audiophiles?

wondering if there are any tech-y audiophiles out there that can help a long weekend style out?

LWS is looking for an speaker/sound/audio system that can hook up to either an iPod or computer and transmit wirelessly throughout the office.

and we looking for one that won't break the bank.

and if possible, one that does NOT need to have the iPod docked - we have worn out 2, count 'em 2, speaker systems within the last 2 weeks and we think it is because the constant insertion and removal of the iPod that has caused the contacts to no longer "contact" with the iPod, thus no music from the 2 now busted systems.

mucho thank you-ness in advance!

actor gary coleman passes away

actor gary coleman, famous for his role as arnold on the 70's comedic series, "diff'rent strokes" and coining his signature arnold tagline "what you talkin' 'bout willis?" passed away todat at the age of 42, of a brain hemorrage resulting from a fall gary had on wednesday.

good thoughts and prayers to gary and his family.

we will miss you arnold!

doot, doot, doot, doooooot . . . from the halls of medicine

LWS is not usually one to go in for anything boasting sugar-free-ness on it's label because historically speaking, those products tend to contain aspartame, saccharin or some other man-made sugar substitute that usually tastes absoutely awful if nothing at all like the real thing they're supposed to be imitating.

from the vaulted halls of medicine come halls sugar free black cherry throat lozenges. if the package didn't alert one to the sugar-free-ness of these lozenges, we would never have guessed. they taste THAT good. no tongue paralyzing aftertaste and these lozenges ward off a sore throat plus put the kibosh on coughs.

$2.75 for a bag of 30 sugar-free throat coating, cough banishing goodness halls sugar-free black cherry lozenges - available online or in local grocery and drugstores nationwide.

simplehuman

one long weekend staffer recently received an automatic soap dispenser from simple human that was actually meant for her kids to use; because it boasts a timer that beeps when the alloted hand washing time has elapsed. hence it being a good hand washing monitor.

but this automatic soap dispenser never made it past the kitchen, as it was soon discovered that said automatic soap dispenser was a very helpful aid in daily dishwashing duties.

the soap dispenser has an electronic sensor that when blocked by an opaque object (say for instance, your hand or a dishbrush), disperses a stream of soap in 4 varying levels - with setting 1 being a dime sized squirt all the way up to setting 4, which streams like a mini lake of soap. all of this is perfect when one's hands are soapy from dish soap and the dishsoap bottle is likely to slip right out of your hands, like an oiled pig. plus you don't have to put down what you're doing to refuel on dishsoap in order to tackle that pile of dirty dishes calling to be cleaned.

simplehuman sensor soap pump available at bed, bath and beyond - $39.99 for the basic version, $49.99 for the pimped out all stainless version.

in tha house

we have cooked up yet another eclectic music mix on our go to fav streaming online music source, http://www.8tracks.com/. this newest mix, in tha house is for your listening pleasure and includes tunage by M.I.A, ghislaine poirier, santogold, blondie, metric, yeah, yeah, yeahs and felix da housecat. turn it up!

and as always, please let us know what you think long weekend stylers - we're dying to know!

www.8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-in-tha-house

forget calgon, pacifica's gonna take you away baby

so a few entries back, LWS featured the oh-so-delicious-summer's-coming blood orange sorbet from ciao bella and since then, we've had a hard time getting blood orange off the brain.

and now the pacifica tuscan blood orange candle made it's way across our LWS desk. honestly, is it legal for a candle to smell so damned luscious that you totally want to scoop it out of it's little glass container and just devour it? once again, that smell-o-vision innovention would come in really handy here.


to make pacifica's candles even more awesome than they are already are, all pacifica candles are soy based as opposed to wax based, burn smoke free for long time burnage and lastly, pacifica candles are packed with lead free cotton wicks.

can any more tuscan blood orange amazingness even be imagined?

why yes, yes, indeed. in addition to the soy candles in tuscan blood orange, there is also, shower gel, body lotion, body butter and fragrance in 2 options: a soild in a silver dollar sized tin and a spray perfume in a bottle.

