UWS

Though January turned out to be a bad month for the home furnishings industry (pink slips at Williams-Sonoma, Chapter 11 at Wedgwood, and who could forget, RIP Domino), spring seems poised to breath life into interior design with a new string of décor shop openings littered throughout the city. First up, the eco-friendly Green Depot had its Bowery debut last month and was closely followed by Droog Design which made SoHo the site of its first American outpost. Now barely a week later, the Upper West Side gets its share of the interior design pie with the debut of West Elm’s newest uptown location. No more treks down to Chelsea after today when the 24,000 square foot store opens to the public. Mid-priced furniture, tableware, linens, and lighting will pepper the second-story space along with installations by famed event designer David Stark. Last night’s private auction event has guests bidding on pieces sculpted to mimic topiaries, potted cactus, and even alarm clocks using only old West Elm catalogs and packing material. Even though the goods were auctioned off to benefit the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, the designs will still call the store home through the month of March so take a trip uptown while the installations remain.

1870 Broadway @ 62nd Street
New York, NY 10023
212.247.8077

Photo credit: Apartment Therapy

America sure looks good for being 232 years old- think she’s had some work done?

If you waited for the last possible second (like moi) to plan how you’ll be celebrating the home of the brave this year, fear not. Here are some fool-proof ways to get your fourth on.

Food. . .

. . .Because the Nathan’s hot dog champ can’t be the only one indulging. Celebrate the U.S. and the N.Y. with a good old fashioned chow down. The Great July Fourth Festival is a down-home American birthday party with a global twist. The street fair showcases 600 international food vendors, as well as arts, crafts and merchandise exhibitors like Indonesian Jewelry and Chinese Pottery. The fun ends at 8, just in time watch. . .

Fireworks!

Because what would today be without a little pie in the sky? There are breathtaking views of the Macy’s Fireworks Extravaganza*, which start at 9pm, from all points of the vogue city. The very best are:

Manhattan: Southbound lanes of the FDR drive from 14th to 42nd Street will be open for the public from 7:30pm to 10:00pm.The FDR Drive will actually be closed to vehicular traffic between Houston St. and 63rd St. from 7:00pm until 1:00am. Dancin’ in the street!

Brooklyn/Queens: Great views from Hunter’s Point, Queens, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and anywhere with an unobstructed view of the East River between 23rd & 42nd Sts.

***Be sure to tune in to 1010 WINS AM to hear the muscial accompaniment

Happy Independance Day New York!!!

You Spin Me Right Round, Baby.

Right Round.

Theme restaurants are très cheesy. They invest all their energy into creating a space-age, grease-lightening, or prehistoric atmosphere while the food is so-so, and you end up feeling silly for hanging out in Barney’s V.I.P. room. So when a friend suggested brunch at VYNL this past weekend, I was reluctant, but pleasantly surprised.

All three convenient locations: Hell’s Kitchen, UES, UWS and Chelsea have just enough “vynl” to be funky and fun without drowning you in some roller-disco, tripped out amusement park of a café.

Plates were about ten bucks each, fabulously yummy, and were interesting enough without being weird. The service was great and not one server said “groovy” or offered to take a souvenir photo.

They have generous drink specials Mon-Sun including $3 draft beers and $6 Absolute concoctions- not too shabby for The Vogue Cit-ay.

Grab a bite and see for yourself, or hit their bar for some chart-topping bevs. Click on www.vinyl-nyc.com. Rock on!

Xx

L