Monthly Archives: September 2008

Medieval castle for sale

“On Monday (September 22, 2008), a famous 800-year-old Belgian castle will be auctioned off by court order to the highest bidder, and it looks as if someone could snag a real bargain.”

On that date, the third and final session for the public sale of the historic castle, Corroy-le-Château, will occur. The castle, situated just south of Brussels, is surrounded by a moat and borders a 12-hectare, protected park.

With walls and seven massive original towers dating to the 13th century, the property’s pristine condition makes it one of Europe’s only remaining perfectly-preserved castles. It has the popular architecture of medieval dark ages and is full of secret passages and mysterious moats.

Inhabited today by the same family descended from the original owners, the castle has undergone continuous transformation over the centuries and has been maintained in immaculate condition, preserving both its mythical quality and modern comfort throughout its 5,000 square meters of habitable space.

The castle’s status as a historic landmark provides the additional benefit of eligibility for government subsidies for any major work. Its majestically decorated parlors, beautiful corridors, bright interiors and sweeping staircases continue to attract touring groups and cultural performers, offering the possibility of dual use as both a residence and commercial endeavor.

A family dispute between the existing owners over the use of the castle culminated in a court decision which led eventually to the castle’s sale by public auction. The first two rounds of bidding yielded a current offer of €2.1 million ($3million), the International Herald Tribune reports, an astonishingly low price in view of current European real estate values.

The September 22 auction session will be the last time that bids will be accepted for Corroy-le-Château. The 16,000-sq.ft. fortress will be sold to the highest bidder, even if it goes no higher than the €2.1 million, a spokesman said.

More information on the auction, as well as a video tour of the property, can be found on the castle’s Web site.

Source : reuters

The world’s largest diamond

Another large diamond has been found at the Letseng mine in Lesotho, a small kingdom in South Africa.

The stone weighs 478 carats and is the 20th largest rough diamond ever found and it may become the largest ever polished round diamond.

Another similar sized rough stone from the same mine was recently valued at $12million. But the clarity and round shape of the new gem mean it could be worth considerably more and in its polished state could sell for tens of millions of dollars.
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Williams-Sonoma Home Campaign Bar

If you are looking for an elegant and compact bar cabinet, this Campaign Bar will definitely fit your requirement. The Campaign Bar from Williams-Sonoma Home is set on a polished steel base and has been buffed till it shines gorgeously. The sleek lines and expensive materials make the Campaign Bar look extravagant and stylish.

You could gloss over all your expensive liquor bottles through the glass shelves and door-mounted racks. Expensive carafes and crystal ware could be stored too, inside the cabinet and a shiny marble top is the right place to mix drinks when a few friends come over.

Thanks to the mirror, your carafes, bottles and bar tools look shinier than they possibly could. At about 48” x 16” x 42”, the Campaign Bar is really petite yet sleek and retails for $5,950.

Nile Croc Skin Gym Bag

If you’re a guy whose wallet is a helluva lot bigger than your muscles and you’re looking to impress at the gym, you could start hauling your gear in the Tumbled Croc Bel Air Gym Bag.

Modeled after the traditional locker room duffel, and costing more than some compact cars, this incredibly over-the-top, made-to-order bag from luxury leather goods company Mulholland, is made from super soft, oil-tanned and waxed Nile Crocodile skins.

Your sweaty clothes and old Nikes are too good to travel in the bottom of a nylon duffel? Unzip the antique silver zipper and rest them on this bag’s haberdashery pinstripe silk instead. It measures a big 12″ x 19″ x 10″, so if you should hook up with your personal trainer, you can pack it with enough stuff for an overnight. This gym bag retails at $13,800.

Most Expensive Diamond Cocktail Shaker

Touted to be the most expensive cocktail shaker in the world, this one is shaped out of pure silver and 18 carat gold and caked with 480 sparkling diamonds. All set to be unveiled at the Bar Convent Berlin 2008, this bejeweled bar utensil comes packed in an exclusive leathered case.

The BOLS Diamond Shaker retails at a whopping 35,000 euros ($50,000). Hmmm… Wonder if my favorite bartender, Tom Cruise, would care to grab this ornamented cocktail shaker for a sequel to Cocktails…?

Record Cabinet by Atocha Design

If you are a record collector, your significant other is a very special person. They are able to take and accept your love of 180 gram vinyl and the reality that it will be part of the family – always there and sounding real good. For years, the solution to your partner’s acceptance of your vinyl was to store it in either a backroom, basement, or in the living room using the IKEA Expedit shelving system.

The good people at Atocha Design raise the bar in vinyl storage with their “The Record Cabinet”. Finished in American Walnut and fashioned in the form of a bureau, this cabinet not only stores 95 LPs per drawer but it can also hold CDs as well as 7 inches vinyl. The price does not come low though. The cabinet retails at $6,000.

New Forbes 400 Richest List 2008

With 57 billion dollars net worth Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, has recovered his spot at the top of the US money heap, displacing investor Warren Buffett as America’s richest person, Forbes magazine’s latest list reveals.

