Conflicted Climate

It's spring—isn't it? I'm so confused. The crocus were beginning to pop up before last week's blizzard buried them, and today's temps are below freezing. A retreat to this herbal sauna might help. Emitting a garden-fresh fragrance in a toasty enclosure, it bridges the unseemly seasonal gap we're experiencing. carmentasri.com

Floating in [Hot] Air

For better or worse, it's sauna season. This model, with the minimalist name 'Air', features suspended interior elements, which allows the unit to be installed on an existing floor. Locating the heater in the center of the sauna, rather than the usual corner or sidewall spot, makes the steam-bathing experience that much more of a communal affair—more true to its nature, I think. effegibi-perfect-wellness.com

A Warm Welcome

Just in time for our first [and hopefully last] significant snow storm of the season, this expandable sauna quite literally pops onto the scene. When 'closed', the cabinet is slightly less than two feet deep. Push a button, and the enclosure automatically telescopes out about six feet from the wall, the heater and bench seating also sliding into place. The S1 sauna is portable, so if you decamp from frigid climes to a merely bone-chilling location, the unit can move with you. klafs.com

Warm Thoughts

Our sudden snap of sub-freezing temps has made me confront a personal truth: I am a weather wimp. To counter the cold, I'm mentally retreating into the Topkapi hammam. Turkish in origin, a hammam differs from the nordic-style sauna, relying on moist steam instead of dry, hot air. The monolith that's home to the water basin, steam generator, and control panels can be faced in a choice of five marbles. effegibi.it

Christmastide

Welcome to the Twelve Days of Christmas, KBCULTURE-style. Until 5 January, I'll be keeping things on the lighter side, featuring places and products that, while still kitchen- and bath-oriented, will range further afield from our usual vein.

And so here is a sauna. In a ski gondola. In Finland. You're welcome. yllas.fi

Breathing Room

Celebrating at least two holidays in the space of a single week can exact a [ahem] toll on one's system. My antidote of choice is a warming sauna session. This simple cabin offers some nifty features beyond the usual mood-setting sound-and-light show; given a chance, I'd opt for the SanO2 accessory, which lets bathers inhale pure oxygen via a flexible tube. klafs.com

Ahhhhhh

While our currently-predicted snowstorm won't [I hope] come close to the scale of the blizzard that paralyzed much holiday travel, I'd still be happy to recuperate from the inevitable shoveling session in the Sasha home spa. Architect Alberto Apostoli's tripartite design brings together a range of complementary wellness experiences. The sauna cabin offers three treatments of graduated dry heat; the shower module a choice of misty or torrential settings; and the hammam enclosure soothes with hot steam. jacuzzi-sasha.eu

In the Hot Seat

While it's named after the sweat lodges of the Lakota Native Americans, the Inipi sauna bears no physical resemblance to those prairie huts. Light and contemporary, it pleasingly departs from the Scandinavian wooden-cabin school, as well. There are five pre-programmed environmental scenarios, each offering different climate conditions, soundtracks and lighting designs. And it's smartly engineered to accommodate a shower module. duravit.com

All Steamed Up

In my book, there's nothing like a sauna to help displace any post-prandial pounds that may have accumulated over the recent holiday. But going cold turkey isn't my style—I like the beverage center that's conveniently integrated into this design. tylo.com