T LOunge for January 30th, 2023

No17 Bar and Restaurant – Oban, Scotland

It’s MONDAY and we figure you could all use a little stimulation to get your motors running. We like all kinds of restaurants, but our favorite kind may be the ones that look like you’re stopping by a friend’s house; a friend with extravagant tastes and an unusual amount of seating. Lean back into the pile of throw pillows on your banquette and get down to the business of procrastinating your way through your day.

The Princess of Wales writes an open letter ahead of a new campaign launch
Kate is determined to raise awareness of the importance of early childhood
For more than a decade, the Princess of Wales has been highlighting the importance of the earliest years of a child’s life in shaping the person that they become. Now, she’s launching a major new awareness campaign to emphasise even further how critical this time is.
The campaign will see Kate make a number of appearances, both in-person and online, as she attempts to generate new levels of awareness about the early years. In an open letter ahead of the launch she has outlined how strongly she feels about this subject, which will form a large part of her work in her role as Princess of Wales.
“As a society, we currently spend much more of our time and energy on later life,” Kate wrote in the letter. “I am absolutely determined that this long-term campaign is going to change that.”

The Enduring Appeal of the Brontë Sisters
What’s behind the latest revival of literature’s most celebrated siblings?
Ask Emma Rice to explain the extraordinary shelf life of the Brontë sisters—Anne, Charlotte, and Emily, those 19th-century Brits who wrote some of literature’s most celebrated works—and her answer is simple. “These were not Victorian damsels,” Rice says. “They were hard as nails.” Rice is the adapter and director behind the Wise Children theater company’s production of Emily’s Wuthering Heights, which the Guardian called “bold and ingenious” during a UK run and is now touring the U.S. And while Rice knows why revisiting Brontë’s story appealed to her (“the Brontës’ world is about emotional chaos,” she says, “and we’re also fighting for hope at the moment”), she isn’t alone in finding the sisters fascinating.

Even Marie Kondo’s Home Is Messy, and That’s Totally Fine
The Queen of Tidying Up is showing us how to choose personal joy over societal expectations.
It has been almost a decade since organization guru Marie Kondo rose to fame with the 2014 U.S. release of her bestselling book The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up. Her KonMari method took over the world of home organizing, resulting in two Netflix docuseries and surplus donations at thrift stores. The height of the Tidying Up wave hit the U.S. right before the pandemic brought in a consumerist shift toward online shopping, embracing clutter, and everyday conversations about the supply chain. Now, in 2023, even Kondo’s house is a bit messier.

Gucci Announces New Creative Director
Sabato De Sarno joins the brand from Valentino, as the successor to Alessandro Michele.
“I am deeply honored to take on the role as Creative Director of Gucci,” De Sarno said in the press release. “I am proud to join a House with such an extraordinary history and heritage, that over the years has been able to welcome and cherish values I believe in. I am touched and excited to contribute my creative vision for the brand.”
De Sarno’s first collection will be Spring 2024, shown at Milan Fashion Week in September of this year. Like Michele, he will oversee women’s, men’s, leather goods, accessories and lifestyle collections. De Sarno, an Italian raised in Naples, held roles at Prada and Dolce & Gabbana before joining Valentino, where he worked his way up to Fashion Director. While it’s too soon to say what De Sarno’s collections might look like, his background overseeing men’s and women’s collections at Valentino, which is celebrated for its messages of inclusivity and youth baked into polished, color-forward ready-to-wear and couture, may be a hint.

How Poker Face Inverts the Traditional Murder Mystery Show
Poker Face doesn’t fit neatly into the box of a murder mystery show, procedural, or a whodunit. Rather, Rian Johnson’s show is something entirely new.
There’s a new murder in each episode of Poker Face—and a fast-talking, charismatic woman solves the crime each time. But don’t call it a murder mystery. In fact, don’t call it a whodunit. Or a procedural. Or even a “case-of-the-week” show. Because while on the surface the Rian Johnson series fits into those categories, when you dig a little deeper, it doesn’t look anything at all those genres.
The cast and creatives behind Poker Face are, instead, calling it a “how-done-it,” a twist on “whodunit,” or a “howcatchem,” a term was coined by mystery writer Philip MacDonald in the 1960s. At the start of each episode, the murder occurs. The viewer knows who is dead, who the murderer is, and often, why the crime occurred. You think you have all the answers. Spoiler: You don’t.

