Town & Country articles from January 2005

Town & Country archives from January 2005

Keep it simple.(Editor's Letter)
January 1, 2005... "THE WORLD is too much with us," the British poet William Wordsworth wrote in 1807. "Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers." Reading these words makes me wonder what Wordsworth would think about life in the 21st century. I doubt, for...

Critical information.(This Month's Mailbox)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... I've always loved Town & Country; its style epitomizes all I've ever thought of as the way to look. I flip through the glamorous photos and ooh and aah at all the clothes. Who wouldn't? T&C features everything that I'd love to add to my closet....

Thinking inside the box.(This Month's Mailbox)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... I appreciated Patricia Marx's "Social Graces" column, "Elevator Ups and Downs" [October], and agreed with most of her advice. However, while not wanting to go too easy on carriage-wielding parents, I respectfully disagree with Marx's...

Those walls do talk.(This Month's Mailbox)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... I always enjoy seeing the lovely homes in T&C, but Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee's home ["Gotham Diary," by Anne Midgette, October] was a special beauty--elegant, yet also very livable and welcoming. What also caught my attention was the Lees'...

Another New York gem.(This Month's Mailbox)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2005... I enjoyed T&C's recent article "Autumn in New York" ["On the Town," October], which profiled the city's historic homes. However, I was disappointed that Manhattan's oldest house, the Morris-Jumel Mansion [morrisjumel.org], was omitted from an...

Scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.(Town & Country Promotion)(Advertisement)
January 1, 2005... Donna Karan Yoshi Nomura, Stuart Winston and Margaret Brinkerhoff at a cocktail party to celebrate the Donna Karan Iconic Handbag Collection at their South Coast Plaza boutique in October. A portion of the evening's sales were donated to...

Crystal clarity.(Crystal Charity Ball's Best-Dressed Lunch)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Fashion Plates: Dallas shines with women who love getting dressed up for a good cause. Crystal Charity Ball--one of the city's most prominent philanthropic organizations-kicks off the social season each year with a fall fashion show and lunch...

He's the top.(Bobby Short's Birthday)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A Room With a View: Cabaret legend Bobby Short personifies urbane sophistication. What better way, then, to celebrate his eightieth birthday than with a quintessential Manhattan fete? More than 180 of his closest friends and fans gathered at...

Chef's cravings: what do some of America's finest chefs eat when no one else is looking? Brace yourself--it's not foie gras.(On The Town)
January 1, 2005... Chef: CHARLIE PALMER. Age: 45. Awards: James Beard Foundation's Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America (1998) and Best Chef in New York (1997). Restaurants: Sixteen-year-old Aureole in New York; five-year-old Aureole in Las Vegas. Other...

Himalayan heights.(In The Country)
January 1, 2005... For centuries nomads on the Plateau of Tibet have earned their livelihood by herding goats and yaks. (Their word for "yak," in fact, also means "wealth.") And since 1996 the Bridge Fund, a San Francisco-based not-for-profit, has joined with...

Patrician pots.(Simple Living)
January 1, 2005... Found at Buckingham Palace and Prince Charles's garden at Highgrove, WHICHFORD flowerpots are fit for royalty. But these handmade terra-cotta beauties also look stunning on a cottage windowsill. The company, based twenty miles northwest of...

Really useful.(Simple Living)
January 1, 2005... A bag for gardening tools is a necessity, and this bucket tote by Le Prince Jardirnier stands out from other less-jaunty carryalls ($125; Fleur, Mount Kisco, NY; 914-241-3400; fleur-newyork.com). In its pockets, from left: Bionic gardening...

Fun-damentals.(Simple Living)
January 1, 2005... In an age when toys can walk, talk and seemingly think for themselves, kids sometimes need to be reminded of the playthings that don't require dual processors, joysticks or batteries--only creativity and imagination. Back to Basics Toys...

Delicacies down under.(Simple Tastes)
January 1, 2005... Maggie Beer's Pheasant Farm Restaurant, in Australia's verdant Berossa Valley, was long a favorite foodie destination until it closed in 1994. Now the delicious products that she sells at her Farm Shop are available in the U.S. These include...

