I was lucky enough to escape to Steamboat Springs recently for a little winter R&R. As I watched my tattered old bag drop down on to the luggage carousel I knew it was time for a change.  Traveling is one of the great rewards in life. Whatever  happened to the good old days of airline travel when men and women dressed as if they were attending a dinner party, when the journey was just as import as the destination?  I am throwing out my suitcase and will be replacing it with a roll-aboard from the golden age. I would like to share my selection a masterpiece from the Steamline Luggage Ambassador Collection, an artful bag born of grand tradition that in true slenderwallet fashion will leave a few green-backs in my pocket for cocktails when we arrive.

Steamline Ambassador Collection $410.00

Swaine Adeney $2525.00

The Globe-Trotter by J.Crew $1,350.00

This project brings me back to the glory days of my first year at the College of Architecture at Virginia Tech. Dutch designers Joost van Bleiswijk and Alrik Koudenburg have designed a cardboard office interior for the new Amsterdam advertising agency Nothing. The new space has been constructed using over 1500 separate pieces of reinforced cardboard slotted together without the use of glue or other fasteners.  “Nothing is about the power of ideas, about how a single idea can transform nothing into something. Using a cheap throw-away material to build a unique and memorable work space seemed a good way to materialize this thought.”

What began as a 141-foot hole in the ground six years ago now stretches 2,717 feet (828 meters) into the Gulf sky.  The Burj Dubai now takes over the top spot as the tallest building in the world.  As the world awaited the opening ceremony this morning, word quickly spread of a last minute name change. The new name of the tower will be the Burj Khalifa Dubai.  Hummm? Wonder if it just coincidence this happens to be the name of Abu Dhabi ruler, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who is also the country’s president. The same gentleman who authorized a $10 billion bailout of Dubai’s largest state owned conglomerate. Naaa that’s crazy talk!!

Designed by Adrian Smith,  formerly with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), the Chicago-based engineering and construction firm behind the project took 12,000 workers only 1325 days to complete.  The $1.5 billion tower includes 160 stories of mixed use development including office space, residential units, two swimming pools on the 43^rd and 76^th floors and a mosque on the 158^th floor.

The Burj Khalifa Dubai is especially intriguing to slender wallet.  Not only is it an iconic piece of architecture it’s a great buy!  Residential space is selling at 40% below its opening market price. If this is a little to risky for you, starting tomorrow you can take a tour to the 124^th floor for only $27.00. Lastly, in September, I was lucky enough to place the winning bid at the aiadc art of architecture auction for an original sketch of the tower by Smith (sharpie on dinner napkin) Bidders anyone??

Orginal sketch by Smith

As an avid boater and design junky I was blown away by the new limited addition day cruiser by the famed Austrian yacht designer Frauscher.  At only little more then 7 meters this pocket yacht oozes class, luxury and value.  Production has been limited to nine craft with a base price of around $214,000. Famed designer Annette Hintwirth aided with the classic design of the 686 Lido Editione Dino Feltrinelli which features real water proof leather, 360 degree rotating drive seats and a bow which can conceal the lounge area at a touch of a button.  She will be as swift as her lines define with a V-8 Volvo Penta drive power plant. See you on the Potomac!!

686 Lido Editione Dino Feltrinelli

686 Lido Editione Dino Feltrinelli

They also have hybrids!!

Lasting over ten years, the project was a renovation of a 102 year-old structure with two newer additions and was executed in stages as budget would allow. The original 1,100 square foot structure was built in 1906 and later enlarged into a rambling structure in the 1950’s and 1980. Summing up the project architect Robert M. Gurney wrote that “patience and perseverance replaced abundant resources and the desire for instant gratification.”  Ten Year House is an example that great architecture does not have to be about grand scale and opulence but can be found in the execution of details no matter what the scale.

Slender Wallet is all about great design, great products and living well within economic boundaries.  There is no better example of this culmination than a visit to wine country. A Washington DC native and avid vino lover I have spent many a day in nearby Virginia Wine country.  I recently stumbled across a winery whose attention to detail in regards to architecture and great wine rival those of some of the finest I have visited in Napa Valley.  Boxwood Winery in Middleburg Virginia designed by Hugh Newell Jacobsen is an unmistakable example of great American architecture; a composition of hipped roofed structures capped by glazed glass cupolas creates a complex of four buildings each housing and connecting distinctly different aspects of wine production. A fifth element, a round underground barrel room is reminiscent of the barrel rooms of France’s Lafite Rothschild and Napa’s Opus One. This expression grounds the structure in the earth and in the parallels of the greats, illustrating their commitment to memorable wine produced within a remarkable space.  A private, by appointment visit for $20.00 compared to a $60 tasting at Opus makes boxwood a great value, you can tour great architecture sample great locally produced wine and it is just a sixty minute drive from our nation’s capital. Cheers to the Cooke family!!!!

Boxwood Winery, Middleburg VA

Barrel Room at Boxwood

Opus One, Napa Valley

Opus Landscape

Opus One Barrel Room