Alan Cumming Returns His OBE Due to the “Toxicity of Empire”
He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2009 as part of Queen Elizabeth’s birthday honors list.
Alan Cumming is no longer an Officer of the Order of the British Empire. In an Instagram post shared on his birthday, the Scottish actor has announced he’s returned his OBE.
“Today is my 58th birthday and I want to tell you about something I recently did for myself,” he wrote. “I returned my OBE.” He received the award in 2009 as part of Queen Elizabeth’s birthday honors list. It was award for “activism for equal rights for the gay and lesbian community, USA.”
At the time, he said, “I am really shocked and delighted to receive this honour. I am especially happy to be honoured for my activism as much as for my work. The fight for equality for the LGBT community in the US is something I am very passionate about, and I see this honour as encouragement to go on fighting for what I believe is right and for what I take for granted as a UK citizen. Thank you to the Queen and those who make up her Birthday honours list for bringing attention to the inaction of the US government on this issue. It makes me very proud to be British, and galvanised as an American.”

Instagram Might Finally Be About to Free the Nipple. What Took So Long?
If I were to post a topless photo on Instagram right now (which, who knows—I might!), here are a few things that would happen. The platform’s artificial intelligence moderators would first detect the presence of nipples. If those nipples were attached to what was deemed a “female breast,” then the photo would swiftly be taken down for violating their community guidelines. And how would they decide what constitutes a “female breast”? Well, put plainly, it depends on how much fatty tissue is behind the nipples (yes, really). And if the breast belongs to a trans man or non-binary person who hasn’t had top surgery? The AI censors will likely mistake the breast for “female,” unless the user tirelessly points out otherwise (as discovered by gender nonconforming model Rain Dove in 2018).

Dior’s couture tribute to Josephine Baker celebrated the beauty of laid edges
The history behind the hairstyle showcasing innovation and creation in Black culture
A week has passed since Maria Grazia Chiuri debuted Dior’s spring/summer 2023 couture collection, and the adoration and celebration of legacy still sings through the air. An accomplished showcase that took inspiration from the roaring 1920s; cascading a collection that highlighted purified lines, relaxed constructions and detailed silhouettes, as well as spotlighting muses who were pivotal icons forcing societal change. While German-American actress and singer, Marlene Dietrich – as well as a gallery of Black and mixed-heritage Hollywood actors and models commissioned by Mickalene Thomas – were amongst Chiuri’s catwalk collective, with the modern sentiment, the collection’s core paid homage to Cabaret icon and adored Dior couture client, Josephine Baker. Known in her time for dressing with a stance against gender and racial stereotypes, the show took on elements of Baker’s fringed and metallic dresses as well as her famed laid baby hairs that without a doubt are a marker of Black hair innovation.

Adele wears custom Stella McCartney to perform in Las Vegas
Step inside the atelier and see how the beautiful dress came to life
Adele’s Las Vegas residency continues to deliver in the fashion stakes. Having already worn custom Schiaparelli, as well as Harris Reed’s first design for Nina Ricci during the performances, this weekend, the singer dazzled crowds wearing a beautifully embellished black gown which was custom-made for her by Stella McCartney.
“When I was asked by Adele to do a dress for her, I was so excited, especially for the Vegas show, which is so historic,” McCartney said the project. “To be part of that is a huge moment, and I really wanted to celebrate. I wanted to celebrate Adele and to celebrate that rocking body that she has.”

How ‘Shotgun Wedding’ Made Jennifer Lopez the Perfect Dress Built for Action
For most of Jennifer Lopez’s action rom-com, “Shotgun Wedding,” she’s wearing a wedding dress, and the challenge was finding the perfect color for her to wear in the new Amazon Prime film.
The origin story of the dress is that it once belonged to Jennifer Coolidge’s character, Carol, her future mother-in-law. Costume designer Mitchell Travers, who worked with Lopez on “Hustlers,” said he looked at how vintage wedding dresses aged when he was settling on the perfect color for the gown.
“I started looking at what happens to them over time. What a 20-year-old dress would look like, a 40-year-old dress, and they have this lovely patina that starts to happen and they yellow with age. When you work with JLo, we don’t do that,” Travers explains. “We went to a nice warm rose or as I call it, ‘warm blush.’”

Richard Avedon’s Overwhelming Murals
A new exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum showcases the terrific physical presence of a trio of the photographer’s large-scale works.
Waiting to be let into the gallery to see the Metropolitan Museum’s “Richard Avedon: MURALS” exhibition, a friend leaned over and asked me, “Haven’t we seen this before?” Well, yes and no. Gagosian showed four of Richard Avedon’s large-scale, multi-panel group portraits—“Allen Ginsberg’s Family,” “The Chicago Seven,” “The Mission Council,” and “Andy Warhol and members of The Factory”—at the gallery’s massive space on Twenty-first Street, in Chelsea, in the spring of 2012. The installation, designed by the Ghanaian British architect David Adjaye, drew almost as much comment as the works themselves. Standing in the middle of the gallery, surrounded by high white walls, viewers could glimpse each of the murals in the distance, down corridors that opened up into enclosures hung with smaller photographs. The clash of maximalism and Minimalism was overwhelming and not entirely flattering to the images. Avedon’s biggest photographs, rendered in the scale of history paintings (or Times Square billboards), seemed oddly downsized, their impact diffused in all that imposing space.