According to Forbes, whose list was published late Wednesday, the golden 400 have 1.3 billion dollars net worth or more. However, the assembled net worth of the richest Americans rose by only 2%, or $30 billion, to $1.57 trillion this year. The average net worth of Forbes 400 members is $3.9 billion.

Forbes said that rising oil and dizzy art prices fuelled the entry of 31 new members into the ultra-rich club and the return of eight previous members.
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Smythson Watch & Accessory Cabinet

The spirit of De Stijl is still alive and well, as evidenced by this Mondrian-inspired watch cabinet which is soon to be released by the revered luxury goods purveyor Smythson, of Bond Street.

Part of an entire men’s collection for this fall, the cabinet is finished with a black pigskin leather exterior and contains a perpetual motion watch “rocker” that pulls out to reveal hidden storage at the cabinet’s rear.

White is the primary color of the drawers, offset by the Mondrian black grid.

Apart from providing storage for watches, the cabinet also stores accesories like belts, sunglasses, cufflinks, tie pins, key fobs and any other precious accessories one might have.
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Schimmel’s Glamorous Glass Piano

This isn’t a piano you can allow your kids to flounder with! As it is, Schimmel is the brand that is behind its creation; therefore, until your tot becomes an expert pianist, you dare not allow him/her touch it. Dubbed the K213, Schimmel chooses one of the most brittle yet elegant material; glass, to enclose the exterior of the instrument.

The K213 isn’t just elegant for its design as the quality of music it rendered is equally classy. The only place where you would find iron is beneath strings that produce the magical symphony. This piano is definitely not for the space drenched halls but has pride of place in rich homes and gatherings. It just soaks in the party atmosphere while on display.

In order to add that extra bit of shimmer to the dazzlingly opulent parties, it would cost the one an estimated $124,780 to own this glamorous piano.

The world’s first solar speedboat

If you’re an environment friendly sailor and have a passion for speedboats check out Czeers MK1, a luxury designed 10-meter that was launched at the Millionaire Fair in 2007.

The Delft Technical University Solarboat Team built the original platform as an entry in the 2006 Nuon Frisian Solar challenge, which it easily won – and in the process, attracted serious investment power from Rabobank to get a full scale test boat built.

Made 100-percent of carbon fiber with orange leather trim, photovoltaic cells on almost all horizontal surfaces and an LCD touch-screen control system, the world’s first solar speedboat goes up to 30 knots on water.
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Dubai Towers – Candles in the wind

Here we go again with an amazingly original project of towers in Dubai. The dramatic “Dubai Towers – Dubai” have been announced as the centerpiece for “The Lagoons” development.

The four towers, designed by TVS (Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback and Associates), ranging from 54 to 97 floors, are clustered to form a choreographed sculpture, representing the movement of candlelight.

The Towers will combine in form to represent the evolutionary and innovative achievements of Dubai. They will be characterized by a range of additional facilities including retail, entertainment, and residential which merge to create a vibrant, dynamic community.

I love the structure of the building though. It looks so complex! I love the curves of the towers and how they look like they are just slightly twisting. The estimated completion date is mid 2010.

Stay at the world’s finest hotels for less than 20 bucks a night

Sometime a deal sounds almost too good to be true….

Just months after launching one of this year’s most lavishly expensive holidays – an epic USD 1 million trip “Around the World” – the Leading Hotels of the World is celebrating its 80th anniversary by passing on some incredible discounts to its guests.

To commemorate its founding year (1928), at 12 noon GMT (8am Eastern Standard Time) on October 1, 2008, they will release a limited number of the world’s most-coveted hotel rooms at the unprecedented rate of $19.28 per night.
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Limited Edition NeKo LUX Pure Gold Keyboard

If you’ve got a musical thumb, then try your luck at the Gold Rush Beat Competition scheduled for the 24th and 25th October at the Beats ‘N Treats Music Festival. Hosted by Open Labs, the winner of this aptly named competition is bound to receive a 5th Anniversary Limited Edition NeKo LUX keyboard.

Encased in a 24 carat gold chassis, this musical instrument is a must have for those born with a silver spoon and music-enriched fingers. Supposed to be the most expensive instrument from the company till date, this gilded keyboard sports chrome-plated end bells.

Housing 76 keys, this instrument also packs in noteworthy features like 4GB RAM, USB connectivity, Blu-ray DVD/CD Burner and 100,000 preset sounds, along with a V4 software library as well as 5th Anniversary Special Sound Libraries. Only 24 such Midas-touched keyboards flaunting a harmonious tag of $24,000 will be produced.

World’s Most Expensive Piano

Jon Kuhn, a leading glass artist, has teamed up with the Bösendorfer to jazz up this musical instrument with his trademark glass work. The Kuhn-Bösendorfer model, sports more than 200 geometric patterns. Each of them is put together with 100-500 pieces of lead crystal glass which comes in varied shapes and sizes.

