Blue lights going dark at Kmarts

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Attention Kmart shoppers:

Dozens of stores are closing as the retailer in cutting its losses. So far, Kmart is planning liquidation sales at stores in California, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio, South Dakota,  Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin and Hawaii, with more to come.

Kmart in Washington Township is one of more than 100 Kmart and Sears full-line stores that will be closed following an announcement from Sears Holdings in December.

Kmart in Washington Township is one of more than 100 Kmart and Sears full-line stores that will be closed following an announcement from Sears Holdings in December.

“Store closures are part of a series of actions we’re taking to reduce ongoing expenses, adjust our asset base and accelerate the transformation of our business model,” says  Howard Reifs, director, corporate communications, for Sears Holdings, Kmart’s parent company. “These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers and members through integrated retail – at the store, online and in the home.”

It’s part of an initiative announced by Sears to shutter at least 100 Kmart and Sears locations in the U.S. after ice-cold holiday sales in electronics and apparel. The announcement comes days after Macy’s revealed it would close stores in response to lackluster sales.

Customers with layaway contracts at Kmart have the option of paying off the contract early or transferring their layaways to a neighboring store or online. Store staffers will receive severance pay and can apply for positions at surviving Sears or Kmart stores.

Hit the jackpot with a fabulous get-away

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 The jackpot for Wednesday’s Powerball Lottery has reached a jaw-dropping $1.5 billion, with millions of dreamers contemplating how they would spend the money, should they beat the 1-in-292 million odds of winning.

Personally, I am hoping for an altruistic winner, someone who would spread that lovely cash around doing good in this world. Still, I hope the new billionaire also would indulge in a treat.

Unknown-1How about a great vacation? Here are five pricey possibilities:

Private New Zealand Adventure – Folks who don’t have to show up for work can spend 44 days in New Zealand. This custom itinerary includes white-water rafting down the Rangitaiki River; hiking tours through national parks; wine tastings at historic wineries in the South Island’s Cromwell region; helicopter flights to remote locations; fly fishing at top-tier lodges; tours of the glowworm-lined Waitomo Caves; and sailing through the Bay of Islands. After a month-plus in New Zealand, head to the 50th State with nine days in Hawaii, split between Maui’s Montage Kapalua Bay and Honolulu’s renowned Halekulani hotel. The trip starts at $83,000 per couple.

Icebreaker North PoleNorth Pole via Nuclear Icebreaker – Sail for the legendary North Pole on a 14-day Arctic voyage aboard the nuclear icebreaker, 50 Years of Victory. Chill out with a view of the moving icebreaker from a helicopter. Feel the crunch of thick pack ice under your boots, and observe bears, birds, seals and walruses. The tour starts at $26,995 per person.

Unknown-3 Tour The Silk Road by Private Train – Retrace one of the most important trading routes of ancient civilization on a 22-day private train tour in the footsteps of  Alexander the Great and Marco Polo. For centuries, merchants and adventurers journeyed to and from China on ancient routes stretching 4,000 miles through some of the most challenging landscapes in the world trading silk, spices and perfumes. Get on board for fares starting at $24,595 per person. (If you don’t hit the lottery, shorter hops are available for a lot less.)

Unknown-2Russian Space Tour – Explore the Russian Space Program at Star City, Russia’s premier  training facility, where wanna-be cosmonauts can participate in Zero-Gravity Flight or Space Walk Training in the Orlan Space Suit Lab. At the remote Russian launch facility on the Kazakh steppe, you can make friends with top international space officials, space veterans and the family of the next space crew. The experience also includes the launch of the Soyuz on its way to the International Space Station. Prices lift off at $14,495 per person.

Unknown-4Ultimate Africa Safari – Africa is a continent of wonders, including Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest freestanding mountain in the world; Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World; Ngorongoro Crater, the world’s largest unbroken volcanic caldera; Olduvai Gorge, one of the most important prehistoric sites in the world; and Cape Town, an international city with award-winning vineyards a grape toss away. This 29-day private tour explores the finest of Southern Africa, including luxurious hotels and primo tent camps. Safaris start at $27,175 per person.

Poetry in Beauty

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Home to the largest collection of Pre-Raphaelite art outside the United Kingdom, the Delaware Art Museum  is a magnet for aficionados of the movement, celebrated for its luminous palette, saturated colors and romantic depictions of nobility, nature and religion.

Marie_Spartali_1868Fair maidens are a recurring theme, yet only a handful of women artists painted their way into the inner circle of the movement.

Visitors to the museum can get a rare, in-depth look at the work of Marie Spartali Stillman, eldest daughter of the Greek consul-general to London and an insider in the Victorian art world. She gained entrance to the Pre-Raphaelite circle as a model for Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the artist and poet, and then as a painter in her own right.

