I'm coveting at least four of these iPhone cases by Brooklyn-based illustrator Sirin Thada. I first saw her art on Tumblr a few months ago, and was struck by her sense of humor (the "Animal Print" drawing was the first thing I saw). All of her designs have that same playfulness, cute but not too cutesy. The only problem is that I don’t have an iPhone yet ─ I still have this stupid old sliding-keyboard dumbphone. It’s ... Read More

I have kind of a weird relationship with makeup. As a kid I hated it because my mom made me an enabler to her Macy’s makeup counter addiction: I’d fidget for what seemed like hours while a woman in a white lab coat paid what sounded like empty compliments to my mother’s skin as she applied "eyebrow gel" or something equally unnecessary-seeming. I remained completely disinterested in wearing it myself until two years ago, ... Read More

When I went to the Renegade Handmade fair in Chicago last fall, I noticed a new trendy motif in the crafting world. Everybody was still definitely putting a bird on all of it (if not antlers, or a mustache) but several vendors were selling things with vintage mug shots on them. Coasters, greeting cards, and posters, all emblazoned with black and white photos of people being booked. There must be a public domain law that makes them an ... Read More

A small but dedicated group of young female boxers in Afghanistan are learning vital self-defense skills and dreaming of Olympic stardom, according to a story from Al-Arabiya News. Training in a space formerly used by the Taliban for public punishments, the athletes still face serious threats from conservatives who believe that females shouldn’t learn how to fight: “Two years ago someone called my father...and threatened that he ... Read More

Companies that sell the services of wingmen and wingwomen are growing in popularity, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. The businesses profiled say they're attracting people who are exhausted with online dating (and have the disposable income to basically hire a fake friend for over $100 an hour). They’re catering mainly to men, since the onus is apparently still on dudes to do most of the approaching, but some offer ... Read More