Dubai is the luxury capital of the World right now, boasting a $37 billion, plus economy. We will continue to bring you outrageous and exclusive must-see and must-have luxuries from the Persian Gulf city.
If you love the Mercedes-Benz SLR and you love glam, now you can have and overabundance of both. A fully chromed SLR sits outside the Emirates mall in Dubai. You may say to yourself, a mall? Number one it’s probably the most high end designer mall on the globe. Number two, high class custom cars in Dubai are as common as flowing water.
The shiny SLR sits alongside a Lamborghini Gallardo, Bentley Flying Spur, Porsche 911 Turbo, Rolls-Royce Drophead Coupe, plus some other exotics. The collection is like an art exhibit and the SLR has attracted enormous crowds. Put on your Tom Ford stunner shades and go enjoy the good life.
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Live, eat, and breathe Lamborghini, if you love it. Those of you who see Lamborghini more as a lifestyle then just an Italian automaker will be happy to hear, that the company now has a showroom in Las Vegas. The $30 million dollar food, merchandise, car, art and lifestyle showcase is at the Dal Toro megaplex in the Palazzo Hotel & Resort in Vegas, baby, vegas.
Keeping with the high class taste that is Lamborghini, the 20,000 square foot space has high contrast marble floors, leather panels and silk fabrics throughout. The space sesigned by renowned Italian architect Paolo Cortese, has a 300-seat restaurant with glass-enclosed wine cellars and private dining tables. The restaurant serves authnetic Italian cuisine, duhhh, and for the meal an exotic array of Lambos in the backdrop scenery. More than $2 million of artwork displays in the showroom alongside the cars, including the Lamborghini logo-resembling "Charging Bull" by Italian artist Arturo di Modica.
Obviously there is a great collection of Lamborghini exotics, and also merchandise at the fashion boutique. If you still want more Lamborghini in your life then stay late night for the exclusive Lamborghini Ultralounge nightclub.
A trip to Vegas this weekend is always overdue but a full Lambo museum could border on overkill. We do adore Lamborghini but aren’t drooling over this expo, as many of you probably are. We are happy enough driving around in our Murcielago but if you need this then go for it!
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As the rest of the Country suffers through the poor economic state, Manhattan appears unscathed. Of course, appearances may be somewhat deceiving but after what we saw this past weekend in New York City, it seems like wealthy New Yorker’s haven’t had to scale back at all. Mayor Michael Bloomberg since taking office in 2002, managed to turn the big city’s $6 billion deficit into a $3 billion surplus. We are starting to believe Bloomberg is a magician. He launched a program called Opportunity NYC which is the nation’s first-ever conditional cash transfer pilot program to help New Yorkers break the cycle of poverty in Manhattan. Bloomberg also instituted a $7.5 billion municipal affordable housing plan, the largest in the nation, providing 500,000 New Yorkers with housing. Bloomberg is concerned about poverty and growing class divisions. He believes that our "Society cannot go forward, the way we have been going forward, where the gap between the rich and the poor keeps growing." Then again, maybe New York is just depression retardent.
When we say the city is unscathed it has a lot to do with our experience last weekend. All we saw was big dinner bills, crowded five star hotels and mega-shopping sprees engulfing us. The famous flagship store Saks Fifth Avenue on Fifth and 49th already occupied an entire city block and didn’t need but got a new expansion. The entire eighth floor now houses an epic high-end shoe collection, one of the biggest ever. The "shoe" floor is actually so huge it has its own zip code, no joke. Stocked through with Christian Louboutin, Prada, Valentino, Miu Miu, Giuseppe Zanotti, and Chanel, get the point yet? It’s bananas, a gluttonous array of stilettos, boots, sandals, high heels, etc. Roger Vivier’s for $575 to $1,700 gold lizard Christian Louboutin’s and those were modest, rich girls go crazy!
For the ultra wealthy man, we didn’t forget you. New York City has plenty that guys were splurging on, like an $18,000 table at Tenjune nightclub. What really caught our attention, though, was the brand new Tom Ford for Men store at 845 Madison Avenue and 70th Street. The two-story, 10,000-sqaure-foot flagship was a glorified bachelor pad, dripping with sex. Since saving the Gucci House with his sexually provocative designs, then departing in 2004, Tom Ford has re-entered the fashion world with a bang of luxurious menswear.
Prices are unapologetically exorbitant, a move that makes materialism and self-indulgence blush. Off-the-rack suits started at $3,000, a dinner jacket for $5,690 and beaver top hat with price upon request. There are cashmere-silk-blend sweaters, noir-color trench coats for $3,990, Chelsea boots for $1,390, oh and crocodile boots for $13,900. Day shirts range from $350 to $795 plus, and are available in two body shapes, 10 collars, two cuffs (barrel or French), 350 colors and 35 fabrics. That is 400,000 different day shirts before you even consider monogramming. If you can’t find what you want (which we doubt) or just want to spend more money, customize your Tom Ford. Yup, anything from Tom Ford underwear to fragrances can be customized to fit you and your taste.
