Square Meals

Plating is an essential part of the art of cooking, as many a reality tv or cooking show will attest. But for my money, no one surpasses the Japanese in food presentation. Yuzu in New York brings that concept home - literally - delivering their visually- and nutritionally-balanced Rejuvenating Sozai platters to your doorstep. Composed of 9 to 12 little dishes laid out on a multi-sectioned platter, the meal is based on the Japanese concept of eating as many varied types of food each day in small portions, which is supposedly what imbues the Land of the Rising Sun with the longest life-expectancy in the world.

What really gets me is how aesthetically pleasing it all looks, not to mention totally yummy. And frankly, I love the idea of sectioned-off containers of food. It's all so organized, like a puzzle waiting to be put together... in your gut. To top it all off, the containers are also eco-friendly and recyclable. What's the downside? Well, maybe the pricing might be at $23 a plate, but I'm a firm believer in rewarding good design with monetary patronage. They need to be pre-ordered around 3 days in advance, and have a limited delivery area in Manhattan as of this writing. Check them out at yuzuny.com.

New Product Lime

A few month ago I wrote about the iSlice and how it had become indispensable in my neurotic fear of identity theft. Now hot on its trail comes a whole slew of ceramic blade products from the same company, now less Apple-y sounding since they dropped the "i". Slice engaged the services of Karim Rashid, whose penchant for flourescent colors pervades the new line, albeit in just the one lime shade. I'm not a big fan or Rashid's, but the designs on these items are pleasing enough. I've tried the new Precision Cutter, essentially a ceramic version of an Xacto knive but done up as a biomorphic stick. It's actually even better than the iSlice for cutting out addresses, because I'm much more accustomed to holding things like a pen. It's also great for opening up packages, as I seem to be much more able to slice through packaging tape with the cutter angled like a pen (I found the straight-on direction necessary for the iSlice difficult sometimes).

The Letter Opener was a grand idea but to be honest it took some getting used to. I snagged the edges of the envelopes I tried them on the first few tries. I finally found that the best way to do it was to be firm and really speed through the top of the envelope, but that was on sample sheets of paper... I await my next load of circulars to test it out in earnest. I like the idea of it though - I tear through tons of junk mail and get quite a few paper cuts since my nicely designed Moma letter opener doesn't... uhm, cut it. I tend to revert to slipping a finger in through the flap sides. I'll give this Slice version a few more go-arounds, but at this point, I'm just okay with it.


Anyhow, at less than $7 each, these should be handy little tools to have around the house. I've not tried the rest of the product range, and - full disclosure - I was sent these items as a result of reviewing the iSlice. But they seem promising. You can check out the entire range on the Slice website at slicehome.com.

Cover Story

Sure they're better for the environment, but compact flourescent bulbs still aren't winning any design kudos for their coiled, unstreamlined looks. Sure they look fine hiding behind a shade, but task lights, desk lamps and spotlighting will still reveal their less than stellar appearance. Solution? The Flourescent Fixer, a translucent cover that attaches to the bulb, and adds a bit of aesthetically-pleasing light shielding to boot. Adaptivelightingsolutions.com has a slew of sizes for various uses, even a few color options (as well as a few "decorative" ones that kind of defeat the purpose) and start at just under $20 for a pack of three. Get them here.

Picture Flame

Just because we have (small) studio apartments doesn't mean we should forgo the luxuries of a fireplace come the cold winter months. Like most apartment furnishings, all we need is something appropriately scaled. The Apollo Tabletop Fireplace is about the size of a framed photograph at 4.75"W x 11"L x 13.75"H, but not quite so static and just a little hotter (okay, a lot hotter). A modern glass enclosure keeps the fire at bay, but allows for portable winter coziness. Consider it the supersized alternative to candlelight, but the economy version of an actual fireplace. Now you can invite your friends over to tell stories around a fire, or serve some fireside brandy to a date. I doubt you should toast marshmallows over it, but it is almost 5" wide so you never know. At $650, it's not exactly cheap, but if you amortize it over your monthly rent, it's a steal. And of course, so your costs don't go into replacing burned items, take all necessary precautions with fire. Available at Generate.

Cut In Half

Is there a singular form of the word "scissors?" Because if there was, this letter opener would benefit from the distinction. Thoroughly modern by being so old school, it looks like something a seamstress would have used back in the 60s. It would make a fab gift for a stylish friend or co-worker, and we all know we should start thinking of the holidays now. In black plated steel, it's the kind of objet you want hanging around your desk, for that added element of clever styling-- and prompting less visionary onlookers to wonder if you broke an old pair of scissors yet seem unwilling to toss the remaining branch. (And who knew half of a pair was called a "branch?") Get it for under $40 from Atypyk, who live up to their name by bring you only the most atypical offerings.

Turn On The Heat

Here's a clear indicator of our reaction to caffeine: this heat-sensitive mug changes from black to white and from "OFF" to "ON" with the additional of steaming java (or any other hot liquids for that matter). No ambivalence here. And frankly, not much else to it - just a clever color change to indicate that your hot beverage needs have been filled. Get it from Charles & Marie for $25.

Interior Tweetments

Today's cute furnishings are tomorrow's "What the hell were they thinking?" tschochkes, but for now I'm loving these copper mercury glass birds from West Elm. A simplistic take on the near-iconic glass birds by Oiva Toikka for Iitalia, the metallic color is the perfect warm shade of neither-gold-nor-silver that should go with just about anything, especially with warmer wood finishes. I might like a glass animal more than most people, but at $24 for the larger and $16 for the smaller size, these are both clever enough and simple enough to add a pop of interest to any interior. Get them from West Elm.