All Caught Up: Von Dutch’s comeback, Gabbriette x MAC, $150,000 dogs
Welcome to the fanciest Olympics ever!
WE’RE BACK AND WE HAVE FORTY-FIVE LINKS BYE.
This week's picks include e-hermits, cloned Ozempic and arsenic tampons.
Christina’s weekly scroll –
You can buy... cloned Ozempic online?
That’s hot: Von Dutch is coming back.
Erewhon x UGG made a drink (see: not a smoothie but a special cold-pressed concoction dubbed the Tazz Tonic) and JonBoy designed shoes to match.
Skincare is coming for your brain.
This is the “Hannah Montana Generation” of pop music. Everyone say thank you, mommy –– I mean, Miley!
Indie game studios keep closing.
Generative AI tools are causing stress on local power grids and mass water evaporation. We have now entered the Internet's Hyper-Consumption Era.
ByteDance – TikTok’s parent company – has disabled AI-image generation in one of its apps following 404 Media's discovery that users on 4chan exploited the app to create porn, bypassing existing policies and safeguards. We must ask: What can companies/developers do to limit the potential harm (deepfakes) of the systems they’re deploying?
The proxy war for hip-hop's soul isn't over. This piece raises some tough questions and lays out even tougher truths.
Cacio e pepe thong? Ok.
What counts as “recycled” gold? Is it actually ethically and environmentally sound?
Remember Yik Yak? Nowadays, College students use the fully anonymous social media platform Fizz to connect and… sell items? Fizz's new marketplace has everything from clothes (~25% of its listings) to textbooks, electronics and more.
The Atlantic spoke with a Tibetan Buddhist monk who has lived alone for 25 years about compassion and equanimity. Love the commentary around becoming an e-hermit.
s/o
for sharing this article on how Gen Z uses the iPhone Notes app to plan outfits (and the spot-on comparison to Polyvore... I will never forgive SSENSE for what they did!!) What’s interesting (to moi) is how Vogue is about two years late to reporting this?Bebe Rexha, Kylie Minogue and Tove Lo are teasing a new song together.
Can retailers rebuild society? Should they?
Technology is changing parenting, leading to a new era of constant ‘endless parenting.’
What is a ‘no makeup’ look, really?
“Wearing too much makeup can attract cries of fakery. But making a show of wearing no makeup at all can draw accusations of being a “pick me girl” (a woman who is deemed to be rejecting feminine traits to impress men) and allegations of being anti-feminist, or trying too hard to be relatable. There’s no winning.”
Young Thug's trial remains halted as his lawyer, Brian Steel, accuses Chief Judge Ural Glanville of colluding with prosecutors... The trial is the longest in Georgia history.
The power of cute packaging! Overconsumption isn't bad when it's adorable, right?
“How could the adoptive mother of a Glossier solid perfume, 7 Owala thermoses, and twin Calico Critter bunnies possibly be an ecological villain? She’s just a 27-year-old girl!”
Nikita note: All new brands are vanilla, science fair, gluestick or Claire’s.
Washington State AG sues plastic surgery provider for manipulating customer reviews. Great breakdown from lawyer Rob Freund here.
Ahead of the Olympics, police are cracking down on luxury counterfeit street merchants in Seine-Saint-Denis.
Vogue got an *exclusive* behind-the-scenes look at Simon Porte Jacquemus’s directorial debut for Nike.
Nikita note: Simon should pursue his true passion in life – owning a marketing agency 🌚
Inside the Harvard Business School Ponzi Scheme (lol).
Nikita’s weekly scroll –
Abercrombie is doing better now than the last time it was hot and… the great unbranding is why.
Food is hot in art direction when groceries are ‘spensy and everyone is on Ozempic.
Arsenic and heavy metals in tampons. Someone with a science background unpack this.
Estée launched a joint grant initiative with TikTok.
- dropped her book!!!!!!!
Apparently, it’s the early 20th-century rn because……… 10 year olds are working at McDonald’s???
A tech blog shut down. Then got bought to be an AI content farm… and now it’s publishing stories using the bylines and identities of real ex-employees?
A new law in Illinois is requiring parents to compensate their children for appearing in content.
I feel like I don’t even need to link this but the Jack Schlossberg x Vogue media circus. I… don’t know if real politics writers are losing jobs to this per se but something something attention economy.
Incoming: the fanciest Olympics ever.
Kids at Eton, a super posh school in Britain, will not be allowed to keep their smartphones. Can you imagine how people in the US would riot about this lol.
Corporate wants you to look at these two images. They’re the same image. Trump x Project 2025.
Most of Nike’s layoffs were in leadership… There’s definitely a gap there between the speed of culture and how their leadership is moving. I spoke to The Drum about it a while ago, too.
Copenhagen is rewarding tourists who exhibit good behavior. I wouldn’t even know what the New York equivalent of this would be because people who flew here three years ago barely know how to act.
64% of Manhattan real estate purchases in 2024 were… paid in cash 😀
Brand universe strategy! Louboutin is investing in hotels.
launches a substack! If you’re following this space – my piece drops next week.Gabbriette x MAC… lip kit 2.0? Personally ready for a full-on MAC comeback.
˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚Little Treat Corner ˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
Christina’s weekly report:
READING: Die Hot With a Vengeance! Also this free copy of the August 2024 Wallpaper* issue of Creative America.
EATING: Tajin pineapple 🍍
PLAYING: MEGAN!!! STILL!!!
OBSESSING: Over this Marlon Wayans video.
RECOMMENDING: bartaco <3
TREATING: Sakara Life. Will report back!
Nikita’s weekly report:
READING: Election news 👎
EATING: Arayes. I cannot stop making arayes.
PLAYING: Mamushi ⭐⭐⭐⭐
OBSESSING: Little Sesame Tahini Sauce.
RECOMMENDING: Making sure your AC is not leaking 👍
TREATING: Gooey butter cake.
If you want to share a link, a tip, or just chat, leave a comment or email us at hello@blankprojects.co.
Love this round-up! Nikita, funny you should say you're ready for a MAC comeback - I just wrote a piece about how MAC got it's groove back and shouted you out for sharing the Gabbriette collab. Thanks for the tip! You can read it here: https://kristenvinakmens.substack.com/p/how-mac-cosmetics-got-its-groove
Omg MOI featured in my favorite pop culture/media/what is happening newsletter??? 😍😍😍 THANK YOU