Forget the clothes for a moment, a cast-bronze crocodile reception desk sits in the store entrance, beaver rugs run rampant throughout (wink), and Lucio Fontant artwork decks the walls. Not to mention, the numerous ateliers, butlers, seamstresses and maids constantly walking the luxurious premise only to service you. There’s a secret elevator with upholstered walls, fireplaces, a bar and silk smoking jackets for $3,900, which Mr. Ford refers to as dressing gowns. Tom Ford has essentially created a new version of luxury that doesn’t take into account a poor economy outside the city.
Is this a clear picture of just how unaffected the city seems? Whether it’s Bloomberg, highly concentrated pockets of wealth, or magic, New York City seems to be in an unbreakable bubble of prosperity. The rich are still rich in New York and staying that way.
A little love nest on the beach is just what architect Takao Shiotsuka Atelier of Japan has constructed. The white, more glass, beach house is just 237 sq. meters and 2 floors with an elevator. Don’t underestimate the elfin house though, there is something incredibly intriguing about its minimalist design. Made mostly of huge glass walls, the house offers fantastic natural sunlight and views in. We appreciate the artful design. Its not for everyone but if you did want to live in this beach house it would be a pretty liberating life experience, when we said all glass we meant all glass including the bathrooms. Oh and not frosted glass, just the pure see through kind. At least you’ll feel like one with nature but in a more luxurious space. Our only complaint is this mediocre beach, we would have loved to see this house built on some fierce tropical island full of palm trees and white sand. Â Â
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With an all new design, features, and technologies, the re-engineered MacBook Pro is surpassing standards that don’t even exist yet. Until the new MacBook Pro, all notebooks were designed by assembling multiple parts to create a single enclosure. Thanks to the bright minds at Apple, the new Pro design uses just one part, which is a seamless enclosure carved from one piece of aluminum. Thus, the MacBook Pro is now thinner, lighter and more durable than ever before. Perfect for life inside a briefcase or backpack of the next generation. Â
An added edge-to-edge, uninterrupted glass display not only looks elegant but adds more structure to the LED display beneath it. There is also no click button below the mousepad anymore. The entire trackpad is the button, so you can click all over. Without a separate button, your hands have 39 percent more room to move, two fingers scrolls up and down a page. Pinching your fingers will zoom in and out. Rotate an image with your fingertips, swipe with three fingers to flip through your photo libraries, swipe with four fingers to show your desktop, think iPhone touch screen.
The internal architecture has also been completely overhauled from the silicon up. The GeForce 9400M processor is an integrated power saver. Inside the new MacBook Pro is the latest Intel Core 2 Duo processor running at speeds up to 2.8GHz, b on groundbreaking 45-nm process technology and advanced Core microarchitecture. The MacBook Pro hard drive has up to 320GB2 and up to 4GB of RAM. Plus, faster 1066MHz DDR3 memory, so you can run more applications at once and instantly access even more of your stuff. There’s a new logic board, chipset, and graphics architecture.
Wherever you go, the wireless capabilities go too. With the latest 802.11n wireless technology built in, you’re always seamlessly and effortlessly connected to the wireless world. If a Wi-Fi network isn’t available, your Pro will connect to the internet on a cellular network. Now that is on par with the 21st century, thanks.
Besides all the above greatness, Apple is hitting the green hard with conscious environmental approaches. How commendable? The new MacBook Pro LED-backlit screen is both mercury and arsenic free unlike other displays, great for the environment but probably better for you. Backlit technology also conserves energy by using 30% less power than other laptops. This Pro meets government standards for energy efficiency, and earned EPEAT Gold status, the highest standard for environmental performance in the electronics industry. Besides, the new MacBook Pro is shipped in packaging that’s 37% smaller than any previous generation, which translates into fewer trees used for boxes and less fuel used to transport more MacBook Pros on fewer planes. The genius’ at Apple are just too good, we applaud everything about you!
If you don’t have an Apple Mac then get one. If you’re already part of the Mac club, you’re part of the cool kids club and are probably drooling over the new MacBook Pro. Go upgrade and don’t even feel bad, your old MacBook is recycle-able and your new one will help save the environment everyday you use it. You’re going to be impressed and fall in love, just imagine the capabilities now.
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Motorola is reaching, the mobile phone company is trying to target the rich and fabulous with their new Aura cell phone. Motorola claims they have designed the world’s first circular display cell phone. What’s so special about a circle? We didn’t find much.
Sure there is a new design, up-to-date features and technology but so what. An aluminum keypad, 2 megapixel camera, 2 GB memory, video capture and streaming capability and about 7.3 hours of talk time, just doesn’t impress us these days. Especially when the price tag is $2,000, there is no Blackberry messaging or iPhone-ish touch screen which we adore. Plus, in these harsh economic times, save your money or use it for something sexier. Who cares about a circular LCD display even if it has 16 million color and 300 dpi resolution, or even a 62-carat sapphire crystal lens?
The Motorola Aura takes two weeks to create and may be pre-ordered at Motorola online if you care. The Aura will be made available worldwide in December. It’s rare that we say luxury doesn’t have to be the most expensive item but in this case it’s true. Stick to the new touch screen Blackberry coming soon or the iPhone 3G available now. Motorola sorry but your razor thin Aura just isn’t cutting it for us.
