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Straight Time
Cartier’s Santos, Tank, and Pasha watches have landed on some of the most fashionable wrists in town. The 21 Chronoscaph, this grand house’s newest, is likely to follow in that tradition. Big, sporty, and high-tech-looking (black dial, steel case, articulated rubber-and-steel band), it has major guy appeal. And, unlike many of the new watches around that do everything from sending e-mail to turning on the TV, the 21 Chronoscaph is gimmick-less; with a quartz movement and chronograph functions, it’s designed for keeping accurate track of time ($2,200).
CARTIER/653 Fifth Avenue, at 52nd Street/212-753-0111
Posh Blossom
The flowers that bloom in the spring have lots to do with Nicole Farhi’s new line of ceramics. Farhi, a sculptor as well as a fab fashion designer, was born in Nice and now lives in London, so her love of blooms is not surprising. These platters and plates were hand-thrown and -painted in England, and they’re as meticulously detailed as vintage botanical prints (from $90 to $175).
NICOLE FARHI/10 East 60th Street/212-421-7720
Portable Mackintosh
The mac, Brits’ traditional rain garb, was created around 200 years ago when Scotsman Charles Macintosh developed the process of spreading rubber on cotton. Today the fabric is still made the age-old way in Scotland, but now it’s likely to come in lots of sassy colors and hip shapes. A case in point: these waterproof messenger bags ($125).
A PERFECT DAY IN PARADISE/153 East 70th Street/212-639-1414
Shelf Life
Anthropologie, the definitive outpost for awesome reproductions, has done it again. When an eagle-eyed buyer found a thirties Art Deco rack in a café in Marseilles, the company quickly set about cloning it. What sets this chrome-plated beauty apart from others of the train-rack genre is that it’s outfitted with a mirror: the better for French diners to check out the tilt of their berets ($200).
ANTHROPOLOGIE/375 West Broadway/212-343-7070; and 85 Fifth Avenue, near 16th Street/212-627-5885
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