Collaborators Jeanette Thottrup and Anna Buonocore joke that they’re oil and water. “I love herbs,” says Thottrup, the co-owner of the gorgeous Italian estate Borgo Santo Pietro, who traces her passion for botanicals back to a job with Neil’s Yard in London. “And I love chemistry,” says cosmetic chemist Buonocore, who trained in pharmacy before taking a job on the property. But eventually they “emulsified.”
About ten years ago, they started working on Borgo Santo Pietro’s signature cosmetics line, called Seed to Skin. While it’s true that all plants start off as seeds, the ones used in these products are grown on the estate’s 200 acres. The products—some 100 different—are hand-packaged in beautiful green glass jars and bottles with a slightly homespun feel, but inside they’re science-y as all get out.
There’s rosewater that’s infused with encapsulated hyaluronic acid. Some of the serums and tonics have been through hyperfermentation, which, I’m told, concentrates their active ingredients. As I am not a cosmetic chemist, I will take their word for this, though rigorous third-party studies back up many of the claims, and the buyers for spa powerhouses like Canyon Ranch and Six Senses are convinced. They say they’re “proudly not organic” (even as they emphasize that they’re non-toxic) because even though the plants are grown organically, there’s so much science transforming the ingredients.
But you don’t have to be a skin care junkie to fall in love with Borgo Santo Pietro.
The place is the passion project of Jeanette Thottrup, a former fashion designer, and her husband, Claus, who made his name in real estate development. When they bought it, in 2001, it was in ruins. Since then, they’ve put their hands on every inch of it. The wallpapers: custom. The furnishings: custom. The frescoes: custom. The hotel has a signature fabric (also custom), which is used not only in the accent throws in the spa but also on the house-made headbands that guests may use during master classes with brand ambassadors, in which they lavish Seed to Skin products on their faces.
This is a place where every detail is fully realized, including what’s on the table. The lavish breakfast buffet includes a fermentation corner with kimchi and seed spreads made by a dedicated fermentation chef, who also makes the yummy miso-kale chips that greet guests in their room, along with various sweets and rich pecorino from the sheep that live on the farm.
The hotel has grown 22 rooms and suites, all of which are individually styled, inspired by the property’s rich history and full of bespoke details executed by in-house artisans and local craftspeople. There are 13 acres of manicured gardens, whimsically kitted out with fountains, statues,
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Elix, the newest property to join Mar-Bella Collection, a family-owned Greek hotel group opened in 2021, on the Ionian coast of the West side of mainland Greece. It’s in one of the most unspoilt regions of mainland Greece and feels like a real hideaway. It is the ideal destination for couples and families with grown up children keen on active outdoor adventures.
When it comes to using a car service to get around town, to and from the airport or from one destination to the next, travelers looking for a high-end option have a myriad of brands to pick from. Based on my personal experience, I can tell you that I’ve come to rely on Blacklane.
These days, it seems that some restaurants will add a dollop of caviar to anything, from fried chicken to hamburgers, practically reducing the once-luxurious treat to a condiment. So it’s perhaps no surprise that chefs are turning their attention to something more rarefied than your everyday osetra: albino caviar, which ranges in color from alabaster to golden, and is the result of uncommon mutations. The most sought after is that of the beluga sturgeon but, says Hermes Gehnen, the founder of N25 Caviar, an international purveyor, “restaurants generally can’t afford it. It’s more for superyachts.” At Les Trois Chevaux in New York, the eggs of the Acipenser ruthenus, a small sturgeon known as the sterlet, are shaped into a quenelle tableside and plated with white asparagus, aerated béchamel and beurre de baratte-basted brioche. The monochromatic presentation allows diners to be “more cognizant of what [they’re] actually tasting,” says the restaurant’s owner, Angie Mar, 41, who describes albino caviar as “supple and velvety.” Rasmus Munk, 32, the chef and co-owner of Alchemist in Copenhagen, is drawn to albino caviar’s “beautiful aroma of butter and creamy texture.” He serves it atop a square of crisp, sourdough-flavored freeze-dried milk born of his collaboration with an M.I.T. researcher on food for space travel. And at the omakase restaurant the Araki in London, the chef Marty Lau slices white cuttlefish and squid into fine ribbons and tops them with a spoonful of golden roe. Although white caviar stock is limited, they aren’t the only pale orbs worth chasing. Snail eggs, which have a mushroomlike flavor, have the same visual appeal despite their earthy taste. Just don’t assume they’ll be a bargain. “Sometimes,” says Munk, “you’ll pay even more money for snail eggs than you do for caviar.” —
Before I became a mother, people told me I'd miss rest. I thought that was silly. I had waited my whole life to have a baby, and in my mind's eye, all I saw was us doing things like walking everywhere hand in hand, baking in the kitchen, and singing together.
Art Deco mirrors, plus desks and tables designed by Queen Elizabeth II’s nephew David Linley, now the Earl of Snowdon. Bespoke furniture, china and lighting. All are up for sale in a series of ground-breaking auctions this August taking place in London (but also online).
This month, ballet fans will have the rare opportunity to see the acclaimed Australian Ballet in London. As part of the company’s 60th anniversary celebrations, performances by The Australian Ballet at London’s Royal Opera House will be the only performances outside of Australia. The 2023 London Tour will be the first international tour for The Australian Ballet under the leadership of Artistic Director David Hallberg. It will be the company’s first return to the Royal Opera House after an absence of 35 years.
One of Rome’s most storied hotels has recently undergone a show-stopping renovation, just in time for the record crowds flowing into the Eternal City this year.
I’ve never been to London, but I’ve experienced it many times. From sitting in on royal meetings in Buckingham Palace to passing through the walls of King’s Cross Station at Platform 9 ¾, London has come alive in my imagination through some of my favorite books and movies.
North American travelers looking for bargain transatlantic fares will have lots more options this summer, as European-based low-fare lines expand their reach. Three lines have announced aggressive moves: