T LOunge for May 8th 2025

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PinGoodnight Cocktail Club – Toronto, Canada

Darlings, it’s THURSDAY, and if all goes as planned, it should be the day we wrap up our Met Gala 2025 coverage. But if you’re sick of looking at outfits that cost more than a house, we have a few non-Met Gala things to show you as well. Everybody wins! Drinks for the bar!

A$AP Rocky, Movie Star: The Rapper on Method Acting With Denzel Washington, Planning a Film With Rihanna and Being ‘Blessed to Work’ After Assault Trial
As an artist, Rocky dabbles in a little of everything: In addition to the fashion collaborations and his latest gig as co-chair of this year’s Met Gala, his long-awaited fourth album, “Don’t Be Dumb,” is expected to drop sometime this year.
But we’re here to talk about Rocky’s Cannes-bound film “Highest 2 Lowest,” Spike Lee’s remake of the Akira Kurosawa crime drama “High and Low” that will see him face off against Denzel Washington. (It will be released by A24 in select theaters Aug. 22 before streaming on Apple TV+ two weeks later.) First, however, Rocky wants to tell me about that time when he was 5 years old and his favorite movie was the 1973 Blaxploitation film “The Mack.”

‘Andor’ Star Kyle Soller on Syril’s Pause and How the Star Wars Series Has “Transformed This Universe Into Art”
The actor digs into the complicated nature of his character, and why he doesn’t think Syril could press the big button on the Death Star.
During season one of Andor, Kyle Soller’s Syril Karn was described by a journalist as a fascist, something series creator Tony Gilroy outright rejected at the time.
Fast forward two-and-a-half years, Andor season two’s eighth episode, “Who Are You?” makes it crystal clear why Gilroy took issue with that characterization of the fastidious division chief for Imperial Bureau of Standards. Gilroy had written most of season two as of season one’s release, and so he already knew about Syril’s horrified reaction upon learning that the Empire, including his lover Dedra Meero, had used him as a patsy to lead the Ghorman population to slaughter. Syril thought he was there to infiltrate and empower the local rebel cell, the Ghorman Front, to potentially attract outside rebels like his sworn enemy, Cassian Andor (Diego Luna).

66 of the best Netflix series to watch during your next sofa sesh
The choice is endless…
After the best Netflix series? The streaming service’s offering of TV shows is so extensive that there really is something for everyone. But with such a vast catalogue comes the classic conundrum plaguing modern streamers: there’s just too much choice. We know, how ungrateful we sound! But if you’ve ever spent 45+ minutes scrolling the endless reels of Netflix series while your dinner gets cold, you’ll know what we’re talking about.
So, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to handpick the best Netflix series, spanning every genre from award-winning period dramas to classic sitcoms and cult sci-fi phenomenons. Whether you’re in it for the true-crime drama, the feminist comedies, or simply the best in reality TV – we’ve made sure there’s something here to satisfy your desires.
If you’re all about romance and a LOT of a tearjerker, watch One Day if you haven’t already, or perhaps you fancy a bit of an engimatic Andrew Scott in Ripley.

Is it socially acceptable to wear flip flops to work?
Faux pas or fashion-forward?
Flip flops get a bad rap. Usually reserved for beaches and pools only, flip flops are generally frowned upon in most formal contexts. Restaurants? Borderline. Office? Ultimate faux pas. Well, maybe not anymore.
The ‘90s thong sandal got a fashionable makeover a few years back at Copenhagen Fashion Week when Danish It-girls (and masters of making practical looks posh) began styling them with floaty dresses and dapper suits. They showed us that maybe there’s nothing inherently wrong with the flip flop—it’s just about how to style them.

The best carry-on luggage 2025, tested by our well-travelled editors
These bags will make you want to pack light.
If there’s one travel opinion I’ll defend every time, it’s this: there is absolutely no scenario where I’ll board a flight without the best carry-on luggage – even if it costs more. Like many, I’ve tested the cheaper options, but let me walk you through exactly how that usually turns out.
There’s scenario number one – relying on underseat luggage. You arrive at the airport carefree and nonchalant, the idea of spending any extra money on, well, a bag, just completely unnecessary to your former self. One outfit, a pair of shoes, maybe you can tuck a book in there? Sorted. Except, in almost every case, this is really just delusional packing. I, for one, have never been content with this choice. Accidentally stain your outfit? You’ll be stuck wearing it for the rest of the weekend. Fancy picking up some souvenirs? They won’t be coming home with you. Unexpected rain? Too bad you couldn’t fit an umbrella in there. It’s a recipe for disaster.

First Look at Stephen King’s The Long Walk: The Dystopian Coming-of-Age Story He Considered Too “Merciless” to Film
The Hunger Games sequel director Francis Lawrence finally brings the “walk or die” tale to the screen after many other attempts stumbled.
The Long Walk has survived against the odds. It still resonates decades after the violent conflict that inspired it, and has now finally overcome the many failed efforts to adapt its bleak narrative for the screen. The story, about a group of young men in a dystopian future who embark on a life-or-death marathon with no set finish line, was the first novel Stephen King ever wrote. He was only 19 at the time, finishing it as a student at the University of Maine in 1967.
King started the novel when he was in high school and the body count of young American men killed in the Vietnam War was rapidly rising. In 1964, according to government archives, 216 American servicemembers were killed there, but by 1965, when his senior year started, that tally had skyrocketed to 1,928. King started college in 1966, when the number of troops killed more than tripled to 6,350. It doubled once more over to 11,363 the next year when he finished writing the book, with no end to the real-life bloodshed in sight. Looking back, King says he didn’t intend to write a political allegory, but his futuristic fantasy about a military leader known only as The Major who sends a veritable platoon of healthy young men to their deaths for sport had an obvious true-life parallel.

I tried one of the most advanced moves, the Pilates teaser, every day for a week – and wow, it was challenging
This one’s not for the faint hearted.
With so many modern iterations of Pilates springing up over the past few years, it’s never been more tempting to overlook the classical Pilates moves that originally made up the much-loved method in favour of contemporary twists (wall Pilates, HIIT Pilates, modern Pilates, we’re looking at you).
But, while I love all forms of the practice, my heart lies firmly with classical Pilates. Back in the early 20th century, in the wake of the First World War, the German physical trainer Joseph Pilates created what was to become one of the most famous movement methods the world has ever known. Originally, the eponymous founder developed 34 moves, designed to be worked through together, in a meticulous and strict order.

Meghan Markle Shares 6th Birthday Photo Of Archie And Reveals How They Celebrated
The Duchess of Sussex shared a new photo of her son with a sweet caption: ‘Where did the time go?’
For royal fans and members of the Sussex clan alike, it feels as if time has flown by, as Prince Archie has just celebrated his sixth birthday, which his mother Meghan Markle marked on Instagram in a sweet tribute.
‘Our son. Our sun,’ the As Ever founder captioned the post, which showed a picture of Archie from behind looking at a sunset. ‘Happy 6th birthday to Archie!’

The Italian Bob Is Trending — Here’s How To Style It This Summer
A look at 2025’s version of the Italian bob, how to style it, how to maintain and inspiration images to take to your hairstylist.
The Italian bob is currently dominating summer hair moodboards. While 2025 has seen a resurgence of many bob hair iterations – from graduated bobs and ’90s bobs to the longer ‘lob’ style – the Italian bob leans into the laidback vibe of the summer months.
While the Italian bob has been around for a while, it made waves back in 2022 when actor Simona Tabasco graced our screens as Lucia in The White Lotus’ second season.

Post-‘White Lotus’ Blues? The Filming Locations In ‘The Four Seasons’ Are Our New Travel Obsession
Netlfix’s latest comedy drama offering might be the holiday inspiration that you need.
If your group chat is still grieving the end of The White Lotus, allow The Four Seasons to fill the luxe vacation-shaped hole in your TV schedule.
The new eight-part comedy drama dropped on Netflix on May 1, and is the work of Tina Fey, Lang Fisher, and Tracey Wigfield. Inspired by Alan Alda’s 1981 cult classic, the series has reworked the premise of the original film with a satirical 2025 lens: three mid-life navigating parenting, old wounds and their love lives take on four seasonal trips.
Besides being a great watch, it’s offered a renewed list of American coastline getaways. Below, we detail exactly all of the filming locations as seen in The Four Seasons.

34 Fourth of July Nails That Are Perfect for Summer BBQs and Picnics
From stars and stripes to fireworks and hot dogs—there are plenty of patriotic nails here.
Heading to the nail salon ahead of Independence Day? Consider some patriotic Fourth of July nails. Perfect for barbecues, cookouts, and beyond, these seasonal pairings will have you ready for the holiday in no time, plus, incorporating some of the best nail designs of 2025 will have you on trend and on theme. In the words of Jennifer Coolidge’s iconic character in Legally Blonde, these nails “look like the Fourth of July” and make us “want a hot dog real bad.”

