london: fordham soho

London is expensive.  Outrageously, prohibitively, cringe-inducingly expensive.  So it was a nice relief to my wallet to discover Claire at Fordham Soho, thanks to a recommendation from one of the founders of Wahanda... 

amalfi coast, italy

Here are a few tips if you plan on travelling to Italy's Amalfi coast:

a small thing in warsaw

a small thing is in Warsaw for the next few days, and I'm surprised to really be liking it. Architecturally, the Polish capital is a fascinating mix of devastated beauty (bullet and shell marks on almost every building that survived WWII), ugly soviet modernism and meticulous reconstruction.  Warsaw is romantic in the saddest way; it forces you to think of the city as it once was and simultaneously of all of the terrible things it has endured. On a more superficial note, I've been tremendously impressed by the food. More posts about Warszawa to come...

new york city: le bernardin

Don’t bother, unless you’ve got tickets to a Broadway show nearby.  The food at the famed mid-town French restaurant is perfectly adequate, if awfully expensive.  The adroit staff serves up fresh and even occasionally inventive seafood, but you’ll be dining in a soulless corporate cave.

singapore: fish pedicure

Singapore is a country rife with rules and regulations. You need a prescription to buy chewing gum! I’m sure the city-state has some of Asia’s highest health, hygiene and safety standards, so I figured that Orchard Road, the high-end shopping district, was the best place to try the infamous Fish Pedicure...

singapore: newton circus hawker center

The Newton Circus hawker center is not far distance-wise from the shiny hotels and luxury malls on Orchard Road, but under the bright lights, surrounded by the smells of seafood, curry and chili, bombarded by the calls of local merchants, it feels as though you're worlds away...

reading: t style milan issue

After a recent visit, Milan has leapfrogged to the top of the list of my favorite cities on earth.  I'll be posting more about the northern Italian metropolis later; in the meantime check out T magazine's 2010 Milan issue online.

reading: fantastic man and the gentlewoman

Good reading: interesting interviews with relevant people, beautiful photographs, weighty paper stock.  The Gentlewoman and Fantastic Man exemplify the lasting appeal of print publications.

capri, italy: carthusia

With a limited production of perfumes made in the tradition of 12^th century Carthusian monks, Carthusia stocks a small line of fresh, island scents.  My favorite, Mediteraneo, is a heavenly blend of lemon leaves and green tea.  It’s the scent of the J.K. Place Capri; Italian sunshine in a bottle!

reading: graham greene

I had no idea that Graham Greene lived and worked in Capri. The novelist's moody accounts of the oppressiveness of morality and religion, Catholicism in particular, hardly seem to emanate from the sunbathed, care-free Italian coast. Serendipitously, I happened to be reading Graham Greene now (just finished The End of the Affair, working on The Heart of the Matter) and will be visiting Capri tomorrow! The New York Times has a nice summation here of Graham's relationship with the island.

italy: j.k. place capri

The new Lonny is out.  It's Lonny's one year anniversary so it's an especially awesome issue, full of inspiring interiors.  And I'm loving this issue in particular because it features the J.K. Place resorts.  We're off to J.K. Place Capri tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited!  

Check out more of the photos here...

shopping: penchant dressmakers

I am dying to have a dress made here!  Why, WHY has no one done this (or rather, done this stylishly) in New York City before now?!? Penchant Dressmakers offers women custom-made dresses in stylish, timeless cuts in a wide range of fabrics, including suedes and leathers!  You can pick and choose necklines, zipper options and lining colors.  As a present to myself, I'm scheduling a fitting right before Christmas.  Who wants to join me?

shopping: zara

Zara is killing it lately.  All through Spring/Summer there were great things in the European Zara shops- muted silk blouses, snake-skin kitten heels, chic over-sized blazers- and now the October lookbook is chock full of the colder season's must-haves: neutral knits, minimalist wool coats,  flattering pants and cozy cashmere. Check it out here.

sorry!

Here is the obligatory absence-related apology: for my few faithful readers, I'm sorry I haven't posted in such a long time.  For the past month or so I've been travelling like mad (Cinque Terre, Milan, a brief pit-stop in Amsterdam, Singapore, Bali, London, New York City, Boulder, San Francisco) and haven't spent much time online.  But, fear not!  I'll be back at my computer blogging away by this time next week.