Town & Country articles from January 2009

Town & Country archives from January 2009

A fresh start.(EDITOR'S LETTER)(Editorial)
January 1, 2009... FOR THE PAST EIGHT YEARS our January issue has been titled "All the Best." Within these pages we have typically covered what we believe are the newest and finest in top-quality products, places and people. Much of this year's issue is also...

The thoughts that count.(In Your Own Words ...)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... In response to "The Big Pink Elephant," by Stacy Winkler ["Social Graces," October]: I am weary of reading such articles chastising friends for their "transgressions," i.e., less-than-perfect behavior in times of illness or death. At fifty-six,...

T&C--that's mei.(In Your Own Words ...)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... Every month I read Pamela Fiori's insightful "Editor's Letter," which I rarely read in other magazines. I was delighted to see in her November column, "Getting to Know You" (about who the T&C reader is), that not only does Fiori value the same...

Political race.(In Your Own Words ...)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... We received a number of letters regarding "First and Foremost," Holly Peterson's November "Social Graces" column. Written weeks in advance of the election, long before Barack Obama's history-making victory, the piece sought to strike a balance...

Hooked on Brooke.(In Your Own Words ...)(Letter to the editor)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Thank you for publishing a wonderful magazine. The November cover of Brooke Shields says it all. Such beauty and elegance. RUTH EDWARDS, Sandston, VA

Correction.(In Your Own Words ...)(Correction notice)
January 1, 2009... In our November issue, on page 142, we printed an incorrect phone number for Tammy Fender Holistic Skin Care, in West Palm Beach. The correct number is 561-659-2229.

Boston Public Library Foundation.(PARTIES: Boston)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Place: The grounds of the 160-year-old library in Copley Square were the backdrop for the Boston Public Library Foundation's fifteenth annual gala. The Purpose: To honor the BPL's award-winning youth services,...

New Yorkers for children.(PARTIES: New York)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Scene: A stylish mix of celebrities, tastemakers and philanthropists attended New Yorkers for Children's ninth annual fall benefit, held at Cipriani 42nd Street, in Manhattan. Kevin Liles, executive vice...

Primary ingredients: restaurants are thinking global and celebrating local.(ON THE TOWN)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THERE'S NO urban restaurant more welcoming to friends of nature than Chicago's North Pond. Its vintage 1912 building, with a view of the city's skyline, is hidden in a wooded dell in Lincoln Park. Inside are two cozy...

Jardiniere.(SAN FRANCISCO)(Traci Des Jardins)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Award-winning chef Traci Des Jardins realized the importance of using local, natural and seasonal ingredients at her acclaimed San Francisco restaurant, Jardiniere, well before organic and sustainable entered the...

Azul.(SMALL BITE: MIAMI)(Restaurant review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... "At Azul we have the ability to purchase the best possible ingredients in their purest form without preservatives, hormones or pesticides," boasts chef Clay Conley. "The fish in Miami is amazing, and most of the time diners are eating fish that...

Nora.(Washington, D.C.)
January 1, 2009... Celebrated chef Nora Pouillon exemplified eco-sensitivity decades before green became the new black. In 1979 she opened Nora, which went on to become America's first certified-organic restaurant, according to standards issued by the nonprofit...

Trellis.(KIRKLAND)(chef Brian Scheehser, farming)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Plenty of chefs talk the eat-local/ sustainable talk, but Trellis chef Brian Scheehser gets mud on his boots when he walks the walk in his three-acre garden, a short drive from his restaurant in the Heathman Hotel, just outside Seattle. ...

Blue Hill.(NEW YORK)(Restaurant review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... From pastured chicken to grass-fed lamb, farm fresh takes a quantum leap at Blue Hill, a culinary gem tucked below street level in Greenwich Village. Aglow in soft recessed light, this intimate restaurant in a former basement speakeasy invites...

Palate Food & Wine.(LOS ANGELES)
January 1, 2009... An old warehouse amid a row of car dealerships in Glendale might not seem like the "right address" for L.A.'s most inspired new restaurant. But to chef Octavio Becerra, the former Joachim Splichal protege turned partner who opened Palate Food &...

Windham Hill Inn.(IN THE COUNTRY)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ON THE WAY to some of the rooms at the Windham Hill Inn, in West Townshend, Vermont, you must pass through a dark and silent 18th-century barn, its hayloft filled with battered steamer trunks and farm tools...

Madison's mansion.(IN THE COUNTRY)(James Madison)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... If James Madison, America's fourth president, were to visit Montpelier today, 200 years after he was first elected, he would feel at home. Thanks to a $24 million restoration, his mansion, in Orange, Virginia, which sits on 2,650 acres amid the...

Napa, pure and simple.(IN THE COUNTRY)(Sandy Lawrence's vegetable eatery and yoga studio, Ubuntu)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] When Napa Valley vintner and restaurateur Sandy Lawrence began hosting yoga classes coupled with potluck dinners at her home, little did she realize that her novelty would evolve into the critically acclaimed...

A classic made new.(IN THE COUNTRY)(diffuser set with matching candles)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... When General George Washington stopped off in Newport, Rhode Island, to pick up sundries at his favorite apothecary--which later morphed into the first branch of Caswell-Massey, America's old-est personal-care company--he would not have found...

Fortify yourself.(IN THE COUNTRY)(wine)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... To say that sherry is ubiquitous in Spanish culture is to greatly understate the case. In particular, fino sherry--the dry, light type known for its tangy, nutty taste--is consumed on the following occasions: before dinner, during dinner, after...

Gardens of words.(IN THE COUNTRY)('75 Exceptional Herbs for Your Garden' and 'The History of Gardens in Painting')(Brief article)(Recommended readings)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Blossoming with dazzling reproductions of garden-motif paintings, woodcuts and illuminated manuscripts, The History of Gardens in Painting (Abbeville; $95), by Nils Buttner, is certain to captivate art-loving readers...

Lisa Perry.(FASHION & STYLE)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] OCCUPATION: Designer and owner of LP Style (lisaperrystyle. com), a women's clothing and accessories line known for its vibrant take on mod looks, which she sells at her eponymous stores in SoHo and Sag Harbor, New...

Denim redefined: the popular fabric's latest incarnations, from classic blue jeans to an embellished cocktail dress.(FASHION & STYLE: Trends)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ANYA HINDMARCH Slade bag with calf-leather trim ($695), anyahindmarch.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] YVES SAINT LAURENT jeans ($550), ysl.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] TORY BURCH flared jeans in black...

Best in black: the color that's always in fashion.(FASHION & STYLE: Trends)
January 1, 2009... DITA sunglasses ($225), ditalegends.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ANYA HINDMARCH calf-leather Jackson bag ($1,150), anya hindmarch.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] TORY BURCH satin Brylyn booties ($450), toryburch.com. ...

The great belt way.(FASHION & STYLE)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It's a cinch to look modern in a wide belt--wear one at the waist on a dress or over a sweater or coat. From top: DASLU suede ($360). OSCAR DE LA RENTA laser-cut leather ($590). SALVATORE FERRAGAMO leather ($590)....

Welcome to Wilkes.(FASHION & STYLE: Men)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] WILKES BASHFORD knows why his San Francisco store, at 375 Sutter Street, has endured for forty-two years and counting: "We're still here because we have always kept the focus on the customer. I've never veered from a...

Hot metal.(JEWELRY)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] There's a silver lining behind the rising prices of gold and platinum--sterling silver. Designers are turning to this classic and eminently affordable material to create chunky statement pieces. Clockwise from top...

Sterling approval.(JEWELRY)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Delicate chains, woven hoops and fringed earrings--a deft touch of silver adds just the right shine to your look. 1. ALEX WOO Nariss Fan earrings ($298), alex woo.com. 2. MELISSA JOY MANNING link necklace ($335),...

Longines.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... On Thursday, September 4, 2008 Longines announced The Longines Elegance Scholar ship Fund. During an event-filled day to celebrate the scholarship fund, they presented the Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation with a check for $200,000 to start...

