Friday, March 29, 2024 Mar 29, 2024
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WINDFALLS

By Carol Edgar |

HANGING LOOSE



From the Yucatan peninsula, for lazy days when it isn’t 110 in the shade, come all-cotton hammocks with nylon tie-strings for fail-safe attachment to tree or post. Since they are 100 per cent cotton, it’s best to bring them in during what rain we might be lucky enough to have this month. Colors include white, yellow, and a multicolored design. Sizes include single ($25), double ($45), and, suitable for a menage a trois, matrimonial ($65). Emeralds to Coconuts, 2730 N. Henderson. Open Tue-Sat 11-6. 823-3620.



THE INNCROWD



The Three Hundred Best Hotels in the World bills itself as “the most idiosyncratic hotel guide in the world.” Published under the auspices of the English magazine Harpers & Queen, it is must reading for the world traveler with a taste for personal recommendations untainted by puffery. Author Rene Lecler has wittily described his favorite homes away from home, from Australia to Yugoslavia. $7.95, at local bookstores.

LIGHT

BRIGADE

The stars at night are big and bright, but your outdoor party may call for more in the way of illumination. If so, call Billy Harper, the lighting specialist at Bill Reed Decorations. He and his crew use actual stage lighting-spotlights, foot- lights, and the like-in much of their outdoor work. Not only can they illuminate entire trees, they can also hang strings of bulbs overhead, bedeck shrubs with small, twinkling lights, or line walkways with hurricane lamps or Tiki torches. Prices vary. The lamps and torches are $7.50 each. Strings of 32 15-watt bulbs rent for $75 (if you pick them up and install them yourself). For a large job, requiring installation and the skills of an electrician, the cost can easily run $1500. Bill Reed Decorations, 333 First Ave. Open Mon-Fri 8:30-4:45. 823-3154.

CRUISING

THE CANAL

In lieu of, or in addition to, your summer travel plans, consider this package for the fall: a two-week trans-Panama cruise that will fly you free to and from your ship, either the Island Princess or the Sun Princess (both of British registry). The Los Angeles-to-San Juan itinerary includes Acapulco, Panama Canal (transit), Cartagena, Aruba, Martinique, St. Thomas, and San Juan. The San Juan-to-Los Angeles itinerary includes St. Thomas, Caracas, Curacao, Panama Canal (transit), Panama City, Acapulco, Cabo San Lucas (cruise by), and Los Angeles.Cruises begin September 19and run through November28. Fares, including all onboard costs except drinksand tips and excluding shoreexcursions, begin at $2114per person, double occupancy. A third persontraveling with two full-fareadults in a stateroom withavailable accommodationscruises free. Trans-PanamaCruise, Neiman-MarcusTravel Service, 1628 MainSt. Open Mon-Fri 9:30-5:30.741-6911.

TAILOR MADE

Ramon Hernandez first took up tailoring at the age of nine when his family lived in Mexico and needed the extra income his young hands could provide. Since 1947 in Dallas, Hernandez has been honing his craft to the continuing satisfaction of a variety of patrons. Long the back-room genius at the James K. Wilson down- town store, Hernandez has for the last three years been operating his own tailor shop on Lower Greenville. It’s immodestly called Fantastic Tailors, and it lives up to its name. Hernandez has the assistance of several family members, but it is he who provides the shop’s specialty service, the reconstruction of clothes for dramatically altered body sizes. One customer, who took up weight lifting and changed his measurements to a 46 chest and a 32 waist, had only to take his old wardrobe to Hernandez. Simple alterations can be done while you wait. Reconstructions can take longer -a week, sometimes two. Ramon Hernandez at Fantastic Tailors, 2023 Greenville. Open Tue-Fri 9-7, Sat 9-6.823-9111.



RUGS TO RICHES



Last October Bill Bloom, a weaver and a cashier at The Bronx, was driving through Mexico with John Hancock, a Dallas businessman. During one particularly unscenic leg of the drive, the two became engrossed in a conversation about what they’d really like to be doing in the way of work. Bloom wanted a gallery of his own, Hancock wanted a business of his own. The two came home and talked to John Strawn, the Edom craftsman whose wall hangings at The Bronx had caught the eye of Bloom and many others. And so the three became partners in a new venture called The Gallery, which features the natural-fiber rugs and wall-hangings of Bloom, and the paintings and ceramic pieces of Strawn, plus the work of about 25 other artists, most of whom are Texan. Bloom says the proportion is about half and half paintings to fine crafts at The Gallery. In a city undersupplied with simple, honest art and craft, The Gallery is a welcome addition. The Gallery, 3917 Cedar Springs. Open Tue-Thur 10-6, Fri and Sat 10-8. 522-2310.

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