Posts Tagged ‘ Location ’

Ever Wanted To Go To The Maldives?


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Trendsetting Huvafen Fushi has been raising the benchmark since its first inception two years ago. Opening its doors to feature the world’s first underwater spa, Huvafen Fushi has since earned its spot on the coveted Conde Nast Traveller MagazinesUK and US Hot List. This discreetly luxurious, contemporary retreat is located on its own lagoon on a tiny island in North Male Atoll. I arrived late into the night direct from Singapore, the flight doesn’t get in until 10pm (note: book Emirates instead to arrive during the day). Waking up in the Maldives is something everyone should experience before they die.

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BEST TIME TO GO

Jan until May

COOL FACTOR

The friendly, laid-back staff: guests in pavilion accommodation get a 24-hour butler service, while the rest of the resort gets a FISH (Fast Island Service Host), which amounts to the same thing. The underwater spa is a must.

FACILITES

Three restaurants, a lively bar, a seriously cool well-stocked underground wine cellar, an over-water yoga pavilion and the world’s first underwater massage treatment rooms complete the picture.

COST

Bungalows from US$880

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This year, Huvafen Fushi is proud to announce three new initiatives. An übercool 70ft luxury yacht, an exclusive compilation with one of the world’s most famous DJ and Producer, Ravin from Buddha Bar, Paris as well as an uplift to the world’s first underwater spa.
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2016
01/26
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28 Pearls In A Dome.


TechnoMarine-AquaSphere-watch-600x423

The highly original AquaSphere collection combines TechnoMarine’s technical watchmaking expertise with the talents of designer Federico Restrepo.  This luxurious watch features a stainless steel case with a dome-shaped mineral glass cover, placed like a bubble in the middle of the interchangeable silicone strap.  But the most original feature of this timepiece is found underneath the dome, above its mother-of-pearl dial, where 28 natural freshwater pearls float gracefully in a clear liquid.  The AquaSphere is available in several versions: without diamonds (€700), with 88 inlaid diamonds (€1,850), or with 176 inlaid diamants (€2,900). The watch is available in Colette, Paris.

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2013
12/16
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Moet Vending Machines?


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After caviar, cupcakes and high-end mascara, now there’s a vending machine selling bottles of luxury bubbly by Moet & Chandon.  In what some see as the champagne house’s attempt at making bubbly more accessible to the general public, the new vending machine at London department store Selfridges dispenses blinged-out mini bottles of bubbly, bedecked with 350 deco-inspired Swarovski mini crystals.  The machine is located in the store’s Christmas section, where shoppers can stock up on 200 ml bottles for £18 ($29) for the holidays.  It’s the latest luxury product to find its way into an automatic dispenser at a time when consumers demand convenience and customer service is becoming increasingly automated.  This spring, Selfridges also debuted a vending machine that sold Chanel mascaras for a limited time.  And last year, the world’s first caviar vending machine debuted in the US for customers with haute snack cravings that go beyond candy bars and chips.  The Beverly Hills Caviar machine dispenses containers of caviar along with all the accoutrements needed to throw a caviar fete or satisfy midnight fish egg cravings, including blinis, truffle oil, Mother of Pearl plates and spoons and gourmet salts.

2013
11/26
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Madrid’s Club MUSEE.


Club MUSÉE is Madrid’s fresh take on what night clubs could be — a combination art gallery and night club, but both with a sharp, trendy edge.  Designed by creative director and designer Parolio of Madrid’s Parolio & Euphoria Lab the space provides a strong back-drop for powerful art.  At Club MUSÉE black glass and mirrors, bright-colored sculptural furniture and a three-meter-wide  LED video screen create a visual challenge for the artists’ work that ranges from paintings to video art and other  installations.  The work of upcoming photography and illustration talent is currently on display from photographer Robert Bartholot from Berlin,  Paco Peregrín from Madrid  and illustrator Glenn Hilario from New York.  The visual feast is supported by music mixed by Madrid’s hottest DJs who offer electronic, pop and house music.  Parolio’s strong sense of drama, theater and color work well at Club MUSÉE, and is evident in many of his other projects, including Pacha Madrid night club and Le Marquis restaurant and lounge.

2012
06/13
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Bangkok University Is Branding Itself As A Creative University.


