RAR Writes up to date with the Latest and Greatest fine Art, Design, Products and Fashion from all over the world

Showing posts with label luxury goods. Show all posts
Showing posts with label luxury goods. Show all posts
Sunday, December 29, 2013

Ring In The New Year With The $3000 Bottle Of Bubbly Wrapped In Carbon Fiber: Cuvée Carbon Champagne.





As this time of year rolls around, I like to point out unusual, highly exclusive vintages and bottles of Champagne. Having exposed you to the fabulously fun and bizarre Zarb Champagne, the Prestige Cuvées of Goût de Diamants (Taste of Diamonds), and the celeb-favorite Angel Champagne, it's time to turn you onto the elegant and luxurious Devravry House's Carbon Cuvée Champagne, a bit of bubbly clad in a carbon fiber wrapped bottle, costing $3000 a pop.



The House of Devavry started in 1946 with Bertrand Devavry. Jean Loup, following his footsteps, while adding his personal touch, keeps on creating his wines solely from the “cuvée” (the “vintage”) using a traditional wine press without going for the malolactic fermentation in order to preserve the quality, vivacity and better aging of his wines.



Alexandre Mea-Devavry, the youngest son of Bertrand and Gisele Devavry, inspired by the legacy of his family and his culture of striving to the best at all times, created from the best vines located on the famous slopes of the Champagne region the Cuvee Carbon.



With a wine created from only the best grapes in the Grand and Premier cru rated vineyards, and superb vines located on the famous slopes of the Champagne region, the House of Devavry has both the know how and the experience.



Carefully kept in their cellars with rigorous measures to assure the best aging possible, all the conditions are reunited to guarantee the finest quality that is the standard of the Devravry House since the beginning.




The Grapes:
A clever mix of the greatest grapes from the Côte des Blancs chardonnay and the Marne Valley Pinot Noir gives it a subtle mixture of strength and finesse, elegance and structured freshness.



The Magic of Carbon vintage is the result of complex and harmonious association of these two grapes comprised of up to 80% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Noir.

Vines Avize, Chouilly, Oger make up the Chardonnay grape. Located on the Kingdom of the Côte des Blancs, synonymous with delicacy and finesse but also highly accurate in its purity, a character that remains a beautiful presence in the mouth.

For the Pinot noir grape, the vineyards of Ay are selected : brilliant power and consistency to develop its specific aroma of red fruits.

The Bottle Design:


As the most precious jewels should be protected in the most beautiful cases, Alexandre Mea taught that the valuable heritage that his family passes from generation to generation was meant to be kept in an iconic bottle.



Therefore he thought that the Carbon would both keep the wine safe from alteration and give to the container the prestige that deserves the Cuvée. Which lead him to create this bottle, embodiment of the family’s philosophy.



Well known for its qualities of lightness and strength, Carbon is a highly sought after material and courted by the best designers who strive to innovation in their creations.



Each bottle is unique and bears the signature of the craftsman, a true artist. The achievement of each bottle requires six days of work before receiving therein the precious nectar of the Cuvée.



Collection:
For every moment of joy and type of meal, Cuvée Carbon is perfect accompaniment, with a collection of different champagnes having each one their own character. Vintage 2006, Vintage Rosé 2005 and Blanc de Blancs

•Vintage 2006 - The original and most famous of the collection, there is no type of festivity that doesn’t suit perfectly with this bottle.

•Vintage Rosé 2005 - Exquisite with Salmon, Poultry, Game and even red fruits based desserts.

•Blanc De Blanc - Great as appetizer, with light hors-d’oeuvre, seafood, or fish.


above: Available in Magnum (1,5L), Jéroboam (3L), Nabuchodonosor (15L), and Melchizedek (30L)




Carbon Cuvée Champagne
Friday, December 27, 2013

Vanhulsteijn Designs 9 Special Edition Japanese Lacquer and Gold Leaf Bikes for Sotheby's.





The Urushi Bicycle Project consists of 9 exclusively designed bicycles for Sotheby’s by Herman van Hulsteijn. Sotheby's approached the Dutch designer after seeing his unusual bikes on the internet with their distinctive curved frame. Herman van Hulsteijn suggested designing a tailor-made bike for them using an ancient process that had intrigued him for years.



The uniquely designed Vanhulsteijn bicycles are covered in a dazzling coat of Japanese urushi lacquer and gold leaf. The painstakingly elaborate process takes up to five months to hand apply the twenty layers of gold leaf and urushi lacquer to the frames.




It took an additional month to manufacture and polish the remaining components.




The results are stunning:





For this occasion Vanhulsteijn teamed up with two Russian artisans, Sergej Kirilov and Marina Korotkaja, who specialize in the Japanese lacquer technique. This particular style of lacquer, Tsugaru-Nuri, implements several layers of gold leaf to achieve a stunning, rich effect that contrasts beautifully with the industrial parts of the bike.



The layer of precious metal glows underneath the lacquer and creates an enormous feeling of depth whereby the pattern almost appears to be three dimensional. A pleasant side effect of this ancient Japanese technique is that every bike will have a naturally unique pattern.



Needless to say all the bikes are fitted with the highest quality components available today which are listed below. Beside the frame, Herman van Hulsteijn designed the signature parts like the elegantly shaped brake levers and pedals himself.



Every single part that has no lacquer on it was carefully polished by hand to highlight their shape. The ray-skin upholstery of the saddle and handle bar tops off the luxury look of the bike:





Ultimately the bicycle is finished off with the Vanhulsteijn logo’s and number in the Maki-e technique: different grain sizes of gold dust sprinkled in urushi lacquer.



Urushi is the sap of the urushi or lacquer tree (rhus vernicifera). It is a member of the sumac family (anacardiaceae) and native to China, Korea, Japan and the eastern Himalayas. The sap of this tree contains a resin (urushiol) which, when exposed to moisture and air, polymerizes and becomes a very hard, durable, plastic-like substance. Urushi is in fact a natural plastic. The process of applying the lacquer is long and labour intensive: independent of the size of the surface it takes on average 6 months to carry out the finishing.



In some cases 60 layers are applied and polished by hand. Depending on the kind of lacquer the time it takes a single layer to dry can take from 2 hours up to 3 months. Due to its fascinating characteristics which are both sustainable and esthetically beautiful, urushi is still used for a wide variety of purposes.



From its first use in the making of bowls, plates, trays, sake cups, boxes, combs and other objects, the use of urushi developed along with Japanese culture. In Japan the urushi bowl or plate became a part of the harmony of traditional Japanese food. In the noble court culture classical styles took form. Maki-e and raden urushi techniques elegantly used gold and silver to ennoble furniture, make up accessories, toys and writing implements. Urushi also became an integral part of the harmony of Natsume (tea canisters), Kogou (incense burners) and other tools and utensils used in the tea ceremony. In the Edo period people adorned themselves with urushi medicine cases, combs and hairpins. Many of these objects can be found in museums and private collections today.

In the 20th century a number of designers working in France began to use Asian lacquer for furniture and other decorative arts. Eileen Gray and Jean Dunand are two of the artists who produced screens, furniture and paintings using Asian lacquer. Today, while many craftspeople still make beautiful lacquer ware, urushi has become an important material in the art scene in Japan and other parts of Asia. Contemporary artists are increasingly working with urushi, its colors, shapes and techniques in their paintings, art objects and jewelry.

This combination of contemporary design and traditional craft is made to order and tailor made to Sotheby’s clients in a limited edition of 9 bicycles. For further inquiries contact them at info@vanhulsteijn.com
Sunday, December 1, 2013

A Look At Jay Z's Exclusive Holiday Collection for Barneys, 100% Of Which Benefits Charity.




“A New York Holiday” is an unprecedented collaboration between Barneys New York and Mr. Shawn Corey Carter - aka Jay Z. They have partnered with some of the most prestigious fashion houses in the world — Balenciaga, Balmain, Lanvin, The Elder Statesman, En Noir, Hoorsenbuhs, Hublot, Just Don, Lanvin, Moncler, Proenza Schouler, Rick Owens, Roc Nation, Stutterheim, T. Anthony, Acne Studios, and Cutler & Gross — to create exclusive, limited edition products inspired by New York City in a color palette of black, white, gold and silver with many featuring Barney's Holiday Emblem (a stylized Maltese cross).




The products are available in the BNY SCC Gallery (a space dedicated to the partnership) as well as for purchase online.

In the spirit of the holiday season, Barneys New York will donate 100% of sales from this collection to the Shawn Carter Foundation.



“With this project, Barneys New York and I were able to take the slickness, energy, and innovation of New York City and translate that into quality, timeless pieces,” said Mr. Carter. “Everything that encompasses ‘A New York Holiday’—the items chosen, the amazing designers that participated, the windows, the design of the BNY SCC Gallery—represents a perfect example of a unique and groundbreaking collaboration that I hope demonstrates how inspiring New York has been to me.”

The making of A New York Holiday:


Below are ALL the items in the collection (some may no longer be available for purchase).

Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for The Elder Statesman blanket:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Knit Mask with emblem for The Elder Statesman:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Balenciaga leather backpack:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Balmain
Barney's Print Holiday Emblem scarf:

Epaulette Tee Shirt in white and black:

Emblem-print Epaulette Tee Shirt:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Leather Brooklyn Cap for Just Don:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for En Noir.
Embroidered Leather Boxing Shorts:

Leather and Suede Camo Windbreaker:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Rick Owens:
Mollino Crocodile Jacket:
Leather Cutwork Fleece Hoodie:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Stutterheim raincoat:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Hoorsenbuhs 18k Gold New York City Ring:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Hublot:
18k Gold Shawn Carter by Hublot 45mm Classic Fusion:

Shawn Carter by Hublot Black Ceramic 45mm Classic Fusion Watch:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Cutler & Gross Sunglasses:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Down and Leather jacket for Moncler:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Roc Nation Nylon-Overlay Camo Field Jacket:

Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Leather Duffle for Proenza Schouler:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter for Lanvin:
Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Lanvin Vinyl Coated Camo Jacquard Tie:


Lanvin Slim-fit Two-button Jacket:

(Lanvin slim trousers and white dress shirt also available)

Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter T. Anthony Oversized Zip Duffel:


JAY Z Gold by JAY Z:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Cohiba Comador Cedar-lined Humidor Set:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter NYC NYC Tee:


Limited edition Shawn 'JAY Z' Carter Acne Studios Town Jay Resin-coated Jeans - BLACK


BNY SCC Gallery:



Shop the entire collection here.

“We are proud to honor our home, the great city of New York, this holiday season—and there is absolutely no one better to collaborate with on this project than the New York born and bred Shawn ‘JAY Z’ Carter. He is a groundbreaking musician, a pioneering entrepreneur, and the ultimate creative collaborator,” said Mark Lee, Barneys New York CEO. “We look forward to capturing the energy of New York, and merging the vision of Shawn Carter and the style of Barneys New York in this unprecedented holiday event.”

In the spirit of the holiday season, Barneys New York is proud to be making a donation to the Shawn Carter Foundation, a New York-based charity which awards post-secondary scholarships to students facing socio-economic hardships.

all images and information courtesy of Barneys