Copyright 2008 The New York Sun Wed, 03 Sep 2008 14:26:50 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Gabrielle Birkner :: Stories from The New York Sun http://www.nysun.com/authors/Gabrielle+Birkner istoll@nysun.com (Ira Stoll) webmaster@nysun.com en-us GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/an-unusual-method-for-keeping-limber/84526/ Mon, 25 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EST Exercise physiologist and soft-tissue specialist Susan Hitzmann asks clients a series of questions when they come in for consultations or to sign up for their first group classes: Do you wake up feeling vibrant? Are your joints working optimally? Do you feel alert throughout the day? "The answer is almost always, 'Not really' or 'Not since high school,'" she said. Many of those clients report eating right and exercising regularly, but doing nothing to care for the body's connective tissue... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/90210-leave-your-morals-with-the-maid/84967/ Tue, 2 Sep 2008 00:00:00 EST Note: Correction appended. The teen drama "90210," which makes its premiere tonight on the CW Network, features a premise that may sound familiar to those who came of age in the 1990s: A brother and sister experience culture shock when their family moves to a famously posh Los Angeles suburb from a middle-class Midwestern community. Like its forebear, the iconic "Beverly Hills, 90210," which went off the air in 2000 following a 10-year run on Fox, the new series showcases the mostly wealthy... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/new-yorkers-discover-way-of-the-samurai/84067/ Mon, 18 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EST On any given day, New Yorkers seeking a challenging aerobic and upper-body workout crowd into city exercise studios to spend the better part of an hour making broad slashing and skewering movements, all the while wielding 2- to 3-foot swords. The battle-worthy sequences are the core of the popular group fitness phenomenon called Forza, in which a weapon of the ancient Japanese warrior class doubles as a fitness prop. These samurai-inspired Forza classes are not as daunting, or as dangerous, as... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/discover-your-inner-olympian/83601/ Mon, 11 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EST With the Olympics under way in Beijing, it's hard not to be inspired by the competing athletes, who seem to push the body's physical limits ever further with each passing day. During the games, some New York City trainers and fitness entrepreneurs report an uptick in the number of clients looking to embark on a more rigorous exercise regimen or pick up a new sport. "People aspire to be like whoever they're rooting for," a personal trainer at Equinox on Broadway and 19th Street, Fran Fontaine... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/million-expected-for-human-race/83086/ Mon, 4 Aug 2008 00:00:00 EST A 24-year-old New York City public school teacher, Holli Simon, said she had long considered running too strenuous to be anything but a chore. In the past two months, having willed herself to join a local running club for exercise and camaraderie, Ms. Simon has had quite a change of heart: Later this month, she will attempt to complete a 10-kilometer, or 6.2-mile, race in less than an hour. "It has completely changed me into an athlete, and given me a lot of confidence in my abilities," she... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/salon-fitness-center-the-citys-newest-hybrid/82724/ Mon, 28 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST New York is full of unorthodox hybrids: Laundromat-cafés, Chinese-Mexican restaurants, childhood enrichment center-day spas. The city's latest hyphenated identity is a salon-fitness center, a new joint venture from hairstylist Julien Farel and personal trainer Pete Kupprion. In recent years, Mr. Farel, an alumnus of Frédéric Fekkai who founded his own eponymous salon eight years ago, was looking to expand his brand. An obvious answer would have been to open a satellite salon or to launch a... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/stride-right/82377/ Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST With more than a million pairs sold, the FitFlop has hit its stride. Billed as "the flip-flop with the gym built in," the sandals promise a workout with every step. Devotees, celebrities among them, report dramatic results: trimmer legs, improved muscle definition, and decreased joint pain. Supermodel Heidi Klum recently touted the FitFlop's virtues on "Oprah," and newswoman Diane Sawyer and singer Carly Simon have been photographed wearing these thick-soled shoes. Launched a year ago, the... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/a-week-in-her-fitflops/82341/ Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST For one week, a $50 pair of red-and-white FitFlops supplanted the sneakers, slides, espadrilles, and strappy sandals that I usually wear at this time of year. Almost everywhere I went, the sporty-looking flip-flops, which are said to tone the legs, tighten the rear, and reduce joint pain, attracted attention. "Do they work?" strangers stopped me on the street to ask. As it was too soon to gauge the shoe's body-shaping promises, I told curious passersby that my FitFlops were exceptionally... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/opinion/puppyhood-in-the-age-of-anxiety/81695/ Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST A television series that made its debut last night on CBS employs a familiar reality-television formula: Contestants are evaluated by a panel of sharp-tongued judges, tasked with eliminating a participant at the end of each episode. The difference here is that the entrants are not aspiring supermodels, fashion designers, captains of industry, or celebrity hair stylists; they're dogs — and not just any dogs, but ones who can, according to their bios, surf, skateboard, spell, sneeze on cue, and... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/yoga-goes-beyond-the-studio/81317/ Mon, 7 Jul 2008 00:00:00 EST New Yorkers making their way across East 86th Street in recent weeks may have noticed something unexpected: Amid the luxury residential towers and retail stores was a patch of grass growing on the façade of a building. Behind that lush green exterior is the just-opened Pure Yoga. It is not a yoga studio, as New Yorkers have come to know them; it is more a pristine, orchid-filled marketplace, where members can take part in 19 types of yoga and yoga-hybrid classes. The breadth of options is what... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/sneaking-in-a-vacation-workout/80905/ Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST French women may not get fat — at least, not as fat as their counterparts stateside — but American women who travel to Paris or Provence often come home a little rounder than when they left. It's not just the local delicacies that are to blame. In France, or just about anywhere short of a yoga retreat, vacationers tend to abandon their exercise regimens; and by the end of a trip, fitness goals can seem much further from reach. Several New York-based fitness instructors, as well as an author of... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/yes-but-why-isnt-the-doctor-hot/80517/ Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST The new medical series "Hopkins" features telegenic surgical residents and attending physicians with complicated personal histories, and it comes in a Thursday night time slot on ABC. It's a prescription that sounds suspiciously similar to that of "Grey's Anatomy," the network's most successful drama since 2005. But what distinguishes "Hopkins," first and foremost, is that everything unfolding on-screen has actually happened. The six-part reality series, produced by ABC News, was filmed inside... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/a-colorful-workout-bollywood-style/80494/ Mon, 23 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST While many of his acting-school classmates dream of Hollywood stardom, Purav Gunderia has set his sights on Bollywood, Mumbai's multibillion-dollar, Hindi-language movie industry, which is famous for its campy, song-and-dance-filled releases. "There's an element of fantasy meets reality in it," Mr. Gunderia, a student at the New York Film Academy, said of the genre, which has been described as Broadway on film. "It's very colorful, very vibrant." It is also fastidiously choreographed, which is... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/rough-crossings-joanna-hershons-the-german-bride/80095/ Tue, 17 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST There are no tenements, no sweatshops, and no Yiddish proverbs in Joanna Hershon's lyrical new novel about early Jewish immigration to America. In much literature of this genre, New York — and specifically the gritty Lower East Side — is a character unto itself; in "The German Bride" (Ballantine, 320 pages, $25), the city plays only a passing role. It is where newlyweds Abraham and Eva Shein disembark after crossing the Atlantic in the early 1860s, and where they find a brief respite from their... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/virtual-personal-trainer-provides-a-test-in-self/80034/ Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST Inside the cool, dark room, there is a jump rope and two pairs of light hand weights; there is also a remote control, and when I press "play," my virtual personal trainer appears on a floor-to-ceiling projector screen. Electronic music pours out of wall-embedded speakers, which surround me on all sides. So begins my otherworldly workout inside the Aeropod, a solitary exercise space at Aerospace High Performance Center in the meatpacking district. For the next hour, trainer Michael Olajide Jr... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/summer-boot-camp/79591/ Mon, 9 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST New Yorkers seeking to shed pounds and inches in time for a beachside getaway can get some tough love at any number of fitness boot camps in the city. A bevy of these military-inspired exercise programs have sprung up in recent years, with some promising dramatic results in just a few weeks. Many such boot camps — several of which are detailed below — take advantage of lush city parks during the warm weather months. Athletic CTS Boot Camp The co-founder of Athletic Combined Training Systems... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/when-exercise-was-fun/79039/ Mon, 2 Jun 2008 00:00:00 EST For almost all of us, exercise was once synonymous with pure merriment. Time was, we made our way across the monkey bars and skipped rope without any thought of burning calories or building muscle — without knowing or caring what phrases such as "body mass index" or "blood cholesterol level" meant. It wasn't a workout; it was recess. The founder of Gravity Defying Fitness, Lorelei Ashe MacDonald, aims to help grown-ups recapture their lost playfulness. She developed an exercise regimen that... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/turning-a-1200-piece-puzzle-into-a-home-with-moma/78789/ Thu, 29 May 2008 00:00:00 EST Inside a 20,000-square-foot warehouse space in Brooklyn's Gowanus neighborhood, about two dozen people gather most weekday mornings to work on a giant plywood puzzle. There are square-shaped pieces with oval holes in their midsection and jagged ones, resembling enormous saw blades. When they complete the 1,200-piece puzzle, they will have built a house -- or at least the skeleton of one. Next week, that residence — collapsed into three accordion-like pieces — will be loaded onto a flatbed truck... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/sex-and-the-city-grows-up/78611/ Tue, 27 May 2008 00:00:00 EST It's been a busy four years for Carrie Bradshaw. While her romantic exploits of yesteryear ran on a loop in television syndication, the label-loving heroine of the HBO series "Sex and the City" was nurturing a committed relationship with her on-again, off-again beau, "Mr. Big," and publishing a couple of best-selling books about living and loving in Manhattan. In "Sex and the City: The Movie," which hits theaters Thursday, Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), now 40, has given up her newspaper sex... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/the-renaissance-woman-behind-agnes-b/78616/ Tue, 27 May 2008 00:00:00 EST Heading up a retail empire would be enough to keep most people busy. Not Agnès Troublé, who is the creative director of the apparel and accessories brand Agnès B. While designing an ever-expanding line of wares sold in her stores, which span three continents, she has found time to produce films, write a screenplay, photograph cityscapes, and create a new line of uniforms for the staffers at the Château de Versailles. Ms. Troublé, 67, said the secret to her multifarious success is twofold: She... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/here-comes-the-bride-all-buff-and-tight/76632/ Mon, 19 May 2008 00:00:00 EST Instructor Leo Wright's "Knockout Bride" class at New York Health & Racquet Club is allotted 45 minutes, but the kickboxing hybrid course usually runs much longer, sometimes stretching to nearly three hours. Who would be so committed to sculpting their physique as to come back week after week for such a protracted workout? The name of the class suggests the answer. Brides-to-be have always wanted to look their best walking down the aisle. These days, they are going so far as to incorporate... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/health-fitness/jazzercise-for-a-new-generation/76256/ Mon, 12 May 2008 00:00:00 EST In almost every group exercise class, there's one person who is turned toward the back of the room while everyone else is facing forward — one person who prompts the instructor to call out: "Yoo-hoo, over there, your other left." That's me. So I wasn't optimistic about taking an aerobics class in which signature sequences have names such as "heel hop, flick kick, knee lift, attitude, side angle." But, ever curious, I decided to give Jazzercise a try. Yes, Jazzercise: the jazz dance-fitness... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/painting-the-town-pink-green/75503/ Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST Lilly Pulitzer, the preppy brand known for its signature candy-hued floral sundresses and its madras-style capris, is putting down roots in Manhattan. A sprawling Lilly Pulitzer store — situated in a limestone row house at 1020 Madison Ave., between 78th and 79th streets — is slated to open May 8, amid a period of expansion for the 49-year-old label. But will colorful outfits that are bright enough to wreck a Lasik operation work in a city where black is always the new black? Is New York ready... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/new-york/fixing-mommy-a-book-explains-plastic-surgery/75174/ Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST Stephanie Kaster said her body is a temple -- one that needs to be redecorated every so often: In recent years, the 39-year-old mother of three has undergone liposuction and a breast reduction. "I tell my kids, 'Bob the Builder fixes buildings, and there is a doctor that fixes parts of mommy,'" Ms. Kaster said, referring in a single breath to an animated character of children's television and to her Upper East Side plastic surgeon. But the next time she fields a question from her 6-year-old... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/creating-more-than-clothing/75120/ Tue, 22 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST Agnès B. boutiques have long sold T-shirts bearing the words, "J'aime le cinéma," as well as skirts and dresses cut from fabrics inspired by film stills. But Agnès Troublé, the Paris-based fashion designer behind the brand, doesn't just love the movies. She underwrites them, too. In 1997, Ms. Troublé founded the filmmaking company Love Streams Agnès B. Productions — named for John Cassavetes's 1984 movie, "Love Streams." This season, it is co-producing "Mister Lonely," an official selection of... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/passover-story-illuminated/74979/ Fri, 18 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST At the ritual Passover meal, or seder, many Jewish families will be reading an abbreviated story of the Jews' exodus from Egypt from wine-stained, center-stapled Haggadahs. A more select group will be reading the same slavery-to-freedom story from a leather-bound volume that features 48 brilliant-hued reproductions from an illuminated manuscript by Arthur Szyk — the Lodz-born art ist who became one of America's most influential political cartoonists during World War II. Irvin Ungar, a rabbi... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/frances-first-lady-of-letters/74358/ Tue, 8 Apr 2008 00:00:00 EST The life and literature of Irène Némirovsky, whose novel about Nazi-occupied France was published to wide acclaim more than 60 years after the author perished at Auschwitz, will be the subject of a forthcoming exhibit at the Museum of Jewish Heritage — A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in Battery Park City. A notebook containing the manuscript of Némirovsky's posthumous best seller "Suite Française," and the leather valise that housed it for decades before its discovery, will be centerpieces... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/carla-bruni-fit-for-a-queen/73745/ Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST The French are famously nonchalant about a lot of things — their president marrying his leggy paramour after a whirlwind romance, for one — but fashion is not one of them. And France's new first lady, the Italian singer and former model Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, did not disappoint yesterday, showing up to meet Queen Elizabeth II in a lovely gray coat-dress, courtesy of Christian Dior and designed by John Galliano. The first lady's black leather gloves, handbag, belt, and ballet flats — at 5 feet, 9... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/putting-autism-center-stage/73566/ Tue, 25 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST After two unsuccessful pregnancies, Elaine Hall travels to Russia to adopt a child. At an orphanage there, she meets a 23-month-old boy, and it is love at first sight. A camcorder captures the soon-to-be mother and son cuddling and cooing. But shortly after they arrive in America, the youngster, Neal, begins to exhibit troubling behaviors. He runs in circles and throws violent tantrums. His speech is severely impaired, and he sleeps only two hours a night. The diagnosis: autism. When Neal is... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/heroic-hopeful/73325/ Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST Political rhetoric aside, hope in the face of tragedy or against tremendous odds is an undoubtedly audacious notion. Many of the early Zionists who made their way to the British Mandate of Palestine embraced that bold notion as they boarded ships bound for an arid, unfamiliar land, where they risked detention and deportation. Among them was Paul Goldman, who fled Hungary in 1940, and captured on film the labor pains that preceded the creation of the modern Jewish state in 1948. A selection of... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/flintstones-vitamins-and-pregnancy-tests/72543/ Fri, 7 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST Watch enough episodes of the CW Network's "Gossip Girl," and going back to high school can seem like an appealing proposition. Amid the designer duds, chauffeur-driven cars, and hotel-suite parties depicted on the small screen, it's easy to forget about the gum-encrusted desks, mystery cafeteria food, and libelous bathroom graffiti that make high school, for most Americans, anything but glamorous. "High School Confidential," a new eight-episode series that makes its premiere Monday on the WE... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/foreign-actors-sweep-oscars/71756/ Mon, 25 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST They were the Oscars that almost didn't happen. But last night, on the heels of a three-month writers' strike that threatened to shut down the 80th Annual Academy Awards ceremony, the show went on — with "No Country for Old Men" taking the honors for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Director. The winning film was directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, who also took home the award for Best Adapted Screenplay. "No Country for Old Men" is based on a Cormac McCarthy novel about the brutal... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/golden-girls/71394/ Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST The Spice Girls, who have been weaving their way through the Tri-State Area as part of their reunion tour, will take the stage Monday night at Madison Square Garden. Ticket holders can expect something along the lines of a fashion show with models who sing and dance. Wacky costumes — platform sneakers, colorful boas, and patriotic leotards — have always been as important as (if not more important than) the music for the five-woman group. Fashion defined each girl's stage persona. Victoria... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/new-york/westminster-here-i-come/71047/ Mon, 11 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST New York's canine population spikes this week, but dog-runs across the city are not likely to see an influx of visitors. The out-of-towners, competitors in the 132nd annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, won't have much time to play in between their grooming and massage appointments. The 2,500 contenders come from across the globe to take part in the venerable two-day pageant, which begins today at Madison Square Garden. The first-place pooches are said to best represent the standards of... Gabrielle Birkner http://www.nysun.com/style/at-reem-acra-dresses-for-royalty/71007/ Fri, 8 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST Designer Reem Acra presented a fall 2008 collection that comprised draping silk dresses — long ones, belted at the waist, and short ones that hung tent-like. Shades of purple dominated the palette at yesterday's Bryant Park runway show: There was a silk charmeuse gown in a dark eggplant hue, a mink-embroidered evening cape in a dusty shade of grape, and a bold feather-adorned frock in a bright orchid color. (Even Ms. Acra's dog, who made an appearance at the end of the show, wore a shiny purple... Gabrielle Birkner http://www.nysun.com/style/carlos-miele-creates-order-from-chaos/70953/ Thu, 7 Feb 2008 16:35:04 EST Carlos Miele embraced asymmetry for his fall 2008 collection, presented yesterday at Bryant Park. The designs channeled the work of high-profile deconstructivist architects, such as Frank Gehry and Zaha Hadid — and succeeded in creating orderly looks out of the chaos of uneven pleats, erratic stitching, and curvy patterns. Sheer, layered dresses in desert and ocean hues billowed down the runway, and a gray silk charmeuse halter dress with wavy embellishments looked as if it were inspired... Gabrielle Birkner http://www.nysun.com/style/opulence-at-monique-lhuillier/70787/ Wed, 6 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST Designer Monique Lhuillier spared no embellishment in creating her fall 2008 collection, which was presented yesterday under the tents at Bryant Park. Gemstone collars topped floor-length gowns, ostrich feathers adorned cocktail dresses, and fox fur was everywhere. Ms. Lhuillier gave a nod to art deco with designs such as a tea-length jacket in a pewter jacquard and a saffron, chiffon dress with geometric cutouts and mirrored accents. She chose delicate black fabrics, including tulle, silk, and... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/miniskirts-with-combat-boots-at-generra/70640/ Mon, 4 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST "Military romantic" is how Generra describes its fall 2008 collection, presented Friday at its garment center showroom. The epaulet-adorned line also seemed to channel a cleaned-up version of the East Village, circa the early 1990s — with black, gray, and navy miniskirts and -dresses paired with combat boots, ankle-length scarves, aviator sunglasses, and fingerless gloves. The male models sported layered looks, and wore low-rise trousers, tucked into wool socks and loosely laced black boots... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/at-lacoste-the-alps-meets-jamaica/70644/ Mon, 4 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST New York saw its first major snowstorm of the season — or at least the illusion of it — on Saturday at the Lacoste fashion show, where imitation snow provided the backdrop and faux fur lined the catwalk. For his fall–winter 2008 collection, the label's creative director, Christophe Lemaire, drew inspiration from two winter vacation destinations: the skiers enclave of Megève in the French Alps, and the Jamaican capital of Kingston. The show opened with a series of elegant grayscale looks with... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/fall-comes-on-friday-at-fashion-week/70363/ Tue, 29 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST Fall may be months away, but for the fashion world it starts on Friday with the start of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Under the tents in Bryant Park and throughout the city, dozens of designers will show off their fall 2008 collections. The week starts off with menswear by Nautica at 9 a.m. on Friday — in advance of other menswear labels, such as Perry Ellis and Duckie Brown, which are also holding fashion shows that day. The twice-a-year fashion event will wrap up the following Friday, February... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/how-we-eat-now/70119/ Thu, 24 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST The past decade has toppled many of our received ideas about health and wellness. Recent studies have told us — after countless desserts ceded to SnackWell's, and early morning hours on the treadmill — that fat doesn't make us fat, and exercise doesn't make us thin. And now, the naturalist journalist Michael Pollan tells us supplement-popping, enriched soda-drinking Americans that the nutrition science we've come to rely on is doing us more harm than good. In his new manifesto, "In Defense of... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/way-we-eat-now/69972/ Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST The past decade has toppled many of our received ideas about health and wellness. Recent studies have told us — after countless desserts ceded to SnackWell's, and early morning hours on the treadmill — that fat doesn't make us fat, and exercise doesn't make us thin. And now, the naturalist journalist Michael Pollan tells us supplement-popping, enriched-soda-drinking Americans that the nutrition science we've come to rely on is doing us more harm than good. In his new manifesto, "In Defense of... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/twinkle-toes/69913/ Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST Little girls can now dress up — for play or for real — without raiding their mother's shoe collection. That's because women's shoe designer Stuart Weitzman is launching a new line of children's footwear this spring. The premiere Stuart Weitzman Kids collection comprises 30 styles, including gold, crystal-adorned flip-flops; silver, mock crocodile sandals with studded ankle straps, and iridescent, Mary Jane-style flats in a bubble gum pink. Mr. Weitzman, who is the chief executive and chairman... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/studio-for-serious-spinners/69827/ Mon, 21 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST The first time I took a spinning class, about four years ago, the half-liter water bottle I had brought with me was empty after 10 minutes of pedaling. I spent the remainder of the 45-minute class running back and forth between the water fountain, to refill the bottle, and the cycling studio, where I would drink the water in between simulated "sprints" and "hills" on the stationary bicycle. By the end of the arduous session, it looked as if all of that water had been poured on my head. I took a... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/food-drink/domestic-policy/69608/ Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST Senator Clinton's oatmeal chocolate chip cookie recipe, which calls for vegetable shortening in place of butter, can now be found on a National Archives Website. That recipe was published in a 1992 issue of Family Circle magazine — Mrs. Clinton's mea culpa of sorts, following a now-infamous interview that year in which she said she "could have stayed home and baked cookies" but chose to pursue a career; it was a comment that many stay-at-home mothers said was condescending. Now that she is a... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/classic-workout-gets-a-remix/68996/ Mon, 7 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST A short walk across 57th Street from Destination Maternity, where shoppers can find designer jeans and wrap dresses to fit their baby bumps, is Physique 57 — an exercise studio that has built its reputation, in part, on helping new mothers get back their pre-pregnancy bodies. Less than two years ago, a former investment banker, Jennifer Vaughan Maanavi, together with a fitness instructor, Tanya Becker, opened Physique 57 on West 57th Street. There, they began offering classes that borrowed... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/workout-minus-the-gym/68177/ Mon, 17 Dec 2007 00:00:00 EST When I answered the phone, the Arnold Schwarzenegger-like voice on the other end said, with genuine relief: "You're alive! I thought I was going to open the paper, and read, 'New York Sun Reporter Drops Dead After Workout.'" It had been three days since my hour-long training session with Vienna-born fitness expert Stefan Aschan, and he was calling to make sure I hadn't subsequently gone into cardiac arrest. Though I never felt like I was at death's door, Mr. Aschan, the president of a New... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/arts/modern-hebrew-prophet-remembered/67681/ Fri, 7 Dec 2007 00:00:00 EST A century after the birth of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel — one of the most influential Jewish scholars, theologians, and civil rights activists of the 20th century — religious leaders, academics, and friends of the man many considered a prophetic figure will gather in New York to celebrate the rabbi's life and lasting impact. Clergy from across Judaism's ideological spectrum, as well as prominent social justice advocates, are among those slated to address on Sunday a day-long public conference... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/to-have-to-clutch/66345/ Tue, 13 Nov 2007 00:00:00 EST As invitations to holiday parties start to come in, the question of what to wear looms large. No matter what outfit you choose — and regardless of how small or large your budget — there's a clutch to spice it up. Shiny metallic and patent leather designs can dress up suits for those after-work parties. On the weekends, clutches in vibrant hues and unusual silhouettes can add spark to those little black dresses. Here are a few picks, now in stores and online. PAYLESS | $14.99 | Available at... GABRIELLE BIRKNER http://www.nysun.com/style/discussions-of-style/65934/ Tue, 6 Nov 2007 00:00:00 EST The French Institute in New York is taking a page from "Inside the Actors Studio": Top designers from French fashion houses will participate in intimate discussions with the chief curator at the Fashion and Textile Museum in Paris, Pamela Golbin. "Fashion Talks," a three-part series, will have Ms. Golbin interviewing the artistic director of men's ready-to-wear for Hermès, Véronique Nichanian, on Friday, November 9; the creative director of accessories label Roger Vivier, Bruno Frisoni, on...