Cool shop alert: Eurostyle Your Life, Seattle

by Alex Robertson Textor on

There is an ongoing lifestyle shift at play in the US and beyond. This shift is all about favoring clothes and household objects from sources that rely on sustainable practices, recycled materials, and small production batches. I wrote back in September about a number of shops in Sydney that have followed this general impulse along quite divergent aesthetic lines.

Seattle’s Eurostyle Your Life is part of this global trend, with an eclectic product base focused somewhat on European small-scale designers. Eurostyle Your Life’s inventory includes clothes, bags, jewelry, children’s toys, greetings cards, and various decorative objects for the home.

One tried-and-true favorite at Eurostyle Your Life is its selection of remarkably elegant shoulder bags crafted out of inner tubes by Amsterdam-based designer Doreen Westphal. Another beautiful standby is a set of notebooks by Andrea Kohler, a Swiss bookbinder resident in Seattle.

Newer objects of note include jewelry made out of recycled silver and pewter by Potluck Paris, washable Pappelina rugs (made out of discarded plastic) from Sweden, Tyvek coats by New York’s Mau, leather bags by an Argentine designer named Guadalupe Martiarena, and “Frizzle Sizzles,” wildly colorful and very attractive children’s miniature play stove tops made out of reclaimed tins by the dynamic Switzerland-based rafinesse & tristesse.

The shop’s current location opened in summer 2009; from that point through this past summer, Eurostyle Your Life operated at two locations. The prior venue, in Seattle’s Fremont district, opened its doors in April 2008. The current location benefits from the next-door wood workshop, which is actually owned by the store’s proprietors, Leslie Conti and Urs Berger. The workshop churns out a steady stream of high-quality children’s wooden toys for the store.

The resulting product base is a mash-up of craftsy wooden objects and very modern, very sustainable reclaimed and recrafted goods. The latter impulse is nicely summed up by the tagline of Mau, one of EYL’s suppliers: “post industrial folk wear.”

Eurostyle Your Life is located at 2008 Westlake Avenue in Seattle’s evolving Denny Triangle neighborhood.

Daily Pampering: Stylecations at the Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles

by Annie Scott on

The Ritz-Carlton has enlisted StyleChic‘s Aly Scott (pictured) to bring you a truly “Hollywood” getaway experience complete with a personal style consultation, exclusive shopping privileges and plenty of champagne.

According to a rep from the hotel, “Where do I shop?” is one of the most commonly asked questions at the front desk. Aly can certainly help with that, and help you hone your own style — whether you’re preparing for a special event or just looking for a great girlfriends or mother-daughter getwaway.

The custom packages from the Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles are the “Red Carpet Getaway” and the “Stylecation”:

Red Carpet Getaway (from $3,000 double occupancy or $2,500 single occupancy)

  • Guaranteed early check-in and late check-out
  • Two nights deluxe overnight accommodations at The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles
  • Club Lounge access; enjoy complimentary beverages and continuous culinary offerings throughout your stay
  • Dinner for two at chef Wolfgang Puck’s award-winning WP24 Restaurant & Lounge
  • Pre-arrival consultation with Aly Scott, founder of StyleChic
  • Six hour customized StyleChic experience with Aly Scott
  • Choice of $100 Spa Credit or 60 minute personal training session
  • Personalized welcome amenity hand-selected by StyleChic

Stylecation (from $1,800 double occupancy or $1,200 single occupancy)

  • Guaranteed early check-in and late check-out
  • Overnight deluxe overnight accommodations at The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles
  • Dinner for two at chef Wolfgang Puck’s WP24 Restaurant & Lounge
  • Three hour personalized StyleChic experience with Aly Scott
  • Choice of $100 Spa Credit or 60 minute personal training session
  • Personalized welcome amenity hand-selected by StyleChic

Both packages include a custom StyleChic itinerary tailored to you. Need some ideas? How about a champagne welcome in the newly opened VIP terrace lounge at Tods on Rodeo Drive? A private, white glove atelier service appointment with a high fashion fine jeweler known for his work with Beyonce, Rihanna and Zoe Saldana? You can also visit a custom couture atelier, have lunch at The Ivy, meet up and coming designers, hit the back room of an appointment-only vintage boutique and more, all chauffeured around in a private town car, of course.

