Scents and sensibility
01.01.70
Christmas conjures up vivid images: piles of gifts, the sparkle of decorations and tables groaning with food. But its aromas are surely just as potent.
The smell of pine, woodsmoke, cinnamon and cloves can instantly get you in the mood for the season, even if there’s still plenty of stressful preparation to contend with.
The power of home fragrance, rightly now regarded as an essential accessory, is particularly apparent at this time of year when we’re spending more time indoors – often entertaining – and need to create atmosphere in rooms to suit our mood.
“When it comes to choosing scents for the home at Christmas, perhaps the most popular are the traditional spice notes because they are warming and comforting,” says Lisa Hipgrave, director of the International Fragrance Association – United Kingdom.
“I’m always looking for products with clove, cinnamon and orange notes. Other traditional and much-loved fragrances are based on frankincense and myrrh, which are also warm and welcoming.”
Source: shropshirestar.com
A cocktail heady with history at The Public House
01.01.70
If Karl Dornemann had his druthers, he'd add a rollicking speakeasy to his restaurant repertoire.
Patrons would whisper the password, slip through a concealed entrance, descend a narrow staircase and find at the foot of it a vested barkeep, polishing glasses and sliding classic cocktails across the rail.
Because to Dornemann, history matters.
He's part-owner of Still, a basement bistro in Olde Towne Portsmouth with a speakeasy feel. Dornemann's newest venture, The Public House, a "gastropub" in Norfolk's Ghent, honors the past in a different way.
He and his partners salvaged old lockers from Maury High School, circa 1911, just down the street and installed them as cigar lockers in the smoking room. The tile floors, exposed brick walls and stamped tin ceiling remain intact, the latter delaying the eatery's opening and costing Dornemann and his partners dearly.
This reverence for the past extends behind the gleaming wood bar, where a row of silvery cylinders contain Dornemann's homemade bitters.
Source: The Virginian-Pilot