List Price: $2,495,000
The Property: This two-bedroom condo at the landmark Palmolive Building has been sumptuously finished with extensive millwork, gracious chandeliers, and a home automation system that controls everything from the indoor temperature to the blackout shades on the...

" /> List Price: $2,495,000
The Property: This two-bedroom condo at the landmark Palmolive Building has been sumptuously finished with extensive millwork, gracious chandeliers, and a home automation system that controls everything from the indoor temperature to the blackout shades on the...

" /> List Price: $2,495,000
The Property: This two-bedroom condo at the landmark Palmolive Building has been sumptuously finished with extensive millwork, gracious chandeliers, and a home automation system that controls everything from the indoor temperature to the blackout shades on the...

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May 2008
On The Market—Two-Bedroom Plus Library at the Palmolive
By Dennis Rodkin
List Price: $2,495,000
The Property: This two-bedroom condo at the landmark Palmolive Building has been sumptuously finished with extensive millwork, gracious chandeliers, and a home automation system that controls everything from the indoor temperature to the blackout shades on the...

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Down By Foie
By Penny Pollack & Jeff Ruby
Foie’d Logic

Chicago’s city council repealed the infamous two-year-old foie gras ban on Wednesday by a vote of 37 to 6, thus ending one of the stranger episodes in local politics. Alderman Tom Tunney (44th ward), along with cosponsors Emma Mitts (37th) and Bernard Stone (50th), introduced the repeal with no debate, reportedly over the strenuous objections of Joe Moore (49th), who, according to the Sun-Times, said it would be “the first time in my 17 years on the city council that a matter was...

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Towering Ambition
By Jay Pridmore
The Chicago Spire aims to be the tallest skyscraper in North America. But will it get built? The twisting tale so far Read more
Green Design Party

Sit down, relax, and don't worry about global warming. (Well, worry about it a little.) You'll be helping the environment when you lounge in Roscoe Jackson's new line of recycled plastic outdoor furniture (look for these cool chairs in our July/August issue!). Also try on some eco-conscious attire from Pivot boutique, and check out the much-talked-about Smart Car. Get a 25-percent-off discount on an item from Pivot when you purchase the guilt-free lawn loungers or make a Smart car reservation. If you are already the proud driver of one of these groovy tiny new automobiles, pull up in yours and feel extra cool. Hors d'oeuvres from Carnival will also make an appearance. May 15, 5 to 8 p.m., at Pivot Boutique, 1101 W. Fulton Mkt. Click here for more details.

—JACKIE HUNZINGER

Photo courtesy of about.com.

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Housing Bulletin— Melissa Bean and Mortgage-Aid Legislation
By Dennis Rodkin

On May 8th, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a mortgage rescue plan that, although threatened by a veto from President Bush, could help homeowners facing foreclosure stay in their homes with lower-cost loans.

Congresswoman Melissa Bean, who represents Illinois’ 8th District (Chicago’s north and northwest suburbs), authored three parts of the package that were expressly designed to keep the bill from rewarding irresponsible borrowers with government funds. “There’s an implication from opponents that this is somehow gifting taxpayer money to...

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Rich Foods
By Emily Kaiser
With gas prices going up, home values sinking, and the economy in turmoil, here's one more thing that's straining Chicago-area budgets: food. Read more
Great Scott?

My evil plan is working.

Writing about beer means that globe-trotting friends now feel compelled to lug choice brews—beady-eyed customs officials and baggage weight limits be damned—across land and sea to satisfy my beer tooth. Insert devilish cackle here.

My pal Venus spent the last nine months in Paris eating pastries and writing a dissertation on French agricultural history. I spent the last nine months trying not to kill the plants she left behind. When she returned last week, she came bearing beer as a thank-you. But not just any beer. The one that got away: Adelscott...

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Color My World

The magazine House Beautiful hosted a “Color Institute” last week at the Mart. It featured a panel with HB’s editor, Stephen Drucker, local design maven Alessandra Branca  and Windsor Smith, a designer from Los Angeles. Here’s what I learned about color from each:

Stephen Drucker on color trends:
  • “The new femininity.” Pretty, flirty colors such as apple green and pink, especially used on strong shapes.
  • ”The new globalism.” Lots of rich colors that reflect homeowners’ travels.
  • Neutrals. “A lot of people talk color but only use neutrals.” The today factor: lots of distressing and metallics.
  • Tropical greens and browns.
  • Water and sky blue colors brought to life with metallic shimmer, texture, and mixed with greys (see photo above).
 Windsor Smith’s tips and observations:
  • She loves dark, dark brown—nearly charcoal black, with light salmon
  • Acknowledge the landscape. If your home has a lot of art, you need to create a neutral backdrop for it.
  • When you paint windows dark, what’s beyond it (trees, shrub, flowers) pops. If you paint them white, your eye stops at the white.
  • Teenagers inexplicably love purple. Naturally, this very strong color is hard to work with (and isn’t everything hard with teenagers?).
  • Go-to Colors: Benjamin Moore Rock Harbor Violet, Benjamin Moore Decorator’s White
 Alessandra Branca’s observations:
  • She wakes up to “spring every day” in a room that’s apple green and white
  • Black balances… it’s as much a color as any other.
  • No color is bad unless it’s overused.
Find lots of other great color tips from House Beautiful here:

—JAN PARR

Photo courtesy House Beautiful

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A Game of Footy

This morning I was awakened by a kick in the nose from my daughter. On the continuum of Ways I Don't Want to Wake Up, this falls somewhere between uncontrollable bed-wetting and involuntary abscess removal. Hannah is obviously no longer sleeping in the tent on the floor; that experiment ended quickly. And even though she's only two feet tall, she has managed to take over our bed with a fury seen before only by Australian Rules Football—a game which the Australians, in their typical quaintness, refer to as "Footy." Footy would be a nice way of describing the dropkick beatdown wake-up call my kid gave me...

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