Van Cleef's Feerie Tale.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)(perfume)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Inspired by "A Midsummer Night's Dream" fine jewelry collection, Feerie embraces the magical universe of Van Cleef & Arpels. A captivating floral woody scent, Feerie captures her free and graceful femininity. The...

Spark Creations.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... At Spark Creations, we search the world to find unique stones for our One of a Kind Collection and partner them with designs that bring out the personality of each individual stone. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Small classics.(WATCHES)(Buyers guide)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... The timeless combination of stainless steel and gold looks modern in smaller-sized timepieces for women. From bottom left: RAYMOND WEIL Ladies' Parsifal ($3,295), raymondweil.com. LONGINES HydroConquest ($1,300), 800-8979477. JAEGER-LECOULTRE...

Art Creations.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Art Creations, located in New York City, is the source for rare and extraordinary gems such as rubies, sapphires and emeralds from around the world. All pieces, such as this magnificent emerald and diamond bracelet,...

JUVEDERM[R].(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Curious about JUVEDERM[R]? It's the secret that has everyone talking! Now it's time to see what the excitement is about! Go to Juvederm.com now to find a doctor, discover interactive tools and get more information....

Dennis Basso.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... Very few words can describe the Dennis Basso designs. The combination of the two most extraordinary materials, Cream Alligator & Russian Sable can result in the most luxurious limited collection of garments ever made. For availability and more...

Martin Katz.(scene & be seen: A calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Delicately designed and crafted 6ct purple sapphire ring with over 150 micro-set diamonds. Just an example of some of the extraordinary pieces from Martin Katz. Please call 866.956.7200 or visit martinkatz.com.

Cleanse yourself: washing your face is the first step to a radiant complexion. Here's how to know which cleanser is best for you.(BEAUTY & HEALTH)
January 1, 2009... CLEANSERS WITH EXFOLIATORS. like SHISEIDO's the Skincare Purifying Cleansing Foam ($28), help promote ceil turnover and are gentle enough to be used daily on mature skin. macys.com. WIPES are a desk-drawer must for freshening up for...

Alwand Vahan.(scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Unique and feminine, the Vahan look is unmistakably chic. Signature "Fleur de Lys Collection" features gold, diamond and sterling silver bracelets and earrings. Visit alwandvahan.com or please call 800.365.6101.

Megerian.(scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Megerian Rugs will be celebrating the unveiling of a new rug collection by Barry Dixon, one of America's top up-and-coming designers. Dixon's new collection is a masterful blend of traditional and contemporary style, full of charm and...

SF Ballet.(scene & be seen: a calendar of events, trunk shows and benefits taking place at a store or location near you.)
January 1, 2009... On January 21, 2009, San Francisco Ballet hosts its Opening Night Gala, an important fundraiser and major social event. This year's theme, Russian Treasures, celebrates the visual richness of Russian arts and history. The evening includes...

Green reading: three experts' timely books guide you in making changes for the health of your body, your home and your environment.(BEAUTY & HEALTH)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] * Who: Sloan Barnett, a regular on NBC's Today show, is a green activist and a television and print journalist specializing in environmental health. She lives in San Francisco with her husband, Roger, chairman and...

Must-dos for January.(BEAUTY & HEALTH)
January 1, 2009... (1) CAST OFF DULLNESS The papaya and pineapple enzymes in KATE SOMERVILLE Enzyme Scrub & Mask ($65) send dead skin packing and reveal a just-back-from-the-tropics radiance, katesomerville.com. (2) LATHER NATURALLY FEKKAI Au...

Masters of their craft: whether on the way up or already at the top (that's you, Meryl), these artists, to our delight, can't help putting their work first.(ARTS & CULTURE)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Acting Out The many guises of actress Meryl Streep (clockwise from top left): In Silkwood (1983), She-Devil (1989), Mamma Mia! (2008), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), The Devil Wears Prada (2006), The Manchurian...

The virtuoso.(FILM)
January 1, 2009... TODAY'S YOUNG ACTRESSES are better known as tabloid fodder or cover girls, their so-called careers prolonged by the staples of celebrityhood: substance abuse and revolving-door treatment; new husbands; lovers; and, above all, children,...

Ashley Bouder's great leap forward.(DANCE)
January 1, 2009... About half a dozen years ago, when New York City Ballet was going through one of its periodic bouts of the doldrums, a seventeen-year-old girl burst onto the scene. Her name was Ashley Bouder, and it was clear from the first that she was a...

Beata max.(MUSIC)(Beata Palya)(Concert review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Beata Palya may sing predominantly in her native Hungarian, but what she does with her vocal instrument communicates in a universal language. Whether alone onstage performing a cappella or in concert with her...

Ron Arad.(FURNITURE)
January 1, 2009... Through the 26th, Paris's Centre Pompidou hosts a retrospective of the work of Israeli-born, London-based Ron Arad, arguably the most inventive furniture designer of our time. A slightly remixed version of the exhibition will arrive at New...

Chautauqua!(THEATER)(Theater review)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The novelty act is back: the National Theater of the United States of America (left) combines 21st-century music, dance, theater and oratory to reinvent the vaudevillian antics of Circuit Chautauqua, a circa-1900...

Weird Beauty: Fashion Photography Now.(PHOTOGRAPHY)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] From the 16th through May 3, New York's International Center of Photography goes glam with "Weird Beauty: Fashion Photography Now," highlighting the boldest, brightest work by Steven Meisel, Camilla Akrans, Miles...

Yankee style takes Manhattan starting on the 23rd, when the Winter Antiques Show opens at the Park Avenue Armory (through February 1).(ANTIQUES)
January 1, 2009... Yankee style takes Manhattan starting on the 23rd, when the Winter Antiques Show opens at the Park Avenue Armory (through February 1). Sotheby's hosts its Important Americana sale from the 23rd to the 25th, with a six-foot-tall weather vane...

Art of Two Germanys/Cold War Cultures.(1/25)
January 1, 2009... The Los Angeles County Museum of Art debuts the first special exhibition for its Broad Contemporary Art Museum with "Art of Two Germanys/Cold War Cultures," from the 25th through April 19, exploring how political systems shape visual...

After celebrating the arrival of her first child, son Tiago, last September, Russian soprano Anna Netrebko returns to New York's Metropolitan Opera stage to celebrate the Met's 125th-anniversary season, which runs through May 9.(1/26)
January 1, 2009... After celebrating the arrival of her first child, son Tiago, last September, Russian soprano Anna Netrebko returns to New York's Metropolitan Opera stage to celebrate the Met's 125th-anniversary season, which runs through May 9. She sings the...

Anoushka Shankar.(MUSIC)
January 1, 2009... Captivating sitar-playing Anoushka Shankar performs the world premiere of a concerto composed by her father, eighty-eight-year-old music legend Ravi Shankar, with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra on the 31st at Carnegie Hall, in New York....

Literary Bests get out the blue ribbons and gold stars: in these new novels, four authors have produced work ranking with--or surpassing--the finest of their careers.(BOOKS)(Recommended readings)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It requires an exceptional writer to turn the present into something strange, surprising and true to life's many different sides. Stacey D'Erasmo achieves it through her gift for narrative voice. After two earlier,...

Grounded: as surface flash loses its appeal in the visual marketplace, ceramics entice designers all over again.(DESIGN TRENDS)
January 1, 2009... Celadon Redux. Time for a resurgence of this beautiful, slightly nebulous glaze color. From left: Nesting bowls by Christiane Perrochon ($180-$720), at Waterworks stores, 800-899-6757. Wind vase by Sueharu Fukami ($11,500), at Erik Thomsen...

Rising talent: Xie Dong.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Much like Beijing itself these days, native daughter Xie Dong is trying to find artistic benefits to China's rapid modernization. The forty-one-year-old, a graduate of the Beijing Arts and Design Institute, uses...