check out all the goodness at the pacifica website: http://www.pacificaperfume.com/ - they offer free shipping on orders over $50 and right now, have some awesome sauce deals on scent collections that include all the products in a fav scent, a sampling of 3 pacifica florals in the supa dupa cute tiny tins and bath sets complete with shower gel, lotion and a candle. choose one, any one and luxuriate in the sulphate/paraben/phthalate-free, 100% vegan goodness that is pacifica.

long hot summer

long weekend style's newest mix, long hot summer has hit the 8tracks airwaves and is ready to help long weekend stylers kick off the summer right. check it here and as always, we'd love to hear your feedback!

http://8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-long-hot-summer

hot weather is a-coming. at least once we get past this gray may and june gloom.





warm weather is the perfect time to switch to a lipstick formula that is a tad lighter . . . but if you're like me and still want a color other than the one you were born with while retaining moisture minus the glop factor, a regular lip balm might not fulfill your qualifications.





enter korres - the all natural homeopathic pharmacy and now beauty brand hailing all the way from athens, greece. korres has infiltrated beauty counters all over the world (long weekend style operatives report seeing korres in barcelona, paris, ireland and the UK). their mission statement is consists of 4 bullet points: naturally derived, top shelf ingerdients, clinically tested effective products that deliver, products that please the senses and lastly, all at a reasonable price designed for everyday use.





korres lip butters ROCK, in one word. packed with ultra moisturing shea butter combined with rice wax for staying power, these amazing lip butters glide on, not only moisturizing and protecting lips but also providing a juicy dose of just-ate-a-popsicle color to lips. color range covers the lights to darks; "guava" provides shine and moisturizes while at the other end, "wild rose" makes lips look just lusciously bitten.





and at $10 a pop, you can try all 5 - guava, quince, pomegranate, plum and wild rose.



this just in - korres lip butters also do double duty as cheek tints. and who doesn't love a little toteable product that does 2 jobs?

color your world indeed.

long weekend style is a DJ!

long weekend style is mixing it up, musicwise, that is and we have launched our first 2 music compilations, longweekendstyle - got you covered, a series of familiar tunage covered by a myriad of artists) and longweekendstyle - long hot summer, summer evoking songs to get you in the mood for the months ahead.

available for your listening pleasure on our favorite streaming music site, www.8tracks.com
always and completely free of charge.

here are our mixes . . . give 'em a listen and let us know what you think!
http://8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-long-hot-summer
http://8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-got-you-covered

long weekend style has got you covered!

long weekend style's "got you covered" music mix is now available for your listening pleasure. give it a listen and let us know your thoughts. check it out here: http://8tracks.com/longweekendstyle/longweekendstyle-got-you-covered

flash . . . ah, bathroom cleaner of the universe!

if you are lucky enough to reside across the pond, you undoubtedly know the miracle cleaning powers of flash bathroom cleaner.

long weekend style talk enough about the awesomeness of this product by proctor and gamble, which at present time, is only available in the UK and ireland markets. damn.

because flash bathroom cleaner is the absolute bomb. spray on the fizzing foam, the scent of which is reminiscent of fresh, clean laundry, then sit back and let flash bathroom cleaner work its magic on mold, mildew, hard water stains, whatever-bathroom-grossness-you-can-conjure-up, return to rinse and voila, a bathroom room that smells of . . . clean laundry straight out of the dryer, not chemicals.

flash bathroom cleaner really gets in there, like the ninja of cleanliness - eradicating mold and bathroom yuck - restoring ceramic and tile surfaces to their rightful pristine condition.

available at tesco, sainsbury's and most UK/irelan supermarkets. also available online: www.britsuperstore.com, which offers worldwide delivery for about $3.50 for a 500ml spray bottle. get your clean on!

gray may

ok, what's with this weather? it's been so mercurial; gloomy, sunless days are usually reserved for the month of june but, probably because of global warming, we now have gray may. sigh.

and so it goes, one day hot, one day cold and back again maybe with a day of rain thrown in to really mix things up, the uncertainty of how to dress for the day comes into play by either being dressed to warmly or not having enough to keep you warm.

