A country retreat outside of Tokyo

Takei-Nabeshima-Architects (TNA) designed a country retreat in the town of Karuizawa outside Tokyo, Japan, wrapped in rings of glass and wood and has an uninterrupted 360 degree view of the forest.

TNA designed rings around the facade so that areas of private spaces and utilities could be met. The height of each ring was decided by the function concealed behind it.
The glass between the rings allow you to look straight into the forest, so the whole house appears to dissolve into the forest.

Built on Owners' Hill, a resort in the Karuizawa forest near Tokyo, Ring House occupies one of the hundred or so plots set aside for city dwellers to build weekend retreats.

Via worldarchitecturenews

Watermelon auctioned for $6,100 in Japan

A black jumbo watermelon auctioned in northern Japan fetched a record $6,100 Friday, making it the most expensive watermelon ever sold in the country — and possibly the world.

The 17-pound premium "Densuke" watermelon, grown only on the northern island of Hokkaido, was purchased by a marine products dealer who said he wanted to support local agriculture.

In a country where melons are a luxury item commonly given as gifts, the watermelon's hefty price tag follows another jaw-dropping auction last month, where a pair of "Yubari" cantaloupe melons sold for a record $23,500.

And what makes a watermelon worth $200, much less $6,000?
Its unusual black skin, said Kazuyoshi Ohira, a spokesman for the Tohma Agricultural Cooperative in Hokkaido. Inside, the watermelon is crisp and hard. And, he says, it has unparalleled taste.
"It's a watermelon, but it's not the same," he said. "It has a different level of sweetness."

Other Densuke watermelons won't cost quite as much. Most will retail at department stores and supermarkets for a more modest 20,000 yen to 30,000 yen (U.S. $188 to U.S. $283), Ohira said.

Source : msnbc

Gundam Painting Fetches $600,000

A Gundam painting by Japanese artist Tenmyouya Hisashi lately fetched HK$4.8 million (approx. US$600,000) at Hong Kong based Christie’s auction house. The painting “RX-78-2 Kabuki-mono 2005 Version” reflects a perfect blend of traditionalism with modernism. Tenmyouya Hisashi has this to say about his artwork :

"In Japan there are many "Gundam-Otaku's," and their adoration of Gundam is intense. Therefore, I did not want to change their image of Gundam. By changing Gundam's "mobile suit" to tattoos, I altered his body, and made him even more customized. I emphasized the very concept of the "mobile suit," and by setting Gundam against a background of gold leaf from traditional Japanese painting, I emphasized Gundam's samurai origins. In my mind, the distinctions between combat video games, manga, and ukiyo-e have become blurred. This is a painting that combines on a single screen the features of moving images, manga frames, and single prints."

Source : likecool / Elitechoice

Sony's $10k Sountina glass speaker

Last year Sony had atypically dared to unveil its tubular non-directional prototype speaker and today it has been approved for production and they have managed to put it on the shelf.

Christened as “Sountina” speaker (NSA-PF1), it features a transparent organic glass tube which vibrates and expands sound to 360 degrees.


The 6-foot tall, 50- to 20,000Hz speaker features inputs that include analog RCA and digital coax and optical TOS supporting up to 24bit/96kHz linear PCM (stereo). Specs include a 13-cm subwoofer, 7-cm mid, and organic glass tweeter.

The piece is slated to cost around ¥1,000,000 (about €6,500 / $10,000).

Via luxurylaunches / pricy spicy

$1.5 mn Bejeweled Bouquet

An employee and a sales clerk of Takashimaya Department Store introduce a bouquet made of jewelry in Osaka on May 23, 2008.

The 1.5 million dollars bouquet consists of a 11.5-carat yellow diamond ring, seven yellow gold diamond brooches and 46 Mexican opal brooches with silver leaves, stalks and base.

Via msnbc

Haruo Suekichi - watch maker extraordinaire

Japanese watchmaker Haruo Suekichi lives in Tokyo where he spends his days and nights hand-crafting these limited edition watches.