Bangkok University has been branding itself as a Creative University during the past few years. One method they have chosen to do this is to re-imagine and re-allocate the space so that the students will want to spend time on the campus, not just studying but enjoying themselves.  As before the university retained Bangkok’s Supermachine Studio, led by Pitupong (Jack) Chaowakul, to create the Student Lounge (formerly allocated for teachers) at the Rangsit Campus, located north of Bangkok.  The new configuration for the lounge was completed in March and includes about 1,000 square meters (about 10,764 square feet) combined on the ground floor and mezzanine.  The ground floor area is designed as a flexible hang-out space that can be reconfigured for studying alone or in groups, resting, meetings and so on, using the porous, mobile “ribs” as walls.  The mezzanine level is a fun and games zone. It includes a pink polka-dotted Karaoke hut, teetering off the “cliff” and about to fall off onto the reading cave below. Students sitting on the massive modular sofa in the reading cave can clearly see their fellow students performing in the Karaoke hut.

The game zone includes a huge pool table with mobile holes, a giant dart board where no-one can miss the bulls-eye, a music rehearsal room that is like a little house with one wall hinging open, plus a gossip corner and a Kungfu zone.  Many of the components in the space are meant for the students to change and reconfigure, including the 400- bottle chandelier and the gigantic panda that could be painted in the future to resemble other characters, animals or creatures.  Inside the 6,5-meter high panda is the spiral staircase connecting the ground floor and. Mezzanine. Students enter the staircase from the backside and exit from the back of the head. The mouth of the panda is a window.  The columns dotting the ground floor are currently white, but the students are expected to paint or decorate them as well.  In addition to Pitupong Chaowakul, the design team included Suchart Ouypornchaisakul, Nuntawat Tassanasangsoon, Wattikon Kosolkit, Santi Sarasuphab and Supanna Chanpensri.

2012
06/06
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The Aurora And Orbit Watches


Check out the Aurora and Orbit. The Aurora displays time using two transparent gradient discs, blue indicating the hour and yellow – the minute. The overlapping colors create green and the effect creates a clear definition between “hours” and “minutes”. The Orbit displays time by utilising two “planets”, the colored orb representing the hour and white orb displaying the minute.

2012
06/04
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New York’s Hidden Subway System.


Deep in the belly of New York’s subway system, a beautiful untouched station resides that has been forgotten for years with only a limited few knowing of its existence. Stunning decoration with tall tiled arches, brass fixtures and skylights run across the entire curve of the station, almost a miniature imitation of Grand Central Station… But it sounds like something straight out of Ninja Turtles, right?

It was opened in 1904, with the hope of making it the crowning glory of the New York subway system in elegant architecture and a place for commemorative plaques to honor the work that had resulted in such a successful underground mass transit system. It was to be the original southern terminus of the first ‘Manhattan Main Line’; however the station was closed and boarded up in 1945. The gem of the underground began gathering dust, forgotten by the general public, as passengers were forced off at the Brooklyn Bridge Stop before the train continued on to the terminus to make its turnaround.

The reason for its closure was that newer longer cars were required to match the demand of passengers that passed through the system. But as the stations tracks were severely curved, a dangerous gap between the train doors and the platform was formed making it an unsafe area. This combined with the fact that only about 600 people used it, resulted in its closure with only mythical plans of turning it into a transit museum. But this was never followed through.

However, now you don’t have to take my word that the secret City Hall Station exists, as the 6 Train will now allow the passengers who have been enlightened with the knowledge of its whereabouts to stay on the train during its turnaround and see the Station. You won’t be able to get off, but you’ll be taken for a slow tour of the platform and see what a beauty it was in its heyday.

And if that isn’t enough, The Underbelly Project has turned it into a kind-of off-limits art gallery. They are a group of street artists who have painted the walls of the unattractive concrete areas with their art in a spooky art exhibition that will be witnessed only by urban explorers who prowl the deep train system at night and Metropolitan Transportation Authority workers.

But if you want to go and view these art works, you will most definitely run the high risk of being arrested as venturing the tunnels is both highly illegal and dangerous.  I’ll just stick to seeing the photographs as I’m pretty sure my search for art would turn into a horror story down in the black tunnels… or I’d get hit by a train.

2012
05/30
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The Missoni Tower.


Missoni is partnering with Filipino real estate developer Century Properties to design the interior decor and amenity spaces of a condominium building in Manila.  Missoni Home is not new to commercial real estate.

They designed the Hotel Missoni line with Rezidor Hotel Group, with hotels open or opening in Scotland, Kuwait, Turkey, Omanan and Brazil.  It’s the fourth of six towers in the $316 million Acqua Private Residences project; the first three are completely sold out.