Poetry in Beauty, the first retrospective of Spartali Stillman’s art,  showcases  approximately 50 works by the artist, roughly half the paintings she created in a career that spanned 60 years.

1935-75-e1446044241349-150x150Her style reflects her British Pre-Raphaelite training as well as the influence of Renaissance art, derived from years living and working in Italy with her husband, a prominent journalist, and their three children.

Her paintings also are inspired by Shakespeare, gardens and country life, and many focus on women. The museum borrowed the paintings from public and private collections in the United States, Britain, and Canada, many shown publicly for the first time since Spartali Stillman died in 1927 at age 83. The exhibit runs through Jan. 31.

A farmers market, 365 days a year

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I like to shop at farmers markets that sprout in a designated place one special day a week, then disappear until the next time the following week.

But often I missed my chance because the market’s schedule did not coincide with my own.

This afternoon I shopped at the 7 Day Farmers Market that opened in December in a former Pathmark on Lancaster Pike in Wilmington.

IMG_0722There’s no website and no promotions besides the big banner on the store. Still, shoppers are flocking to the store, which is open from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m.-8 p.m. on Sunday.

What you will find is a wide variety of fresh produce, ethnic foods, and dried herbs in bulk,  in addition to the traditional canned goods and frozen foods shoppers would have bought at the old Pathmark.

A number of former Pathmark employees found new jobs at the market and offer friendly, helpful service. Witness Scott, the enterprising and pleasant staffer who rounded up various options in quinoa from the organic and grains sections for me to compare. The  cashier invited me to take a free bag of clementines with me as I exited the store.

I enjoyed the variety of fresh produce, popping a container of hard-to-find Matari mushrooms into the cart. There are mounds of cactus leaves, bushels of beets and such mysterious vegetables as gray squash.

Prices on fruits and veggies trend lower than at traditional grocers. I paid 49 cents a pound for sweet potatoes, compared to $1.99 a pound at Acme. That said, some prices for non-perishables are higher. Costco wins hands down for the least expensive quinoa around.

 

Best things to buy in January

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exercise-equipment-dubaiThe first month of the year is traditionally associated with White Sales.

But there are better bargains to be had than discounts on sheets and towels, says DealNews, a tracker of online retail.

January is the best month to flex your buying muscle for fitness equipment. That’s due, in part, to the boomlet of consumers who have vowed to exercise more in 2016. Gyms and fitness centers also are offering healthy savings on memberships. (And if your local gym isn’t advertising a deal, don’t sweat that detail. Be proactive and ask for a discount.)

Other opportunities to save include:

  • Jewelry and chocolates, the goodies most often associated with Valentine’s Day. After Feb. 1, the price of romance takes a seasonal spike.
  • Tax software. Early filers get their refunds sooner. They also get the best deals on software. (Make sure your package includes whatever you will need to file your state tax return.)
  • Holiday decorations. Christmas is so over and Santa’s helpers at Lowe’s, Home Depot, Target and Pier 1 are marking down ornaments and other glittery goods up to 70 percent.

Veganuary: Week One

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cow-faceAfter one week with no meat, no refined sugar and no alcohol, I don’t feel especially virtuous.

Still, it’s clear that animals like me better, really they do. As I stroll through this peaceable kingdom, cows amble up from the meadow, just to lick my hand. Pigs squeal with delight as I pass by. Roosters crow their greetings. Salmon leap from streams and give me a finny high-five.

I feel more productive, plowing through work, then tackling jobs around the house. I confess a slight sense of accomplishment. And I’m bored.

IMG_0719Specifically, I am bored with my food. Whole wheat penne with pesto; pizza with spinach and roasted red peppers; black beans with salsa; hummus and flax crackers; baked sweet potatoes sprinkled with granola; the seemingly endless vat of homemade navy bean soup with tomatoes, carrots and kale.

And I wonder: am I getting boring, too?

I must decline an invitation from an Italian restaurant to sample new dishes and wines they are adding to the menu. I take a raincheck when a neighbor asks if I would like to share the venison she is roasting for dinner. I join a friend who is having a few people over for wine and cheese. I’m OK with my club soda and crackers. But I would prefer a buttery Chardonnay with brie.

On Day Eight I realize that I need to summon enthusiasm for the fare I’ve committed to for 31 days. As an adventurous eater, I ask myself: why do I embrace sea urchin yet turn up my nose at tofu? Perhaps it’s because I have tasted both and sea urchin is wild, creamy and sensual and tofu reminds me of a plastic bag distilled into squishy cubes.

