Check out my latest apartment purchase. Moving into a new place is an opportunity to clean out and upgrade. We chose to do both and finally parted with the sturdy and always affordable IKEA desk. It did the job for years, but eventually you need to move on to bigger and better.
When we decided to buy a custom desk for the new office, Staples, Ikea and Pottery Barn were nowhere on the list of places to find this essential new item. It had to be an investment piece that met the needs of a self-employed, work from home designer and matched our future home decor. Without thinking twice we headed to our favorite place, Olde Good Things. They create custom tables from their warehouse/studio in Scanton, PA according to your desired height, size and stain. They recycle old wood from barns and other buildings and allow you to choose your legs to create a table that meets your exact needs.
We choose some cool, old metal table legs that came from some factory in Providence, RI. The company name is stamped on the legs and the once green paint is stylishly chipping. We chose our wood and color stain, provided height and length measurements and about 5 weeks later our new desk was delivered to our apartment.
It could not be more perfect and fits nicely into the new home office space surrounded by computers, books, fun knick knacks and plant life. We move on to lamps and a TV stand…
Weleda Pomegranate Regenerating Hand Cream $12.50
Attention Quiet In the Back Readers!
As a follow up to my recent Winter Hands post, Weleda and Quiet In The Back are hosting a product giveaway sweepstakes! 3 lucky readers have the chance to win a retail-size, 1.7 oz, sample of the new Pomegranate Regenerating Hand Cream. See below for product details and Enter Now!
How to Enter:
Step 1. Write in your “Winter Hands Blues” by posting a comment here.
Step 2. Become a follower of Quiet In The Back and Weleda on Twitter for the latest updates.
Step 3. Provide a valid email address in your comment so you can be contacted if you win.
The 3 readers with the most need for a cure for their “Winter Hands Blues” will win the prize! We are here to cure, one hand at a time! Enter by January 28, 2010.
Follow Quiet In The Back on Twitter – click here
Follow Weleda on Twitter – click here
Become a Weleda Facebook Fan – click here
This winter, I have had dry hands since December 21 and this year I vowed to combat it with a consistent hand care routine. I started using Weleda’s Skin Food each night before bed and in a matter of days my dry skin was gone and rarely returned even throughout the day. This new Pomegranate Regenerating Hand Cream has a lighter texture than the Skin Food with a subtle smell of fruit that reminds me of an outdoor farm market in the summer. It has invigorating smells that are almost unidentifiable but pleasant and not sweet or sugary like most fruit scented body care. I definitely recommend this cream as a daily treatment for dry skin or anyone looking to preserve and revitalize their hand’s skin.
This new hand cream is made with organic shea butter, avocado oil and olive oil. It will leave your hands smooth and soft and prevent loss of moisture in your skin. The entire body care line with a body wash and body oil contains pomegranate seed oil from Turkey that is full of antioxidants and helps to enhance your skin’s natural vibrancy, plus it helps reduce wrinkles and pigmentation.
Any way we can prevent our hands from looking like those of a wicked witch from a classic Disney movie like Snow White should be practiced daily and with joy!
Thank you Weleda and Good Luck! Looking forward to hearing from you and your poor hands!
Weleda Pomegranate Regenerating Body Care available at Weleda.com
It takes me forever to finish a book because I am such a slow reader and night reading puts me right to sleep. But this book took especially long due a short hiatus during the wedding activities. But I finally came back to it during the holidays and I am happy that I finally got to dive back in to a story about a fascinating life.
I don’t know much about cooking or the details of the legacy of Julia Child and I refused to see the movie Julie and Julia before finishing the book. But I do like to read about famous people and their life stories and always struggled to choose a biography from the vast amount of interesting people of the past and present. What drew me to this book was the story of an American who truly experienced life abroad, adopted a new culture and embraced a life that married domestic and international culture to develop a unique lifestyle.
My Life in France is Julia Child’s personal story of her life leading up to her cook book fame. She gives intimate details about her life with husband Paul Child and their journeys throughout Europe as Julia discovers her life calling. At many stages in my own life I have contemplated moving to Italy or Spain and just living for a few years to experience a different way of life. Perfecting a foreign language, experimenting with new foods and taking advantage of historic relics that have existed for centuries in practically every city in Europe. So Julia’s tales of befriending the local butcher, building a country home in Provence and taking road trips to neighboring towns gets my imagination flowing all over again.
