The great minds behind Bravo TV's hit show Top Design - fashion and interior designer Todd Oldham, Margaret Russell the Edidtor in Chief of Elle Decor, and designer and potter Jonathan Adler of Shelter Island. Photo by PatrickMcMullan.com

If you're wondering why the local waterfront seems so quiet this time of year, you only have
to hop a plane to St. Barth's to catch the local yacht crowd out in such swarms it looks like Sag
Harbor on the 4th of July! Publishing magnate Rupert Murdoch and wife Wendi have been entertaining folks like Billy Joel and the lovely Katie Lee Joel on their sleek 185 foot yacht "Rosehearty". Billy chose to leave his cruiser "Vendetta" up north and leave the driving to someone else. I suppose that after taking care of their three massive properties – the baronial Centre Island manse, the Sag Harbor bay front estate, and their under- renovation West Village townhouse – it's a relief for the Joel's to get on board a no-fuss ocean going vessel with a crew that caters to every whim and simply soak up the sun.

Cosmetics king Ron Perelman had the same idea and anchored his luxurious "Ultima III"
in the harbor of the trendy island getaway. The original "Ultima" commissioned by Revlon founder Charles Revson has over the years only gotten bigger and bigger in its numerous incarnations – that's a lot of perfume and lipstick, my friends!

So envious that I was not stretched out on the teak deck of at least a 200-footer in the Caribbean, I decided to indulge in a little retail therapy – and headed into the Big Apple,
destination downtown which seemed more like a stroll down Newtown Lane or Main Street, Southampton. I don't know if you have noticed but in case you haven't been in Manhattan lately there are a lot of East End names popping up over chic windows at new stores in the hottest neighborhoods. Bleecker Street long a home to faded hipsters has done an amazing turnaround in just the last year with designers like Marc Jacobs showing everything from the latest must have bags to contemporary furniture.

Southampton's Antony Todd, who with golden girl Nina Griscom, has one of Jobs Lane's toniest showcases for floral design and home décor has recently opened a new outpost on East 11th Street. One of the Hamptons' most sought after event and interior designers, Antony has filled his new emporium with the lushest floral arrangements, exotic home accessories, contemporary and elegant antique furniture.

Over on Greenwich Avenue, Shelter Island potter extraordinaire Jonathan Adler has perhaps one of the most visually stunning shops to open in decades. The brand new, colorful and beautifully merchandised branch of his popular East Hampton shop is overflowing with the cheeky designs with a mod sensibility that have endeared him to savvy shoppers with a discerning eye for high end but affordable style.

Everything in his collection simply says "Fun!" I was ready to plop down on one of his pearl gray suede high backed chairs, cross my legs and wait for my very chilled martini! Then I noticed the cashier stand with a base covered with handmade tiles (by Jonathan, of course) emblazoned with the $ sign and I chuckled once again at his wonderful sense of play.

At the end of summer, fans of our very popular local Blue + Cream boutiques will be able to stuff their closets even more when founder Jeff Goldstein launches his Bowery branch at the very exclusive new development Chrystie Place. Long associated with flophouses and raggedy panhandlers, The Bowery is seeing an immense renaissance with developers signing up world class architects and designers to replace the crumbling tenements with ultra luxe domiciles and such trend-setting retailers as Jeff. The new Blue + Cream will have the look of a luxurious Parisian art gallery.

Jeff has brought such hip designers to the East End as Married to the Mob, Trovata, and DQM will offer such local faves as Cynthia Rowley, L.A.M.B., and Jenny Kayne. Clearly encouraged by the response of fashion savvy Hamptonites, he's now looking to other affluent resort areas such as Snowmass, Colorado, Palm Beach, and Malibu for his next stores. A refreshing twist on the big luxe retailers coming to the Hamptons, No?

At Scoop, I snagged a little purple number that is just perfect for the toast to the legendary acting teacher/director and founder of The American Place Theatre, the much loved Wynn Handman at The Players in Gramercy Park next week. Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis and
the wonderfully droll Tony Roberts are among the luminaries that will lift a glass to Wynn as the festivities kick off for the celebration of his 85th birthday and the 45th Anniversary of The American Place Theatre later this spring. Hopefully The Club's charming president Timothy Hutton will be there.

The historic club, conceived as a "gentlemen' club", was originally incorporated by a group that included Edwin Booth, Mark Twain, and John Drew (for whom Guild Hall's Theater is named by the way). Wynn will be inducted as an Honorary Member of The Players whose membership has included such illustrious names as John Barrymore, Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Morgan Freeman, Carol Burnett, Tommy Lee Jones, and Walter Cronkite.

As glittering a list as that is, we're sure that Wynn's birthday bash will definitely register high kilowatts on the star power Richter scale. Already the invitation sparkles with the likes of Alec Baldwin, Richard Gere, Allison Janney, Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman, Denzel Washington, enough to rival the fabled Night of 100 Stars.

You can add another celebrity designer to the mix. One time Tom Cruise main lady and now happily out on her own, Penelope Cruz and her 25-year-old sister Monica are designing a collection of sexy pieces for Mango, Spain's version of H&M, a home for world class designs at student prices. Monica and Penelope will also be the faces of the ad campaign – sure saves a lot of Euros on model fees! These girls are smart. This is not their first foray into fashion, you might remember I told you last year about Pen doing fab bags for Samantha Thavasa!

You might call him Mr. Vitamin C but to his friends he's known as Tom Scott, the founder and CEO of the absolutely tasty Nantucket Nectars – love their orange-mango juice especially with a little vodka. Tom went on to another luscious career move and founded Plum TV which currently runs in the top affluent resort markets like Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, Vail, Aspen, and of course The Hamptons.

Now we hear that Tom and his troops will start broadcasting in the Sunshine State - Miami, Florida to be exact, starting next month - thanks to some very serious backing from such high profile East Enders as Jonathan Tisch, Kate and Jack Spade, and Mr. Margaritaville, The Parrotthead idol himself Jimmy Buffet. When you're next in South Beach you can tune into Plum TV if you're feeling homesick or better yet from anywhere in the world click on Hamptons.com for All the Hamptons, All the Time. Ciao!