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Wrap

Cavallini Canoe Gift Paper


When faced with a deadline, I undergo a kind of existential crisis over my inability to organize, to work ahead, to stop putting things off, and to get stuff done. It’s an anxiety attack that helpfully doubles as a form of procrastination, and its only fix is more delay: browsing the stationer in search of the perfect planner, a calendar, and some great pens to write all my future to-do lists with. One such store, the Parisian Letterbox, has a gorgeous stock of all things paper. This poster–cum–wrapping paper from Cavallini is my favorite, as its quasi-utilitarian nature seems a winking confession that the real joy of paper supplies comes from looking at them rather than using them. But you could put this elegant image to work as an especially nice addition to an unopened gift. ($11, letterbox.fr) —Clementine Ford

Listen

Master & Dynamic


Given the unprecedented amount of time I’ve been spending in headphones these days, I decided to look into a pair of higher quality. After a day of using Master & Dynamic’s MH40 model, I may never settle for $20 earbuds from the bodega again. Founded in New York City in 2014, Master & Dynamic is known for high build quality in all their products, but these, inspired by the design of W.W. II aviator headphones, are especially nice-looking, made from leather, stainless steel, and aluminum. Inside, there are 45-mm. neodymium drivers, which, to the non-audiophile, means nothing but seems fancy. Trust me—the tech is as impressive as the exceptional sound it delivers. If you are an audio enthusiast, these would make a fine addition to your collection, but for sonic beginners they are also a great place to start. The MH40 just might change the way you listen to music. ($250, masterdynamic.com) —Gasper Tringale-White

Smooth

Musgo Real Shave Cream


Thanks to lockdown, I have not had a haircut in 12 weeks. And I’d be this close to rocking a full-on werewolf look if not for the fact that I wisely decided against becoming a beard farmer during my confinement. The choice was an easy one. I like shaving too much. Mostly because of Musgo Real Shave Cream, which I first discovered about 10 years ago, when a friend from Portugal gave me a tube. Over there, Musgo is part of most smart guys’ morning routines, probably because the cream is made by hand out of all-natural ingredients, as it has been for almost a hundred years. It comes in four different scents, but I like the classic, with notes of lavender, patchouli, and neroli. (For a bonus, try their bath soaps too.) ($28, thesoapbar.com) —Michael Hainey

Watch

The Bureau


Returning June 18 for Season Five on Sundance Now, the loudly bravoed French espionage thriller The Bureau (Le Bureau des Légendes) resembles a John le Carré epic unfolding with urgent dispatch—a dense weave of tradecraft, covert ops, institutional infighting, wary alliances, and sudden irruptions that always remains taut and suspenseful, defying expectations at every turn. Primarily the tale of two spies—Mathieu Kassovitz’s Guillaume Debailly, code name “Malotru,” a wrung-dry veteran who returns to Paris after six years undercover in Syria; and Sara Giraudeau’s Marina Loiseau, code name “Phénomène,” a pixie-haired novice whose first mission places her in Tehran, where she must do her best to appear innocuous—The Bureau is equally adept with the subtle intricacies of constructing a false identity and the topographical challenges of mounting a desert hostage-rescue operation in ISIS territory. Never mind the next James Bond movie, this is the real goods. (sundancenow.com) —James Wolcott

Issue No. 49
June 20, 2020
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Issue No. 49
June 20, 2020