Whether you like to cook or not, or like French food or not, you will certainly take away an inspiring story about a woman who discovers her passion and talent for cooking, by accident, and pours her heart and soul and life into growing that passion into an accidental success. I wish I could find my one 1 thing that I could devote that much time and effort to and not get bored, I envy her.
I enjoyed the black and white photos that appeared throughout the book that help create a clear picture of Julia’s vivid descriptions. More interestingly, the majority of the photos were taken by her husband who also boasted multiple creative talents. Seeing a creative couple thrive together made the underlying love story all the more heart-wrenching since creatives don’t always mix well.
Learning to cut a chicken with Chef Bugnard
Julia in her first Paris kitchen, "My kitchen positively gleamed with gadgets."
I finally watched the movie last night and was plesantly surprised. Meryl Streep was fantastic portraying the light-hearted and quirky personality of Julia and Amy Adams is always a pleasure. Although I didn’t read Julie and Julia, I think they cleverly combined the two stories without any confusion or story interruption.
They look very French chic at the Premiere!
Of course I had to go look-up old footage of the real Julia to remind me what she was really like on TV. Here’s a funny side-by-side video of Meryl playing Julia and Julia herself making her famous omelette!
This past weekend I attended a work convention at the Red Rock Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. I have now stayed at this hotel twice, once for business and once for pleasure. Las Vegas isn’t one of my top destinations seeing that I don’t gamble, barely drink, and have Broadway in my home town. But seeing that it is a mecca of convention centers that can host large crowds, I have found myself there on multiple occassions.
The interesting thing about Red Rock is its location. Approximately 30 minutes from the airport and therefore “The Strip”, the hotel is off the beaten path and within the Red Rock Canyon. So you can imagine that the views surrounding the hotel and from the guest rooms are extraordinary and a calming environment to wake up to. Many people asked on this last trip why anyone would come to Las Vegas and stay at the Red Rock, so far from the rest of the action. I found the answer quite simple; all of the amenities of a Las Vegas hotel and casino in a more remote destination and minus the over-the-top flash and glitz of the staples like the Bellagio and Ceasar’s Palace. The hotel has a spa and fitness center, beautiful outdoor pool, various quality restaurants, a casino, a conference center, Red Rock Lanes bowling alley and a Regal Cinemas Imax theatre. Plus the hotel offers adventure spa excursions for those who crave some fresh air, outdoor activity and want to take advantage of the amazing nature steps away.
When I stayed here a few years ago, the hotel was still under going construction. We did make spa appointments for 60 minute massages and I definitely remember them being relaxing. We also spent one day on an outdoor excursion that included a hike, a visit to natural hot springs and kayaking. We crossed over into Arizona and got a close-up of the Hoover Dam. By total luck, we were the only ones that signed up for the excursion that day and we ended up with a private tour for just the two of us. It was a fantastic day and I wish I had more time to do it again this time around. On this trip I also learned a tasty coffee combination from the kayaking guide.
Red Rock Coffee:
- Organic coffee from Trader Joe’s (or your favorite blend)
- 1 teaspoon of organic honey
No milk, no refined sugar, simple and naturally sweet goodness.
While I was there this past weekend, I ate at the Japanese restaurant, Hachi, twice for dinner. I recommend the Lobster Tempura Roll, the LSD Roll with spicy shrimp and crab, avocado and spicy ginger mayo and the Okonomiyaki-Japanese pizza.
My company hosted an evening event at the bowling alley which is the biggest I’ve ever seen. Over 50 lanes and loads of fun if you’re taking a night off from the slots. Also, if you happen to be traveling to Las Vegas with children, which is still a mystery to me but plenty of people do it, this would be a fun activity for the family.
So all in all, if you have to travel to Vegas, or choose to visit for the first time, I would recommend the Red Rock, unless you are looking for “The Hangover” type of experience!
Quiet In The Back bouquet against red fall leaves
Mr. Quiet In The Back's boutonniere
1 of my many garden-themed floral centerpieces
I have 5 friends who are engaged or recently married and it seems weddings are a topic of conversation these days. Vendor recommendations changing hands, the globe being explored for the percet honeymoon destination and selecting the perfect gown.
At the same time, it has been very cold and dreary in NYC with no sunlight and certainly nothing colorful other than store windows to look at. So every once in a while when I need to see something inspirational or aspirational I re-visit a blog called Little Pheasant that is managed by Brooklyn florist, Denise Fasanello. Denise was recommended to me by my caterer and she was the only florist we met with, we loved her style instantly!
