flipping through Allure magazine last night and I spied this item in a spread of new products for Fall 2013. It’s Sephora’s “Drop Dead Gorgeous” studded clutch case containing a set of five makeup brushes ($58).

I won’t go on and on about the way that skull motifs have become mainstream over the past decade, and how much this phenomenon annoys former-Goth me. (Just one thing, because I can’t resist: on a recent visit to Fairfield County, Connecticut, a place synonymous with bland suburban affluence, I saw a blond 6- or 7-year-old boy wearing a pair of preppy shorts embroidered with tiny black skulls rather than whales or sailboats. Now I’ll stop.)

So, my first thought about Sephora’s brush case was “oh, no, another skull,” and my second was, “but where have I seen this clutch purse before?”

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