dressing in layers is a good suggestion but your body's internal core is thrown into turmoil and before you know it, you are asking yourself, am i getting sick? was that sneeze something i should be concerned about? hmmmmm . . .

if you feel a little something coming on but aren't really sure if illness is lurking around the corner, put on a pot of water on the stove and bring to a gentle rolling boil. once this is accomplished, turn off burner and add 2-4 drops of essential lavender oil (available at most nutrition stores or whole foods) to the now hot pot of water. stand over and inhale deeply. lavender is a natural antibacterial thus killing off 99.98% of any viral nastiness that may be hiding out in your nasal passages, waiting to strike. in addition, you'll also score a nice steaming facial that will plump up your outer epidermis - making skin appear full and luscious. lastly, the vapors from the boiling water will also help moisten nasal membranes, hopefully restoring the delicate nasal balance and informing those membranes that 'no thanks, no more mucus is needed, we got it covered, so back to regular mucus production schedule, thanks again'.

stay healthy, long weekend stylers!

the dancers (1956) by roy decarava

the dancers (1956) is only one of the most incredible photographs by master of photography, roy decarava (1919-2009), whose amazing work captured the essence of harlem, new york in the 1950's. one can just feel the sinuous, slinky movement of the dancers, the heat of the spotlights inside the local dancehall, the electricity in the air. in the dancers, decarava deftly captures the energy of this harlem night through light, shadow and movement. evoking minute details, subtle plays of dark and light that just puts you right there.

a retrospective of all of decarava's photographic works is available online at www.amazon.com.

hello

via audio, hailing from brooklyn new york is putting out some amazing tunage. we especially like "hello" from the album animalore (2010). give it a listen here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1WksZ5uQlw

"hello" complete with sultry vocals, this indie-pop quartet creates a sound so layered and full of depth that it just makes you swoon from the very first note.

cleaning tip

oh dishpan hands, be gone forever.


long weekend style has discovered one surefire way to clean a pot or pan that has worked time and time again for us: after cooking something has developed a liking to one of your pots or pans and taken up what seems like permanent residence on said pot/pan's walls, put it right back on the stovetop, this time filled with water. bring water to a boil and easily away scrape food barnacles thus saving yourself from endless hours of scrubbing and scouring.

so shiny and new

and on our book radar:

deluxe: how luxury lost it's luster by dana thomas caught our eye here at long weekend style, mainly because of it's stark, simple cover AND the fact the an entire mcdonald's meal had been absolutely designered out, complete with prada-esque labels covering burger paper, french fry carton and a supersized soda cup to underscore just how far luxury brands are willing to go to get your dollars into their pockets.

deluxe: how luxury lost it's luster is a fantastic peek behind the scenes of the luxury goods business and the absolutely massive global money involved. yup, all those monogrammed handbags, perfumes, belts, and licensed sunglasses, lighters and scarves that consumers ferociously scoop up by the armload.

louis vuitton. dior. gucci. cartier. prada. chanel. you get the picture.

and the players - LVMC (louis vuitton moet chandon) group. the richemont group. the gucci group. the prada group. these are just a few of the luxury conglomerates in play that serve as umbrella corporations for several different brands. and they are all feuding, scheming and trying to outsmart the others in the aquisition of even MORE luxury brands, making the luxury goods business seem more like a game of monopoly rather than one of style and substance.

this can't-put-it-down expose takes you through the back alleys and crammed warehouses of counterfeit high end luxury goods as well as the production of true (read: authentic) luxury items - handbags, wallets, trench coats et al abroad, far from where consumers would think their exalted top shelf booty hails from.

fun fact: deluxe deftly details just how the legendary wait-listed-to-the-hilt, unbelievably expensive (a crocodile birkin can easily go toe to toe in price to that of a new car) coveted hermes birkin bag is crafted by a single leather artisan and takes anywhere from 15 to 30 hours to complete a single bag.

another fun deluxe fact: centifolia rose and jasmine harvesting in grasse, france exclusively for chanel number 5 - the only perfume still in production that retains it's original formula, first concocted in 1919.

long weekend style could go on and on but we seriously don't want to spoil this decadent read for you!