The healing touch: on a quest for the remedies used by her grandparents, writer Shoba Narayan heads to southern India and finds a balm for the soul.(TRAVELER'S NOTEBOOK)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] IT IS ALMOST NOON, but the corridors of Vasudeva Vilasam, an Ayurvedic hospital in Kerala, are blessedly dark and cool. A nurse guides me on a tour through various rooms where patients are lounging in beds before or...

Cambodia green.(TRAVELER'S NOTEBOOK)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SOUTHEAST ASIA Eco-friendliness doesn't have to take a backseat to good design--that's the implicit message of the newly opened Quay Hotel, an all-white four-story tower that shimmers along the riverside in Phnom...

The expedition ship, upgraded.(TRAVELER'S NOTEBOOK)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Travelers who want to scale ancient walls and glide by glaciers at the earth's far reaches needn't relinquish luxury basics like marble bathrooms and walk-in wardrobes now that Silversea has launched its exploration vessel, the 132-cabin Prince...

Where spirits still tread.(TRAVELER'S NOTEBOOK)(Lifetime: 500 of the World's Most Peaceful and Powerful Destinations )(Brief article)(Book review)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] National Geographic's exhaustively researched tome Sacred Places of a Lifetime: 500 of the World's Most Peaceful and Powerful Destinations ($40) goes far beyond church and mosque, profiling everything from the...

Have you met miss Jones? If not, watch one episode of Mad Men and you'll want to know more about January Jones, on-screen and off.
January 1, 2009... JANUARY JONES, who costars in AMC's stylish television phenomenon Mad Men, is standing, unrecognized, in a trendy vintage-clothing store in Los Angeles. The thirty-year-old actress from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has been a lifelong collector...

Get real! In southern Mexico, one city insists on maintaining a strong sense of place. Welcome to Oaxaca.(City overview)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] MY BEST-LAID PLANS WERE SCRAPPED THE MOMENT I arrived in Oaxaca City. "You want to see the real, authentic Mexico, right?" asked Alejandro Ruiz, one of the city's most renowned chefs, as he giddily steered his SUV...

Beauty & the beast: in the mesmerizing paintings of Walton Ford, animals play both hero and villain of fairy tales for the 21st century.
January 1, 2009... ENTERING THE WORLD of Walton Ford is like stepping into the pages of a delightfully disorienting picture book. At first glance, his meticulously made paintings of animals in watercolor and gouache suggest the work of an 18th-century naturalist,...

Just right: Town & Country tailor-makes an apartment for the times.(interior design)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] CHANGE IS OFTEN GOOD. But when change comes with unsettling speed or is basically unsettling in itself, we all tend to react in the same way: we want to be close to home. The apartment on these pages, created by...

55 must-haves: a rainbow-hued selection of the season's best resort wear.
January 1, 2009... GREEN DREAMS 1 | RALPH LAUREN COLLECTION suede sandals ($495), ralphlauren.com. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 2 | M.C.L. BY MATTHEW CAMPBELL LAURENZA enamel and multistone bangles ($750-$1,170), at Bergdorf Goodman, NYC, 212-872-2579. ...

What matters most now: as we start the new year, here's what you're thinking about today--based on the results of our latest T&C reader survey.(Town and Country)(Survey)
January 1, 2009... After a difficult summer marked by record gas and oil prices and an increasingly fractious presidential campaign, we knew that important concerns were weighing heavily on the hearts and minds of you, our readers, during the last months of 2008....

Weddings.
January 1, 2009... Mr. Erik James Nordby and Ms. Melanie Lynn Madigan, in Vera Wang Winnetka, Illinois [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hunter Ellis (Meredith Lee Thomas, in Les Habitudes) San Miguel de Allende, Mexico [ILLUSTRATION...

January.(HOROSCOPES)
January 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Capricorn December 22-January 20 Jupiter has completed its yearlong journey through your sign, and it's time to take a reading of where you stand. If nothing else, you've had a chance to play with various options...