Categories: Miscellany

Haloscan commenting and trackback have been added to this blog.

Categories: Miscellany

… with apologies to Brini Maxwell 🙂

I’ve used RSS and Atom feeds to notify users about updates to this blog and The Style Page website. The article Tracking Packages with RSS gets technical quickly, but the idea of using RSS to track packages is perfectly logical, and hopefully, web e-commerce sites and UPS, FedEx, etc. will provide shoppers with secure RSS tools to track package deliveries.

Categories: Home, Furniture

Tyler Brûlé writes a column on shopping and retail for the Arts & Weekend section of The Financial Times. I’ve taken an excerpt of his column on furniture shopping to provide hypertext links to the resources he cited.

FT.com / Arts & Weekend – Fantasy furniture shopping

… Europe’s department stores could, and should, be some of the best emporiums for housewares in the world, but there’s a vast body of work to be done. In London, neither Selfridges nor Harrods offers much in the way of inspiration. At Liberty, an overhaul of their homewares offer feels half-hearted at best and rather cold. In Paris, Printemps and Galeries Lafayette look more like malls than department stores. The only city that stands out is Copenhagen and its flagship Illums Bolighus store. While the offer is firmly Danish, the store has resisted moving to relying on shop-in-shop concepts and still considers an army of knowledgable staff an essential part of shifting large items like €5,000 sofas.

So, if so many are getting it wrong, who’s getting it right? Sadly, precious few. For those looking for a sofa from German brand Cor, a bed from Swedish brand Duxiana, side chairs from PJ Furniture and a selection of vintage modernist pieces from Sergio Rodrigues, there’s a dearth of one-stop shops that have a mix of old, new, experimental and established. This is where the Hercules comes in. With a cargo bay that can accommodate a generously sized delivery van and plenty of space to outfit a 150sq m flat, here are the neighbourhoods, stores and places to call on.

1. Copenhagen

Illums Bolighus for everything from beds to private label rugs, from Hans Wegner classics to international brands. It’s the one store that can deal with the entire house – save the bathroom and kitchen fixtures. …

2. Zurich

Wohnbedarf trades in a mix of Swiss modernist classics, and its range covers lighting, dining, offices, sofas and beds. The store does an excellent job with storage as well as accessories. The service is impeccable and the prices predictably high. …

3. Germany

The German Stilwerk concept, which pulls myriad design brands together under one roof, got off to a good start but has begun to look a little dated recently. This doesn’t mean that the idea isn’t a sound one. With branches in Berlin, Hamburg and Dusseldorf, the Stilwerk concept puts premium brands, ranging from bathroom furnishings to storage companies, in a single space and makes it easy as possible for the consumer to do a one-stop shop. To refresh the concept, Stilwerk could invite a range of lesser- known brands and vintage dealers into the mix to round out its offer.

4. Osaka

Truck Works sells “57 sorts of furniture” and packages its brand in one of the most beautiful catalogues in the world. The designs of its tables, chairs and beds feel a bit lived-in and are neutral enough to work in almost any environment. There’s a hint of Robin Day in some pieces, a bit of Florence Knoll in others.

5. Tokyo

Located at the start of the furniture strip in Meguro, Karf sells a handsome collection of Japanese and Scandinavian mid-century classics, lighting from emerging local designers and a well-priced, elegantly designed “Made in Japan” collection of wooden pieces that cover every room in the house.

Categories: Fashion, Bags

Ananas Collection, ONO Accessories, Signature M, more options for stylish computer bags

The Style Page has already highlighted Ananas Collection handbags, which are made of natural fibers – piña (derived from pineapple) and abaca (derived from the banana plant). Above is their Miko handbag in white trimmed with sequins. Ananas Collection has also branched out into leather handbags.

ONO Accessories makes evening bags from silk, ribbons, and other trim. Above is their Aloha evening bag in espress silk with ruffled trim and black ribbon. ONO Accessories also has a bridal collection of bags and clutches.

Signature M is a collection of handbags designed by Mistie Dawn. Her handbags are created from vintage books and adorned with silks, paper, feathers, and other materials. Above is a clutch featuring the cover of the October 17, 1969 issue of Life magazine with Naomi Sims, one of the first fashion models to break the color barrier.

