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Check Mate
Men can get branded, too, now that Marc Jacobs has lavished the Louis Vuitton Damier check on sandals he’s created for that voguish house. Jacobs drew inspiration from the shoes worn by Franciscan monks, but his are stenciled-pony-hair-and-leather with squared-off heels. While chichi ladies must languish on impossibly long waiting lists to satisfy their logo cravings, men can just breeze in for their fix ($385).
LOUIS VUITTON/116 Greene Street/212-274-9090
Thirst Aid
You may have had it with the design element of the moment, the international symbol for the Red Cross. It’s been popping up on sweaters, totes, pillows, rugs, just about everything. But you’ll have to admit that it looks clean and fresh on Zodax’s new bathroom accessories. The 60-year-old California company is known for high-end, rather staid tablewares; these ceramic canisters, cups, and soap dishes are a radical departure (from $4.95 for a small cup to $9.95 for a soap dish to $19.95 for a canister).
MXYPLYZYK/125 Greenwich Avenue/212-989-4300
Easy Change
A dad’s frustrated attempts to change his squirming tot prompted his wife to create EZ-Baby. Unlike traditional onesies with impossible-to-snap snaps, Jody Fidler’s line of infantwear has hassle-free Velcro-ish closures. There’s an ever-so-soft cotton dress that’s actually a one-piece skirted bodysuit – no need for a diaper cover or panties. Just think how easy potty-training could be ($36; in sizes 12 to 24 months).
SAKS FIFTH AVENUE/Eighth floor
Web Sights
“Now I can actually see the furniture” is the common response to Catherine Holt’s new digs. The old Cobweb was a decorator’s secret source, a daunting jumble of tables, chairs, beds, and cupboards. Though Holt’s new outpost is no slouch in the abundance department, display is now her thing. So grand Peruvian armoires stand like soldiers in a row, nineteenth-century gilt mirrors (French, but found in Egypt) line one wall, Ethiopian Coptic crosses adorn a shelf, and vintage French bowls peer out from a glass-fronted cupboard. Holt’s love for Morocco translates into a tempting nook replete with pillows made from hand-woven burnooses, embroidered goat-skin poufs from Marrakech, footed hammered-metal tea-serving trays, pierced-metal sconces, and vegetable-dyed rugs from the High Atlas Mountains. It’s almost as enchanting as being there (from $65 for a pillow to $1,600 for a rug to $3,800 for an armoire to $5,200 for a gilt mirror).
COBWEB/440 Lafayette Street/212-505-1558
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