(Click on links to view images)
Hits the Spot
For a marriage of style with spot-on value, stock up on these Elliptical Dot etched glasses from Restoration Hardware, based on a cosmic fifties design. Don’t worry if you happen to break one – they’re only $3.95 each for a highball or an old-fashioned.
RESTORATION HARDWARE
935 Broadway, at 22nd Street/212-260-9479; and 103 Prince Street/212-431-3518
Pair of Spades
Kate Spade’s reaching out into new fashion territory again; now you can tote around her signature handbags with these smooth-as-butter Napa-leather gloves in dark brown or black, with a preppy pink leather bow-edged trim that’s delightfully Patty Duke ($155).
KATE SPADE
454 Broome Street/212-274-1991
Dining in Fine Feather
Marie Daâge’s brightly colored, hand-painted tableware is popular in Paris; New Yorkers can dress their tables with her whimsical pieces thanks to Hélène Benhamou, whose shop, A La Maison, stocks the largest selection of Daâge’s work in town. The solid-rimmed chargers ($59 a plate) come in six different colors, and each can be paired with one of six feather-painted dessert plates ($75).
A LA MAISON
1078 Madison Avenue, near 81st Street/212-396-1020
Dot Matrix
As last year’s pashminas give way to this year’s bolder and more playful bundlewear, polka dots are breaking out all over. Scottish designer Jo Gordon’s hand-knit wool scarves ($135) and hats ($110) come in three of-the-moment color combos: pink with red dots, brown with pink dots, and turquoise with brown dots.
KIRNA ZABETE
96 Greene Street/212-941-9656
A Sweet Sight
Think of it as a feast for the eye: Caterer Maribel Lieberman and eyewear designer Selima Salaun have joined forces in a charming new odd-couple NoLIta boutique, Lunettes et Chocolat. Lieberman imports handmade French chocolates (some of which are silk-screened in cocoa butter) and truffles as well as Belgian caramels and pralines. While you wait to have your sweets wrapped, try on a pair of two-toned eyeglasses from Salaun’s seriously hip Selima Optique line (chocolates $35 per half pound, glasses $275).
LUNETTES ET CHOCOLAT
25 Prince Street/212-334-8484
Check out New York Shops, our comprehensive guide to the city’s best stores, including a year’s worth of “Best Bets.” On sale at newsstands now. To order a copy, call 800-496-7833 ($4.99 plus $2 shipping and handling).
Click here for Best Bets Online at Yahoo!