Awakening refreshed from a great night’s sleep on a consistent basis is the new luxury status symbol amongst the jet set. Sadly, like so many other desirable things in life, it can be hard to get. So how can one go about achieving sleep nirvana? The good news: there are lots of options out there. The bad news: they don’t come cheap.
Is there any conceivable reason to pay $100,000 for a canoe? Seriously? Dear reader, the answer is yes, if it’s made by Trent Preszler, the Founder of the Preszler Woodshop on the North Fork of Long Island. His canoes are objects of great beauty, made from hundreds of layers of sustainable timber, and his story is one that will inspire you to find the maker that lives inside us all.
Have you ever visited the North Fork, known by the in-crowd as the “the Brooklyn of Long Island?” The locale’s street cred as the weekend getaway for Brooklyn hipsters was fully solidified when an episode of the dearly-departed “Girls” took place on the North Fork. If you haven’t been, or haven’t been recently, you need to get yourself there as soon as possible. You’ll find a magical place of makers and artisans of all sorts, incredible farm-to-table restaurants, wineries, craft breweries and distilleries, charming roadside farm stands, and the essential scents of summer in the air everywhere you go.
Facing an historic number of retail shopping offerings, consumers today have begun to purchase more consciously with respect to quality, value and, for a number, sustainability. Artisanal, handcrafted, locally designed and/or sourced are the buzz…and the heart of New York Makers Marketplace and Magazine, a passion project of mine that has been a joy and delight (along with much hard work!) to bring to life. When I had the honor of serving as First Lady of New York, I spent time in all 62 counties, simultaneously appreciating both the untapped economic potential of local makers and wishing all New Yorkers (and others!) could know about and appreciate fully the state’s remarkable richness and opportunities for culture, adventure, and excitement. What many of us seek in world travel can be found right in our own backyard. As the Wizard of Oz’s Dorothy learned, “There’s no place like home” — Coincidentally (or not?), the Wizard’s author, L. Frank Baum [www.allthingsoz.org] was born in Chittenango, New York, which features a yellow brick road or two, the All Things Oz Museum and a …
The luxuries that are most engaging to me right now are the non-material ones. For me, luxury is all about having the opportunity to see and experience things that add meaning to my life, not just surrounding myself with stuff. I know many successful women share my view. When you can buy yourself anything, you think twice about acquiring luxurious objects for their own sake. I now take luxury in spending time with the people important to me, in magical places, and supporting the causes and craftspeople who align with my values. That’s not to say that I never want to buy beautiful things! It’s just that I want to understand their origin, and ideally I want them to stand for something. That has led me away from big corporate brands and toward individual artists. Part of the luxury of purchasing their work is knowing the authentic stories behind what they create. For example, I am lucky to know the founders of two my favorite jewelry brands, Bowen NYC and Foundrae, both based here in New York. These …
