“When a design is perfect, it does not age,” says Dominique Facon, senior marketing director of Porcher. She is referring to the company’s Sapho lav—a diminutive white china washbasin that took the design community by storm in the 1980s. “We still sell a ton of them,” she adds. “And there’s no chance I could even […]
Finally, this magazine has a reason to add some T+A to its pages. The German company, which, it should be noted, pronounces its name T plus A (an abbreviation for Theory plus Application), had been building speakers, amplifiers, preamplifiers, and digital components exclusively for Europeans since 1978. Now it has entered the U.S. market with […]
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When every display space in the house is occupied by artworks, Brigitte Micmacker, co-owner of A New Leaf Gallery in Berkeley, Calif., offers this advice to collectors: Take it outside. “People come to us when they’ve filled the inside of their home with art and they want to fill the outdoor space,” says Micmacker, whose […]
Earlier this summer, Thailand’s Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn sent an e-mail to the Accompagnement, Conseils link he found at http://www.antikaparis.comand inquired about a selection of decorative gilt-bronze objects. The link took him to the Colisée Art & Conseil, a concierge service that then introduced his royal highness to the Antiquités 56 gallery, where the prince […]
Most furniture collections, like runway fashions, are unveiled in the spring and fall. This year, the two genres share more than seasonal schedules. Furniture is following haute couture—it is made to order, comes in seamless fabrics that drape perfectly, and has silhouettes as sharp as a Brioni suit. After all, your closet should not be […]
With the introduction of Blue Ocean, we may be witnessing the emergence of a new product category. The transparent acrylic screen is such a standout that it likely will silence any potential buzz around an impressive assortment of soon-to-debut audio gear. Deep Blue See If picture quality is your theater’s outstanding feature, imagine the aesthetic […]
Troy Adams of Studio Becker is best known for his fusion kitchen designs that bring together influences from the East and West. But he agreed to collaborate with a German manufacturer to produce an updated version of the traditional kitchen. “It has all the traditional English elements: a cooking alcove, a mantel with shelves and […]
On Jupiter Island, light and airy are the bywords, all the better to view the Intracoastal Waterway and South Florida’s palmy vegetation. Architect Kenneth Miller managed to capture that light in a kitchen that both conforms to the long, narrow property and is in keeping with the Craftsman style of the house. “Designing a kitchen […]
Tuscans are known for their headstrong love of life, food, language, and all things Tuscan. So why would Pino Luongo—quintessential Florentine, cookbook author, and impresario of New York’s acclaimed Le Madri, Tuscan Square, and Coco Pazzo restaurants—choose the pragmatic German minimalism of a Bulthaup kitchen for the rambling prewar home he shares with his wife […]
A bathroom can be a sanctuary, but it can still be dynamic,” says Bruce T. Linthicum, design director/residential of Marc-Michaels Interior Design. The Florida firm was called to Pennsyl-vania for a client who is a practicing Buddhist and who is establishing wellness centers across the country that integrate Eastern and Western medical practices and holistic […]
While moonlighting as an audio-visual consultant, Lewis Lipnick, the contrabassoonist for the National Symphony Orchestra, had designed sound systems for clients including architect Richard Meier and conductor Mstislav Rostropovich. But after he promised a Scottsdale, Ariz., homeowner that he could design and construct the best home theater in the world, he began having doubts. Such […]
We were somewhere over the North Atlantic, halfway between New York and London, and so far our flight had been uneventful. The instruments on the bulkhead indicated an altitude of 60,000 feet and a speed of a little over Mach 2, or about 1,350 mph. We could see the curvature of the earth below; above […]
It’s All About View There will soon be a refreshing new way to view the world’s most famous skyline. Scheduled to open in October, the Mandarin Oriental New York, located on the upper floors of the new AOL Time Warner skyrise at Columbus Circle, will include rooms with a tub at the window so that […]
There are no monsoons on the radar as we set out for the wilderness camp of Max Davidson. The remote outpost sits at the tropical north-central edge of Australia, where, in the 1970s, its proprietor made one of the most significant discoveries in the country’s history. The dry sandstone hills of Arnhem Land, Davidson found, […]
