FLOWER POWERLong after the roses have wilted, you'll still be able to fill the Bloom Bar's stylish glass handbag with your favourite flowers.
It's from a selection of one-off St Valentine's Day special designs from Sarah Jane Winston of the Bloom Bar at Harvey Nichols, Dundrum Town Centre, Dublin 14. The cost is €165, including delivery in Dublin city and county. Delivery farther afield by arrangement. Last orders by Tuesday, to 01-2910421. See www.thebloombar.com. Marie-ClaireDigby
DIAMOND DEALNow that the film Blood Diamondhas shown the seamier side of the diamond industry, you may be interested Secrets Shhh, which opened recently in Dundrum Town Centre, in Dublin 14. It sells a collection of very convincing simulated diamonds set in solid gold. Cork-born sisters and management team Dearbhla and Emma Cogan own two similar outlets in London, as well as the Dublin shop, and they plan to expand in Ireland. Secrets Shhh claims that its laboratory-created stones have a refractive index close to that of a natural diamond. Its prices range from €80 to €2,000. A white-gold tennis bracelet with simulated diamonds and sapphires costs €595, a fraction of the price of the real thing, but a very convincing lookalike. Deirdre McQuillan
BOXING CLEVERThis is one chocolate box you won't be throwing away once the contents have been consumed. The online French chocolate company zChocolat packages its confections in a range of delightful ways, including in wooden boxes with brass plates on which personal messages can be engraved. The chocolates are the work of four renowned French chocolatiers, including Pascal Caffet, gold-medal winner at the Chocolate World Championship in Italy last year. Overnight delivery is promised by DHL, which says this delivery time applies even to very rural areas of Ireland. They're not cheap - the three-tier, 45-piece box pictured above will set you back €203, including engraving and overnight delivery - but they are very good, and refills can be ordered. Prices for the wooden boxes start at €30, plus delivery. See www.zchocolat.com. Marie-Claire Digby
POP THE QUESTIONDinner for two, gazing into each other's eyes across a candlelit table, and soft music playing in the background. Nothing flatters the skin like candlelight. Oberg candles are Irish-made, hand-poured and -wrapped, and come in fragranced and unfragranced versions. From €22.95 at Meadows & Byrne, branches nationwide. Phyl Clarke
STAY AWAYA luxurious weekend in a smart hotel or a cosy and romantic stay in a country B&B? There are plenty of suggestions for both types of Valentine's getaway in Lucinda O'Sullivan's Little Black Book of Great Places to Stay 2007.
Thomas and Regina Coyle's former rectory, Frewin, in Ramelton, Co Donegal, sounds perfect for a romantic getaway. It has just four rooms (€75-€180), dreamy white painted bedrooms with muslin curtains, and dinner by arrangement in a diningroom that has no electric lighting, just a candle-lit chandelier. After dinner relax in the library. Lucinda O'Sullivan's Little Black Book of Great Places to Stay 2007is published by Tsar Press (€14.99, plus €1.75 p&p). Order from www.lucindaosullivan.com. Marie-Claire Digby
DRINK PINKDescribed by an enthusiastic copywriter as a "unique blend of mythology, seduction and forbidden fruit", Pama is a pomegranate liqueur with a relatively low 17 per cent alcohol and a vivid colour. It is blended from vodka, tequila and Californian pomegranate juice, and its distinctive sweet-and-tart taste - not unlike vodka and cranberry juice - would seem ideal for cocktails such as Champagne Dreams: mix one part Pama with one part Cointreau and one part fresh orange juice, then slowly add three parts chilled Champagne. (Alternatively, be lazy and just mix Pama with Champagne.) Pomegranate has a colourful history, and has been variously described as the fruit of love or the food of death. At this time of year we'll stick with the former. It costs €29.99 from Dunnes Stores; Superquinn; O'Briens; O'Donovan's in Cork; Jus De Vine in Portmarnock, Co Dublin; McHugh's in Kilbarrack, Dublin 5; and McCabes in Blackrock and Foxrock, Co Dublin. Joe Breen
SWOT UP ON BRAIN FOODWhat's more appealing, a handful of oil-filled capsules or a bowl of smoked-haddock-and-salmon chowder? The benefits of incorporating omega-3 fatty acids in our diets have been known for some time, but not all of us know where to find these "good" fats in the food we eat, or should be eating, and rely instead on a panoply of supplements.
