Kiddie Manicures, Statement Footrests, and More New Stuff in New York Stores -- New York Magazine

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Best Bets: Week of January 26, 2015


How to Give Your Little One a Manicure
Three tips from Teychenne Whitley, whose Milk and Cookies Kids Spa and Salon, home of the Slimy Booger manicure for boys, opens February 1 at 1196 First Avenue.

1. Make it fizz. �Girls and boys love bath bombs, which explode in a bowl of warm water where you can soak their hands. Whole Foods sells them in every color you can imagine.�
2. Act professional. �Rinse with soap and massage the hands with a scented moisturizer, then do some light shaping with a nail file. The more multi-sensory the experience, the more exciting it is for the kid.�
3. Go vegan. �We use a new vegan-polish line called Ella + Milla, which comes in seven-milliliter bottles that are the right size for 4-to-8-year-olds. It’s also quick-drying, for short attention spans.�


2x2: Statement Footrests
The ottoman empire.


Darkwood:
Reasonable: Left, Sole ottoman, $93 at allmodern.com.
Splurgy: Right, Homeware Jasper ottoman, $700 at target.com.


Blondwood:
Reasonable: Left, yellow wool ottoman, $315 at etsy.com/shop/habitables.
Splurgy: Right, Alvorada ottoman, $998 at anthropologie.com.



Ask a Shop Clerk
In late November, Bowery native Reggie Yu opened Avant Garde by MMC, a hybrid vape lounge and art gallery, at 319 Grand Street.

Really, vaping in a gallery? It adds a nice tone to the whole experience; there’s a little fogginess in the air. Some art people say it’s not cool, but we have good ventilation. Right now we’re working with Android Jones, who’s a premier digital artist. Before that it was the Brazilian street artist Matheus Goulart.

What’s the vape selection like? I have a 25-foot bar across from the gallery wall where I sell the tanks and e-liquids and let people try the flavors for free. Orange cream is really popular right now, and I love the litchi flavor, and Key-lime cheesecake. But a lot of smokers go with a menthol or tobacco flavor. If you come in, drop a pack of cigarettes on the bar, and tell me you’re quitting, I’ll give you a 25 percent discount on your first pen.



Three in One
Nilea Alexander of the new Crown Heights vintage shop Marche Rue Dix (1453 Bedford Ave.) on cold-weather comforts.

Sip: Cafe Touba ($4 by the cup, $14 for a one-kilogram bag). �This Senegalese coffee has a special ingredient called djar that’s very peppery. People visit from our café next door all the time to buy our bags of ground beans.�
Wrap: Boxy ’80s blazer (from $58). �I like Aztec prints and textures. Even if it’s from the ’80s, our coats are not going to have shoulder pads. My favorites remind me of a rug styled into a jacket.�
Glow: Soy-wax candles (from $18). �My husband and I pour our own candles into vintage ceramic pieces like tumblers and teapots. We mix the essential oils in the back of the shop.�


Cluster
The loud-and-proud German accessories line MCM joins North Soho’s backpack district.


Map by Jason Lee  

1. Victorinox Swiss Army: Mesh passport pocket for the Swedish light rail (99 Wooster St.).
2. Woolrich: Checked wool for the Gunks (125 Wooster St.).
3. Tumi: A fabric Ridley roll-top backpack for the Admiral’s Club (102 Prince St.).
4. MCM:Gemstone trim for the mall in Seoul (100 Greene St.).
5. Burton: Fleece-lined pockets for the Whistler lodge (106 Spring St.).
6. Fjällräven: Laptop shape for the NYU dining hall (38 Greene St.).
7. Patagonia: Water-resistant polyester for the Rockaways (72 Greene St.).


Top Five
Japanese homewares e-shop Nalata Nalata just debuted its first flagship at 2 Extra Place. Here, a few of co-founder Stevenson Aung’s favorites for every room of the house.


�I collaborated with Japanese futon manufacturer Takaokaya on these denim ojami ($225). An ojami is a cross between a throw pillow and a floor pillow, and traditionally it’s silk.�





�Uchino’s Sumi towels (from $14) are one of our best sellers. They have a charcoal-and-gauze weave on one side, which repels odors, and an absorbent pile weave on the other.�





�This Tetu cast-iron kettle ($460) is produced with a traditional technique that’s used in the Iwate Prefecture, but the shape is contemporary. Oxidation on the surface of the iron keeps it from rusting.�





�These tiered containers ($98) are meant for kitchen storage, but my customers tend to use them as desk storage or for organizing jewelry. Mute Studio is really young, and their designers love oak.�





�The Lemnos Snow Clock ($160) has numbers that are etched on the glass, rather than the clock. When there is natural light, it casts a beautiful shadow onto the wood behind it.�





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