“They always choose the best grapes,” remarks Ivano Reali. “Not the sweetest, not the largest, nor the juiciest—but the best grapes for making wine. They have noses for the Sangiovese. This is perhaps why,” he adds, “they are best appreciated when they are stewed in it.” As we sit in his SUV, Reali, managing director […]
During a recent dinner in Dublin, I was halfway through the polenta with shaved truffles—a specialty at the Tea Room in the Clarence Hotel—when I began to anticipate my after-dinner cigar. A Cuban Romeo y Julieta Cedros and a Sancho Panza were tucked in my cigar case, but I had no intention of lighting either. […]
“Il N’est Pas Fusion,” asserts Yves Garnier, chef de cuisine for La Mer, Oahu’s celebrated French restaurant. If he were in his native Provence and not in Hawaii, Garnier acknowledges, he might not be so vigilantly opposed to the fusion concept. But here at this confluence of cultures, he is determined to remain an island […]
In letting us in on their plans for the coming months, some of the world’s best-known and most highly regarded chefs have whet our appetite for novel and exceptional dining experiences. Some will broaden their culinary repertoire by opening new venues, while others will bring their distinctive, well-established menus to new cities. The Kings’ Court […]
Wine is perhaps the most ephemeral of all collectibles. A Monet can hang on a living room wall unchanged for decades, while its owner continually basks in its radiance. Wine, on the other hand, not only changes considerably throughout its limited lifetime, but also gives its ultimate pleasure only once. Indeed, even the most astute […]
In February 1962, on the eve of proclaiming a ban on Cuban imports, John F. Kennedy purportedly ordered his press secretary, Pierre Salinger, to obtain 40 boxes of Petit Upmann cigars. Few at the time—even politicians in the know—could have predicted the enduring impact of the Cuban embargo (or, it would seem, the shrewdness of […]
Long after the age of Al Capone and the speakeasy, when well-heeled imbibers would pony up for cheap bathtub gin served in teacups, the very best spirits continue to elude the worthy seeker who does not know where to look. Procuring vintage cigars proves an even more trying task. Following is a short list of […]
For most travelers, the South Dakota prairie is a place to pass through or over on the way to somewhere else. Bob Tinker would not want it any other way. The fortysomething bird hunting outfitter, with a Stetson that is as much a fixture on his head as the handlebar mustache is over his lip, […]
Adjusting her footing while setting up her tee shot at the 297-yard 15th hole, an English tourist was startled to notice a large red drop of what appeared to be blood on the left shoulder of her white golf shirt. Before she could say a word to her partners, another drop splattered on her shoulder, […]
With novelties such as authentic reproductions of 19th-century French army jackets and cashmere pea coats lined in stripes, Arnys has long attracted nonconformist clients, including Lost Generation icons Gertrude Stein, Jean Cocteau, and Ernest Hemingway. Now the 70-year-old Parisian men’s haberdashery is exporting its unconventional fashion concepts to the United States. The first step was […]
When jeweler Samuel Getz laid eyes on a 77-carat rough aquamarine recently, he imagined a large snowflake glistening in the sun. Without hesitation, he purchased the gem and made it the centerpiece of a pendant. He surrounded the stone with more than 100 diamonds in rhomboid, baguette, and marquise shapes to depict his vision of […]
René Beyer, the 40-year-old CEO and president of Chronometrie Beyer, cannot pinpoint the year, but it was sometime during the fall of 2000 or 2001 when his late father, Theodor, asked to meet him in the vault of a Swiss bank. As members of a Zurich watch retail dynasty that dates to 1760, the two […]
Many credit Scottish coat makers with inventing the concept of reversible clothing in the early 1900s. In an attempt to prevent their heavy wool Harris Tweeds from soaking up rain (and with it, excess weight), they added a processed cotton lining that made the garment impervious to water when turned inside out during a downpour. […]
Oddly enough, precise production schedules almost never apply to complicated watchmaking. Unanticipated technical challenges can make the work frustratingly slow. Fortunately, master watchmakers seem to have a knack for outdoing themselves, ensuring that those who have the patience to wait for an exceptional timepiece will be amply rewarded. Name That Tune Girard-Perregaux’s Opera Three […]