The Omega 3 Cookbook, by Michael van Straten, is just out in paperback, and it does a good job of explaining the science behind omega-3 fatty acids, which are thought to reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes, as well as being essential for a healthy brain and nervous system.
A recent study suggested that taking fish-oil supplements for three months could boost children's reading ability. As a result of publicity surrounding the finding, pharmacists saw their shelves cleared of (expensive) fish-oil supplements, as parents stockpiled what they hoped might be the answer to everything from dyslexia to eczema to ADHD.
Van Straten does not rule out using these supplements; in fact, he includes a chapter on how to interpret the labels on them and choose the best ones. But, as an alternative, he gives us 100 recipes incorporating foods high in naturally occurring omega 3, including the quirkily named "brain balls" - salmon, egg and spring-onion patties that will appeal to kids as well as filling them with omega-3, -6 and -9 fatty acids, protein, vitamins and immune-boosting benefits. The Omega 3 Cookbookis published by Kyle Cathie (£12.99 in the UK). Marie-Claire Digby
AHHHH-SOThe Chinese New Year will be marked in splendid fashion this year by members of the Sichuan Opera, who will perform at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin Castle. Highlights will include face changing, stunts and stylised movements to bring in the Year of the Pig. It's a free event, suitable for families, and it takes place next Saturday, February 17th, from 1.30pm to 2.30pm, but booking is essential. Call 01-4070775. Snacks will be available, and of course you can visit the library, gift shop and Middle Eastern Silk Road cafe afterwards. Patsey Murphy
IN THE EXTREME"When you know that the moment is coming you just get down and hug the deck and hold on as hard as you can to anything you can find . . . Suddenly you're completely under water . . . and you go tumbling aft. You can feel different parts of the boat hitting your body as you go, and you're trying to figure out where you are so you might be able to grab onto something. There's enormous relief when you finally do have impact: you know then that you're still on the boat." These are the words of Justin Slattery, bowman on ABN Amro One, which won the 2005-2006 Volvo Ocean round-the-world race. Slattery was one of several Irish sailors selected for the 50,000km (31,000m) endurance test.
The race provided much drama as the yachts battled to break speed records between Spain and Sweden, but, sadly, it claimed the life of Hans Horrevoets, a Dutchman. The terrifying experience of it all is captured by the Australian journalist Rob Mundle and photographers such as Irish Times contributor David Branigan in Life at the Extreme, published this month by Nomad Press. Slattery and Branigan will mark the occasion next Thursday from 5.30pm to 7pm at the Windmill Stand at the Allianz Boat Show, at RDS Simmonscourt, Dublin 4. Lorna Siggins
BREAKFAST BUNCH The scarcity of venues making decent, healthy breakfasts in central Dublin has inspired Billy Scurry of Gruel, on Dame Street, to serve a breakfast menu between 9am and 11am from Monday to Friday.
Conscious of the need for nutritious but light food at this time of the day, he's offering mini quiches, organic-bacon sandwiches and granola with yogurt, as well as juices and the like. The short menu reflects the Gruel ethos of no-fuss, high-quality food.
In his role as head chef, Scurry has introduced a new evening menu as well, adding dishes such as terrine with roast mushrooms, and lamb shank, but keeping old favourites such as bangers and mash. And, of course, Gruel is also continuing its popular weekend brunch menu, from 9.30am-3pm on Saturdays and from 10.30am-4pm on Sundays. Gruel, Dame Street, Dublin 2, 01-6707119. Eoin Lyons