The Missoni Home tower will have 645 1-,2-, and 3-bedroom units that will rent for about $315 per square foot.  A multi-level amenity center called the Canopy will house an amphitheater, lounge, DJ booth and dance floor,a  pool with swim up bar, and barbecue facilities.

The Missoni tower is to be the second fashion-branded building in Makati, a section of the Filipino capital that Century Properties is developing at a breakneck pace.  The company is also building The Milano Residences, a Versace-branded tower there, 80 percent of which is sold, according to the developer.
2012
05/09
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The Delta Shelter Weekend Cabin.


Built in 2005 in Mazama, Washington, and designed by Tom Kundig, the Delta Shelter is 1,000 square feet of modernist retreat. It measures 20×20, sits three stories tall, and has 10×18 steel shutters that are opened or closed via a hand-cranked wheel.

2012
04/26
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Where The F*ck Do You Wanna Drink?


Click the pic to try it out.

Everyone knows about Yelp, Four Square, and any of the other typical means to find a good restaurant, bar, or meeting place.  But for those of us who just want to straight up get a drink as close as possible to where we’re standing that second… there’s “Where The F*ck Should I Go For Drinks.com”.  Quite a simple solution to finding a close by bar.  Simply put in your address, and you’ll be pointed to the nearest watering hole.  No separation by class, or price, or status, or type… just a direct line to where you can get your drink on.  Click the pic to try it out.

2012
02/24
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Henrique Oliveira’s Plywood Sculptures.


It’s difficult to imagine the equating of weathered construction plywood with a painter’s brush stroke, but that what Brazilian artist Henrique Oliveira does with his impressive three-dimensional sculptures made entirely out of layers upon layers of pieces of peeled, old plywood, collected from various construction sites around Sao Paulo.  Originally a painter, Oliveira began making his sculptures (some of which look something like gigantic roots bursting into a room) after spying an old, peeling wooden fence outside of his studio. He intuitively saw the peeling strips of wood as something similar to that of a brushstroke laid down by a painter’s hand, and since then, has worked with aged plywood in this way, much like a painter would colour a canvas.  To make his sculptures, which range from the enormous to smaller pieces, he gathers plywood strips of all shapes and sizes, before layering them into forms that are sometimes also painted over, in order to give an illusion of uniform smoothness.

To make his sculptures, which range from the enormous to smaller pieces, he gathers plywood strips of all shapes and sizes, before layering them into forms that are sometimes also painted over, in order to give an illusion of uniform smoothness.  Plywood is an inexpensive and abundant material for fencing, and instead of leaving old fences to crumble, Oliveira transforms the linearity of such a humble material into mind-boggling and eye-catching spaces, punctuated by tendrils or mounds of almost-living forms. Other times, Oliveira creates cavernous canyons out of this salvaged material, ones that visitors can inhabit.  It’s an ingenious way to reuse a product that’s been broken down so much beyond the point of utility; instead of sawdust, art is created. For the curious, there’s many more impressive images on Henrique Oliveira’s website.

 

2012
02/03
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Spend A Night In A Dutch Ice Hotel.


It could be any standard hotel room in the quaint northeastern Dutch city of Zwolle, with a bed, a minibar, bathrobes and two pairs of slippers.  Except for the room temperature, which hovers just above freezing. Welcome to the first Dutch ice hotel, all the comforts at eight degrees Celsius (46 °F).  “If you take a shower before bed, make sure your hair is dry or it will freeze. Do not drink too much alcohol, or eat too heavy a meal. Make sure you change clothes before entering the room,” hotel manager Annet van Limburg told first-time visitors.

Built for an ice sculptors’ festival in Zwolle and managed by a local hotel, the structure has three rooms and stands in a refrigerated warehouse.  It is the first time in Europe that an ice hotel has opened this far south, Van Limburg said. Indeed, the idea comes from the north.  With some 47 rooms for the 2011/12 season, the largest ice hotel is at Jukkasjarvi in northern Sweden’s Lapland.  “Unlike Canada and Lapland, the hotel here is not situated in nature,” Van Limburg said pointing out: “There, the guests sleep in minus 20 degrees.”

Inside, abstract patterns carved from the ice adorn the meter-thick walls of two of the rooms. A third has a nautical theme, including a giant shell carved into its ice.  Carved from a solid ice block, like a giant ice cube, the room’s main attraction is a square bed, which lights up in pink, blue and green lights through lamps installed underneath in its ice.  It took about 10 days to build the three rooms, where guests can stay from December 3 to January 29. A night for two including breakfast will cost 199 euros ($259).

