WINDFALLS

20a BRAUN



In the past, the space heater has led a very lonely life, destined to remain forever exiled to the most-remote corners of the coldest rooms of the house for the duration of its seasonal existence. Apparently, most floor-heater owners (and rightly so, in most cases) would just as soon keep their homely winter warmers hidden from sight. The Braun space heater, however, is an exception to the rule. Its simple, clean design may not be MOMA (that’s Museum of Modern Art) material, but it is, at least, quite pleasing to the eye. And with its silent running motor and four-speed adjustable thermostat with automatic temperature control, it’s just as functional as it is attractive. It also features an axial blower and thermo plastic housing with a built-in carrying handle. It’s J49 and is available at Arresta and S. Vogue. Arresta: 3900 Cedar Springs; Mon-Sat 10-10, Sun noon-6; 528-3380. S. Vogue: 4121 Lomo Alto; Mon-Sat 10-6; 522-9260.

20b JOHNNIES

There was a time when no man was seen in anything less than his long johns. But thanks to such nifty inventions as central heating and silk pajamas, this practice has become a bit obsolete. And with the limited creativity that had generally gone into the making of a set of long johns-they’re usually all-white or, if they’re really racy, all red-it’s no wonder we’ve abandoned them. Well, modest folks, take heart. Crazy Cakes has refined the art of long john-designing with its hand-dyed and hand-silk-screened 100 percent cotton johns. They come in a lavender base with brown cowboys galloping across the front or a peach base with gray Cadillacs. They’re $36 at Avant, 2716 Greenville. Mon-Fri 10-8, Sat 10-6. 824-0260.

21a cafe

Cold weather without coffee is incomprehensible for most people since warming our insides is the quickest way to warm our outsides. With French-imported Melior’s Cafetiere Cham-bord, coffee is brewed with the help of a plunger. Here’s how it works: Place eight teaspoons of coffee in the glass beaker, fill the beaker with almost boiling water, stir, replace the plunger and lid, leave for 3 to 5 minutes, push the plunger to the bottom of the beaker and-viola!- coffee. It’s $73 at Coffee Company, 6128 Berkshire Lane, 369-5704; The Quadrangle, 2800 Routh, 748-1133; and 5346 Belt Line. Mon-Sat 10-6. 960-1521.

21b DE STIJL

A chair is a chair is a chair . . . unless it’s one of Gerrit Rietvald’s inventions. Rietvald, a leader of the Dutch abstract De Stijl movement, was as much a creator of art pieces as he was of furniture pieces. His Red/Blue Chair is considered by many to be one of the most important artworks of this century. A reproduction of the chair, sold through Atelier International and available at S. Vogue for $2,400, may look unbearably uncomfortable, but it isn’t. Rietvald designed the chair so no single element was dominant or subordinate to the others. The result: The person sits firmly supported and thereby alert and aware of his surroundings. Foi those of us who can’t quite af ford a certified art piece in our living room, S. Vogue has an alternative: a do-it-yourself Red/Blue Chair, which costs $300; just put the chair pieces together with an alien wrench Rietvald worked mostly in primary colors-the back of the Red/Blue Chair is red; the seat is blue; the arms, legs and sides are black; and the ends o the arms and legs are yellow -but you can make your Red/Blue chair whatever color your imagination dictates. S. Vogue. 4121 Lomo Alto. Mon-Sat 10-6. 522-9260.