deluxe: how luxury lost it's luster by dana thomas, available online @ http://www.amazon.com/

remember to floss

the absolute hands down best floss ever to be invented has to be glide, by longtime toothpaste leader, crest.

glide floss is supa dupa smooth and has none of that fake mint waxey wax residue that seems to define the other flosses on the market. subtly flavored with a barely perceptible cool mint taste, glide is also fragrance free, therefore free of inducing near those awful near mouth rashes that are caused by the multi-purpose supertoothpastes. glide gets in there and does the job - quick and stealthlike, like a ninja. a ninja whose sole purpose is the vigilance of your oral health. glide doesn't shred, break or leave little floss bits between your choppers.

just clean mouth goodness, courtesy of glide.

glide floss by crest, available everywhere and online.

long weekend style sends out a happy, fun, hug-filled, love fest mother's day wishes to all mamas, mothers-to-be, and mother's helpers the world over.

we hope your day was as awesome as you!

sing a song of Q-tips

okay, so we've already exhalted the many uses of the baby wipe, long weekend stylers and now may we present, the Q-tip.

originally designed for ear cleaning - the outer ear, people. the outer ear. if LWS style even mentions any inner ear proximity and the Q-tip in the same breath, health services will be all up in our grill, because everyone knows that you aren't supposed to stick ANYTHING in your ear canals. anyways, Q-tips, also known as ear buds, cotton swabs and cotton buds were invented in the 1920's by an ingenious man named leo gerstenzang and originally called "baby gays" but were renamed Q-tips, the "Q" indicating quality.

Q-tips aren't just for cleaning out errant ear wax, therefore putting an end to potato crops popping up in your ear canals, oh no. Q-tips can be used for so much, much more.

Q-tips are awesome for kitchen cleaning - getting into those really tiny corners and areas that a wadded towel (paper or cloth, your choice) can't really reach. Q-tips get in between the tiny partitions in and on your stove or range top - getting rid of kitchen muck build-up, fishing out excess crumbs, extracating bits of dried whatever - Q-tips really get in there. refrigerators also benefit from Q-tips as they always seem to have little ridges, corners and indents in those handy compartments for eggs, butter, and loose items that a wipe-over just doesn't catch. also if you sometimes pretend that you have your own cooking show whilst preparing dinner every night, Q-tips help out in "plating" your culinary concotions - making away with those drips and dribbles like magician extraordinaire david copperfield.

Q-tips are exellent bathroom and kitchen grout cleaners - especially when paired with plain old vinegar. a long weekend style staffer had a grout rust stain as a result of plant overwatering and no cleaner on the market could get the red out. as a last resort, colonel Q-tip and sargeant vinegar were called in and obliterated said rust stain to kingdom come.

Q-tips are swell WD-40 applicators, especially on any high (or low) end handbags with particularly stubborn zippers, door hinges, drawer runners, or little itty bitty area in need of WD-40 where a blast of this squeak zapper would just be overkill and wasteful.

Q-tips clean up home mani and pedi overshoots because who really has a steady hand when painting their own digits and toes - especially when you have to use your non-dominant hand. talk about brush wobble. Q-tip neaten up without a second thought. they are also there for AWOL eyeliner, mascara and lipstick debaucles.

Q-tips become toothbrushes in a pinch; deftly apply topical medications or clean boo-boos.

Q-tips are critical when cleaning out your fans or heaters at the end of the season. chubbier, chunkier versions can even be used to lift off dust between the slats of vertical blinds.

Q-tips also must be THE tool of any car detailer worth their weight in turtle wax - getting in deep in those miniscule car ashtrays, air vents, crevices (or crevi?), corners, various vehicle knobs, buttons and levers that again, cannot be cleaned, let alone reached with just a cloth or towel.

don't even get us started on computer keyboards and cell phone number pads - Q-tips can be called upon to get between those little keys and make it all glob and goo-free again.

and Q-tips fit any and all ear sizes - from andre the giant to a newly minted baby and everything in-between.

oh, Q-tip how we love love love you!

give me an I . . . P . . . A

for the hops-lovin' LWS guys . . . and gals.

some new beers that have come up on the long weekend style beer doppler:

- racer 5 - crafted by bear republic and is better on tap than in the bottle - the hipper restaurants are leaning towards racer 5 as a solid go-to in their beer lineup but it can also be had in the cold beer section of most whole foods markets.