So tomorrow I will buy a small container of tofu and marinate it. I will do my best to create a dish that is healthy and delicious.

If I still don’t like it I never have to eat it again. So there.

Day Eight. Twenty-three days to go.

Macy’s to shutter 40 stores

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After a cheerless holiday shopping season, Macy’s announced it will close 40 of its worst performing department stores.

550px-Macys_dep_storeMacy’s has been disappointing investors for five consecutive quarters. So why are shoppers putting less in those bright red bags with the big white stars?

Analysts say middle- and upper-end department stores are lagging the field, while speciality retailers, such as Barnes and Noble, are faring better than expected. Meanwhile, TJ Maxx and other discounters are ringing up sales that traditionally would have gone to Macy’s.

Weather and tourism also were factors. Sales of outerwear swooned in a balmy autumn and winter. And the stronger U.S. dollar discouraged European tourists from loading up on clothes and accessories, especially at Macy’s flagship store in New York’s Herald Square.

Macy’s operates more than 900 stores under its Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury marquees.

Cashing out your cluttered closet

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A lot of New Year’s resolutions involve losing weight–and not necessarily around our hips.

It’s also a time to reduce clutter by shedding excess layers in our closets.

The result is a January boomlet for resale shops, according to the folks at Clothes Mentor, a nationwide network of stores, including a location at the Shoppes at Dilworthtown Crossing on Route 202 in West Chester.

Resale shops have an edge over traditional consignment stores because the sellers are paid immediately. When clothes and accessories are consigned, the sellers get a check when and if an item sells, sometimes after several markdowns.

19557_1330164701423_3357406_nSo, how to get started? Here are a few tips:

  • If you’re not sure what to get rid of, Clothes Mentor experts suggest you use the six month rule. If you haven’t worn it in six months, let it go. (I say, don’t do it! Hang onto those skinny pants, your favorite sweater from college, the most excruciatingly adorable shoes in the whole world for at least two years after the last wearing–or until your house burns down.)

  • That said, make sure your items have been in style in the past few years. Resale shops only buy items that will resonate with customers and turn over quickly.

  • Don’t bother trying to sell clothes that are stained, torn or otherwise damaged. Toss them. Straightaway.

  • Most resale stores require a valid ID in order to make a sale, so don’t leave home without it.

  • I’ll add an extra tip. Resist spending your newfound cash on future clutter. Before you buy, ask yourself: Do I need it? Do I have room for it? And that said, do I really, really want it?

Like butter. Kiehl’s soy milk and honey cream

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Now that winter has finally roared in I’m paying more attention to my skin, a pre-emptive strike against blustery wind and cold outdoors and the drying effects of central heat indoors.

Kiehl’s Creme de Corps Soy Milk and Honey Body Butter provides a silky layer of moisture between me and the world. I keep it in the shower and smooth it on as soon as I towel off, before I leave that steamy sanctuary and venture out onto the jarring cold of the bathroom floor.

imagesIt’s nippy in my old house and I am in a hurry to get some clothes on. Happily, the butter absorbs quickly so it doesn’t stick to my jeans and sweater. The parts of my body that aren’t covered by clothes feel soft and smooth, so I figure the rest of my skin does, too. It also smells good, a slightly tropical scent that reminds me of the Shea butter in sunscreen… and a warm beach.

I like that the tub is decorated with figures of outdoorsy types and forest creatures you might meet on a wintry trek through the woods. It’s designed by Costello Tagliapietra, the New York duo Jeffrey Costello and Robert Tagliapietra, who are nicknamed “the lumberjacks of fashion” because they are fond of wearing plaid flannel shirts and suspenders and have big, bushy beards.

I also appreciate that it’s plastic, not glass, in case I have an opps-y moment and drop it in the shower. Expect to pay $38 for an 8-ounce container, more than enough to last you until spring. (Full disclosure: the folks from Kiehl’s provided a review sample.)

IHOP’s all-you-can-eat pancake special

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Chowhounds will flip for IHOP’s annual all-you-can eat pancake promotion, arriving just as the last crumbs of Christmas cookies have been whisked away.

IHOP_pancakes

Here’s the deal: patrons must order either five buttermilk pancakes or a short stack of two pancakes with a combo plate of eggs, golden hash browns and their choice of breakfast meats. After that, guests can keep the short stacks coming until they have had, uh, all they can eat.

To sweeten the deal, you can top those flapjacks with your choice of strawberries, blueberries, peaches or apples with cinnamon. Patrons pay for the first round of toppings; the rest are on the house.

The offer is good Jan. 4-Feb 14 for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Or all three.