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WHEN SAMMY Palazzolo goes out, people constantly ask to see her phone. In late 2022, Ms. Palazzolo and some of her dorm-mates at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign were bemoaning their smartphone addictions. “We were talking about how we [felt] like slaves to our phones, like robots who keep scrolling and scrolling, even when we’re out at parties.” The group hatched a plan to do something about it. The next day, they went flip-phone shopping at Walmart . Ms. Palazzolo ended up with a $40 AT&T Cingular Flex.

A CERTAIN style move terrifies countless men with a passing interest in fashion. Some would sooner streak through Times Square than be seen sporting this “faux pas.” The avoid-at-all-costs abomination? Wearing black and navy together. With a discipline that would impress a four-star general, guys both young and old abide by such staid rules on not mixing certain colors. Ask them to wear, say, green head-to-toe and you might witness a conniption.

☆ 6 Ways to Kick the Bucket List and Rethink Your Trips
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Sebastian Modak | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Tom Marchant, co-founder of luxury travel company Black Tomato, said expressing what you want from travel helps trip advisers plan accordingly. “We can categorize the experiences we offer by how they make you feel and what you want from a trip, instead of just the destination,” he said. “We can try and create the conditions for those emotions that [we hope] you later associate with the best travel memories.”Philip Fong/AFP/Getty

BY EVERY MEASURE, phones are extensions of us. We use them to shop, bank, find new music and make calls. And now, like children selecting backpacks for the first day of school, we’ve started to become particular about their hue. For companies like Apple , which recently added lemon yellow to its iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus lineups, this is a mission accomplished.

Even worse than a cheesy shirt? Bed head in the boardroom. No matter how bad the morning crunch, wet those locks. If you don't have time to shower, shove your head briefly under the bathroom tap, then comb those strands into place before applying pomade, says Greg Dasaro, co-owner of New York City’s Friend of a Barber. Peter Gamlen

☆ Here’s What To Keep in Your Wallet Right Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Oyin Adedoyin | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

So do we still need wallets? And if so, how much cash should we carry, even if only for emergencies? And how many cards? We spoke to a range of financial advisers, executives and security experts for advice on the best approach.

Enlist an InsiderIf hiring a travel planner seems like some costly, rich-person indulgence, have we got a “$5 a month” deal for you. For that price, you can subscribe to Messy Nessy Chic’s Keyholder Concierge, a source of personalized counsel. The advice is witty and worldly (think: a modern-day Auntie Mame). Pile a Few TilesEver dream of bedecking a backsplash or surrounding a hearth with artisanal tiles? Inserted amid plainer tiles, a horizontal row of winsome slabs can still wow.

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☆ Longevity Seekers Embraced This Drug. But Does It Actually Fight Aging?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Alex Janin | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Some health-obsessed Americans once thought they’d found a fountain of youth in a decades-old diabetes drug. Now, some are having second thoughts. Metformin, which lowers blood-sugar levels in people with Type 2 diabetes, has been used as a diabetes medication in Europe since the 1950s and was FDA-approved in the U.S. in the 1990s. Researchers have been investigating it for another possible use—to fight aging—since at least the 1980s, after observing that some people taking metformin appeared to experience other benefits.

Our sandwiches weren’t always this bad for us. Sandwiches have grown less healthy in the past 40 years, says Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and professor of nutrition and medicine at Tufts University. Culprits include highly processed grains in bread and the low-fat push that took off in the 1980s, which nutritionists now say led to the consumption of more deli meats marketed as low-fat.

UNTIL 2020, I would primp like a prize poodle before heading to the office. I’d press shirts, ponder outfits, sculpt my pompadour with a one-two punch of hair spray and pomade. This show dog has turned into a racing greyhound. Two and a half years of working from home—a setup that let me sleep until 8:55 a.m. and still be at my desk by 9—changed the game. When I finally returned to an office job, I wasn’t about to sacrifice my snooze schedule to that elaborate, get-ready rigmarole I once performed.

GET ON THE BALL Step up your shoe game with these five rounded pairs. “I HAVE very beautiful feet,” proclaimed Cassi Namoda, 34, an artist in East Hampton, N.Y. She insists she’s “not being conceited,” just stating a fact. What does she credit for making her pedicured tootsies so aesthetically pleasing, callus-free and baby-soft? Her refusal to “wear shoes that pinch—ever.” She mainly sticks to pairs with round toes.

☆ The Recession Special That Always Satisfies
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Kevin Doyle | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

For the Time Capsule series, we spotlight a cherished restaurant, hotel or landmark that’s changed remarkably little over the years. This week, we visit Gray’s Papaya in New York City. THENIn 1973, Nicholas Gray, a Chilean-born adventurer of sorts who worked at Arctic radar stations to pay for college, ditched his Wall Street stockbroker job to open a Papaya King franchise on the corner of Broadway and 72nd St. Two years later, released from the franchise contract, Mr. Gray renamed the plum spot Gray’s Papaya and slashed the cost of a hot dog from 75 cents to 50 cents, announcing the price cut on a big white sign (the first of many) exclaiming “Hot Dog Revolution!” in emphatic red letters.

☆ The Recession Special That Always Satisfies: Gray’s Papaya Then and Now
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Kevin Doyle | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The sportswear staple known for its crisp collar and clean cut, has been revamped in ways that boggle the mind and energize the wardrobe. Witness the bounty of surreal white shirts in the resort 2023 collection from New York brand the Row, including the version shown at left, which would be standard if not for its detachable, puffy white shawl. “That was my Catholic school uniform!” said Megan Bugey, 46, an Austin, Texas, paralegal, of the shirt’s standard form. “But now, it’s trippy.”This season has seen an abundance of white collared shirts—and they’re anything but uniform. “I love the utility [button-up shirts] have in my wardrobe,” said New York stylist Pamela Shepard, 39, who owns “countless” iterations, including oversize and dip-dyed riffs from Ralph Lauren and J.Crew.