- pliny the elder - distributed by bear republic and brewed by russian river , who are headquartered in northern california and again, this one is best tasted directly from the tap when you can find it as it is one of the harder IPAs to source. also available in certain whole foods (picky, picky) but not always in stock, we did manage to find a site that you can order pliny online: http://www.klwines.com/ or http://www.caskstore.com/ and search "pliny the elder"

- ranger from new belgium brewing, colorado based brewers of fat tire ale. this has the distinction of bring nice right out of the bottle or tap and is widely distributed plus, when you can't source pliny, ranger is a very very good substitute.

all are IPAs - india pale ales, for those not into the achronisms. historically, pale ales were brewed in england and shipped off to british troops stationed in india, so they had to be able to travel long long distances by boat, the only available method of travel at that time. originally derived from porters, IPAs tout a higher alcohol content and are "hopped up"; in beerspeak, this means supa dupa hoppy - made with lots and lots and lots of hops which lend a "forest-y,pine tree" taste but in a good way. IPAs are classified as running beers, not because the like jogging in their off hours but because they are ready-to-drink within days of brewing and don't require a lengthy aging process like porters and the stronger ales.

try 'em and let us know what you think, long weekend stylers!

lake champlain

ok, long weekend stylers - it's been one of those weeks and we're already dreaming of yummy clouds of delicious chocolate despite the fact that it's ONLY monday.

and let us tell you - lake champlain chocolates, made in burlington, vermont are what chocolates should be - creamy, delicately flavored, smooth, and just all around melt in your mouth goodness.

the long weekend style staff discovered lake champlain chocolates after reading steve almond's book "candy freak" (see long weekend style entry dated march 24th 2010) because apparently the Five Star bars are the chocolate bars of steve's dreams. even though his friends don't really get his choco-obsession.

anyways, enough about steve, back to the chocolates at hand.

all lake champlain chocolates are handmade in small batches using exotic chocolates hailing from such locales as africa, colombia, and tanzia. all natural, no preservatives, all kosher and supa dupa fresh, anything from lake champlain will not disappoint the choco-lover in you.

one bar that always seems to disappear the moment it appears here at our long weekend style offices, is the lake champlain rum caramel filled dark chocolate bar - pure sex and heaven all in one sensuous, drippy, dark and smooth bite. the coffee truffle filled dark choco will satisfy both a caffeine and truffle craving in one fell swoop and leave you swooning for more. for those not of the dark chocolate persuasion, don't worry, lake champlain has got you covered too: caramel filled milk chocolate or their classic, creamy, dreamy signature milk chocolate bar is calling your name. now.

the chunkalicious Five Star bars which are like then haute couture version of the chunky brand bar (that we remind you is filled with raisins and nuts. good, yes, but why ruin perfectly good chocolate with raisins and nuts when much more delicious ingredients like peanut butter, caramel, hazelnuts and truffle abound?). the Five Star bars are thick (2" x 1" x 1" approximately) and pack a whollop of tastebud goodness despite their (seemingly) petite size.

lake champlain chocolates are starting to make appearances at grocery stores across this fine nation but you can always order online 24/7 at http://www.lakechamplainchocolates.com/. OR if you are as entranced by the chocolate enrobing machine as we are, you can visit their amazing chocolate factory and see/smell/taste the goodness that is lake champlain chocolates in burlington, vermont - complete with lots of free samples. yum.

and they also offer a chocolate-of-the-month club in 2 distinctions: "chocolate fanatic" and "chocolate lover" in 3, 6 or 9 month durations. scrumptious. chocolate shipped right to your door - what more could anyone ask?

long weekend style only wishes that the pure deliciousness of a lake champlain chocolate bar could transcend the ethernet and that you could taste the magic right now whilst you sit at your 'puter.

and the lovely state of vermont now has 2 things to boast about: it's famous maple syrup and lake champlain chocolates.