The work we had done

[Bloomberg]( Maybe he's born with it, or maybe it's... a butt implant? The American Society of Plastic Surgeons has [released data]( that show broad declines in both minimally invasive and surgical cosmetic procedures as a result of pandemic closures in 2020, though differences in how long offices were closed and regional restrictions may have influenced some changes. Botox and soft-tissue fillers remained the most popular overall. But the biggest riser was butt implants, up 22%, from 970 to 1,179. (Implants are what provide volume; a butt lift merely turns a droopy pancake butt into a toned pancake butt.) Lockdowns and pop culture led to a big rise in butt implant procedures in 2020. Illustration by Tomi Um Dermatologist Ava Shamban points to homebound stagnation—“modern-day ‘secretary spread,’ or a general flattening of the buttocks.” And let’s not forget Instagram. “Presumably, seeing the higher, tighter rounder assets on social media or any number of reality distractions, had patients researching and ultimately scheduling procedures to give their bottom line a much-needed boost,” she says. The biggest drop was in hair transplants, which declined 60% since 2019, from more than 24,000 to fewer than 10,000. Dr. Gary Linkov, a facial and hair plastic surgeon in New York, attributes it, in part, to regulatory measures that led to “the decline of ‘turnkey operations’ such as SmartGraft or NeoGraft, where plastic surgeons buy a machine that comes with technicians on demand.” Botox and soft-tissue fillers were down but remained the most popular procedures overall. Illustration by Tomi Um There was an 8% uptick in breast implant removals last year. According to Dr. Lisa Cassileth of Cassileth Plastic Surgery and Skincare, implants have a shelf life and will eventually fail. “The population of aging implants is getting greater every year, so part of this is just a reflection of the boom we have had in implants over the years.” For patients who have been contemplating implant removal for years, more downtime and remote work environments were motivating factors as well. Also in Bloomberg Businessweek Little Car Company founder Ben Hedley sits in the $48,500, two-thirds-size Aston Martin DB5 Junior. Photographer: Emli Bendixen for Bloomberg Businessweek [The Company Building Tiny, Drivable Replicas of Iconic Luxury Cars]( At $50,000, these aren’t your kid’s Hot Wheels. [A New Style of Premium Tequila Has Arrived in the U.S.]( Aged and then filtered, cristalino is the hottest style of tequila right now. Here are the best bottles to seek out. [This $1,495 Coffee Grinder Makes You Work for a Great Brew]( The HG-2 from Weber Workshops is a feat of caffeinated engineering. [Tiny Vases Can Have an Outsize Effect on a Room—and Your Mood]( Just add a flower or two. In High Spirits The twin pillars of Mexican gastronomy, corn and agave, have largely kept to their respective lanes over the centuries. It’s impossible to imagine Mexican food without corn tortillas, tamales, and pozole, but if you’re looking for a distilled spirit, it will almost certainly be [agave-based mezcal]( or [tequila](. Elote Old-Fashioned made from chipotle infused whiskey and Nixta, a liqueur distilled from, and flavored with, corn. Source: Leyenda But lately, in a development that feels both revolutionary and utterly natural, distillers have begun to use Mexico’s treasure trove of heirloom corn varieties to make their own whiskeys. American drinkers should feel right at home with these: Bourbon and many domestic whiskeys, after all, are corn-based. While these whiskies have corn in common with bourbon, they are clearly carving out their own category. Rather than the oak-forward, spicy-sweet richness of a Woodford Reserve, expect something lighter in which the corn still takes precedence. [Mexican whiskies]( have “a nice synergetic relationship with the wood,” says Abasolo distiller Ivan Saldaña. “But not as a traditional whiskey, in which wood is really the main story.” Mexican distillers are taking a page from American whiskey and finding success in corn, too. Source: Vendors Sierra Norte Just as individual species of agave plants are allowed to showcase their distinct characteristics, so too are the heirloom corn varieties—yellow, white, black, red, and purple—in Sierra Norte’s whiskeys. Time in French oak ex-Burgundy or -Bordeaux barrels compares to that of a reposado tequila, in which the distillate mellows