We love these packages because they are designed to make you feel like a star — after all, who would want to fly to LA for a quick night or two to shop? Celebrities. They’re just like us.

Want more? Get your daily dose of pampering right here.

The Ila Wedge can make your hotel room safer

by Annie Scott on

Staying alone in a hotel room can make even an experienced traveler nervous. Whether you’re male or female, sometimes you just “get a bad feeling,” which can make it darn near impossible to sleep.

If you get a creepy vibe from someone at the front desk, it can be hard to relax in your room knowing that they have access to a key. The security chain is a good precaution, but we’ve all seen far too many movies (and Law & Order episodes) where predators bust open a hotel room door, ripping the security chain right out of the wall.

If you are looking for one more layer of security, here’s an idea: the ila Wedge Door Alarm. This bad boy may look cutesy, but it packs a 130 decibel siren — an achingly loud sound level considered the sonic “threshold of pain.” If someone tries to open your door, they will almost definitely be scared off by that alone. The fact that it’s a doorstop means that getting inside would require time and effort they’re not likely to expend while the alarm is going off.

It’s a pretty simple idea, and for an anxious traveler, a bargain at $19.99. You can get one at handpickedgiftstore.com.

Top five ways to conserve water when you travel

by Laurel Miller on

It’s not always easy to be eco-conscious when you travel, especially when it comes to conserving natural resources like water. Over one billion people don’t have access to clean water, says thewaterproject.org, a non-profit that works to bring relief to global communities suffering from this issue (to donate, click here). Yet, the often-necessary evil of purchasing bottled water in developing nations has made for an environmental nightmare, as anyone who’s ever seen entire beaches littered with discarded plastic containers can attest.

As travelers, we’re fortunate to have the money and resources to obtain clean water, but there are things we can do on the road to conserve this precious resource, as well as minimize the amount of plastic we use. Even better, most of the below tips are just as easily put into action at home. For more ideas on indoor and outdoor water conservation, click here.

1. Turn off sink when brushing your teeth, and washing dishes, your face, or shaving (legs, too, ladies, if you’re in a place with abysmal water pressure). Also be sure to fully turn off taps. Leaking faucet? Unless you carry spare washers with you, it may be tough to resolve this one, depending upon where you are, what type of place you’re staying in, and language barriers. Use your judgement on whether or not it’s worth alerting staff or your host.

[Photo credit: Flickr user Stacy Lynn Baum]2. Turn off the shower while you’re soaping up, shampooing, or shaving/shorten your shower.

3. If your water has been festering in a plastic bottle on a hot bus all day and you can’t bring yourself to drink it, don’t just pour it onto the ground or down the drain. Find a smart place to empty it: a tree, a vegetable garden, give it to a thirsty animal.

4. Pack lightweight, quick-drying, dark-colored clothing that can be washed in the sink, eliminating the need for washing machines. Allow them to soak for awhile (bring a flat sink-stopper with you, or stuff a piece of clothing in the drain, in a pinch). Drain, wring out, and refill sink with clean water, rather than using running water to wash and rinse.

5. If you need to hit a laundromat (even if you’re dropping it off), wait until you’ve got a full load, if possible. If you’re DIY, select the appropriate machine setting to ensure the right water level, and wash your clothes on cold–it will get them just as clean, and conserves energy.

It can be tough to postpone laundering when you’re backpacking, especially in hot, humid climates. I usually sink-wash to get by until the entire contents of my pack are ready for a trip to the laundromat. Yes, it’s kind of gross, but if you can’t handle slightly funky threads, you probably shouldn’t be a backpacker.