His individualistic approach shines through his watches. They all have a very industrial, or steampunk, look about them.

Lots of leather, copper, pointy bits and dials. Freaky curves and impractical designs, they're all there! The classic look of the watch gives you the brilliant retro touch

The Suekichi’s Handmade Steampunk Timepiece costs a whopping $1,200

See many more of Haruo Suekichi's watches

Via kilala

Pair of melons fetch record price of 2.5 million yen

Two prized local melons fetched a record price of 2.5 million yen for the pair during the season's first auction at a wholesale market on Tuesday.

"I had expected Yubari melons would fetch a high price, but I didn't expect the figure to be this high," said a startled broker at the Sapporo City Central Wholesale Markets in Sapporo's Chuo-ku.

The pair of melons, which weigh 3.9 kilograms in total, fetched the record price of 2.5 million yen after 100 melons were put up for auction on Tuesday.

Soon after the bidding started at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, with a starting price of 2 million yen per set, Sapporo-based wholesaler Ibi bid 2.5 million yen a set.

After the successful bid, the melons immediately went on sale at a retail store run by Ibi near the wholesale market for 1.25 million yen each.

Takeo Fukawa, 24, manager of the store, said, "I wanted to support Yubari," referring to the financially struggling Hokkaido city where the namesake premium melons are grown.

The hammer price for Yubari melons during the season's first auction has been on the rise over recent years, fetching 600,000 yen for a pair in 2005, 800,000 yen in 2006 and 2 million yen in 2007 -- the year after the city of Yubari became an organization designated for fiscal reconstruction following financial difficulties.

via mainichi

$612,000 Bejeweled Elephant Shaped Liqueur Tantalus

Measuring 66cm tall and weighing 57kg, this elephant shaped liqueur tantalus is a striking creation by French luxury crystal maker Baccarat.
Exhibited at the Baccarat’s exhibition and Tokyo’s Mitsukoshi department store, this masterpice is up for sale demanding a hefty price of 63 million yen ($612,000).

They say original piece of crystal encrusted elephant bathed in pure gold carrying four decanters on its back, was especially designed and developed for the Paris exposition in 1920 and countee 17 models were replicated.

Via MSNBC / Lussorian

4 million yen cognac

Asahi Beer, which holds the rights to distribute French cognac Remy Martin in Japan, has announced that 30 bottles of Remy Martin’s premium champagne cognac Louis 13th Black Pearl Magnum will be released in Japan from this month. 358 bottles will be released globally.

The precious liquid, which comes in an original Baccarat crystal holder, will be available at select department stores for an astounding ¥4,000,000 (or about $38,000) for a 1,500ml bottle.

They expect the Louis 13th Black Pearl Magnum to be swallowed up in the high-end nightlife establishments in Tokyo’s Ginza and Kyoto’s Gion at an even more exorbitant 50% mark-up.

Via kilian-nakamura

Gold Mickey Mouse statue

Walt Disney Studio Home Entertainment and jeweler Ginza Tanaka have made this gold Mickey Mouse statue as part of a campaign to promote the Blu-ray DVD release of “National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets.”
The 12-cm-tall, 1-kg statue, which is valued at 3.23 million yen ($31 095) will be displayed in Tanaka’s Ginza store through April 29, and then tour Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Sendai.

Via fareastgizmos

Two mangoes auctioned for $2000

Two Mangoes were auctioned in Japan for a princely sum of 200,000 Yen ($ 2000). The reason? They are not just any mangoes as they come from the renowned Miyazaki prefecture in Southern Japan. These fruits are highly sought after in Japan, and particularly as the local governor, actor Hideo Higashikokubaru does heavy promotion for them. Foreigners are often surprised at exhorbant prices of fruits produced locally.

Via luxurylaunches / reuters JP

New Swarovski Flagship Store in Tokyo

Highly visible, more than a thousand Swarovski boutiques and concessions are located in all major fashion capitals around the world. Now, Swarovski opened a new flagship store in Tokyo’s renowned Ginza district on Saturday, March 29, 2008.

