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David Bowie.
Then. Now. Always.

Listen

Another example of the perfect simplicity of new technology. The Bose i-pod speaker takes the place of stereo equipment and stacks of cd's and piles of cords, plus saturates your environment with velevety sound. Turn it as high as you like (there will be no distortion or thwacking). I love that Bose doesn't make it difficult by having a thousand models to choose from. They make one thing and the only choice you have to make is: white or black.

Super stainless steel

Stainless steel appliances have graduated to classic status by virtue of their mutability. They work with high-tech super modern decor as well as traditional and rustic and everything in between. They are the white shirt of kitchen design.

TV guide

Most of us have a television or two in our home. Most of us have struggled with designing a living space around the television at one time or another. Should we put it in a cabinet/armoire? Should we have it out or behind doors? What do we do with the cable boxes/ dvd player? How do we hide the hot mess of wires snaking out of the back of that thing?
This is what makes the flat-screen the greatest electronic advance since the I-Pod. Take something that most of us want in our homes and make it sleek and smart-looking even when it's not in use.

Classic cocktail

The martini will never go out of style. In a world where so much that was deemed the height of sophistication is now verboten ( cigarettes, fur, the one-night stand) a grown-up can still count on being able to proudly order a vodka martini, straight-up with a twist.

Two women

Anna Wintour is the editor-in-chief of American Vogue. Carine Roitfeld is the editor-in-chief of French Vogue. Both women have their own style and very much stick to their look and embody the concept of personal style.

Tom Ford is back

I would want to see this movie even if Tom Ford were only the costume designer. But he is the screenwriter and the director. I would also want to see this movie even if it did not get strong, glowing reviews, but it has. And can't you tell just from the poster that the look of the movie will be a powerful part of it's appeal? The angle of the shot, the gorgeous, disheveled beauty of Julianne Moore and Colin Firth, all pale skin and coppery hair, but punctuated by her black dress and eyeliner, and his glasses. This is a movie for grown-ups and I can not wait to see it.

Cover stories

Here are a few all-time classic album covers. For me just a glance at any one of these records brings back strong memories of times in my life that I associate with the music of each one, but more than that I think they are each also definitive imagery of the artists they represent. Bruce Springsteen = working class rock and roll; Fleetwood Mac = mystical melodies; Rolling Stones = sex gods; Carly Simon= smoldering songwriter.

Iconic photograph

Photograph of Nastassja Kinski by Richard Avedon published in Vogue magazine 1981.

Stylish foyer

I love the look of this foyer. Most of us don't live in a place with an expansive area in which to come and go. The large cabinet/console table is great for storing all of the things we grab on the way out the door, and for stashing the other things that we drag in.

I would add a chair or two flanking the cabinet and have fun changing out the display on top to reflect the seasons or holidays.

It's always about the shoes

Shoe styles come and go ( I'm talking about you, platforms ), but Manolo Blahnik classic styles are truly timeless. Always feminine and lovely, that thin leather sole holds up the woman who holds up the world.

Edit, edit, edit

Style is a simple way of saying complicated things. Jean Cocteau

Our life is frittered away by detail...simplify, simplify. Thoreau

Elegance is refusal. Diana Vreeland

Favorite things

What is there not to like from Hermes? I didn't even include great things for the house like the ashtray or beach blanket. Here are three favorite things from the iconic French store. The Cape Cod watch in white leather, the H buckle belt, and a billowing scarf in Hermes orange.

And of course the Birkin.

The jewelry wardrobe

The jewelry equivalent of the trench coat, the little black dress and the ballerina flat. All you really need.