and picks up some barrel notes. [From $59]( Abasolo From the brains behind Ancho Reyes chile liqueurs and Montelobos mezcals comes a whiskey made with cacahuazintle corn. A pre-fermentation nixtamalization, as is done before kernels can be ground into masa for tortillas and tamales, unlocks a particular floral sweetness. [$40]( Modern Ancient Stateside distiller Rob Easter brings out the intense flavors of imported heirloom corn such as Oaxacan Bolita Belatove, a pinkish-purple grain. [$44 for 375 ml]( Siglo Cero Pox Pox (pronounced poshe) hails from the southern state of Chiapas, where the Tzotzil Mayans produced and consumed it as a ceremonial drink. For Siglo Cero’s version of the spirit, four varieties of corn are slowly fermented with a little bit of wheat bran, freshly juiced sugar cane, and [piloncillo](, a raw brown sugar. Twice distilled in wood-fired, copper pot stills, it has incredible body for a clear spirit. [$47]( Nixta Licor de Elote For anyone who has ever wanted to (literally) drink in the toasty sweet smell of tortillas fresh off the comal, this is your moment. A sweet corn mash that is fed much like a sourdough, so it develops depth and richness over time. [$32](  Paid Post The power of PayPal online, now in person. PayPal gives your business a way to accept touch-free, in-person payments. Generate your QR code from the app, then display it on your device or print it out. No new equipment required. [Download the app.]( Customer must have PayPal account and app to pay. PayPal Time to Get Away? [Bezos’s Blue Origin Sets Date for First Human Spaceflight]( [Where Can You Fly Right Now? Americans Jet South to Caribbean Beaches]( [A Sign of Post-Pandemic Spring: Sniffing Mother’s Day Lilacs]( [The Two Watches I Used While Climbing Mt. Everest]( [A Small Italian Island Is Set to Win Big From Europe’s Tourism Revival]( [The Best Bar in Asia Right Now Is in Hong Kong]( Snippets "A piece of fish, meat, there aren’t that many different ways to prepare them. If you have a beet, an eggplant, the opportunities feel endless." —Eleven Madison Park Chef Daniel Humm on his decision to[turn one of the world's best restaurants completely vegan](. Eleven Madison Park featured vegetable forward carrot tartare in its 2012 menu. There will be no eggs in 2021. Photographer: JOSHUA BRIGHT/NYTNS "There are inevitably going to be uncertainties. Doing it is not for the faint of heart." —Arts patron and MoMA trustee Lonti Ebers on developing a [new $40 million arts complex]( during the pandemic. Amant Foundation founder and CE Lonti Ebers with artistic director Ruth Estévez on site in Brooklyn. Photographer: Lyndsy Welgos, courtesy Amant foundation "It’s going to be very difficult to persuade people that have been sitting at home in flip flops and a jogging suit to get into brown shoes and a normal suit." —Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted on [back-to-office fashion](. Comfy casual. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg "They really love the fact that we make diamonds accessible to them." —Pandora CEO Alexander Lacik on the jeweler's ethical (and financial) decision to [only use lab-grown diamonds](. Pandora jewelry with lab-made diamonds. Source: Pandora A/S "If you don’t have digital experiences, you are not on the radar screen. You’re irrelevant." —North America CEO Kjell Gruner on how tech takes priority in [Porsche's new strategy](. The Porsche Taycan Turbo electric sedan. Photographer: Delia Baum "There’s a lot of developers who’ve done the math on the sales and rentals side, and they’re trying to figure out." —John Walkup, the co-founder of UrbanDigs, on the [conversion of luxury condos]( to rentals. A rendering of a primary bathroom in One Boerum Place. Source: Williams New York "The clock is a physical, mechanical object, it seems to have some more permanent resonance than if it were just a screen." —Architect Peter Pennoyer on designing the [new Moynihan Station clock](. New York’s newest public clock is a triumph. Photographer: Nicolas Knight, courtesy Empire State Development  And if you read just one thing... [I Drove 1,100 Miles in an RV, and All I Got Was a Bloody Hand and a Pool of Raw Sewage]( Business is booming in Elkhart, Ind., the motor home capital of the world and the first stop on our writer’s pandemic road trip. Follow Us [Get the newsletter](  Like getting the Pursuits newsletter? 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