The Little Pheseant blog always has something colorful, creative and full of life to look at if you’re interested in ideas for floral arrangements or simply like to look at live art. Denise showcases all of her decor work from weddings, events, trade shows and eye-catching things she spots around town or online. After planning a party of my own, I am always fascinated to see what other people chose for their floral decorations and I am always impressed with Denise’s execution. The garden-inspired theme of the flowers at my wedding were certainly the center of attention within the tent and I can only imagine that Denise’s floral arrangements produce the same effect at all of her events.
If you are in need of a florist for any occassion who is passionate about her work, very creative and artistic and extremely easy and pleasant to work with, Denise Fasanello Floral Design is definitely the vendor for you. And if I read correctly on the blog, she is also working on a new venture to sell handmade creations under the Little Pheasant name on Etsy.com.
Here are some of my favorite flower/plant/bouquet arrangements featured on Little Pheasant over the last few months. Thanks Denise for creating exactly what I envisioned for my wedding and providing us with beautiful memories that I can always look fondly upon in photos for years to come!
View from the bedroom.
Villa Sassolini was the second hotel we stayed in while travelling through Tuscany on our honeymoon. We drove to the small town on Moncioni, near Montevarchi in the Chianti region, after our four night stay in the town of Lucca. Approximately 3 hours southeast of Lucca, Moncioni is perched atop a hill surrounded by olive farms and scenic views of the Tuscan countryside. By the time we finally made it up the steep hill of long, windy, narrow roads, we came upon the non-descript villa that you may mistake for someone’s grand private home. The villa did used to be a summer home for a local family, possibly royal of sorts if I recall correctly, and was eventually converted into a villa to host travelers. The accommodations were great modern amenities, a restaurant, outdoor pool, friendly and attentive staff and spectacular views. By the time we arrived in late October, the tourist season was coming to an end and we were one of few guests left. So for us the atmosphere was very quiet, but I’ve been told in the summertime that guests really enjoy the quiet outdoors and spend hours by the pool socializing. Since the town of Moncioni does not have much to offer, we spent each day taking day trips to surrounding towns like Sienna and Cortona and experiencing Tuscany by car which is really the only way. Most places were at least an hour away so it was somewhat inconvenient to make those drives each day, but in the end it was a pleasant stay and the other traveler reviews also rave about their stays.
Read the complete Villa Sassolini review on my Trip Advisor Contribution, “Secluded Hilltop Italian Villa”.
The bedroom.
Local olive trees.
Villa Sassolini in late October
No matter how much water I drink, cashmere-lined gloves I wear or fleece pockets I bury my hands in during the winter time, dry, cracked skin seems unavoidable. So this year I am amping up my treatment routine with a more strategic and diligent approach to maintaining presentable winter hands. Aside from keeping my daily water intake as high as possible, I have tested some intense hand creams that I apply throughout the day and after washing my hands that seem to be making a big improvement on the red reflections in my poor hands. Here are my latest cream, salve and skin food recommendations for soft hands this season.
Kiehl’s Ultimate Strength Hand Salve
Kiehls.com $19.50
This heavy duty hand treatment is thick and really penetrates your skin. It has a plesant herbal scent and is made with botanical oils like avocado and eucalyptus. This is placed next to my keyboard at work and I apply at least twice a day after my consistent, germophobic hand-washing.
Usa.Weleda.com $17.00
I received this product in the 2009 Allure Best of Beauty Awards gift bag. I was familiar with the packaging but knew nothing else of the brand. It claims this is for rough and dry skin. I tested this first on my face and realized it was way too intense for that skin. So it is now the perfect solution on hands and feet after a shower before bed to let it soak in overnight. One of the unexpected ingredients is extract from the Pansy flower that is known to calm irritation. Weleda is a world-wide brand that focuses on natural and holistic products using their signature Biodynamic farming methods. They offer a range of skincare and bodycare products as well as products for mother and baby. They even have their own spas located throughout the country that I may need to investigate.
Here are the 2 new winter hand washes I have added to my bathroom and kitchen to help aid in my mission for touchable hands.
BigelowChemists.com $12.00
Intense sweet and tart scent with nourishing lemon oil. You can always depend on C.O. Bigelow for all of your toiletry needs at a reasonable price. Also Made in the USA.
Roger and Gallet Bamboo Perfumed Cream Soap
ShopsLondon.com $18.00
Subtle, clean and fresh scent with a moisturizing cream texture. The ultimate luxury hand soap with package design to complement any decorated washroom with plesant decor and function.