Blue-ribbon cheese.(Simple Tastes)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Like any agricultural product, cheese can never be more than the sum of its parts: a balanced marriage between the land, the cattle and the people who make it. At POINT REYES FARMSTEAD CHEESE COMPANY, the Giacomini family produces blue cheese...

Wine, naturally.(Simple Tastes)
January 1, 2005... In 1972 Dr. Su Hua Newton and her husband, Peter, put down roots in California's Napa Valley--roots that brought forth the untiltered wines of NEWTON VINEYARD. Newton, a Cambridge University graduate and former psychology professor who is now...

Simple and solid.(News)
January 1, 2005... After fall's layer-upon-layer of over-adorned and accessorized clothes, we welcome the clean lines and unaffected elegance of collections by MENICHETTI and CALVIN KLEIN. From left: Menichetti silk dress ($1,060), at Jeffrey New York, NYC and...

Hottest hue.(News)
January 1, 2005... Though white has long signified innocence and purity, fashionable is also what it means. Come spring, the easy-to-wear, versatile color will be an absolute must. From left: ZAC POSEN linen jacket ($1,950), polo shirt ($390) and cotton pants...

All we want for January is ...(News)
January 1, 2005... All We Want for January is... a supersoft cashmere-and-silk stole by BAJRA with delicately fringed trim ($395). At selected Saks Fifth Avenue stores, 212-753-4000. It's basic, classic, sophisticated: ZEIZE SUR VINGI's white cotton-twill...

The Range Rover Experience.(Scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)(Brief Article)(Advertisement)
January 1, 2005... The dichotomy of luxury and adventure came together this summer when Town & Country partnered with Land Rover on its second annual ride and drive tour dubbed The Range Rover Experience. The 2004 tour traveled around the country to...

Basics for boys.(Fashion & Style)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The search is over: it's easy to find adorable clothes for your little man. Top row: CHARVET cotton shirt ($115). FLORA AND HENRI wool toggle coat ($340) and BABY CZ cashmere rabbit ($48). POLO RALPH LAUREN cotton pants ($45). MAKIE cotton...

Scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.(Town & Country Promotion)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Tiffany & Co. The triumph of Tiffany Atlas. The exciting evolution of a celebrated collection. An instant dash of Tiffany style. Bold, new, timeless. To learn more, visit a Tiffany & Co. store, call 800.843.3269 or visit www.tiffany.com....

Basics for girls.(Fashion & Style)(clothing for women)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Cute and casual, these outfits will make every little lady smile. From left: KULE flannel skirt ($90). TEA COLLECTION cotton sweater ($48) and hat ($22). JACADI cotton mouse ($22) and shirt ($72). BABY CZ velvet-and-cotton dress ($129) and...

Basic for men.(Fashion & Style)(clothing for men)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... When it comes to the staples of a man's wardrobe, there's nothing better than clean, simple lines combined with pure, luxurious materials. Unadorned neckwear: all silk all the time, with no paisleys or plaids in sight. From top: BROOKS...

White as snow.(Jewelry)
January 1, 2005... Who says wearing white after Labor Day is all wrong? Some of the latest jewelry showcases gorgeous white stones. Clockwise from top left: TONY DUQUETTE 18k-gold, moonstone and diamond ring ($15,975), at Bergdorf Goodman, NYC, 800-558-1855,...

Black as night.(Jewelry)
January 1, 2005... The look is simple and sleek: jewels made with jet-colored elements like onyx and polished ebony. Clockwise from top left: VHERNIER 18k-rose-gold and ebony ring ($2,950) and necklace ($4,770), at Bergdorf Goodman, NYC, 800-558-1855. POMELLATO...

Party time.(Watches)
January 1, 2005... What makes men tick? An exquisite watch that's simple enough for day yet elegant enough for evening. From left: GEVRIL stainless steel Gramercy watch on a crocodile band ($3,495), at Tourneau stores, 800-348-3332. PATEK PHILIPPE 18k-white-gold...

Only organic.(Beauty & Health)(organic skin care products)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... We bet you're vigilant about the things you put in your body: perhaps you choose springwater without too much sodium; wild instead of farmed salmon; organic produce and milk. But are you equally vigilant about what you put on your body? Your...

