Luxury

Sotheby’s witnessed one of the best of auctions last Tuesday, when a unique first edition of Harry Potterand the Philosopher’s Stone, annotated by author J.K. Rowling sold for a record breaking $227,421 to an unidentified telephone bidder. The 1997 book, featuring handwritten notes, 22 original illustrations and a 43-page “second thoughts” commentary by the author, sold for the highest price to date for a printed book by Rowling, auction house Sotheby’s said. There are only 500 books in this edition, which makes it a rare catch. The sale was part of an auction held by Sotheby’s bringing under the hammer rare annotated first editions by 50 UK and Commonwealth writers. And the Harry Potter book was one among 51 unique first editions, all with notes, illustrations, and second thoughts from its authors, making it a rare collectible. The London auction house confided that the sale got an intense response from its auctioneers, who filled the room along with authors whose works were featured in the sale. This included Helen Fielding, Colm Toibin, Jeanette Winterson, Frederick Forsyth, Ben Okri, Margaret Drabble, Andrea Levy and Wendy Cope. The total sale fetched $665,410, which would go to English PEN – a charity, campaigning for the freedom of expression. [Via - Washingtonpost and Reuters] Related posts: Harry Potter First Edition auctioned for $40,000 J.K. Rowling auctions off Harry Potter prequel for charity JK Rowling’s latest ‘The Tales Of Beedle The Bard’ for $100,000

Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair is calling out to all independent designers and design schools around the world. The application for Greenhouse is out - the popular section at Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair where up-and-coming designers and design schools can showcase their prototypes to future partners, producers and customers. The deadlines are as follows: Schools – June 30 Designers – September 20 The image above shows sofa by Vera & Kyte from Norway.

We’ve come across the best possible secured safe designs by Döttling. Its creations like the Fortress, the Guardian, Colosimo, and the GrandCircle super safe with hi-fi sound system, among others, have eased wealthy individual’s tensed nerves off worrying from theft. Döttling is now out with the Jewelry Box – a compact portable safe that can individually safeguard your precious jewels and watches. The Portable Jewelry Box that can be integrated into various Döttling safe lines. To complement the Bel-Air-Black, the jewelry box is also clad in black with the finest calf leather and features umpteen numbers of secure pockets that could fit in your valuables. This one is sized at 21 x 20 x 26.5 cm. Moreover, assuring complete security, the jewelry box comes with a GPS tracking device that can precisely locate the safe from around the world at any time. If the jewelry box is in the safe, a docking station provides power to the transmitter. The price for the portable Jewelry Box with the GPS system is $9,600 and integrated in a Döttling safe with docking/charging-station it sports a $12,800 tag. The lead-time for the jewelry box is approx. 6 weeks. Döttling certainly doesn’t count in the category of safe manufacturers who build high-security safes that are sturdy and huge. Rather, stylish, modern, and contemporary, more defines the design offerings from Döttling. Following this route, Döttling has added to its fan-wagon many who admire the detailing, features, and material usage that the brand offers. [Via - Doettling] Related posts: Döttling launches The Fortress, the safest luxury safe in the world Döttling unveils Liberty safe collection draped in leather Döttling unveils GrandCircle super safe with hi-fi sound system

Choose to live on Lake Burton and buy a lifestyle for generations to come. A no-reserve auction is gathering of potential buyers who are interested in buying. It is the best way for you to see the true value of a luxury property in any given area. The property in Clayton, Georgia is currently listed [...]