2012
01/02
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The Most Expensive Penthouse In S.F.


A two-floor, $28 million penthouse in my new hometown of San Francisco has made history as the most expensive condo sold in the city’s history.  The 20,000-square-foot condo features floor-to-ceiling glass windows, six bedrooms, seven full baths, four powder rooms; 2,500 square foot master suite, thirteen-seat home cinema and four terraces, four fireplaces and six car parking.  The penthouse was originally asking $70 million in 2008 by Victor MacFarlane, a real-estate developer who bought three apartment shells and combined them.

2011
12/20
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Chillin At Pharrell’s House.


I recently got my hands a schweet little photo collection of Pharrell Williams personal play pen.  Check the method out below.  (My favorite installations are the modified ‘Family Guy’ portraits.)

2011
12/19
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The Bonsai 420 Shoe.


The Todd Bratrud-designed series of “420″ inspired shoes has become a Nike SB springtime tradition. And several Bratrud designs in the series – Cheech & Chong, the Skunk Dunk, have been among the most sought-after SB releases in recent years. For 420 2012, Nike SB has given Bratrud the boat shoe-derived Stefan Janoski to work with – a shoe which already has some history with reefer culture. The California-based artist has taken the gum-rubber sole used on some of the more popular Janoski releases, and matched it to a bone suede upper. Hunter green serves as the complimentary color, used for piping on the midsole and upper, and for laces and tongue tag. Overall, less of a heady vibe than the past Bratrud 420 designs – Nike did catch some mild flak for the Cheech & Chong release – but by any measure a solid release for fans of the Janoski. Check out images after the jump, and stay tuned for a release in late April 2012.

2011
12/01
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The Perfect Spot In Bali.


Bali, archipelago of the Sunda Islands. Alila Villas Uluwatu is a luxury resort situated in one of the most majestic Indonesian islands, where ultimate comfort lives alongside eco-friendliness.  The Alila Villas Uluwatu complex is a project by the WOHA Design architects’ studio in Singapore, famous for its works in tropical climates, and winner of the 2006 International Award given by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects.

Awarded the Green Globe Environmentally Sustainable certificate for its excellent incorporation into the surrounding environment, the site attained the highest level of ESD (Environmentally Sustainable Design).  Some of the criteria used by the ESD evaluation scale include the use of local materials, saving water through marshy areas, waste water recovery systems and the use of plants from the Balinese savannah.

The complex offers the very best one would expect from a five-star facility. On these premises, guests can enjoy an experience suspended between fairytale sky and sea, in a spectacular plateau of the Bukit peninsula. All for a rate ranging between 500 and 3,000 dollars a night per room.

2011
11/08
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Puerto Vallarta’s Fantasy Villa.


This wildly magnificent villa is located at the very tip of Punta Mita, the most northern point of Banderas Bay with views of the Pacific Ocean and across Banderas Bay to Puerto Vallarta with the Sierra Madre Mountains in the background. Casa El Destino, completed in 2008 by Mexico-based architecture firm Possenbacher Design, with interiors completed by California based design firm Barbara Page Interiors. This oceanfront home is a blend of contemporary and colonial Mexico, consisting of 18,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor living featuring seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms.  I’d just be down to relax in the living room with adjoining wet bar, dine in the dining room or enjoy the outdoor eating areas.  Girls can lounge under the grand Palapa, take a swim in the ocean front infinity pool, or enjoy a workout in the fully equipped gym.  All in all this villa comes out to a rate of $7,600-$11,000 per night.

2011
10/13
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The Brand New London Aquatic Center.


Construction for the ‘London Aquatics Centre’ for the London 2012 summer Olympics by Zaha Hadid Architects is now complete.  Capable of holding 17,500 individuals at one moment, this facility will be the venue for the swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo events.  Sheltering the sports events, athletes and supporters is an aluminum clad steel roof which spans 160 meters in length and 90 meters at its widest point.  Three substantial concrete columns effortlessly support the 3,000 ton sweeping overhead structure.  The double curvature parabolic structure visually evokes the form of an undulating wave.  On the interior, 850,000 tiles surface the pools, changing facilities and and floors.  The cluster of concrete towers including the three meter springboards and diving platforms were formed and cast on site.

2011
09/30
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Vera Wang’s New Glass House.


