Consumer: August 2009 Archives

For this week's "Weekend Watch" vodcast (a weekly things-to-do video that posts on PE.com every Thursday morning) I headed to the Temecula Valley wine country to visit Thornton Winery, which was hosting its first grape crush of the season for its champagnes.

See the video here.

It was my first trip to Thornton and it was a lot of fun. I watched the crush, toured the cellars, Champagne Lounge, gift shop and more. In addition to its dining, tours and wine tasting, the winery is hosting a summer concert series called the 21st Annual Champagne Jazz Series. These take place in the courtyard and they're getting some big names.

Here's the calendar for the remaining concerts:

Gerald Albright & Kirk Whalum
When: 7 p.m., Saturday, August 22
Cost: $65, general admission; $140, gourmet supper package

David Sanborn with Special Guest
When: 5 p.m., Sunday, August 30
Cost: $65, general admission; $140, gourmet supper package

Spyro Gyra with Special Guest
When: 4 p.m., Sunday, September 13
Cost: $55, general admission; $130, gourmet supper package

Candy Dulfer with Bonafide featuring Slim Man
When: 4 p.m., Sunday, September 20
Cost: $65, general admission; $140, gourmet supper package

Norman Brown's Summer Storm, Norman Brown, Eric Darius
When: 7 p.m., Saturday, September 26
Cost: $75, general admission, $150, gourmet supper package

Peter White
When: 7 p.m., Saturday, October 3
Cost: $65, general admission, $140, gourmet supper package

Jesse Cook
When: 4 p.m., Sunday, October 11
Cost: $55, general admission, $130, gourmet supper package

The Gourmet Supper Package includes a 3-course meal, served during the concert at a reserved table under the covered patio.

For tickets call 951-699-3021 or visit www.thorntonwine.com.

I got a press release today on something called "Denim Therapy." It's a company that offers a jean repair service; they fixes jean that are worn and tearing at a pretty reasonable cost.

The company recently came up with a new product that seems like a great idea. It's a little expansion device for jeans that causes them to grow with Mom as she expands during pregnancy.

The new maternity jeans feature includes the installation of the expansion material into any old pair of jeans and then the restoration of the denim back to pre-baby form after Mom regains her old shape.

Where were these when I was pregnant? Especially in the early showing stages, I remember a constant tug-of-war with maternity jeans that either pinched or were forever slipping down. I ended up using a lot of giant safety pins and doing my own expansion techniques as needed.

And how cool is it that they repair them for you at the end? The whole deal is $60, which isn't too bad considering the fact that you still have wearable jeans at the end. My old maternity pants were passed down to my sister when she got pregnant again, then a friend of ours when her time came. Almost like the "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," but for pregnant ladies. :)

Read up the "Denim Therapy" at http://denimtherapy.com

There is nothing like a clean, organized closet. But they never stay that way, do they? Closets By Design offered these five tips for removing the closet clutter:

An Operating System Isn't Just for the Office - Organize your clothes by color or by casual to formal and then hang like-types of clothing together (i.e. shirts, pants, skirts, etc.)

Make the Shoe Fit - Squeeze in more shoes per shelf by arranging pairs with one toe facing out, one toe facing in. If you like to keep your shoes in boxes, make sure you label the original box and use clear storage containers.

When Seasons Change, it's Time to Rearrange - Rotate your fall and winter clothes with your spring and summer clothes. Store the out-of-season clothes in covered clothing racks in the attic or basement or flat storage boxes under your bed.

If You Don't Use It, Lose It - If you're hanging onto that pair of jeans that will fit only if you lose 10 pounds, donate them. Once you shed the weight, you can buy a new, trendy pair. Get rid of stretched out bathing suits, worn out shoes, and that pair of pants you've been planning to alter for months now. Cutting the clutter will automatically make you more organized and efficient.

It's Not Your Closet, It's You - Get into a routine of straightening up your closet the same time each day. Whether its before work, after work or before you go to bed, don't wait to put your shoes away or hang your clothes until you can't see your closet (or bedroom) floor.

-www.closetsbydesign.com

The Lake Elsinore Outlets offered these back to school shopping tips and they look like solid advice to me:

Research - Go online, look for weekly specials, coupons or other promotions.
Clean up the clutter - Go through all summer clothes and organize closets and drawers prior to shopping. Make sure kids start the new year with clothes in the right sizes.
Basics - Buy basics that will last all year long, like leggins, t-shirts, socks and underwear.
Get organized - Buying new backpacks for school will get kids excited about the new year and will motivate them to get their stuff organized.
Allow creativity - Feeling fresh and stylish will help your child feel confident. Let go a little and allow your child to pick a few items all by himself or herself - even if it's not something you might've chosen.
Put your best foot forward - Make sure tennis shoes and sneakers give feet room to grow and are not just stylish, but comfortable for all kinds of play.
Source: Lake Elsinore Outlets - 951-245-0087, www.lakeelsinoreoutlets.com

Southern California Mimis Cafe restaurants will hold a special fundraising day Wednesday, August 12, to benefit San Diego Zoo's conservation efforts. Bring a copy of the flyer found here and 15 percent of the net sales will be donated to the San Diego Zoo.

The restaurants will also have coupons through August 31 for one free Child's Best Value Admission Ticket with the purchase of an Adult Best Value Admission Ticket good for the San Diego Zoo or Wild Animal Park.

ConsumerReports.org has come up with a list of the best cars for teen drivers based on test results, and government and insurance-industry crash-test results. The vehicles also showed better-than-average reliability according to a 2008 subscriber survey.

Here's the list:
Acura TSX Pontiac Vibe (2006 or later)
Ford Focus sedan (2003 or later) Scion tC
Ford Fusion Subaru Impreza (not WRX)
Honda Accord (4-cyl.) Subaru Forester
Honda CR-V EX (2005 or later) Toyota Camry (4-cyl.)
Honda Civic EX Toyota Corolla
Hyundai Sonata (4-cyl., 2006 or later) Toyota Matrix (2006 or later)
Kia Optima (2006 or later) Toyota Prius
Mazda 3 (with side airbags) Toyota RAV4 (2001 or later, non-3rd row)
Mercury Milan

Other advice in the report included looking for vehicles with advanced safety features like electronic stability control and curtain airbags, as well as good crash-test results.

You can visit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Web sites for crash results..

Written by guest author Debbie Yocum:

It is summertime. We all love play around the pool, the lake, the beach. Any place that there is water is the place where you will find kids. It is also a likely place that you will find a cell phone lying in a puddle of water.

Debbie Yocum
Guest Author

There was the time when a friend of my 14-year-old son jumped in the pool with his shorts on, only to come up with a horrified look on his face and a dripping wet phone in his right hand. Then there was the time I dropped the phone from my shirt pocket into the dog's water bowl or the time that my stepdaughter pulled her cell phone out of the pool after water polo practice. The list is long. We decided after all these accidents that there had to be a cure for wet and foggy phones and fortunately we found one.