How sad that the Signature M web site erroneously identified Naomi Sims as Molly Simms (sic) (particularly as Mistie Dawn appears to be a woman of color). It’s all the more ironic, as we conclude African-American History Month. The JC Report webzine had an excellent February 2005 issue on blacks and fashion, covering Oprah’s latest role as fashion plate, the other Naomi (Campbell), and black fashion designers, including Edward Wilkerson of Lafayette 148 and Tracy Reese.

We’ve found additional stylish options for computer bags from Melissa Beth and Gyms Pacific.

For more on Ananas Collection, ONO Accessories, Signature M, and stylish options for computer bags, please visit the Bags and Luggage page on The Style Page web site.

Categories: Home, Kitchen, Lighting, Tabletop, Accessories, Ceramics

Chatchada, Kamelyon Design, Vesta Home, Penta, Carrol Boyes, Mustardseed & Moonshine, Lindt Stymeist, and Riverside Design Group.

Chatchada markets modern and contemporary objects for the home, mainly from Japan and Italy. The founders are architects who started this site to promote good design and create a design network. Above are Covo Group teapots offered by Chatchada.

Kamelyon Design is a company based in Austin, TX makes custom handmade lamps with solid wood bases and lampshades sculpted from laminated paper. Above is the Fish-on! pendant lamp from Kamelyon Design.

Vesta Home is a store in Arlington, VA offering bespoke (one-off, custom) contemporary furniture. It also sells Penta lamps and lighting fixtures from Italy.

UPDATE: Vesta Home closed in June 2006.

Potter & Mellen is a jewelry and tabletop store in Cleveland, OH, near the Cleveland Clinic. I will highlight its jewelry when I next update the Fashion pages, but P&M offers many brands of home accessories and tablewares which were new to me. Here are a few that caught my eye:

Carrol Boyes is a company based in Cape Town, South Africa that specializes in innovative, contemporary metalwork designs based on African motifs for the kitchen and home.

Mustardseed & Moonshine specializes in botanically inspired pottery. It is also based in Cape Town.

Lindt Stymeist is a company based in New Jersey that manufactures fine stoneware.

Riverside Design Group from Pennsylvania makes handcrafted tablewares from post-industrial/pre-consumer recycled glass

You may find links to Chatchada, Kamelyon Design, Vesta Home, Penta, Carrol Boyes, Mustardseed & Moonshine, Lindt Stymeist, and Riverside Design Group in the latest update of the Home and Design pages on The Style Page. We have also added a page on lighting and have expanded the carpets and floors page to include windows, walls, and doors. We’re excited that our Home and Design pages are attracting more attention!

Categories: Fashion

The yellow silicone rubber bracelets from the Lance Armstrong Foundation have become a fashion statement to support people living with cancer, in much the way that red ribbons are worn in support of people with AIDS and pink ribbons are worn in support of people with breast cancer.

It was inevitable that this idea would be copied. Popeye’s Chicken and Biscuits fast food outlets in the Washington, DC metro area are raising funds for the Children’s National Medical Center through the sale of green, gold, and purple silicone rubber bracelets (“Mardi Gras colors”) for $1 a piece. Net proceeds go to the hospital, while the purchaser gets a coupon for free meal with meal purchase. Clever idea. The cashier will ask you if you’d like to buy a bracelet in the way she’d ask if you’d like to add a dessert to your order.

The French company alt-go is using the silicone rubber bracelet concept for strictly commercial purposes (select Bijoux/Jewelry). The bracelets come in multiple colors, and have statements such as don’t worry …, be happy …, Je t’aime (French for “I love you”), sex bomb, sex bomb …

One doesn’t know whether this is sincere imitation, or French contempt toward Lance Armstrong’s unprecedented series of wins at the Tour de France. I was disgusted by the picture of the person who had jumped into Lance’s path and flipped him the bird.

The Demand Truth Campaign offers a blue rubber bracelet that serves Democratic Party causes.