John Galliano’s love affair with silk this season paid homage to a bygone era of 1960’s America. The collection was reminiscent of 60’s icons like Jacki-O and Edie Sedgewick. Big earings, bigger hair and over the top make-up matched the bold geometric prints and hallucinogenic colors. Dresses traversed from A-line to bubble, in eye popping hot pink and lime green. The Christian Dior designer added in more luxurious looks with pieces constructed entirely of ostrich, crocodile, fur and of course silk. We appreciate this seasons fashion collection like Galliano’s direction, even though we haven’t been fans of the Christian Dior house for some time. It’s always Galliano to the rescue.
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The 2008 Maserati Quattroporte Collezione Cento is luxury and technology wrapped up in sophisticated Italian couture. The good news is the Maserati flagship sedan has just hit American soil and is looking better then ever. The Cento comes in an all new ivory color, has 20" wheels with polished rims, and a chrome honeycomb front and side grilles. The not so good news is that only 100 will be produced total.
The Quattroporte Collezione Cento luxury car has a 4244 cc engine, paired with hydraulic automatic 6-speed transmission that promises the same performance as the Quattroporte Automatica range. The interior is exclusively striking with diamond-shape stitched, Poltrona Frau "Cuoio" colored leather seats. Polished Wengé wood inserts on the steering wheel, center console and receptacle and mother of pearl inlays, how divine?
The crowning point on the Maserati Cento, though, is the technology package. The 2008 Collezione Cento accommodates back seat passengers with a multimedia paradise controlled by the Maserati Multimedia Entertainment system. In the rear center armrest, an AUX-IN socket, iPod docking station, SIM card seat and USB port so that passengers can view photographs, videos or listen to MP3/WMA tracks contained in other peripherals. Play loud on the Cento’s crisp sound system or quiet with the special Bluetooth headset. In this exotic car the armrest houses a built-in keypad for Internet browsing and email access. In the name of luxury, image is everything, thus two 1.04" touch screens are embedded in the back of the front seats. Plus a CD/DVD player built into the back of the centre receptacle makes three.
ROOCK racing was a premier GT2 Porsche racing team about a decade ago. They have since switched gears and now focus their attention on tuning street Porsches. ROOCK’s latest creation is the 2009 Porsche RST 600 LM which was made to celebrate the team’s 1996 racing victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Package modifications to the Turbo include twin-turbochargers, titanium exhaust, proprietary fuel maps and engine management software. Plus, a carbon racing clutch for precise shifting and tuned suspension. Then for ultimate stopping power in the RST 600 LM, ROOCK put new cross drilled and vented 380mm rotors, carbon swivel brake lines and 8 pot calipers. The revolutionary new 4-pad design improves brake response while increasing brake control. Can you say insanity? The above upgrades allow the ROOCK RST 600 LM to produce 602 horsepower and a maximum torque of 611 lb-ft. ROOCK’s Turbo does 0-60 in 3.1 seconds and tops out at 212 mph, while still claiming daily drivability.
The original ROOCK front splitter, rear diffuser and ROOCK Le Mans rear spoiler are all part of the new Turbo exterior. This exotic sports car has ultra light aluminum racing wheels with custom ROOCK signature carbon fiber caps where used on high performance tires.
On the inside of this luxury sports car the RST 600 LM carbon fiber trim, oil and temperature gauge, and a push start button. Four point harness seat belts give off the racing sensation in everyday driving. The going price is $249,000 but the ROOCK porsche will be hard to come by with only 25 per year being made. Our advice is try a waiting list…
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David Beckham the uber famous UK footballer has put his customized 2002 Bentley Arnage T up for sale. The kicker is that Becks pimped out his ride first so you don’t have to. He added $120,000 worth of options and extras to his Betley Arnage, making the car worth an estimated $410,000. Stocked with refrigerator, rear television screens, "Le Mans" style wing vents, custom cream leather interior with matching embroidered leather baby seat for his son. The V12 only has 25,000 miles on it and the asking price is only $170,000. The original MSRP for an Arnage T is $290,000, what gives?
Then this car has history too This particular Bentley Arnage T was the car Becks drove into Buckingham Palace when the Queen of England decorated him with an OBE. Plus, the only two Bentleys pictured in the Bentley head office are Beckhams and the Queens. David Beckham doesn’t need money, we figure he just has an awful big heart since he is practically giving his Bentley away. Brilliant Becks, could you actually be any more perfect? We don’t think so
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Dubai is the luxury capital of the World right now, boasting a $37 billion, plus economy. We will continue to bring you outrageous and exclusive must-see and must-have luxuries from the Persian Gulf city. 
The shiny SLR sits alongside a Lamborghini Gallardo, Bentley Flying Spur, Porsche 911 Turbo, Rolls-Royce Drophead Coupe, plus some other exotics. The collection is like an art exhibit and the SLR has attracted enormous crowds. Put on your Tom Ford stunner shades and go enjoy the good life.