‘The Last of Us’: Nick Offerman, Murray Bartlett Discuss Episode 3’s Surprise Romance
Offerman and Bartlett break down that unexpected and heartbreaking detour in the acclaimed third episode of the HBO series.
Nick Offerman: One of my fellow baseball dads was this guy who did The Hangover [Mazin]. Then he became the Chernobyl guy and we were like, “Holy shit.” So I knew Craig, I knew his work, I admired him powerfully. And my wife Megan [Mullally] and I had just seen White Lotus season one, so Murray was the champion of our household. Craig said, “Here’s the script and, and you get to do this with Murray Bartlett.” I just said [to myself[, “Please don’t fuck this up. Please don’t let me be canceled before I get this episode.”

Ginger Is a Superfood You Should Always Have in Your Kitchen—Here’s How to Store and Cook With It
Fresh or ground, pickled or preserved, this anti-inflammatory spice adds pungent heat to a wide world of savory dishes, confections, and baked goods.
Spicy, earthy, and pungent, with a lingering sensation of heat, ginger has worked its flavorful magic for centuries. Fresh or ground, alone, or blended with spices, this superfood transforms countless dishes from the ordinary to the sublime.
While some cooks pigeonhole ginger as a wintry spice best used for baked goods like gingerbread, they’re missing out on a world of possibilities. “Ginger is incredibly versatile. It spans the sweet-savory divide,” says Ethan Frisch, co-founder of Burlap & Barrel, a public benefit corporation that sources single-origin spices directly from farmer cooperatives and smallholder farms. Here’s what you need to know about buying, storing, and getting the most out of this incredible cultivar.

How to Clean Your Garbage Disposal—and Keep the Drain Fresh Using Lemon Peels
Follow our safety-first steps for cleaning this hardworking part of your sink.
Believe it or not, one of the most common sources of odor in your kitchen is the garbage disposal. This home appliance is full of nooks and crannies where leftover bits of food and kitchen waste can become lodged, prompting all sorts of unpleasant smells. Fortunately, cleaning your garbage disposal is easier than you might imagine—and can be done using common household items, like vinegar, baking soda, and lemons.

How Do We Deal With Secrecy?
Art historian Roland Betancourt on queer saints, demons, and politics of the 6th century
The Secret History, by the court historian Procopius, is a medieval tell-all.
Detailing the reign of Emperor Justinian I, and his wife Empress Theodora, in 6th-century Constantinople—present-day Istanbul, Turkey—the Secret History scandalously reports on the behind-the-scenes of the powerful Byzantine empire. A major port of trade, Constantinople was one of the largest and most cosmopolitan cities of the medieval Mediterranean world.
In the pages of the Secret History, Procopius documents the flamboyant sexual displays of the Empress Theodora and Justinian’s imperial incompetence. “It goes from this intense slut shaming of the empress to how terrible Justinian was as a ruler,” says art historian Roland Betancourt, who recently gave a talk at Getty about secrecy in the Byzantine empire, “and then going like, ‘Oh yeah, and in the middle of the night, Justinian actually walked around the palace and his head floated off his body.’”

How to learn to love winter
Winter doesn’t have to be the absolute worst time of year.
It’s true that cold has less-than-desirable effects on the body. Many people report feeling hungrier in the winter; long, dark nights contribute to increased tiredness as well as feelings of winter malaise, known as seasonal affective disorder; low humidity and the heat in homes contribute to dry, itchy skin.
Despite all the havoc winter unleashes on the mind and body, there are ways to care for yourself to blunt the impact of cold and darkness. Regardless of the time of year, understanding how you react to icy temperatures and shorter days — physically and mentally — can help you prepare defenses and have a more pleasant and comfortable winter (even if the season is already half over).

25 Best Weekend Getaways in the South
From charming small towns to national parks, these are the best weekend getaways in the South.
Mark your map, pack your seersucker, and practice your “hey, y’alls.” It’s time to explore the South — a place where live oaks meet Atlantic-washed shores, where extraordinary caverns lie below the surface, where blues and jazz clubs blare music ’til late, and where a glass of bourbon is never too far off. We’re here with 25 potential additions to your travel wish list — southern edition — from limelight-loving cities to under-the-radar small towns. Here are 25 of the best weekend getaways in the South.

Disney’s 100th Anniversary Celebrations Just Started at Disneyland With a New Ride and Incredible Nighttime Spectaculars
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Walt Disney Company, and to celebrate the milestone, Disneyland Resort is hosting a spectacular soiree across both of its parks. The festivities begin today, and we got a sneak peek at the goings on. Here’s what to expect at the magical Disney100 Celebration at Disneyland Resort.

[Photo Credit: no17thepromenade.com, ibdp.co.uk]

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