2011 marked the debut of Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry, after which the smartphone took many forms. First, it wore a stainless steel and leather cloak, then a 24-carat-gold-plated avatar followed, and lastly a matte black finish robe. Now the Porsche Design group has officially launched the phone in a completely bling attire – a 24-carat Gold model. This special gold avatar of the Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry is a “strictly limited” edition that consists of just 25 exclusive devices worldwide. The brand has used exclusive materials for this limited edition. The Porsche Design P’9981 Gold flaunts a stainless steel case with a gold-colored titanium coating. The case is also finished with a 24-carat gold layer. Other features include a crystal-clear touchscreen, hand-wrapped leather back, a 1.2 GHz processor, modern sensors with support for augmented reality experiences, and the ability to record videos in HD quality. The Gold P’9981 also has an internal storage space of 8 GB and a 16 GB Micro SD card. It is expandable to a total of 40 GB. The smartphone also features Liquid Graphics technology, which provides a smooth, fluid visual experience on the phone’s high resolution 24-bit graphic display. Maintaining the exclusivity of the set, the limited edition number has been displayed on the camera cover on the backside of the phone, and is milled from a solid block of 24-carat gold. The Porsche Design P’9981 Blackberry Gold will be available from select Porsche Design stores from June 2013. Pricing is on request! [Via - Porsche-Design] Related posts: The much awaited Porsche Design P’9981 BlackBerry has arrived The 24-carat gold-plated BlackBerry Porsche Design P’9981 is up on eBay Porsche Design’s P’9981 Blackberry’s latest matte black finish version

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian definitely have one thing in common, their love for fine jewelry. The popular celebrity couple recently shared a pic of themselves wearing matching Lorraine Schwartz diamond evil eye bracelets and gold Cartier Love Bracelets. What do you think of their matching set?

The Ulysse Nardin Sonata is not a new watch, but these two models are the newest iteration thereof and referred to by Ulysse Nardin as the Sonata Streamline watches. Among high-end timepieces in the brand's even most avant garde collections the Sonata is perhaps the least understood. ... read more »The article Ulysse Nardin Sonata Streamline Hands-On: Musical Alarm Watch first appeared on A BLOG TO WATCH and was written by Ariel Adams.

Thanks to Mobilona – a California Company, your wish to travel to a distant galaxy will soon materialize. The company is planning for an approx. $2 billion initial investment towards the development of the man-made Barcelona Island by building a “Mobilona Space Hotel” – a construction of over 2,000 hotel suites and luxury residences. This hotel has been predicted to be the tallest in Europe on an artificial island. Apogee Investors have been roped in by Mobilona to manage the financing of the innovative space hotel. The initial designs to the Mobilona Space Hotel, to be designed by Barcelonan architect Erik Morvan, is still to be finalized. However, sources reveal that the hotel would be a first of its kind offering guests an unfathomable out of the world experience. Immersive building technology and integration of the Internet of Things (IoT) would turn this into a reality. All suites and residences will be equipped with immersive wall and surface displays that would provide panoramic impressions of the universe. The development will also include the world’s first Covered Marina, a 24-hour ‘Space Mall’, and a ‘zero-gravity’ spa off the coast of Barcelona. The Mobilona Space Hotel page lists current pricing details – Buyers can currently apply for membership in the Mobilona Hotel Owners Group to reserve units at discounted preconstruction prices. A separately regulated entity will offer income-producing hotel suites and residences for purchase or resale from €495,000 to €2.6 million and penthouses from €3.9 to €20 million. Nightly rates for hotel suites will range from €300 to over €1,500 and timeshares will start at €20,000 for an annual one-week occupancy right. Mobilona is also planning to build the same kind of establishment (Mobilona Space Hotel) in Los Angeles and Hong Kong estimating the overall value for three hotels at $6 billion. [Via - Mobilona] Related posts: The Hermitage Plaza Skyscraper will rise as Europe’s tallest building in Paris Russia plans a luxury space hotel with greater comforts Hotel Arts Barcelona debuts Michelin-starred restaurant helicopter lunches

Elizabeth Canon of Fashion's Collective explains how & why retailers should make strategic shifts based on new consumer behaviours

LA Clippers star forward DeAndre Jordan attended “The Hangover Part 3″ premiere in Westwood, CA. The 24-year old professional basketball player wore a Marcelo Burlon “Pas B” t-shirt ($188), black jeans, and Air Jordan retro 9 sneakers ($160). What do you think of his look?