Here at T+L, beating jetlag is something of a sport. So we’re all pretty pumped for The Layover—the new show from globetrotting chef-author Anthony Bourdain, he of No Reservations notoriety—premiering at 9pm ET/PT tonight on the Travel Channel. In ten hour-long episodes, Tony travels everywhere from London to Hong Kong to Los Angeles in search of the best that each city has to offer.
Here’s the catch: the entire series was shot in 30 days, and he has only 24-48 hours in each place. The result? A whirlwind world tour that’s peppered with all the biting Bourdain commentary we’ve come to love and expect, even if it’s tempered with a dash of jetlag. I got a sneak peek at the first episode (spoiler alert!), in which Tony spends a day in Singapore.
This Giorgio Armani mother-of-pearl eye palette ($98)—created by the brand’s couture jewelry designers—doubles as an allover illuminator.
An Isla Das Rocas scrub ($36) by Red Flower will soften your skin with botanical oils and sea salts from the islands off Brazil’s southern coast.
La Prairie produces nutrient-rich sea plants for its antiaging Advanced Marine Biology line, including a moisturizer ($135) for the face, eyes, and neck.
Meant to evoke the essence of a Maldivian beach, this Linnea’s Lights soy-wax candle ($30) has hints of cardamom, mandarin, and salty air.
How’s this for a flame of the month? Paris-based ceramics company Astier de Villatte recently unveiled a range of scented candles inspired by some of the world’s loveliest locales. With hints of, say, the wisteria-covered trellises of the Grand Hôtel in Cabourg, France—where Marcel Proust penned part of his classic Remembrance of Things Past—and a patina to match, they’ll surely transport you to another time or place.
It may be getting chilly in the Baltics, but Helsinki is heating up. Finland’s biggest city—perhaps best known for its colorful Marimekko prints and Modernist works by the late, great Alvar Aalto, not to mention its abundant saunas—has been named the 2012 World Design Capital.
If you like Globe-Trotter luggage as much as some of us, you’ll love this: for the first time in its 114-year history, the British brand, known for creating vulcanized fiberboard cases (Sirs Winston Churchill and Edmund Hilary would attest to their durability), has launched a collection of discreetly stylish carry-ons, totes, and accessories all handcrafted using—wait for it!—super-soft leather.
A spicy addition to Dior’s La Collection Privée, Patchouli Imperial(from $150) sources its namesake ingredient in Indonesia. Also in the mix: Sicilian mandarin and Russian coriander.
Lubin Paris—one of the world’s oldest perfumeries—has re-created Marie Antoinette’s personal scent using a formula from the late 1700’s. Black Jade(from $130) captures the essence of her rose gardens at Versailles, with hints of vanilla and sweet-smelling tonka beans from the Caribbean.
For Baiser Volé(from $75), Cartier’s in-house perfumer Mathilde Laurent explored the fleur-de-lis—a symbol of royalty throughout Europe—incorporating extracts from the lily’s pistil, petals, and leaves.
Creed donates up to 5 percent of the proceeds from Royal-Oud($300)—with an opulent keynote derived from Indian agar wood—to children’s health clinics in the subcontinent.
Lunu(from $120)—part of Molton Brown’s Navigations Through Scent collection, which focuses on a single country in each of its five fragrances—has a heart of white jasmine, handpicked in Egypt.
The cluttered realm of online shopping is becoming a little more refined thanks to a new breed of websites that deliver the goods with a highly selective approach. By asking tastemakers to step in as guest curators, they give you insider, and often exclusive, access to items from around the world. Ahalife.com allows you to buy one unique item daily from international designers. Whether it’s a cotton pestemal (hammam towel) made by local artisans in Buldan, Turkey, or a hand-beaded, tribal-chic necklace from London-based jeweler Fiona Paxton, everything is chosen by notable travelers such as Daniel Boulud or Petra Nemcova.
Photographer Brown W. Cannon III talks to T+L's Christine Ajudua:
“Most days when you’re riding around Waimea Bay, it’s open and calm and really beautiful. It’s right in the middle of Oahu’s North Shore, this five-mile stretch that’s known to be one of the world’s greatest surfing destinations. Waimea doesn’t break often—not until the waves are twenty feet or bigger—but when it does, it is a monumental experience. The day I took this photo, the swells were reaching fifty feet—the kind that roll in only every few years. I’ve been going to the islands since I was born, and have seen this maybe two or three times. There are plenty of guys who will hop planes from all over the globe to surf sets like these, but what amazes me most is that so many people will travel there just to witness them. In Hawaii, there’s a real sense of respect for the ocean—the locals talk about having a spiritual connection to it—so there’s something poignant about seeing all these tan bodies converge on the sand, captivated by the Pacific.”
Photo by Brown W. Cannon III / Intersection Photos
Roll It: On your face, lips, or body, that is. Using natural antioxidants and a clear form of zinc oxide, the Own Active Block ball($15; ownproducts.com) gives you all-around SPF 30 coverage without any surfer streaks. Plus, it’s fun to toss—and easy to find—in your beach bag.
Sweep It: A translucent mineral powder that flows through a portable, refillable brush, Chantecaille Protection Naturelle SPF 46($65; chantecaille.com) prevents both shining and burning, and gives you a healthy glow to boot.
Swipe It: Combining water-resistant UV protection with soothing green tea and vitamin E, these fragrance-free, SPF 30 Supergoop Sunscreen Swipes($34 per box of 21; nordstrom.com) are great for sensitive skin. Individually wrapped, they’re also perfect for travel.
Wear It: The cotton-poplin Mott 50 tunic($119; mott50.com) proves that sun-protective clothing can also be stylish. The brand’s easy, UPF 50 dresses and tops get the Skin Cancer Foundation’s stamp of approval—and T+L’s, too.
Wonder what Kate Middleton’s going to wear down the Westminster Abbey aisle this Friday? Or what Michelle Obama’s going to wear on just about any given day of the week? Recently, I chatted with T+L contributing editor and style guru Kate Betts—hot off the heels of publishing her new book,Everyday Icon: Michelle Obama and the Power of Style (Clarkson Potter, $35)—about the fashion sensibilities of first ladies around the globe.
Q: People the world over have been enraptured by Michelle Obama’s sense of style. Considering her presence on the international stage, what sort of statement is she making about herself—and America—through what she wears?
A: She is making a statement about the power of confidence. The idea of wearing young, unknown American designers perfectly mirrors many of the ideas her husband campaigned on: new faces, new ideas, change. And at the recent state dinner for the President of China, she made a very bold statement by not wearing a dress designed by an American. A lot of people were upset about that—particularly the American fashion industry. But to my mind her self-possession and confidence define American style better than any label in her dress ever would.
Q: People the world over have been enraptured by Michelle Obama’s sense of style. Considering her presence on the international stage, what sort of statement is she making about herself—and America—through what she wears?
