T Lo’s Weekend Pop Culture Reading List

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Kittens, here are all the essays, articles and posts that tickled our fancies this week. That should tide you over until Monday. Also: there will be a quiz later.

They may not be on the London Fashion Week catwalks, but the film’s clothes are going to matter.

Secrets of ‘Downton Abbey’ Style by Melanie Abrams at The New York Times

We are witnessing a great convergence between politics and culture, values and aesthetics, citizenship and commercialism. Here, civic participation is converted seamlessly into consumer habit. Political battles are waged through pop songs and novelty prayer candles and evocative emoji. Elizabeth Warren is cast as a “Harry Potter” character and Kamala Harris is sliced into a reaction GIF. This is democracy reimagined as celebrity fandom, and it is now a dominant mode of experiencing politics.

How Fan Culture Is Swallowing Democracy by Amanda Hess at The New York Times

“It depends on each individual. You might not be looking right. You’ve gone through a show on full adrenaline and might need a touch-up. I’d say, ’I’ll be back. Two seconds.’ I’ve torn the house down and need to touch-up my makeup. These are the days we need to be flawless. They put it on social media and they don’t filter it.”

Should Drag Queens Take Selfies After a Show? by Michael Musto at NewNowNext

What happens when the slow telos of parenthood meets the insatiable rhythms of social media?

Instagram, Facebook, and the Perils of “Sharenting” by Hua Hsuat The New Yorker

You don’t have to leave the spotlight the whole time—we don’t want you to hurt yourself. But take, say, 15 minutes to just sit or stand to one side and survey the room. Note who the extroverts are, note who the introverts are, see if you can glean what sort of interactions are happening among people. Look at the bookshelves. Pet the dog. Maybe pop into the bathroom to relish some silence. 

Extroverted? Here Are Tips on How to Be Quiet and Reflective by Sophia Dembling at Psychology Today

“Some people, if they’re playing a very emotional part, it can take hold of them a bit, and I don’t have that,” she says. “I feel it very much in the moment. But as soon as they say, ‘Cut’: Ahh. It’s cathartic. I actually feel much lighter, having had a good cry.”

Crown Jewel: How Olivia Colman Is Reinventing Superstardom by Nathan Heller at Vogue

“I see myself as a person who can be an instrument of change.”

Viola Davis Is Named the New Face of L’Oréal Paris by Maya Allen at Marie Claire

“When it comes to stans and how they operate on social media, it’s crazy to witness,” Thompson told me. “These people really think that they’re doing some due diligence by the celebrity.” More than a year later, she continues to receive messages from angry Barbz. She ended friendships with people who she says didn’t defend her online, and she no longer listens to Minaj’s music. “I felt very weird when this whole thing happened,” she said, “because I was such a huge fan of hers.”

Superfans: A Love Story by Michael Schulman at The New Yorker

Lowe—who opened the door for independent designers of all colors and creeds specializing in formal wear—didn’t have an easy path to becoming one of the most sought-after couturiers. She faced constant racial discrimination while working for America’s most elite families, including the du Ponts, the Roosevelts, the Rockefellers, and, of course, the Kennedys.

Ann Lowe Is the Little-Known Black Couturier Who Designed Jackie Kennedy’s Iconic Wedding Dress by Rose Minutaglio at ELLE

“It’s not becoming mainstream, but more and more people are aware of the art form and more and more people are appreciating it,” says Conn, who styles judge Michelle Visage.

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Stylist Art Conn Talks Drag’s “Huge Impact on Fashion” by Naomi Hofferber at The Hollywood Reporter

March appeared as child star Shirley Temple in a dirndl dress of his own creation in “Christmas With the Crawfords,” among other roles in productions of the drag play. Matthew James, who met March working as a merchandiser at Villains boutique on Haight Street in the 1980s, said that even before working as a designer professionally March “had this innate ability to figure out what about a celebrity, or a product or a person really captured them and how he could get the elements of someone and turn them into a costume.” 

Chris March, ‘Project Runway’ and ‘Beach Blanket Babylon’ designer dies at 56 by Tony Bravo at the San Francisco Chronicle

I’m 32 and recently got married. For most of my life, I’ve been pretty responsible with money — saved, paid bills on time, etc. But after planning our wedding, I feel like I’ve gone totally off the rails. Once I started signing checks for thousands of dollars, it became a slippery slope.

‘I Spent So Much Money on My Wedding, and Now I Can’t Stop!’ by Charlotte Cowles at The Cut

[Photo Credit: Focus Features]

• T Lo’s Weekend Homework