Love your hair.(Beauty & Health)
January 1, 2005... Healthy hair color sounds like an oxymoron, but as London colorist Louise Galvin explains, "The synthetic hair-color glosses I use are peroxide- and ammonia-free and can make hair darker, richer, redder or golder." Galvin totes buckets of her...

Jane Iredale.(Beauty & Health)
January 1, 2005... If you have an intensive skin treatment this winter, like cosmetic surgery or a peel, use gentle, all-mineral makeup afterward. For bright, golden eyes, try JANE IREDEALE's new pecan, chocolate and topaz eye-shadow trio ($27). 800-817-5665. ...

REN.(Beauty & Health)
January 1, 2005... Get squeaky with the skin-care line REN--that's Swedish for "clean" ($27-$75). We love its fresh take on natural: the labels list the plant source of the high-tech ingredients. At Barneys New York stores. [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED]

Into herbs?(Beauty & Health)(Herbal Medicine: Expanded Commission E Monographs)(Brief Article)(Book Review)
January 1, 2005... As herbal supplements become more widely available, it's important to remember that the FDA treats them as laxly as it does lettuce; herbal remedies aren't tested. The Germans, however, have long taken their herbs seriously. For example, much...

Collective Well-Being.(Beauty & Health)
January 1, 2005... Despite our Whole Foods addiction, we admit that the luxe purveyor of mostly organic food and products left our beauty needs wanting. Until, that is, we spotted, COLLECTIVE WELL-BEING ($3.50-$15), a new gem by the founders of Davies Gate. The...

Wholesome and holistic.(Beauty & Health)(Interview)
January 1, 2005... Diane Guernsey interviews Joseph Pizzorno, N.D., president emeritus, cofounder and trustee of Bastyr University, the nation's foremost naturopathic college, in Seattle. T&C: What is naturopathy (NA-tur-OP-a-thy), and how does it differ...

Is your skin overworked?(Beauty & Health)
January 1, 2005... Antiaging is the holy grail of beauty, but some people get carried away. "At every trade show, I see ten new machines and quick skin fixes that make their way, with lightning speed, into medi-spas and doctors' offices," says Sonya Dakar, a...

Green & clean.(Beauty & Health)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The following cosmetics companies stretch their beauty mission beyond satisfying their customers: they work for a green earth, keeps the shea butter tradition alive and the scenery untouched in the town of Bobo Dioulasso, in Burkina Faso, in...

Safer nails.(Beauty & Health)(chemicals in nail polish)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration maintains that dibutyl phthalate (DBP), a common nail-polish ingredient, is safe for consumers. Meanwhile, the European Union has banned DBP in light of animal studies linking it to birth defects....

MoMA's home!(Less Is More)(Museum of Modern Art, New York)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... When the MUSEUM OF MODERN ART reopened a few weeks ago in Manhattan, virtually everybody had reason to rejoice. After spending thirty months in temporary locations elsewhere, the world's finest collection of modern art was once again on...

Pure and simple: a timeline.(Less Is More)
January 1, 2005... 2800-2300 B.C. Seated harpist by an unknown Cycladian artist, Aegean islands. The National Archaeological Museum of Athens circa 2500 B.C. The pyramids of King Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure. Giza, Egypt [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

The sweetest sounds.(Less Is More)(sound recordings)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Like spring rain and star-filled nights, certain music refreshes with its simple and profound beauty. Be refreshed by these recent recordings featuring solo voices or instruments. Earthy Etta James singing of her troubles on Blues to...

Boaled over.(Less Is More)(Peter Boal, ballet dancer)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... In George Balanchine's Apollo, Peter Boal embodies the young god of the title with the clarity, musicality, refinement and intelligence that have characterized his dancing ever since he first appeared with the New York City Ballet, as a...

Ellsworth Kelly.(Less Is More)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A famous 1959 version of Yves Klein's Untitled Blue Monochrome, in New York's Guggenheim Museum, consists of a single color spread evenly over a board-that's all. But in minimalism, that's everything. The more you stare at the work, the more it...

Short and neat.(Less Is More)(reading session by short story writer Alice Munro)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... You've got to hand it to the short story: it's short. That's essentially what the Canadian writer Alice Munro, who's arguably the greatest living practitioner of the form, answered when asked at a reading why she didn't write more novels (her...

Hot ticket.(Less Is More)(Dan Flavin installation artist's works on exhibition)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Using nothing more than fluorescent lighting, Dan Flavin created a lush, effervescent art of color and line. This is your last chance to catch the exhilarating exhibition of the late artist's work at Washington, D. C.'s National Gallery of Art...

Keyboard clarity.(Less Is More)(Leif Ove Andsnes pianist)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Unique among the piano virtuosos of his generation, LEIF OVE ANDSNES is a thinker, a listener, a keyboard poet. Evincing quiet passion and fierce intelligence, he distills music to its essence, then steps aside so that one experiences the...

The shape of shaker.(Less Is More)(furniture made by Shakers an American sect on exhibition)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Before there was Mies van der Rohe, there were the Shakers--the 19th-century American sect that preferred to let form follow function. "The Shakers made furniture that reflected their religious beliefs; they eschewed style conventions and...

The eco effect: ecotourism is booming all over the world, bus CC Africa, a forward-looking travel company, has long been ahead of the game.(Traveler's Notebook)
January 1, 2005... SOMETIMES doing good sneaks up on you. It happened to me almost ten years ago. My future husband and I were planning our honeymoon and wanted to go someplace neither of us had been before. As a travel editor, I was the natural choice to make...

The great outdoors: T&C asks leaders in the travel and conservation fields for their favorite untouched destinations.(Traveler's Notebook)
January 1, 2005... Margaret Carnright, director of travel programs, Audubon Nature Odysseys: "Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falkland Islands could all be described as pure and simple destinations. In this technological era, Antarctica [see page 106] is an...

Q Collection.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... Eco-friendly woods, vegetable-dyed leathers, free-range down and feathers: combine these ingredients with a dash of vanguard design and the outcome is a line of environmentally sound furniture and home accessories from Q COLLECTION. Cofounders...

Orrefors.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... Ingegerd Raman, a Swedish design sensation in the 1970s and now a national treasure, creates timeless works in glass for ORREFORS (Slowfox vase, $150). 800-433-4167. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Rogers & Goffigon.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... An emphasis on all-natural fibers and supersubtle colors in its fabrics has rewarded ROGERS & GOFFIGON with a cult following among decorators. To the trade, 212-888-3242. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Kyocera.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... KYOCERA's ceramic blades, favorites of sushi chefs, are truly on the cutting edge: they're rustproof and don't transfer a metallic taste to food ($50-$225). 800-859-6994. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The right white.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... Choosing a paint color is a site-specific task, but design experts still have some favorites. Albert Hadley: All White #2005 by Farrow & Ball (888-511-1121). "I find it to be a classic and a perfect choice in many situations, but much depends...

Making a splash.(Pure & Simple)(Waterworks expantion in furnishing, apothecary items)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... When Robert and Barbara Sallick founded Waterworks in 1978, their goal--put simply--was to revolutionize the bath industry. Mission accomplished? Their diverse product lines speak for themselves. The company has expanded its originally limited...

S'RI.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... At the heart of Japanese design is a tradition of communal craftsmanship--exemplified by these textiles of ramie, an organic fiber, hand-loomed in Kyoto ($45-$60 for three yards). S'RI 718-599-2559. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic ...

Tom Penn.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... To create his ultramodern line of pewter tabletop and desktop accessories, designer TOM PENN does the paradoxical: he looks to nature for inspiration (pair of shakers, $50; olive dish, $95). tompenn.com. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic ...

LaLoop.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... Plainly perfect: hang your eyeglasses on the patented clasp of a LALOOP necklace, made of kamagong wood squares, and you may never misplace them again ($175). 877-505-1500. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Henry Beguelin.(Pure & Simple)
January 1, 2005... From the HENRY BEGUELIN workshops in Italy comes a collection of leather bowls that are sun-baked over wooden molds and then hand-stitched ($425-$570). 970-920-2925. Photographs by Laura Stojanovic [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Material whirl: if you get dizzy just thinking about all your possessions, perhaps it's time to stop and reassess your priorities.(Social Graces)
January 1, 2005... IT HAS BEEN estimated that the average consumer is besieged by q marketing messages a day, promising everything from a sense of belonging to inner peace, all with the quick flick of a credit card. Is it any wonder that the meaning of objects in...