I was tricked. We had agreed to NO GIFTS this year due to out of the ordinary life expenses at the end of the year, like moving! But Christmas morning I awoke to a box with screaming neon letters and my eyes twinkled. I knew that whatever lay inside that little cardboard box would be lovely and full of sparkle.
My new Alexis Bittar earrings will be perfect to glam up any everyday outfit or compliment the mint green Yigal Azrouel dress I plan to wear to my friend’s wedding in Florida this May.
Fun Facts about Alexis Bittar:
- Born in Brooklyn, NY
- Designed Burburry’s first couture jewlery collection with the famous plaid print on lucite
- Worked with Patricia Fields on the jewlery for Sex & The City
- Has 2 retail stores, 353 Bleecker Street and 465 Broome Street
- Jewlery sold in boutiques, department stores and museums domestically and internationally
Check out Alexis’ Blog for the latest designs, editorial credits and exclusive sales.
alexisbittar.com/blog
Small Rhodium Hermitage Crystal Teastained Purse Earring
Alexis Bittar Lucite, alexisbittar.com
Back from a wedding and honeymoon, swamped at work, preparing to move and then, the holiday season. I love giving gifts; one could say it is one of my favorite pastimes! Wrapping presents, finding the most unique holiday cards of the season and the feeling of handing someone I love a little piece of happiness. This year, I’ve been missing that feeling since I’ve barely made it to one store to shop for one present. I’ve been forced to do all my browsing online where I can’t touch and feel or compare things side by side, but this will have to do for 2009. So here are my favorite finds for all friends and family this holiday.
CHILDREN:
A stylish, well-designed classic.
Anthropologie.com $14
Earth Club and Kid Friendly
Planet Earth: The Complete Series
BN.com $55.99
Camelbak Dinosaur Water Bottle
REI.com $14
Creepy Stocking Stuffer
Momastore.org $5
Winter Coziness
L.L. Bean Wicked Good Slippers
LLBean.com $24.95
WOMEN:
(where to begin?)
The Ultimate in Hair Luxury
Shu Uemura Art of Hair Holiday Hair Kits
ShuUemuraArtofHair-usa.com $123
Lucite Love
Alexis Bittar Gold Burnt Amber Crystal Mosaic Drop Hoop Earring
AlexisBittar.com $225
Stella Yoga
Studio Performance Three-Quarter Tights and Yoga Tank
ShopAdidas.com $75
ShopAdidas.com, $75
A Healthy New Year
Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson
Amazon.com $13.60
Classic Camel
Dooney & Bourke Leather Dillen Satchel
Dooney.com $235
MEN
(always a challenge!)
Polo Prep
Polo.com SALE $79.99
Winter Pine Scent
C.O. Bigelow Barber Cologne Elixir Green No. 1582
BigelowChemists.com $19.50
Swiss Army Timepiece
Victorinox Swiss Army Chrono Classic
SwissArmy.com $425
Icelandic Living
66 Degrees North Mosfell Men’s Jacket
66North.com $126
An ABSOLUTE Must See
Bn.com $27.99, $34.99
After traveling from Salzburg, Austria to Florence, Italy, we picked up a rental car and headed straight to the Tuscan countryside. Any description you have ever heard of Tuscany is probably totally accurate. I don’t feel like I could possibly add anything original to the mix, but it is a glorious place with beautiful scenery, medieval relics, incomparable food and wine and a lot of pure olive oil. We researched a lot of villas before deciding upon Villa Marta, but it wasn’t a hard decision to make. The establishment has impressive user reviews and I could barely find anything negative to read, which is very rare when it comes to hotel reviews. We were 100% satisfied with our stay there and it was by far one of our favorite parts of the whole trip. The family that owns the villa is warm and friendly and accommodating and we really felt at home there. It was exactly the type of Tuscan experience we were hoping for. I would recommend Villa Marta to anyone looking for a relaxing and quiet getaway in the Tuscan hills. Only 1 hour outside of Florence, about 30 minutes from Pisa, and about 20 minutes from the center of town. We found that dividing our time between visiting the town, spending time on their property and exploring the area with bicycles was a great way to really experience that area of Tuscany. Plus, the villa’s restaurant, Boton D’Oro, was so good that we ate there every night for dinner. It was wonderful not to have to drive through town each night trying to find a new place to try. I’m still dreaming of the perfectly manicured lawn, the hills in the distance and the smile on the owners face each morning when we arrived for breakfast. Buon Giorno!
Read the complete Villa Marta review on my TripAdvisor contribution.
The private chapel and olive grove
The view from the side patio
The outdoor pool
The unforgettable pork loin made in cooking class
