Justin Timberlake Goes Digital

Music impresario and arguably the most successful male pop act since Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake is famous for his golden touch. His albums have sold a combined 15 million records. But under closer analysis, since he left the popular band N'Sync, Timberlake has seen each solo album take in less money. The reason, which should come as no surprise, is online music pirating.

To combat this ongoing (and congressionally impervious) trend, the singer and producer has developed a digital appendage for his label, Tennman Records. Tennman Digital, based in San Francisco's Potrero Hill district, is fast at work to monetize not only all of Timberlake's music, but also his name.

Tennman Digital's publicist Tracey McCoy explains that soon, all Justin Timberlake Google searches will be rerouted to his own brand, including all musical acts who affiliated with his label. 

"We're going to start a new drink brand. Justin's clothing line is going to fall under the Tennman Digital unbrella. But so will all searches for Justin's name, his songs, and all future projects," she said. "We're going to turn those desirable things into an application that will benefit Justin, his businesses, and other artists."

Lexus Hybrid More than Just a Technological Marvel

Toyota unveiled two news-making vehicles this year: the new, blue Prius, which lit up the Internet with opinions from car lovers and tree-huggers everywhere; and the less publicized, but no less impressive, luxury hybrid, the Lexus 250h Series.

Here's a quick guide to everything you need to know about the luxury car du jour. First, a quick rundown on the car's stats:

–The car features something Toyota refers to as the “cockpit of the future,” made from Eco Plastics that reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20% over the course of the vehicle’s lifetime. 

–The asymmetric design of the dash and center console are aesthetically pleasing and sleeker than what you might think a hybrid vehicle might (and usually does) look like.

–A low center pass through allows for purse (or messenger bag) storage.

–Rear seat legroom is generous and back seat passengers are treated as nicely as those in the front, they even get optional twin DVD players.

–Family first: In terms of safety, the attention to detail is extreme: the Lexus hybrid sports a total of ten airbags surrounding front and rear seat occupants.

These days, luxury often gets confused with technology. Especially when it comes to cars. On the one hand, gadgetry—features like Bluetooth, navigation, heated and cooled seats, cameras in the side-view mirrors (so you can see how close to the curb you’re parking), iPod compatibility—seems like the essence of a new-and-improved car. But the Lexus hybrid boasts a different kind of forward thinking called the "Remote Touch Interface,” a non-touch, eight-inch screen buried high in the dash and controlled with RTI (a hybrid of force feedback joystick and computer mouse).

Toyota recently released a statement claiming “Six in ten people shopping for an entry luxury model have told Lexus that they would like a hybrid option. Only Lexus can offer this kind of advanced technology experience in a no-compromise luxury vehicle.”

That may be true. But what’s also worth noting is knowing the difference between slick and smooth driving, between getting pampered and getting taken care of, between style and substance.

Send the Kids to School–Ski School

It’s still winter and the kids are asking to see snow for the first time. Worried they may get hurt on the bunny slope? Here are a few tips for making their first ski trip memorable and a learning experience.

When it comes to gear, rent or buy it at a convenient spot, regardless of cost—you may need to exchange it during you trip.

It may be a vacation but send the kids to school—ski school. They’ll be willing to absorb the lessons if they're in a familiar school environment. Children learn and have more fun in groups and professional ski instructors are like celebrities of the slopes. Kids love taking lessons with young, hip instructors and playing learning games that will help them ski more safely with their peers in ski and snowboarding classes.

Speaking of the instructors, always tip them ahead of time. They remember who’s taking care of them—and they’ll go out of their way to take care of you and your progeny. It’s the best money you will spend to ensure that the vacation goes well.

Bring a marker and write your cell phone number on your children’s lift passes. A good rule of thumb is to stick your business card in every pocket, in case the kids get lost. The card will have your phone number and your e-mail on it, since sometimes phone reception is poor in the mountains.

If you own a cabin or chalet, make sure you invest in a strong deck if you are a non-skier. You don’t have to hit the slopes to share in your children’s enjoyment of them. Stock the deck with patio heaters and bistro tables. You can watch the little ones from a comfy perch.

Allez, allez!

Award-Winning Swedish Designs Now Available for Purchase

When it comes to design, Swedish modern is still a go-to aesthetic: the clean, sensual lines; the bold prints; the geometric precision of space management. In short, there’s a lot more to it than IKEA. On February 20th, the Swedish Embassy in Washington, DC hosted Sweden’s most prestigious design award show and product showcase, Design S. We take a peek at some of the winning designs that are sure to be hot tickets for interior decorating this year.

Among the featured pieces now available to the public are Bruno Mathsson’s BOO chair, which exemplifies a well-implemented, ergonomic seat with a textile-laminated surface. Mathsson’s idea stems from his longtime search for the perfect seating curve. The BOO is designed to take weight off the pelvic bones. The seat slopes forward but maintains a considerable depth, so less pressure is placed on the knees and your lower back gets cradled. The chairs are stackable, 100% recyclable, and thanks to the latest in microfiber manufacturing, they feel like plush suede but remain durable and impervious to spills and kids’ fingerprints.

Retro is not necessarily a detriment when it comes to the O2 Cocoon phone. Syntes Studio’s inspiration was to create “a life within” the one accessory that has practically become an appendage for all of us in our day-to-day lives. Inside the white shell, myriad features are “cocooned.” Messages scroll down through the shell; you can read song titles from the outside (it’s a crystal-clear MP3 player, to boot). Artful and intuitive, this product emphasizes elegance as well as functionality.