THE FIRST TIME Racil Chalhoub, 39, a womenswear designer from Beirut, decided to buy men’s clothing, she was standing in a sea of denim at Abercrombie & Fitch in Los Angeles. This was the early aughts—when many women’s jeans were so snug and low-cut that visible thongs were considered a viable accessory. But Ms. Chalhoub craved loose, roomy hip-huggers. “Everything for women was fitted or flared,” she said. Ms. Chalhoub even launched her own women’s tuxedo brand, Racil, in 2015.

TURTLENECKS HAVE A PR PROBLEM among men. Too many guys put them firmly in the “not for me” category, thinking them overly constricting, pretentious or artsy. The chin-grazing knit’s reputation suffered a further blow this fall, when French finance minister Bruno Le Maire seemingly declared a plan to reduce winter heating bills by wearing turtlenecks—and was widely mocked. “Let them wear cashmere!”Putting French politics aside, we’ve decided to assume the role of the turtleneck’s publicist. And turtlenecks have poked their heads into every fashion category this winter, from luxe (the Row) to sporty (Uniqlo Heattech).

☆ 5 Holiday Candle Holders to Bring Some Glow Into Your Home
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Nina Molina | Photographs F. Martin Ramin The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

SPARKS FLY The holidays are prime time to appreciate candlelight, and to decorate with the accessories that go with it. STRIKING A MATCH produces more than just flame and smoke. The move echoes eons of religious ceremonies and rituals; it triggers memories of burning cedar, and lips sticky from melted marshmallows. Especially during the year’s dimmest days, candlelight faithfully ushers warmth into our drafty rooms. “When it’s dark, depressing and cold outside, you want it uplifting inside,” said Estelle Bailey-Babenzien, founder of New York City interior design studio Dream Awake.

WE’RE ALWAYS HERE to help you find gifts that elicit “you really know me!” enthusiasm, even from the normally taciturn. This year, we aimed higher, aspiring to choose items with such eternal appeal, and of such high quality, that they might become heirlooms—used and loved by both your giftees and subsequent generations. Below, find our carefully considered recommendations—most under $300—for everyone in your life who loves gear, food, travel, fashion and design. This holiday, you might need to check your giftees’ lists twice, but you’ll only need to buy any of these once.

Here, our picks for tech, gear and lifestyle gifts with real staying power. A Fountain Pen That’s Due for a Long Life on EarthFor almost 100 years, Lamy has been designing precise, beautiful pens in its Heidelberg, German factory. But the company didn’t make its first fountain pen until 1966, a sleek utensil crafted from a durable fiberglass resin. The metal body of the Dialog pen, by comparison, is downright chunky. Dialog Fountain Pen, $399, US-Shop.Lamy.com

So much waste happens in the kitchen; too many tools are of the flimsy plastic variety. From an artisanal iron foundry in England to the saffron fields of Morocco, the producers represented here take the longest possible view. Mannie Berk , founder of Rare Wine Co., has an 1802 Madeira in his cellar that he opened 25 years ago. This delicious 2001 bottling, rich and warm with luxurious caramel tones, is one for the ages. 2001 D’Oliveiras Boal Madeira, $150, RareWineCo.com

Gifts with inherent stability and even history appeal right now. Meanwhile, the Technicolor tree skirt in our selection is stitched together from hearty wool blankets handwoven by indigenous women of the Andes. When your giftee’s grandkids pull it out from their closet down the road, they’ll think of their parents, and their parents’ parents, and maybe even you. Brand New Serving Plates With Ancient PatinaHaand’s three-piece serving set looks as if it were hewn from centuries-old trees. 3 Piece Serving Platter Set in Burl, $265, Haand.us

From an eco-conscious blazer reminiscent of an iconic late-1940s Christian Dior silhouette to a cloud-soft sweater unlike any we’ve ever seen, this assortment of 14 chic pieces is intended to satisfy this year’s giftees and, with luck, generations to come. An Affordable Heirloom for the WristWant to bequeath sparkle but don’t love the thought of taking out a second mortgage? Consider this bracelet, a string of 47, round-cut, lab-grown, white sapphires. Los Angeles label Dorsey, which uses lab-engineered gems more affordable than their mined cousins, is helping to democratize high-wattage jewelry. This design is equally appropriate for flashing at a schmancy holiday party or brightening a dull day at the office.

“People are bored of a lack of innovation with sneakers, so it makes sense that more guys are getting into loafers and derbies,” said Mark Boutilier, 24, an Atlanta fashion content creator. At men’s spring runway shows in June, the shift to formal styles was clear. Sneakers had faded into the background. This presents a styling conundrum: How to resolve black-tie shoes with comfy shirts and trousers seemingly designed for naps? “Men used to use sneakers to dress down formal looks, but now they are incorporating dressy shoes to elevate more casual [outfits],” said Mr. Klingberg, who recently sold a client cargo pants to team with loafers.

ONE AFTERNOON last month, Eristheo Raif freed his shins with the swoosh of two zips. Mr. Raif, 35, a Los Angeles high-school teacher, had been in a chilly classroom all morning, but it was time for P.E. Since the bottom halves of his new convertible cargo pants detach above the knees, he could unsheath his shanks in seconds. When a student inquired, “Weren’t they pants?” Mr. Raif replied, “Yeah, but it got hot, so now they’re shorts!” He last wore convertible cargos in the early 2000s. Indeed: These pants are “a big thing,” said Katie Devlin, an analyst at trend-forecasting agency Stylus.

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