Tip: Bring your own water bottle (or reuse a plastic bottle several times). Not only does this save money, but you’re sparing the earth. thewaterproject.org, reports that it takes 1.5 million barrels of oil to meet the demand for U.S. bottled water production, alone. Plastic bottles take thousands of years to degrade, clogging landfills, or releasing toxic fumes if incinerated.

If you’re traveling in a country or region where it’s not safe to drink tap water, and you’ll be staying put for a couple of days, or you need to stock up (for a long bus trip, say), buy a gallon jug(s) and refill your own bottle as needed, rather than purchasing multiple units of smaller bottles. Be sure to pack some purifying tablets to keep it clean (they’re not a bad thing to use in suspect areas, anyway, since bottled water can be contaminated). If you need to purify your own water, there are pros and cons to the various types of filtration systems. An outdoor store like REI is a good place to ask for feedback and advice, as well as purchase BPA-free water bottles

Sigg makes excellent, eco-friendly water bottles from lined aluminum. They’re practically indestructable (mine has seen four continents and a lot of abuse since I got it four years ago, and it’s still in top shape), come in various sizes, have cool designs, and the caps are replaceable/have interchangeable styles.

[Photo credits: shower, Flickr user privatenobby; bottles, Flickr use procsilas]

Top five travel documents to email yourself before you travel

by Laurel Miller on

A lost or stolen passport or ATM card is a surefire way to add stress to any trip. As a preventative measure, I keep a list of travel documents (scanned, as necessary) in my inbox, so I have them at the ready should I run into trouble. Before you head out on your next trip, make sure you have the following documents, copied, prepped and prepared in the event you need them quickly:

1. Passport
If your passport mysteriously goes missing from the hotel security box or hostel front desk, or you’re mugged or robbed on the road, scanning a back-up copy can save you hours of paperwork and waiting. If you need a visa for travel, scan a copy of it, as well.

2. Medical and travel insurance cards (if applicable)
Not all medical insurance covers travel outside of the U.S., so check before you get on a plane. If you plan on visiting a region prone to civil unrest, natural disasters, or general sketchiness, have a medical condition, or are a fan of adventure travel, travel insurance might be worth looking into.

3. Bank and credit card collect call numbers
Keep the bank phone numbers nearby. It won’t bring your cards back if they’re lost or stolen, but at least you can report and cancel/put holds on them, ASAP. Most financial institutions have collect call numbers you can use from a foreign country.

4. Emergency contacts and relevant health information
At a recent appointment with a new physician, he noted that I was allergic to penicillin, and asked what happens if I take it. I explained I have a family history of anaphylaxis, and he asked why I don’t wear a medical alert bracelet, especially given my occupation as travel writer. It’s a good idea that never would have occurred to me. So while you’re typing up that list of contacts, including doctors, add in any life-threatening allergies or medical conditions. Should you wind up in a medical emergency, odds are someone, somewhere, will speak English. Or write it down in the language of the country you’re visiting (Lonely Planet Phrasebooks are invaluable for this kind of translation, even if you need to say it in Urdu or Thai).5. Itinerary
Be sure to send copies of your travel itinerary to family and/or a close friend. If you’re backpacking and don’t know where you’ll be staying or don’t have a world phone, the ubiquitousness of global cyber cafes makes it easier than ever to stay in touch, even in rural areas.

*Bonus round

U.S. Department of State contact info/Embassy and Consulate list
If you spend a lot of time overseas, especially if you fall into the category cited in #2, it’s a very good idea to register your trip with the U.S. Department of State. In the event of an emergency requiring evacuation, you’ll be in their system. It’s also helpful to keep the embassy/consulate link in your inbox and on your person, in case you or a fellow traveler runs into trouble.

Immunization card
Some countries or regions require you to present this, to prove you’ve had the necessary vaccinations before being admitted entry. Admittedly, I’ve never actually had to produce this document, but better safe than denied. For a list of recommended and required inoculations for destinations, go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention site.

[Photo credit: Flickr user cubicgarden]