Glistening jewels and the holidays have always gone hand in hand. This year, history and nature are the driving forces behind the most dramatic new jewelry collections. From timeless, classical diamonds set in tiaras and barrettes to mysterious moonstones to organic lava rocks, these exceptional collections reflect rare daring amid a sea of sameness. Once […]
Once you have encountered the hopelessly fastidious Swiss, it is easy to understand why they excel at manipulating tiny metal parts. But these days, watch collectors are looking beyond the Swiss to their similarly rigid-jawed neighbors to the north, the Germans. In particular, two relatively new (or rather, newly reconstituted) companies, A. Lange & Söhne […]
Comparing the $22,500 bmw k1200lt exodus to any other motorcycle is an exercise in futility. With the cruiser’s technical sophistication, smooth and crisp handling on straights and hairpins, and luxurious looks, the German heavyweight’s only true counterpart is its four-wheeled sibling: the strong and silky 7 Series. “The coincidence,” says David Robb, BMW’s director of […]
To savor some of the world’s most coveted supercars, visit www.wreckedexotics.com. The lineup would fill an enthusiast’s dream garage: Aston Martin Vanquish, Ferrari F50, Lamborghini Murciélago, Mercedes-Benz E55, Porsche GT2, McLaren F1, and more. Of course, little resemblance remains between the sensual sheet metal that the automakers originally constructed and the twisted hulks they have become. […]
Every year, manufacturers hone their machines to perform specific tasks, such as long-distance touring, all-out track racing, or casual weekend cruising, and 2004 is no exception. Most of the bikes of the near future do one thing—and do it perfectly. In the following pages, we present a broad collection of niche-tuned bikes that represent this […]
Before the empty moonlit highway can seduce you to sleep, your car springs into action. Its onboard computer senses your drowsiness and lowers the cabin temperature, maps out a route to the nearest rest area or gas station, and checks for vacancies at local hotels. Then a pleasant but firm voice interrupts the Chopin CD […]
For the first time, a member of the commercial airline fraternity—the companies that prompted the emergence of the private flight industry by delaying flights, losing luggage, and otherwise disrupting the best-laid plans of business travelers and vacationers—is entering the growing private flight membership business. Delta AirElite Business Jets, a corporate charter division of the parent […]
Residents of La Spezia, a navy town on the western coast of northern Italy, have become accustomed to seeing daunting military vessels pass through their waters. Last spring, however, even the jaws of the most jaded dropped at the sight of a 118-foot gunmetal apparition that roared through the Gulf of Genoa at 65 mph. […]
Pushing the Limits A pair of 1,400-hp Sterling engines will give the Outerlimits 47 GTX a top speed of 150 mph, while the company’s new construction method involving an epoxy resin will provide the boat with a ride that is smoother than its predecessors’. Paul Fiore, Outerlimits’ vice president of sales, anticipates that the new […]
For work order number 534 out of the shipyard, John Brown & Co., Ltd., of Clydebank, Scotland, destiny plotted a course as twisted and sundry as any conceived by Thackeray for the most wanton of his adventuresses. By turns, number 534 would act as a spiritual and economic salve to a nation stripped bare by […]
Nascar Winston Cup team owner Felix Sabates becomes the most popular person at Daytona Marina during the February week preceding the Daytona 500, when he hosts nightly dinners and cocktail parties aboard his yacht. The invitees include friends, sponsors, colleagues, and other VIPs of stock car racing. Sabates, who is also co-owner of boatbuilder Trinity […]
“Oh, we’ve blown up engines, drives, just about everything,” Gary Montano says matter-of-factly as we prepare to board Montano Motorsports, his $750,000 Cigarette speedboat. He gives my life jacket one final tug. “Can you swim?” he asks with a smile. Half an hour later, we are puttering up New York’s Hudson River, poised to ignite […]
Since she was launched by her royal namesake in 1969, the Queen Elizabeth 2 has carried on the grand tradition of ocean liners, spiriting passengers across the Atlantic in exquisite and elegant style. Although the QE2 will cede the transatlantic route to her younger sister, Cunard’s Queen Mary 2, next year (“The Concorde is Dead. […]
On a spring evening in london, the auctioneer’s gavel came down decisively on the final bid for a case of red wine. The bottles had gathered both dust and nuance in their native cellar for four decades, and with this burst of percussion began a new phase of their evolution in the cellar of a […]
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