UPDATE 2005-02-09 Fashion UK notes Oxfam’s “Make Poverty History” white canvas bands with black clasps and the Breast Cancer Foundation’s pink wristbands.

Categories: Bookstand, Stationery

I was checking site statistics, and found an unusual link to the Bookstand – Stationery page from a LiveJournal entry:

martexx writes:

“Attention cranberryink and anyone else who is all gaga about office supplies…where, other than the Container Store (which I love, love, love) can I look at some really stylin’ desk accessories? Like letter trays and clear desk pads and vertical sorters and stuff?”

cranberrylink replies:

“Russell + Hazel is great and my personal favorite. This site also has some cool links.”

To which martexx replies:

“Oh my god, some of the stuff on that second site. *papergasm*“

If martexx is out there, she’d see new causes for papergasm on the Bookstand – Stationery page:

Compendium, Inc., featuring Extraordinary Greetings, which open not only once, but twice, to reveal an inspirational quotation on paper that’s the size of a poster. While inspirational message have become cliche, the two-color posters and type faces are strictly modern. I found Extraordinary Greetings at the shop at the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Extraordinary Greetings

Mara-Mi, a Minneapolis-based company that licenses the designs of handbag and accessories designer Lulu Guinness (froufrou) and ceramist-turned-design mogul Jonathan Adler (modern).

Nouvelles Images, a French company whose products include Fold ‘n Please, a postcard with a flap that folds over and seals to conceal your message – and please, no jokes about French postcards 🙂 I found Nouvelles Images at Whole Foods Market – its store in Vienna, Virginia features a wide selection of cards and non-food items in its middle aisles.

Fold’n’Please postcard featuring sketches by Rodin

Categories: Beauty, Cosmetics, Fragrance

The Style Page has just updated the Beauty pages for COSMETICS, FRAGRANCE, HAIR AND NAILS, BUSINESS, CONSUMER, and SHOPPING. This update includes links to Beloved Body Care and My Vanity Case, but not before The Style Page droves visitors to their sites via this blog – including a visitor who became a customer! (Refer to our previous update to the Beauty pages on November 27, 2004).

As always, I have added many new links to the Beauty pages. I removed the icon to drugstore.com, as drugstore.com and Beauty.com have a common shopping cart and checkout. You can purchase beauty products from beauty.com and health products, housecleaning products, and more from drugstore.com in the same session so that you can qualify for free shipping sooner. I have also added “screen tips” in the product listings so that you know which products you can purchase through our partner stores.

The Style Page likes clever products, and among the new brands it has included on this update, it would like to highlight Spongeables, a soap and sponge in one. I purchased Spongeables in Fresh Lavender, and the first time I used it in the shower, the entire bathroom was suffused in fragrance! Spongeables are available at drugstore.com – just select the image at left to shop.

Categories: Beauty

The Kingdom of Thailand is funding a project to extract and isolate chemical compounds from turmeric for use as skin-lightening, anti-inflammatory, and antioxident agents in cosmetic formulations. Turmeric is currently used in a popular skin cream manufactured by Vicco Labs of India, which claims that turmeric prevents the penetration of ultra violet rays of the sun into the skin (I rely only on FDA-approved sunscreens).

This article dovetails nicely with two articles “A passion for cardamon” and “A passion for sandalwood” from the March 2004 archive of this blog. Turmeric (called haldi in Hindi) is a main ingredient in Indian cuisine; in fact, it’s what gives curry its yellowish color. However, tetrahydrocurcuminoids (THC), the chemical compounds to be extracted through the Thai project are colorless.

Turmeric is related to ginger and in its raw form, looks very much like ginger root.

I found out about this article through Marlene Eskin’s CosmeticIndustry.com monthly newsletter sent by Email. Marlene has been a supporter of The Style Page over the years and I encourage everyone to subscribe to her newsletter.

Categories: Home

I have just completed an update to the Home and Design pages on The Style Page. Come check out the new additions to the ACCESSORIES, BATH, CARPETS AND FLOORS, CERAMICS, CLOSETS, FURNITURE, HOUSEKEEPING, KITCHEN, and TEXTILES pages.