Anne Bass’s Immaculate Collection of Jewelry Heads to Auction
Connoisseurs take note: this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire extraordinary pieces by Bulgari, Cartier, David Webb, JAR, and Van Cleef & Arpels.
“Her jewelry collection is nothing short of perfection,” says Claibourne Poindexter, vice president and senior jewelry specialist at Christie’s. “So much so, I would argue this is my favorite collection that I have worked with in my decade at Christie’s.” Included in the sale next month (auctions of Bass’s furniture and artworks are to follow) are prime examples of Cartier Art Deco, natural pearls, and pieces by Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, and David Webb. In May 2022 Christie’s sold works from Bass’s art collection, including some important Monets, Rothkos, and Degas.

Inside the New Exhibition, “Worth, Inventing Haute Couture,” at the Petit Palais in Paris
Call it a happy accident that the exhibition “Worth, Inventing Haute Couture” opens at the Petit Palais in Paris two days after the Met Gala. Sure, stylistic freedom, celebrity status, and media coverage exist on a whole other level in 2025 versus 150 years ago. Yet the fashion pageantry that played out on the flower-patterned carpet on Monday can be traced back to lavish costume balls in New York, Boston, Paris, and London that were attended by empresses, princesses, countesses, duchesses, tsarinas, and wealthy socialites. And for several decades, there was one name recognized as the go-to creator for their exquisite gowns: Charles Frederick Worth.
Beautifully presented across the high-ceilinged and spacious galleries of the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts (the majestic building that faces the Grand Palais), the exhibition in collaboration with the Palais Galliera (the city’s fashion museum) offers far more than a display of historic dresses. It also avoids any tempting recreation of Second Empire excess.

Rediscovering a Great Film Critic of Hollywood’s Golden Age
In his brief, brilliant career, Andre Sennwald witnessed the coming of Technicolor, snarked at the implementation of the Hays Code, and advanced a visionary view of cinema.
Sometimes there’s light at the end of the rabbit hole. When Josef von Sternberg’s film “The Devil Is a Woman,” from 1935, was recently screened, I was curious about how it was received in its first run and found a sharply perceptive review of it in the Times, by one Andre Sennwald, whom I’d never heard of. It didn’t take long to discover that he was hired as the paper’s film critic in October, 1934, at the age of twenty-seven, and that he died in January, 1936, at twenty-eight—by inhaling gas from his stove, in what the medical examiner believed was likely suicide. In that short span, he wrote plentifully. He usually produced four reviews a week, plus a more extensive movie-centered Sunday essay. (The Sennwald archive on the Times site, starting with his first review, on September 18, 1934, includes more than three hundred pieces.) But it isn’t the quantity of his work that makes it worth revisiting.

The true story of the Duchess of Argyll, one-time Tatler columnist and the ‘dirty duchess’ whose toxic (and infamous) divorce case stunned the nation
The society beauty found herself at the centre of a scandalous divorce case, after it emerged that both she and her husband had conducted multiple extra-marital affairs
Born on 1 December 1912, Margaret Whigham was the only daughter of a Scottish businessman and millionaire, George Hay Whigham and his wife, Helen Mann Hannay. After completing her education in New York, she moved back to the UK, where her beauty and status as an heiress made her much in-demand on the social scene. At the age of 15, she became pregnant with the actor David Niven’s child while on a holiday on the Isle of Wight, but the pregnancy was terminated.
She was presented as a debutante in 1930, and after early romances with Prince Aly Khan, aviator Glen Kidston, Baron Martin Stillman von Brabus and publishing heir Max Aitken (later the second Lord Beaverbrook) and Prince George, Duke of Kent, she became engaged to Charles Greville, 7th Earl of Warwick. Yet the wedding was not to be, as she was soon swept off her feet by the wealthy American, Charles Sweeney, who instead became her first husband.

25 Years of Audacious Dining in New York City
A timeline of major food moments — restaurant openings, innovations, fads, pop culture cameos, blackouts and bans — that changed life in New York City in the first quarter of the 21st century.
“New Yorkers possess the two essential elements required to create a great restaurant town: curiosity and criticism. The people who go out to eat in New York are demanding diners. They are knowledgeable about old ideas and open to new ones, and it is they who have turned this city into the world’s premier place to eat.”