Anna Bonnevier’s sculptural fashion line, NUMB, is a collection of twelve unique garments designed on a geometric theme and focused on negative space. When worn, the pieces flow and mold to the body according to movement. Bonnevier came up with NUMB while still a student during Stockholm Fashion Week in February 2008. Tops, dresses, trousers, and an oversized cardigan amount to an entire wardrobe in a single clothing line. Each graphic design is voluminous and sweeping, but sharply tailored. That means you can drape or hug the garments against your body as you see fit.

The hand-tufted Tekla rya rug by Gunilla Lagerhem Ullberg is a unique combination of variegated felted wool, fine wool, and glossy flax yarn. The range of mottled colors is inspired by confetti. It’s like thousands of tiny hand-woven mittens strewn across your floor.

Slenderness is the theme with the Thinner series of airy tables in which advanced construction techniques and classic handiwork meet. In the home or in the office, Thinner’s graceful construction, not unlike an aircraft wing, communicates an aesthetic added value that feels both modern and timeless. It’s a desk. It’s a table. It keeps company with a laptop. But the white, seemingly weightless piece is also a graphic symbol, a wispy line drawn in thin air. Thinner is available in twelve sizes and four heights.

Can a material be democratic? This 18-drawer cupboard from the Unik Standard series blends wit, sustainability, and innovation. Made entirely of Masonite hardboard, this usually disregarded cork-like grain is fashioned out of discarded wood chips and particles. Its streamlined finesse fits all interior themes and the puzzle-like compartments (these are hardly just drawers) tuck and bend into a latticework of simple, efficient beauty.

Check out the winning looks at Design S. 

Fashion Gets Serious, but Hardly Concerned

At New York Fashion Week, critics darling Zac Posen revealed one of the most luxurious runway shows in years, replete with five grand pianos and clothes made of furs and rare silks. Oversized fur collars, jacquard fabrics, regal purples and lots of jeweled accessories abounded.

What recession? he seemed to coyly ask.

Later in the week, Michael Kors said that he set out to design "confident urban dressing for modern times." His garments were no less glamorous than in years past, but they did emphasize utility. He calls them "investment clothes," sleek, chic and confident. They'd be appropriate at work as well as out on the town.

While it is a key trend in any designer's collection to give shoppers something they don't already have, that doesn't seem to have affected the quality or luxury of the product. On the runways and in stores, disposable fashion doesn't seem attractive right now.

Here are some of the key looks that will be available in the coming months:

–Urban warrior: corset-style bodices; camouflage prints; hard accessories; sky-scraping shoes and boots.

–Stormtrooper: stiff, techno fabrics; metallics; shoulder flange and peplums standing away from the body.

–Rock 'n' roller: leather mixed with lace; black mixed with neons; miniskirts; tough metal hardware.

–Power player: skirt suits with a long, lean silhouette; shoulder pads; fur-trimmed coats.

Investment clothes. Talk about a haute topic.

Trump Files for Bankruptcy, but Give Him Credit

Trump Entertainment Resorts TRMP filed for Chapter 11 last Tuesday. The firm had failed to make interest payments on its debt earlier in the year, so effectively its fate had already been in the hands of its debt holders. On Feb. 13, Donald Trump resigned as chairman, and his daughter Ivanka also resigned her board seat.

And yet, Trump is moving forward with the development of a multimillion-dollar golf resort (including a golf academy, 950 holiday homes, 500 private family homes and 36 luxury golf villas) near Aberdeen, UK.

The reason for this recent venture comes down to one thing: good credit.

Earlier this month Trump stepped down from the board of his casino company after a dispute with its bondholders, saying his holding represented less than 1% of his net worth. Sounds a bit like another venture capitalist in the news of late: Bernard Madoff.

How does Trump’s demise resemble Madoff's? We will explore the credit issue in a future post.

Yves Saint-Laurent Auction Affirms Art as Viable Investment

According to the New York Times, an auction at the Grand Palais in Paris fetched a record-breaking $261 million. The Yves Saint-Laurent, Pierre Berge art collection on the auction bloc several included hundreds of big-ticket items, including a Matisse (which sold for $40.6 million), a Mondrian painting ($24 million), and a rare sculpture by Constantin Brancusi, which garnered $36 million, unprecedented for sculpture.

Art critics and auctioneers believe that this marks a growing economic trend: art and fashion as investments. In fact, the auction was planned in part as a test of whether the wealthy will shrink from prodigious purchases amid economic crisis.

It paid off: a total of 733 pieces of art owned by the late fashion legend Yves Saint-Laurent were sold.

Berge, the fashion designer's partner in business and personal life, told press that he believed the sale would reaffirm the value of art as an investment refuge. 

Still, the auction’s success did little to assuage general uncertainty over the international economic meltdown that has inflicted heavy damage on the art market. Berge noted said that he had stopped buying "for that reason." It's a step, though, he said.

He plans to donate most of the profits to HIV/AIDS research. He has told journalists that this sale honored the compulsive (and in terms of furniture and art-collecting, impulsive) energy of Saint-Laurent, who died last year at age 71.

But there was at least one sign of restraint. Nobody raised their auction paddle for a Picasso painting from his Cubist period, "Musical Instruments on a Table," considered the signature piece in the collection, with an estimated value of $38 million.