This classy-glassy edition is as grand as the Swarovski version but still preserve traces of modesty. The “piece of art” will retail for no less than $1.2 Million.

Most Expensive Tartan

One of the world’s most expensive tartans is about to roll off the production line at a Scottish mill.

Woven from 100 percent pure Mongolian cashmere, the fabric will be used to produce a number of items including a kilt costing about £5,000 (about $9,000).

The Scotsman reported that the tartan has been designed by Peebles company, Holland and Sherry, to commemorate their 172 years of operation in the town.
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Ted Nemeth’s Modern Throne

Monarchy isn’t doing that good with the other forms of social administration dominating the world, but, the monarchs do have ample money to keep their status alive. With the advent of modernity, the monarchs are changing to match the modern times, and therefore the throne they choose to reside on also has to be trendy.

Here is what an avant-garde throne looks like for the modern day kings. Created by Ted Nemeth, this throne flashes style with a lot of bling factor intact. Done in tooled leather and worked upon by a street artist, it retails for $5,150.

Most Expensive Razor – Hommage

Hommage, the Parisian purveyor of luxury grooming equipment, skincare and spa services for men, has created a limited edition platinum-sheathed straight razor using an ancient layering technique. The technique was once applied in the making of the Crusaders’ swords.

This razor goes by the name of Damascene Razor. The blade is hand-forged in Germany with 128 layers of legendary Damascene steel, topped with a rose and torsion pattern, whereas the sheath is plated in pure and treated platinum to resist tarnishing.

The razor comes in a lacquered gift box made of Tanzanian anigré wood. The name Damascene is an attribution to the steel swords made in the vicinity of Damascus, Syria. It first gained its mythical reputation during the medieval Crusades.

According to Hommage, “the blade of a Damascus steel sword was said to be able to cut a piece of silk in half as it fell to the ground and was strong enough to cut through a rock without losing its sharpness”. This sharp razor retails for $30,000.

Balvenie Distillery’s Exclusive Whisky


The Balvenie Distillery has released 151 bottles from a single cask of The Balvenie laid down in 1964, to be sold exclusively in Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA).

Priced at HK$108,000 (£7,100/US$14,200) a bottle, The Balvenie 1964 Single Malt Scotch Whisky was bottled exclusively for duty free retailer Sky Connection.

The unique cask, Number 10378 from 1964, was matured to perfection at The Balvenie Distillery, and is extremely rare. The cask was personally selected by The Balvenie Malt Master, rested in a single oak cask for over 40 years at The Balvenie Distillery in Speyside, Scotland.

Forbes list of overpaid stars

Everybody likes to hear about vastly wealthy people failing, particularly during the credit crunch. That is why Forbes Magazine, well-known for its lists – including its lists of the richest Americans (the Forbes 400) and its list of billionaires – has made a list to see which actors are the most “overpaid”.

The magazine has done some research about how much money Hollywood actors are actually worth – not how much they are paid, but how much profit they generate, compared with how much they are paid.

Forbes got their figures by looking at the last three films each actor had made, and found that Nicole Kidman, whose films have made a dollar for every dollar she was paid, is therefore the “most overpaid” actor in Hollywood.


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Ferragamo to design Luxury Penthouses in Dubai

Italian luxury goods maker Salvatore Ferragamo, which has plans for a market listing, is to design the interior of penthouses in Dubai as part of an agreement with Trident International Holdings, a United Arab Emirates-based company operating in the high-end real estate sector.

The Florence-based company said on Tuesday it would design a set of luxury penthouses in the ‘Pentominium’ tower, to be completed in 2012. At 516 meters, and boasting 120 floors and 120 penthouses, the Pentominium is expected to be the highest residential building in the world.

Each penthouse unit boasts at least a floor space of 6,470 square feet (600 square meters) with ocean views. In addition, amenities in the Pentominium include an indoor pool and a Sky Lounge for business functions which directly overlooks the Palm Jumeirah.

“Ferragamo’s entry into the world of high-end residential luxury is an important step in the brand extension process and opens the road to other development opportunities,” Chief Executive Michele Norsa said in a statement.

While standard units are expected to command around US$5.3 million, there is no word on pricing for the Ferragamo-designed penthouses. The official launch of the Pentominium project will take place in Dubai on October 6 with a spectacular fashion show and a charity event. (Source : Press release)

Diamond Studded Lotus Europa

It’s been 60 years of Lotus, and in that time the British cottage automaker has produced a bevy of light, tossable cars that capture the essence of spirited driving.

Now, Lotus has teamed up with Winsor Bishop to bring you this luxurious car which has 164 diamonds (in total), studded in the rev counter, speed dials and many other places. The £111,000 worth of diamonds are then highlighted by using LED lights.

On the outside the diamond anniversary Europa gets a unique paint finish that combines a high gloss black base with tiny glass flakes to give the car the appearance that it is being showered with diamonds.
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