Expensive Places

Located in Austin, USA this opulent estate is creation of Texas-based architect Charles Todd Helton. The design was inspired by the home featured in the 1955 Alfred Hitchcock thriller, North by Northwest. It is a modern design with an overall “Frank Lloyd Wright” feel. Open spaces with high ceilings and large windows, the home backs up to the Hogg Bird Sanctuary and Bayou Bend. The pool is also custom designed to the slope of the property featuring two levels and three waterfalls.

I don’t know why someone dream to live in a house that resemble a house featured in a thriller but maybe is just me…

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“The Diamond Sterling” is the most expensive bottle of tequila to ever be put on sale at $3.5 million. The 1.3 liters 100% agave tequila content was created by Tequila Ley .95 and the five-pound platinum bottle was crafted by Mexican artist Fernando Altamirano and for bottle decoration he use 4,000 diamonds, with a grand total of 328 carats.

There are two bottles of “The Diamond Sterling” in the world and one of them was sold in 2006 for $225,000.

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GT-40 H and GT-55 H from Imaginocean Yacht Design are two hybrid megayachts, which measure 131 feet (40 meters) and 180 feet (55 meters), respectively. The hybrid propulsion system should permit the GT-40 H and GT-55 H to top out at 20 knots, according to Imaginocean Yacht Design. When run solely on battery power, the megayachts should still make 8 knots.

Each of those two megayachts features folding balconies and bulwarks, plus a split-level saloon and main-deck masters.

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Just few days ago, Four Seasons Hotel George V Paris introduces a new penthouse suite designed by Pierre-Yves Rochon and offering 360 degree views of the Paris city.

With six terraces offering a 360 degree view of Paris and 160 square metres (1,630 square feet) of pure luxury, this new Penthouse offers a romantic hideaway among Paris rooftops. The understated, light and airy interior architecture puts the emphasis on open and elegant spaces. The soft tones of the travertine flooring are reflected in the walls decorated with sycamore and majilite, while the beautiful floral arrangements created by Jeff Leatham, the Hotel’s Artistic Director, create a sense of home the moment one opens the door.

Among the great surprises of the Penthouse Suite is the elegant winter garden, decorated in floral fabric and separated from the living room by a wrought iron door. At any time of the day or night it is the perfect place to enjoy a meal or drink while overlooking the Invalides, the American Cathedral and Eiffel Tower. The terrace, shaped like the bow of a ship, provides an even wider view of the City of Light: the roofs of the Madeleine, the Opera and the Pantheon are at one’s feel while the Eiffel Tower seems so close one almost touch it. From the terrace, steps lead to an intimate upper balcony perched even higher on the roof, where guests can enjoy a last glass of Champagne and savour the shimmering Eiffel Tower. The bedroom with its own terrace is a new invitation to peacefulness. An elegant four-poster daybed invites to the most romantic nap perched high above the hustle and bustle of Paris.

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Today, Bang & Olufsen open a new showroom in Bethesda, Maryland. The new Bang & Olufsen Wilson Lane showroom will provide the complete Bang & Olufsen product portfolio in addition to the newly launched sister brand – B&O PLAY.

“We are happy to announce the grand opening of the new Wilson Lane showroom,” states Torsten Severtson, Manager of B&O Wilson Lane. “The new, urban showroom presents an open two-level 1800 square foot space that is 50% larger than the previous location on Woodmont Avenue. We believe it presents a modern, industrial look and feel that is ideal for showcasing the striking Bang & Olufsen portfolio.”

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61 metre Diamonds Are Forever is 61 metre is the largest yacht ever to be on display at the Plaisance de Cannes known as the Cannes Boat Show

“Diamonds Are Forever” is a megayacht by Benetti shipyard in Livorno. Benetti FB253 60mt is the boat’s official identification, but for its owner it’s “Diamonds Are Forever”: the official name of the yacht and the very personal signature of Mr. John Staluppi, an established shipowner who has always been a fan of the Bond, James Bond saga.

On board, customisation to meet the needs and desires of the shipowner is total: the particular arrangement of the cabins, the location of the wheelhouse on the flybridge, the interior design and decor, the engine room made entirely of stainless steel and the addition of the top deck above the flybridge, a private panoramic deck 12 metres above the sea which can be reached by the glass lift that serves all the yacht decks.

The Festival de la Plaisance de Cannes will be held from Tuesday 11th to Sunday 16th September 2012 in the Vieux Port and the Port Pierre Canto.

The Festival in figures:
583 boats
425 exhibitors
173 vessels on show for the first time
181 boats more than 20m length

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The 876-acre estate owned by children’s book author Patti Wheeler and her husband Tom is Colorado’s most expensive listing.

The property includes an 18,500-square-foot main house with six bedrooms and 11 bathrooms. There are 15 miles of hiking trails, a labyrinth and three large swimming ponds, including one with a private beach club. The home has a movie theater with onyx columns and a stage, as well as a spa with treatment rooms and an oxygen bar. There’s also a videogame room and an outdoor kitchen with a brick pizza oven. The home has an indoor-outdoor pool with a light-up painting of the constellations on the ceiling.

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Salvatore Calabrese, a cognac expert, was attempting to make the world’s most expensive cocktail for Guinness World Records but the main ingredient of it was vanished by bad luck: the most expensive cognac in the world was lost after the bottle smashed on the floor after falling from a table while a customer was looking at it (the bottle had previously been sold for $37,000 at an auction in Paris in 2009).

A regular customer at the notable Playboy Club in London had the unlucky chance of being part of the destruction of a $77,615 (£50,000) bottle of antique Cognac dating back to 1788.

According to local media reports, the customer involved is a businessman who regularly visits the club. During this particular occasion he had ordered two glasses of the brandy for $7,839 a piece and wanted to see the bottle with which they came.

As the unidentified man stood up the bottle was knocked off the table and was obliterated upon hitting the floor.

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After the last week incident when Holmes, 24, opening fire on a crowded theater of moviegoers at a midnight premiere of the highly-anticipated Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises we can see a lot of actions from companies involve in this francize: DC Comics is asking retailers to postpone sales of a Batman comic book, cancel of red carpet premieres for The Dark Knight Rises in Paris and Tokyo…

Others companies, like Jaeger-LeCoultre just stick to their roadmap and launch products related to Batman. Jaegar-Le Coultre reverso Batman edition is equipped with a flippable case that is stamped with the iconic Dark Night logo, while the front is outfitted with an art-deco inspired black dial. Jaeger-LeCoultre will display the original Reverso in its Geneva, London, Los Angeles, and Hong-Kong boutiques.

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Sea Legs from Iguana Yachts by Antoine Brugidou is a boat capable of traveling short distances on dry land across unstable land, at a low speed, but without the necessity to drive on roads. In other words a next generation of amphibians…

The Iguana is a seaworthy boat even in rough seas, a fast boat (40 knots) and it is built according to a word-wide patent deposited by IGUANA YACHTS.

In its hybrid version, the Iguana is fitted with a silent, non-polluting electric motor for use on land.
On a practical level, when in the water the tracks are used for protection, avoiding the need for bulky fenders. The 8 passengers carried by the Iguana can climb the beach in total comfort, then simply disembark once on dry land.

When in the water, the undercarriage folds into the hull, forming a cover, which assures a continuity of the hull form. The nautical capabilities of the boat therefore remain unaltered.

For use on land, the arms pivot 90° and pose the tracks on the ground. Traction can be engaged whilst retaining the nautical propulsion until the boat is completely out of the water.

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