Nightstand: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. A good friend with great taste in books recommended these, and I’m having a great time with these so far.

Coffee table: Duchess By Night by Eloisa James. Eloisa James is delightful.

Audiobook: Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling. This is so great on audiobook.

Internets:

Don’t miss this stunning In Detail London feature on Valerie Messika.

I admired these stunning Mattioli pieces in Italy, but I didn’t have a chance to try them on. Jen Heebner did, though!

YES: How to Choose the Perfect Business Tiara.

The Book Riot store just added a new shirt design for Valentine’s Day. It is perfection.

There are some seriously gorgeous pieces in this JCK Marketplace piece on Ian Saudē for Kaiser Gems.

Also awesome: Women in France are badass-ly fighting sexual harassment on the Metro. Let’s bring this to DC?

This Couture Jewelry Is Designed to Protect Against Rape — But It Has One Big Flaw.

I find this video of chubby hamsters moving in slow motion to be incredibly relaxing.

Want to decorate a cake with gems made of sugar? I’ve got your back.

Nightstand: True Pretenses by Rose Lerner. Romance! Delightful. Review to come.

Coffee table: Almost Famous Women: Stories by Megan Mayhew Bergman. I definitely love the concept of this short story collection, but how much I love the actual book is still TBD.

Audiobook: Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. I’ve read this in hard copy, but it’s really fun as an audiobook.

Internets:

A visual tour of the most important Backstreet Boys outfits – if this bores you, we are probably not real life friends.

This requires no editorializing: Tiny Kittens Dressed As Iconic Fantasy Characters Are The Best Tiny Kittens.

“Mansplaining” might be a silly word but it’s an important concept. This article takes a look at other kinds of privileged explaining, too.

The fabulous Stay Gold published a great interview with Communion by Joy.

This is so cool! I love this blog: The Revolutionary Smile of Mme. Vigée-LeBrun, 1786.

Hobbit Sword Glows in the Presence of Unsecured WiFi. Because of course.

Awesome: Hollywood’s got a sexist casting problem—and one actress is cleverly calling it out.

This is a pie shaped like the Millennium Falcon and it’s amazing.

Nightstand: My Mistress’s Sparrow Is Dead: Great Love Stories, from Chekhov to Munro. I picked this up again the other night when I couldn’t sleep. It’s an extremely cool anthology edited by the incomparable Jeffrey Eugenides.

Coffee table: The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber. This book is SO GOOD. Expect a review as soon as I can calm down enough to have coherent thoughts about it.

On the metro: The Ship of Brides by Jojo Moyes. I’ve heard some great reviews of this one, but it’s not doing anything for me so far.

Audiobook: Beauty Queens by Libba Bray. I love hearing authors read their own work. This one is awesome to listen to.

Internets:

Geeking out over Gem Gossip’s feature on antique date rings!

At Book Riot, we just published our master list of the best books of 2014. This is a treasure trove.

Seriously beautiful photos in this Stay Gold post on the Denver Cartier exhibit.

Discovery wrote this “Gift List Circa 50,000 B.C.” and it’s really cool. Spoiler: pretty rocks and jewelry were valued even then!

Is anyone in the market for a cursed sword? An elderly lady says that one of her 100+ swords is cursed, and she’s had enough of its antics. It’s on Craigslist.

The Cost of Things in Taylor Swift’s ‘Blank Space’ Music Video – this post is hilarious, but they don’t mention any of the jewelry. It’s all real, by Lorraine Schwartz and Ofira.

Are you following Monica on her #idazzletravels through the the African gemstone world? You should be.

Why We’re Sad That Chris Pratt Is “Done” With Being a Little Chubby – can you imagine an article like this ever being written about a lady celebrity? Neither can I (I do love me some Chris Pratt, though).

My girl at Spinsterhood Diaries did an amazing all-gold gift guide. Yes, I do think I need gold driving gloves and gold salad tongs.