October Memo: Rihanna, Dior and Blade Runner
I had the idea for this post when I mentioned Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty line to a make-up artist and turned out she had not heard of it. It’s obviously completely OK to not be up to date with another celebrity brand about a week after it’s launched. Most normal people aren’t. But it made me realise that because I trawl the Internet for beauty, style and book news on a constant basis, I sometimes assume that everybody knows certain things when they in fact don’t. I also often feel slightly embarrassed to cover these topics, because it feels a bit… basic. Who needs another Fenty Beauty review?
Then again, there might be value in sharing some of this stuff with you. Hence the monthly memo that would gather bits and pieces that I find interesting or useful to know. It’s not meant to be comprehensive in any way and I haven’t fully worked out how I want to do this, so feel free to give me feedback and point me in the right direction.
1. Fenty Beauty. Rihanna’s make-up line is no longer that new, but as it inspired the whole memo thing, it deserves a spot. The holiday collection has also just come out and is all over Youtube, so that adds an element of novelty. I own the original lipgloss and the matchstick in Yacht Life. I really like the first and the second looks lovely, but needs a proper wear test. Rihanna’s selling point is inclusivity (40 foundation shades!) and I’m fully behind that.
2. Victoria Beckham x Estee Lauder. Another celebrity, another make-up line. This is the second round of VBxEL collaboration and it’s beautiful. It’s also needlessly expensive, so of course I want everything. I bought the Aura gloss and the lipstick in Burnished Rose (both very nice). Surprisingly, most of it is still available – except for the two things I really want – and the road to financial ruin open to everyone.
3. More of The Ordinary. I have to say The Ordinary is frustrating me with its constant stream of products. No-one can keep up with that. They’ve recently come out with a bunch of new stuff, including about a million retinoid products: you can find an overview in Victoria Health’s newsletter, together with some interesting newness from NIOD. I might be frustrated, but I’m still intrigued and will get a few things.
4. Glossier becoming very slightly less hard to get. Meanwhile, Glossier has started shipping to the UK. In case someone is happy to order more-or-less the entire line-up and ship it to Brussels, let me know. Asking for a friend.
5. Erdem x H&M. I haven’t been excited for a fashion collaboration for a long time, but this one made me giddy as soon as I heard about it. When I was fortunate to see the clothes a couple of weeks ago, my giddiness started to approached euphoria. It’s a beautiful collection and I’ll have photos for you in a day or two. In stores as of 2 November.
6. Gio_Graphy. I’m not big on style books, but I am curious about Giovanna Battaglia’s venture. I really like her style and while I don’t expect it to be a literary masterpiece, I do think it would be visually interesting.
7. Prize winners. After Ishiguro’s Nobel and Saunders’ Booker, I feel pressure to read The Remains of the Day and Lincon in the Bardo. Instead, I’m currently reading Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? in preparation for watching the new Blade Runner movie. Of the recent launches, the book I’m most anticipating to read is Ann Leckie’s follow-up to her magnificent Imperial Radch trilogy: Provenance.
8. Orange Blossom & Honey. If there is a cookbook named specifically with me in mind, this is it. I love North African food and own Paula Wolfert’s magisterial The Food of Morocco, but it’s often too much for everyday cooking. Orange Blossom & Honey seems very accessible and faster, exactly what I need considering my current schedule.
9. Gifts for queens. In case you’re already thinking of Christmas, look at this selection of Hermes games! I hope they’re all available in Europe as well.
10. Dior on show. If you happen to find yourself in Paris, the Christian Dior exhibition is still open. Not as good as the Alexander McQueen one, but nothing is.
Let me know what you’re currently excited about! And do you find this format useful?
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I think that this format has potential. You and I gather information in much the same way so I know of all these things, but we process what we know differently and I’m always interested in your views. As a fellow blogger I think that these are a good sort of post for a “brain dump” . For others this might be news and a starting point to look for more on the topic as you say. Point I’m trying to make? it’s a nice thing to write, a nice thing to read.
Yes, I wasn’t really expecting to surprise you with any of this. But as you say, it’s great for a “brain dump” and I personally like to read these kinds of lists even if I already know about the stuff. Possibly just a fondness of curated lists or something.
Yes, would welcome your selection of All the New Stuff (because it does need to be sifted, and you have excellent taste) and these kinds of “currently reading/wearing/thinking” posts are always enjoyable. Also hoping now that you’ll do a post on the Blade Runner film/style/mood when you see it – I’m surprise by how many negative/ tepid reviews there are. I’m not much of a sci-fi fan but I thought it was incredible – really close in tone to the first film, but not a simple repetition of it, and it’s seriously, cinematically beautiful.
In terms of current excitement, and on the topic of literary prizes, I read Paul Beatty’s The Sellout over the summer and I still cannot get over how dazzling and audacious it is. It’s also totally gripping and overwhelmingly intelligent – yep, obsessed.
Thanks for the feedback, Eliza! I’ll definitely do it again in November and we’ll see how it goes. Also, I’m glad to hear you liked the new Blade Runner. I’ve finished the book and hope to see it soon. Would love to do a shoot, too, but no idea when I’ll be able to travel to Tallinn to make it happen… Judging by the trailer, it looks visually stunning, and my friends have loved it.
Yes yes and yes to this format. I don’t trail the net that much (I try to limit my screen time cos sensitive eyes – very boring) and I am so happy when I get a lovely well written package. Not sure if this fits this post but I would be SO happy to read a post about hand creams. For the x-th year in a row I am struggling with extremely dry hands. Some stuff works but only for a while (a few weeks) and nothing really helps THAT well. The dry air in the office and cold dry air outside means that I constantly have flaky skin in different parts of my hands :/ Thinking of trying Deciem (the hyped Hand Chemistry) but if you have any useful info it’d be lovely to know.
Yay for you liking the format! Un-yay for the fact that I’m very bad with hand cream. I’ve owned some really expensive/luxurious/good quality hand creams, but I just don’t like them. But I’ll give it some thought, as my hands DO get dry.