Tag: nyc

Things That Make You Go Hmmm: Perfume in the (Luxury) Bathroom

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I don’t know why I even bother to read the Real Estate section of The New York Times. I’m not looking for a new place, and even if I were, I’m certainly not in the same income bracket as the people they feature in columns like “The Hunt” or articles like today’s “The Gold Mine in the Hall,” about older apartment buildings that repurpose former hallway closets or unused stairwells as additional rooms for existing apartments.

Here’s the story behind the bathroom in the picture above:

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A Visit to the Aroma M Atelier in Brooklyn, NYC

aroma m view

On Friday evening  I took the subway out to Brooklyn’s DUMBO neighborhood. DUMBO stands for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass; you can see the bridge here, from the Brooklyn side of the river, with the lower Manhattan skyline in the background. I took this photo from the roof of the building where Aroma M Perfumes has just opened its new “atelier.”

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On the Street: The Plaza Hotel in Self-Camouflage

plaza hotel

A few days ago, I passed the Plaza Hotel on 5th Avenue. I did a double-take and then I took this picture. Look closely: on its front facade, the Plaza is wearing a cleverly fitted covering, designed and detailed to look like the building itself. Apparently the hotel is under construction; the side facing Central Park, visible at the right in this photo, has its own mesh-like cover to protect passersby from falling debris.

I don’t know what the view from inside the Plaza must be these days, with all this work going on, but the trompe l’oeil tarp is a nifty way to deal with the exterior.

On the Street: Midtown West

poets security

I was on my way to dinner with friends in Midtown when I saw this sign posted in the doorway of an office building. I laughed as I took the picture. What on earth is a “Poets’ Security Force”? Is this force composed of moonlighting poets? Or is it a team of security officers working to keep poets safe? Does the entrance exam require all applicants to compose or recite verse? Is there a uniform, perhaps something incorporating black turtlenecks?

So many questions.

Image: photo by Tinsel Creation, somewhere in the West Forties.

A Visit to the Bite Beauty Lip Lab in NYC

Exterior

On Friday afternoon I decided to visit and review Bite Beauty’s pop-up “Lip Lab” boutique in SoHo. I’ve always been curious about Bite’s lip color line (food-grade ingredients! shades named after different wine varietals!), but I usually find the atmosphere in Sephora too chaotic for any sustained browsing. The Bite pop-up seemed like a perfect opportunity to learn more about the brand and maybe, just maybe, to purchase a lipstick…

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