Tea is very popular right now and from white and green teas to black tea, consumers are switching to loose-leaf teas, which deliver more flavor per cup. Described as one of the ideal tea infusers by Imbibe magazine, the Teastick is a great little gadget to complement your favorite loose-leaf tea. It is made of a solid piece of stainless steel with tiny holes that allow water into its main chamber to soak the tea leaves. The holes are small enough to keep even the finest teas out of the cup, while still brewing it to your exact specifications. The teastick has a small hook on top to prevent it from sliding into mugs and cups and can also be used as a stirrer, if you take milk or sugar. Price: $18.

When we first heard about the existence of the world's tallest roses, with lush blooms sitting on stems that tower well over five feet above the ground, we immediately knew that they would be an in-demand item for Valentine's day. It turns out that the Washington Post thinks so, too. According to their latest article on the subject, "extreme roses" are growing in popularity faster than the flowers are blooming. They are turning up in celebrity homes and some were featured in the Rose Bowl Parade earlier this year.

Be warned, though: as with most excessively large things (SUVs, for example), these roses aren't inexpensive. Organic Bouquet, a company that specializes in the larger than life roses, charges $250 per dozen. On the plus side, they'll make a huge impact on your Valentine and, because the breed of rose is known as "Forever Young," one dozen should last quite a while.

In NYC, more and more restaurants are incorporating bar seating, whether to create a pleasant waiting area for diners or simply to add more seating options to allow them to cater to more casual eaters in addition to the prix fixe crowd. New York Magazine has the scoop on some of the poshest stools and where in the city you'll find them.

1. Designed by AvroKO and made of hot-rolled steel with a soft vinyl seat cover. Found at Quality Meats.
2. Birillo bar stool designed by Joe Colombo has an extra-wide seat and extra-small backrest. It retails for around $2,800. Found at Centovini.
3. Award-winning LEM Piston Stool from DWR, redone in silver calf leather. Retail is $700 each. found at Gilt.
4. Super comfy and almost shabby chic, these stools have soft cushions and multiple footrests. Found at Boqueria.
5. Designed by Pierre-Yves Rochon, these red leather and chrome stools are exclusive to L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon and other global Robuchon restaurants.

The craze for miniature dogs isn't limited to American celebrities. The petite pets are popular in both Australia and Japan, although in Japan, the intensity of the interest in the trend is pushing breeders to try to meet Japanese desire for ever-smaller and ever-cuter puppies. And that is leading to some real problems for the animals. Inbreeding has led to crippled or deformed animals and puppy mills are producing more animals than the public can handle.

The most popular breeds at the moment are ones that are naturally small, such as chihuahuas. It is especially popular to get them in exotic colors, like the blue-grey puppy pictured. These unusual colors are recessive traits and repeatedly breeding for them, often using the same couple of dogs and their offspring because they are known to have the genes, is what causes the dogs to have unfortunate genetic defects. Many are killed at birth, but others lack limbs or are prone to deafness, eye problems and nervous disorders.

A prized puppy can go for as much as $10,000, making it worthwhile for some breeders to pursue these dogs in spite of the risks to the dogs themselves. Breeders are left to self-regulate, but as long as the demand is high, so will the temptation for unscrupulous breeders.

The idea was from businesswoman Elaine Gennard, who plans to open several other luxury ladies' rooms in London, Leeds and Manchester. She is also considering the possibility of opening similar rooms for men.

Designer dogs are growing in popularity in Australia, as are many different kinds of pedigreed puppies, marking a distinct chance from the standard of only a few years ago, when people were largely uninterested in the breed of their dog. Pets like the puggle and the Dandie Dinmont terrier, as well as pugs, bulldogs and "oodles," which include all the various types of good-natured and cute poodle crosses. There is no word on whether pit bulls are as popular there as they are in some other cities, but interest in well-bred pups isn't limited to the smaller breeds and more people are purchasing St Bernards and chocolate labs, as well.

To some new dog lovers, the price of the puppy is shocking, with pugs and bulldogs going for as much as $2,000-3,000 AUD each, but a recent international study found that dog owners spend an average of $53,000 over the course of their pet's lifetime.

A few weeks ago, we saw a perfume that promised to be, essentially, happiness in a bottle. Sprayology is something similar. It is a series of homeopathic sprays that are engineered to help "the body replenish its resources and function at optimum levels to meet the daily challenges of [life]." There are 20 sprays that rejuvenate, restore ,and relieve, as well as 4 relieving vitamin sprays. All are administered by spritzing under the tongue, where they can supposedly be absorbed quickly. And speaking of things happening quickly, sprayology sounds like something that could catch on at any moment in Hollywood. Judging from the testimonials, it might be on its way.

Keep in mind that although the company throws around the phrase "FDA approved," that doesn't necessarily mean that any of their products do what they promise to do. One thing that they will definitely do, however, is make you feel like you're doing something good for your body, and sometimes a little of that can go a long way.

[via popgadget]

Edoc Laundry is a Seattle-area clothing company that designs t-shirts that use some sort of a secret code to draw interest from clothing fans, and even uses the clues in the shirts as part of an ongoing mystery at their site. If you're not into decoding your t-shirts, the designs are pretty cool, regardless. The shirts have a cult-following now, but that might just change next week when they are featured prominently in an episode of CSI: NY. The creators of the show teamed up with Edoc to create shirts especially for the show. In the episode (airing Oct. 11), the shirts are used by a serial killer to leave clues about his identity and his motives for killing. All four shirt designs (including Hydra, pictured) are available online, and if you get them before the show airs, you can always say that you were ahead of the curve.