Supernatural Botanicals

Utilize plants all winter long to reduce fatigue, coughs, sore throats and other cold-related illnesses by more than 30 percent, partially by increasing humidity levels and decreasing dust.  Plants do wonders for the aesthetics of a room.  Home retailers, such as Home Depot, have beautiful 6′ plants for about $30.  Turn up the design element in the room with an up-light (also sold at Home Depot).  Putting a light underneath the plant’s branches will cascade shadows all over the room…it’s a gorgeous look.

The color blue, reminiscent of the sky and ocean water, is not only relaxing, it’s also the hue that makes us more creative.  Researchers from the University of British Columbia says the color blue can amp up your creativity.  Consider painting your office a sensational shade of blue and get your creativity flowing.  Want more ideas for a fantastic home office?  Check out Home Office Design Blog to get your office gorgeous and productive.

Want your holiday table to look like you hired a celeb party planner?  Steal this idea… cranberry ice!  It’s super-simple to make, and looks gorgeous in an ice bucket, or under a heaping load of shrimp cocktail.

Simply fill a cake pan (silicone is the easiest) with a couple handfuls of cranberries.  Next, fill with water just enough to cover the cranberries.  Freeze.  When the ice is solid, crack the ice into large pieces (bang on countertop) and place the ice shards over a bottle of wine or champagne in a bucket, or on a large tray and load it down with cocktail shrimp and sauce.  Add a few sprigs of greenery (use some pieces from the back of your Christmas tree if you have a live tree) to set the look off.

Simple + gorgeous.  Love that!

With the surge of catalogs and Christmas cards we all receive in December, be mindful to recycle.  Be especially cognizant of your landfill contributions this month by recycling all magazines and catalogs, recycling envelopes from the Christmas cards, and ultimately recycling the cards after Christmas.  If the card is especially beautiful, buy a great frame, put the card in it,  and put it on a bookshelf, desk, or entry table.  That’s recycling too, you know.  Have a Green Christmas this year!

Atlanta: Whiskey Blue at the W Buckhead

Longtime bar entrepreneur Rande Gerber’s (and longtime Cindy Crawford’s husband)  first venture in the South delivers ultra-modern glamour atop the newly opened W Buckhead. Call the hostess to make a VIP reservation; you’ll be led to the front of the line for the glass elevator, which offers a preview of the bar’s unrivaled views of Atlanta’s skyline.

Dallas: The Joule

This 2,500-square-foot poolside bar, designed by Adam Tihany, is considered by many to be the city’s top summer spot. For full Texas immersion, try a Southern Belle, made with Austin-distilled Tito’s Handmade Vodka, lime, peaches, and sparkling rosé; drinks for two $25. Also not to be missed:  Charlie Palmer’s lobster corn dogs.

Chicago: C-View at the Affinia Hotel

It’s not the drinks that are the star at this rooftop. Nor is it the view (though the 29th-floor spot overlooks the Hancock Building and the Sears Tower). It’s the food. As an extension of celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson’s C-House, which is located in the hotel’s lobby, the indoor-outdoor lounge features a compact menu of Samuelsson’s best hits, like chorizo macaroni and cheese or gourmet fish.

Painted floors are an eco-friendly way to freshen up old wood floors without replacing them. Make sure to use an eco low VOC paint, readily available at Home Depot…and places like that.

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Miami’s not one for understatement, as visitors to Plunge can attest. At 24,000 square feet, complete with a 110-foot-long elevated pool, it’s one of the largest rooftop bars in the world. Here, the wood deck is lined with towering palm trees, the bar is carved from marble, the poolside cabanas feature chandeliers, and the views go from the Miami skyline out to the Atlantic.

The Ravel Hotel Rooftop Bar and Lounge, NYC.