It will showcase the entire Daniel Swarovski Couture Line and the jewellery and accessories from the Swarovski fashion collection.

Three exclusive Ginza limited edition pieces will be available at this particular flagship store: the Black Elvis Pendant, the Signature Necklace and the Signature Power Evening Bag.

Modelled on the flagship store, all of the other Swarovski boutiques will be refurbished from 2008 according to the new architectural concept. These new design concepts have resulted from the collaboration between Swarovski and the famous Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka.

Inside the Ginza boutique the “Crystal Forest” comes to life. All of the walls are textured with reflective white relief prisms of various lengths. These faceted, multi-layered elements create visual depth and exude an internal rhythm. For this one-of-a-kind boutique, named Swarovski Ginza, the conventions of design are challenged by bringing the “inside to the outside”. An experience to embrace when in Tokyo!

Via kostasvoyatzis

Solid gold lobster

A golden lobster were placed on display at the Ginza Tanaka jewelry store in Nagoya in 2006.

Crafted from 500 grams (1.1 lb.) of pure gold, the creature is a detailed life-sized reproduction of an Ise-ebi lobster (Japanese spiny lobster, or Panulirus japonicus). It measures 34 cm (13 in.) long and 19 cm (7 in.) tall. The asking price is 5 million yen (about US$40,000).

Ise-ebi lobsters are often bestowed as gifts on special occasions in Japan. According to a shop attendant, this golden crustacean can serve as both a celebratory offering and a good luck talisman.

Customers react in various ways when they see the realistic-looking golden lobster. Some of them say they expect it to start moving, while others say it looks delicious.

Via pinktentacle

Restaurant table with built-in 3D LCD screen

Have you ever been to a restaurant serving exotic foods and felt lost while ordering from the list of strange dishes spelt before you on the menu card? A few days back, we were talking about Conceptic, an Israeli start-up company that installed the e-menu options in pubs, their popular sushi bars and the family restaurants.

Now, TEC Japan has created Tobidasu Menu that is embedded into the restaurant table to present 3-D images of items as the customer browses the menu list with the touch of the finger. The Tobidasu 3D Table menu can also perform a few tricks.

After removing a hamburger bun placed on the menu, a delicious beef patty with all the trimmings suddenly pops up. While eating out, if you find some probs in understanding what the heck is Yakitori chicken or Tonkotsu Noodle Soup, then this 3D menu could come to your visual aid.

Via Bornrich

Sony PSP Bronze - Limited Edition

Sony Japan has announced a new color for the PSP 'Mat Bronze' and is codenamed PSPJ-20002. The PSP-2000 is already available in white, black and silver.
The bronze edition will go on sale in Japan on April 24 and will be available in limited quantities 60,000 to be precise. Exclusivity always commands a premium and the Bronze PSP will sell for 23,800 Yen ($ 230) where as the normal PSP sells for 19,800 Yen ($ 190).

Via Luxurylaunches

Authentic japanese samurai armor online

Toraba.com has opened up its website, offering a range of authentic Japanese samurai armor. The items are all original period pieces, mostly from private collections.

Currently on offer are full armor sets (Gusoku), helmets (Kabuto), facial armor and full body sets as well as a variety of other armor-related items. One of the full sets on offer is a 14th century named and dated Tokugawa hon-kei family armor.

Toraba.com

Japan gold dealer unveils $275,000 metallic gown

This one isn't going to win any points for fashion design in my opinion but as an investment it might be pretty smart considering recent gold prices.

Yesterday Japan's largest bullion house showed off a gleaming gown which is covered with hundreds of gold coins. Pity the poor model wearing it.

Mayuka, the model weighs around 110 pounds and the dress is close to 18 pounds. The dress was made using 325 Austrian gold coins issued to commemorate the Vienna Philharmonic and is valued at $275,000. There are no plans to offer the dress for sale.

Source : reuters