As you can see by some of my previous posts, I love high class homes, but apparently I’m not the only one.  Fashion designer Vera Wang has bought a contemporary home in Beverly Hills, for about $10 million; the home was listed in March for $10.9 million.  The midcentury-modern home was completely renovated and has four bedrooms, a home theater and walls of glass. There’s also a pool and spa.

2011
08/16
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The Shade Club.


If there’s one thing I can appreciate about a club (aside from the female bartenders that work there) is the interior… And the ‘Shade Club’ has it in spades.  SquareONE’s latest renovation, located in the basement of a residential building in the center of Bucharest, was once home to some of  the most successful and downright sexy clubs of the 90s, some of which carried a notorious and even dark past. After 5 years of vacancy the Shade Club has opened its doors to reveal a sultry modern design that reflects the scandalous history of the venue.

At the start of the remodel, the design team noticed 7 to 8 layers of material applied to the walls, giving them a peek into the location’s history, and sparking their interest in its mysterious past.  The first of the 3 defined spaces within the club is also the largest and features a high density of structural pillars. By covering the pillars in mirrors and applying three-quarter lamps across two edges on each, the columns seem to disappear and a “forest of lamps” emerge. The volumetric pattern on the surrounding walls is CNC dense polyurethane foam painted white. Behind the pattern are mirrors that continue the visual effect of the mirrored pillars.

The second space is a circular room that surrounds the central lounge. Given the shape, the designers opted for an organic design that incorporated baroque decoration. The single row of structural pillars were covered in a Corian skin. It is a soft, organic shape vertically extruded. The Corian skin was engraved with the graphic design CNC milled into the surface of the material, then a special mold was made and the Corian milled plates were thermoformed. The semicircular bar in the this space was done exactly the same. The walls have a routed MDF structure, and thin, extremely flexible Axpet cladding to which graphic designs were cut and applied on the surface.

The third and smallest space is quite isolated from the rest, and features handmade graphic designs on the walls and a single lounge. Hovering above the lounge is a  ellipsoidal light membrane on the ceiling made of a elastic membrane that diffuses the light. To polish the look the designers used white fringe to better illustrate the shape and link the two elements.

In the bar areas there are virtual sections that cut the volume and leave white luminous surfaces with 2D images of different objects (lamps, tables and other household furniture). The ideea was to illustrate a photo of the interior of a house that cuts out volume and leaves an impression. To contrast the space the designers used Corian Noir in combination with translucent Glacier Ice Corian. Spectral tubes were then used as light sources to illuminate the white surfaces.

2011
06/23
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Smash Something.


Welcome to the Destruction Company.

The Destruction Company is a member only club that offers its rich clients the unique chance to smash anything they desire with any weapons they choose.  Members can pick from a list of objects to smash – including furniture, televisions, guitars, fax machines, motorcycles, lap tops and pottery.  Members can also request a particular item they want to destroy – including luxury cars and pianos – which they pay to have brought in. They are then given a choice of weapon including baseball bats, golf clubs, battle axes, sledgehammers, lump hammers, swords, and chainsaws.  The members then visit the club’s warehouse and roof top space to don protective clothing and destroy the object bit by bit.  The smashing – either individually or in group sessions – is filmed on camera so members can visit a control room and watch back footage of themselves in action.  The Destruction Company is now open in New Jersey and is hoping to expand its business to Los Angeles and London.  Members pay an annual fee plus the cost of what is destroyed during each session – with prices ranging from $10 (set of plates), baby grand piano ($2,000), to luxury cars costing over $100,000 (see the list below).

2011
06/20
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Eat Down The Rabbit Hole.


All ‘Alice in Wonderland’ fans can witness the magic of Fantastic Design Works Co.’s new Alice In Wonderland inspired restaurant in Tokyo. The entire story unfolds within the walls of the 2,000 sq. ft. restaurant, from beginning to end. Upon entrance, guests are graced with oversized vintage books, mirrored walls, and polished checkered floors. Making your way to your table, you will find that larger than life grass hedges encase each table. Dramatic theatrical elements are in play throughout the entire space accompanied by intense lighting, various spots of color on the ceiling, and table napkins that sit upright, threatening to march away at any given moment. Fantastic Design Works Co. designed a private dining room that’s fit for a queen! The queen of hearts and the rest of her deck is the main theme of the intimate dining space. The restaurant is an acutely literal take on the 1951 animated movie as it is divided into themed sections that reflect certain scenes from the film. If you are in the Tokyo area stop by for a bite, you never know where it could lead you.

2011
06/06
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