Antarctica: the big chill: a trip to the outer reaches of earth's most pristine continent certainly won't leave you out in the cold.
January 1, 2005... I'VE BEEN TO many winter galas, but there's one I'll never forget. Held on a quiet island far from civilization, the early-morning affair attracted inquiring minds from all over North America. Financiers, educators, winemakers, scientists and...

Ralph Rucci: more than meets the eye: achieving simplicity is sometimes more complicated than it seems, as fashion designer Ralph Rucci proves time and again.
January 1, 2005... LAST AUGUST, one month before he presented his spring collection in New York, Ralph Rucci confessed that he was sick of himself. He insisted it happens every time he finishes a new collection, but nonetheless he seemed exhausted by his own...

Renee Fleming: the down-to-earth diva: don't be fooled by the glittering gowns and the extravagant beauty. The world's reigning soprano is simply a small-town girl with a luxurious voice.(Cover Story)
January 1, 2005... AT THE San Francisco Opera's opening-night gala last September, the curtain rose not on the bustle of Carmen's Seville or Mimi's Paris but on the lone figure of Renee Fleming, whose beauty was enough to fill the stage as she stood motionless in...

The simple life: to find and appreciate the essence of things, look deep within yourself--and beyond.
January 1, 2005... "WHAT ARE the lessons of the universe?" is the modest question buried in the middle of a small book, Wabi-Sabi, published ten years ago by a writer named Leonard Koren. One lesson is "Truth comes from the observation of nature." Another is "All...

Christian Liaigre: pure poetry: that's how his legion of fans describe the work of design's king of calm.
January 1, 2005... FOR THE client who has everything, Christian Liaigre offers a less cluttered vision of the universe that may help to smooth the jagged edges of 21st-century living. "It's not about thinking like a designer," says the slim, sixty-year-old...

Alice Waters: true believer: with a zeal for life and a passion for good food, the creative chef has taught us to embrace simple yet refined ingredients. Her crusade has just begun.
January 1, 2005... "BUT YOU'VE GOT TO come," Alice Waters urges on the phone from Berkeley, California. "It'll be wonderful." "What will?" I ask. "Terra Madre," she whispers mysteriously. "What's that?" "It's the Slow Food conference in Turin,...

Richard Meier: white knight: for forty years the acclaimed architect has steadfastly--and successfully--pursued his singular vision.
January 1, 2005... WHILE the headlines about contemporary architecture may seem dominated by manic curves (Frank Gehry), swoops (Zaha Hadid), birds (Santiago Calatrava) and spikes (Daniel Libeskind), New York-based Richard Meier remains a resolute practitioner of...

Modern jewelry: simply elegant: shunning excess in favor of the elemental, these designers understand the value of understatement.
January 1, 2005... ELSA PERETTI When Tiffany & Co. began its partnership with Elsa Peretti in 1974, the firm knew it would have an instant sensation on its hands. Peretti's collection of silver jewelry featuring limabean- and teardrop-shaped pendants, delicate...

Stone barns: farm fresh: a Rockefeller-family barn complex is reborn as an educational center that celebrates the connection between flavorful food and its agrarian roots.
January 1, 2005... BIG THINGS are going on at a small farm. And they're happening just a stone's throw from New York City at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture, in Pocantico Hills (twenty miles up the Hudson River from Manhattan). Since the eighty-acre...

How to clean up your life: it's easier--and more essential--than you think.(A Town & Country Guide)
January 1, 2005... MY INTEREST in healthy, holistic living dates back to when I was a child. I was a really fast runner--I beat the fastest boy in grade school. In high school I wanted to be the fastest, strongest runner I could be. I started searching out...

Weddings.
January 1, 2005... Laura Tomassini and Giovanni Galtieri were married in early autumn at the Church of Sant'Ambrogio, in the picturesque town of Alassio, on the Italian Riviera. Following the ceremony, the couple celebrated with 300 friends and family members at...

January.(Horoscopes)
January 1, 2005... Capricorn December 22-January 20 It's your birthday, and you're determined to get on with life. Away with all those ifs and maybes. It's not only a new year, but it is going to be the year when you stop procrastinating and grab life by the...