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Tuesday, October 30, 2001
Life's little luxuries
From custom-made cowboy boots to hand-finished soap, it’s the simple pleasures — not the price — that can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary
By Samantha Critchell
Associated Press

Associated Press

There is no getting around the cold winds that will come with winter, but a cashmere scarf (eLuxury, $175) might make them a little more tolerable.

"Luxury" is far more personal than a fur coat, expensive handbag or spa treatment. Something truly luxurious turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. It will be different for each and every person. But take heart: Luxury doesn't have to be defined by its price tag. Life - and the nearest department store - has a few little luxuries to offer.
   "To me, luxury doesn't necessarily mean cost or showing off," says Alain Viot, president and chief executive officer of Cartier North America, a company best known for its expensive jewelry. "True luxury is more about beauty, culture and self-pleasure."
   Local luxuries
   Using a fountain pen on high-quality stationery, which Viot defines as 100 percent cotton with hand-engraving, to write a letter to a friend is a special treat, he says. Or glancing at the watch passed on from a parent that eventually will be handed down to your child.
   A luxury could even be a new $5 hair barrette from the drugstore. It's anything that gives you a little lift.
   (In South Texas, a pair of custom-made boots might be the one luxury that a cowboy type might rope for himself.
   ("You can pretty much pick what you want in terms of color, variety, skin, heel height and toe styles," said Fred McBride, a custom-boot maker at Jackson's Boot Shop in Corpus Christi.

Associated Press

‘Luxury’ items can be a huge indulgence — or a small one. A handwritten note using a nice pen on high-quality paper can give both the sender and receiver a lift, says Alain Viot, president and CEO of Cartier North America.

   ("Fit is very important too," McBride said. "A lot of people can't get a good fit with a boot they buy off the shelf."
   (Some Coastal Bend beach bums are willing to pay $60 to $80 for limited-edition Hawaiian print shirts. Some companies, like Kahala Trading Company of Hawaii, put out only a few hundred shirts of a particular design, said Charles Henry, manager of Pat Magee's Surf Shop, which sells the shirts.
   ("These prints are exclusive to these companies, so you won't look like every other person in town," Henry said.)
   Like warm-weather shirts, some "luxury" items are almost necessities - gloves, sweaters or soap - but they have a little something extra that makes them special.
   Treating yourself
   What is most in demand these days for many people is time, which, of course, can't be bottled. But taking even 10 minutes for a scented bubble bath or even 30 seconds to spray on a perfume can break a monotonous routine.
   (In Rockport, many women go to Austin Street General Store, where they buy tablets that add a relaxing fizz to what normally would be an uneventful soak in the tub.
   ("We have a lot of women who come in that can't afford to go to a high-end boutique," said Pam Sijansky, co-owner of Austin Street General Store. "These stress relievers are like an Alka Seltzer tablet. You might not be able to afford to go to a spa, but these bubble away in your bathtub, and they're fun."
   (Also for bath water, Austin Street General Store has tea bag-like containers that hold herbs like lavender, sweetening the smell of a nice, hot bath.)
   In high demand
   "It's all about treating yourself," says Timothy Walcot, spokesman for Floris, the London-based fragrance company that holds the royal warrants to make products for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles. "We feel very positive about affordable luxury - an everyday product that you can use to feel good about yourself. It's not about status."
   Sure, Floris soap costs more than a generic supermarket brand, Walcot says, but unwrapping a soap that comes in beautiful paper, is hand-finished and smells like a garden flower will leave a more lasting impression.

Associated Press

A hand-finished soap wrapped in beautiful paper can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

   When it comes to fragrance, no one else will know how much your scent costs since many actually smell different on different people, Walcot says, so it's a choice that should be based on preference. But he warns if your personal preference is jasmine, which can only be picked at dawn, or rose, which is best picked when the blossom is fully open, be prepared for a higher price tag.
   Again, it's supply and demand.
   In this new, softer economy, Walcot expects to see some people switch from the purer (and more expensive) eau de parfum to the lighter eau de toilette but, he says, it's hard to downgrade to a different brand altogether once you've chosen your "signature" scent.
   "Then it won't give you that little lift that you were looking for in the first place."


Staff writer Dan Parker contributed to this report. Parker can be reached at 886-3753 or parkerd@caller.com

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