Diana Ross Wears Met Gala Dress Embroidered with Her Children and Grandchildren’s Names in Rare Family Photos
The superstar was photographed in her show-stopping gown beside her five children and eight grandchildren
Diana Ross posed in rare photos with her entire family celebrating her recent tribute to her five kids and eight grandchildren.
On Monday, May 5, the “Upside Down” singer, 81, arrived at the 2025 Met Gala in a shawl with a massive train. But the 18-foot feathered shawl — that enveloped the stairs and required six helpers — included the 13 names of her loved ones embroidered on the underside. The gown was created by her son, Evan Ross, and designer Ugo Mozie.
In celebration of the singer’s heartfelt look, she posed with all of her children and grandchildren in the grand gown, with the elegant train at her feet. Evan, 36, Chudney, 49, Ross, 37, were to her left, and Rhonda, 53, and Tracee, 52, were to her right.

How to Use Mayonnaise Instead of Eggs for Baking, Breading, and More
You probably already have a jar in your fridge.
Eggs and mayonnaise might seem very different, but one can often work as a handy substitute for the other. You might be surprised to learn that you can use mayo instead of eggs in many recipes. It can be used for binding, leavening, browning, and adding moisture in dishes where an egg or an egg yolk is generally used.
We’re not suggesting you forgo eggs in every situation, but when eggs are scarce and prices are high, mayonnaise can be a useful swap. And for those times when you have run out and need an emergency substitute, mayonnaise can come in clutch. We spoke with a pastry chef and a food technologist to find out why mayonnaise can be such a great substitute for eggs and how to use it.

How to Make and Can Your Own Jam
Our step-by-step guide takes you through the process.
Canning is a technique that can (understandably) intimidate even the experienced cook: All that steam, heat, pressure, and glass can be a lot to keep safe tabs on. Yet the process of canning has the potential to yield such satisfying rewards. A pantry full of jam that will keep for a year (or more) is a treasure trove for toast lovers, not to mention a cache of gifts ready for the giving.
In this step-by-step guide, we explain the basics of canning, including an overview of the tools you’ll need and important safety tips. After you’ve mastered the essentials, you may want to try other fruit jams or easy vegetables such as corn, cucumbers, green beans, or tomatoes. And once you’re comfortable with these, you’ll be ready to move on to more elaborate recipes. Although preserving can be hot, sticky work, we’re sure you’ll find the rewards are glorious.

How to Store Cherries to Keep Them Sweet and Fresh
Cherry season is short so it’s important to enjoy them while you can.
Plump, sweet cherries are one of life’s simple (and greatest) pleasures—eating a bowlful at a sitting is not difficult. But these glorious little stone fruits have a short season, so it’s important to know how to store cherries so you can enjoy them for as long as possible while they’re around. Thankfully, buying cherries and storing them isn’t complicated—so you’ll be able to focus your attention on savoring them. Follow our tips for buying the best cherries and storing them properly, and make sure to eat as many as you can during cherry season.

23 Lemon Desserts That Will Brighten Your Day, From Cakes to Cookies
Our best lemon dessert recipes showcase the fruit’s sunny citrus flavor.
When life gives you lemons, make our favorite lemon dessert recipes. From crowd-pleasing sheet cakes to dainty tarts, they’re the bright bite that ends any meal on a high note. They are year-round crowd-pleasers because lemon is as welcome in winter as it is refreshing at a summer cookout or potluck. And is there any type of dessert that doesn’t work with lemon? Our collection encompasses the classics—there’s more than one take on lemon meringue pie and a nod to how much we love lemon bars. We’re also sharing some less-expected lemon desserts because you’ll want to make them, too.

Hawaii to Charge Visitors a Climate Tax—Here’s What Travelers Need to Know
Hawaii lawmakers have passed a first-of-its-kind legislation that increases taxes on short-term lodging to fund environmental protection projects.
Starting on Jan. 1, 2026, this bill will add 0.75 percent to the daily room rate, bringing the lodging tax up to 11 percent. The bill also imposes a new 11 percent tax on cruise ship passengers, prorated for the number of days their vessel spends in a Hawaiian port.
Hawaii welcomes roughly 10 million visitors each year, and its popularity with tourist has a large impact on its islands. Funds are needed to restore frequently visited coral reefs, protect wildlife like the Hawaiian monk seals from harassment, and maintain hiking trails that are popular with travelers.

[Photo Credit: soliddesigncreative.com]

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