Month: December 2008

Filed under: Celebrity Shopping

American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino has become the latest to join our celebrity foreclosure club. A home in Charlotte, North Carolina owned by the singer will be auctioned to pay back a loan that was used to pay her taxes. Broward Energy Partners paid more than ,000 of her taxes in 2006 and says they have not been fully compensated. The earnings from the sale would be used to finish paying off the loan. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office will auction off the home on January 12 unless she pays her debts. She has another home in the area that is said to be valued at 0,000.

Fantasia Faces Closure originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 20:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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A month ago I wrote about trouble for Napa Valley’s Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts. Since then it’s gotten a lot worse. The Sacramento Bee reports that a federal bankruptcy court judge has blocked attempts by the center to a million emergency loan so that it can stay open while it tries to reorganize million in debts. The decision means that Copia which closed at the start of December will stay closed and programs will probably be canceled. In an email to the Bee, , chief executive Garry McGuire said that “the organization will wind down and be dissolved eventually.” The non-profit has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors.

Copia’s tax-exempt bonds were insured in case the non-profit ever went bankrupt and the bond insurer, ACA Financial Guaranty Corp. of New York is interested in beginning foreclosure proceedings. They have accused Copia insiders of trying to enrich themselves at the expense of bondholders with a bankruptcy filing and proposed million building sale but that deal is unlikely to go through now.

Copia Appears Doomed originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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A month ago I wrote about trouble for Napa Valley’s Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts. Since then it’s gotten a lot worse. The Sacramento Bee reports that a federal bankruptcy court judge has blocked attempts by the center to a million emergency loan so that it can stay open while it tries to reorganize million in debts. The decision means that Copia which closed at the start of December will stay closed and programs will probably be canceled. In an email to the Bee, , chief executive Garry McGuire said that “the organization will wind down and be dissolved eventually.” The non-profit has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors.

Copia’s tax-exempt bonds were insured in case the non-profit ever went bankrupt and the bond insurer, ACA Financial Guaranty Corp. of New York is interested in beginning foreclosure proceedings. They have accused Copia insiders of trying to enrich themselves at the expense of bondholders with a bankruptcy filing and proposed million building sale but that deal is unlikely to go through now.

Copia Appears Doomed originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Real Estate Developments

Condo gloom is everywhere, some projects are stopping half-completed, some are shrinking, some are turning into rentals, and then there are the incentives. Developers have been using all sorts of lures to get people into condos including price cuts, appliance and decor upgrades and even free bikes and cars. A new technique comes out of Portland, Oregon. The developer of the Atwater Place condominiums thinks you’ll be more eager to buy if you can just sleep in it over night. The ninth floor display unit is accepting potential buyers as overnight guests, hoping they’ll rise in the morning, look at the Willamette river views and make coffee in the new kitchen and decide to sign the contract. The Atwater tower is 30 percent sold and sells condos from just under 0,000 to over million, pretty steep for Portland.

Portland Condo Offers Overnight Stays To Lure Buyers originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Real Estate Developments

Condo gloom is everywhere, some projects are stopping half-completed, some are shrinking, some are turning into rentals, and then there are the incentives. Developers have been using all sorts of lures to get people into condos including price cuts, appliance and decor upgrades and even free bikes and cars. A new technique comes out of Portland, Oregon. The developer of the Atwater Place condominiums thinks you’ll be more eager to buy if you can just sleep in it over night. The ninth floor display unit is accepting potential buyers as overnight guests, hoping they’ll rise in the morning, look at the Willamette river views and make coffee in the new kitchen and decide to sign the contract. The Atwater tower is 30 percent sold and sells condos from just under 0,000 to over million, pretty steep for Portland.

Portland Condo Offers Overnight Stays To Lure Buyers originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Wine

Custom wine facility Crushpad has a unique answer to the financial crisis, Bailout Wine. The wine is a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon which will sell for per bottle. But what makes this wine with the bear and bull label so unique is that for every 100-point drop in the Dow Jones from the date of purchase to the projected bottling date of August 14 2009, Crushpad will knock another off the bottle. If the Dow rebounds the price stands. Only 500 cases of Bailout will be produced but the company could still take a hit if the Dow tumbles. For example if you bought when the Dow was at 8,800 and then on August 14, 2009 it closes at 7,300 (let’s hope not) you would pay just a bottle and get your back. The wine will be shipped after it is bottled in Summer 2009.

[via Decanter]

Bailout Wine Bets On A Rebounding Dow originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 14:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Wine

Custom wine facility Crushpad has a unique answer to the financial crisis, Bailout Wine. The wine is a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon which will sell for per bottle. But what makes this wine with the bear and bull label so unique is that for every 100-point drop in the Dow Jones from the date of purchase to the projected bottling date of August 14 2009, Crushpad will knock another off the bottle. If the Dow rebounds the price stands. Only 500 cases of Bailout will be produced but the company could still take a hit if the Dow tumbles. For example if you bought when the Dow was at 8,800 and then on August 14, 2009 it closes at 7,300 (let’s hope not) you would pay just a bottle and get your back. The wine will be shipped after it is bottled in Summer 2009.

[via Decanter]

Bailout Wine Bets On A Rebounding Dow originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 14:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Estates

Estate commenter Spectacular Bid first mentioned this estate on this site a year ago when we were looking at another Aiken, South Carolina property, which is also still up for sale. The Sandhurst Estate is a Stanford White designed Winter Colony estate on five equestrian acres. It has an impressive Corinthian columned facade and inside it is a Gilded Age treat with marble baths, hardwood wainscoting and floors and high ceilings. The home was built in 1887 and is part of Aiken’s Historic District The 10,500 square foot residence has 11 bedrooms, 10.5 bathrooms and 10 fireplaces and has been used as a bed and breakfast. It is listed at .39 million.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

Sandhurst, Estate of the Day originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 13:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Estates

Estate commenter Spectacular Bid first mentioned this estate on this site a year ago when we were looking at another Aiken, South Carolina property, which is also still up for sale. The Sandhurst Estate is a Stanford White designed Winter Colony estate on five equestrian acres. It has an impressive Corinthian columned facade and inside it is a Gilded Age treat with marble baths, hardwood wainscoting and floors and high ceilings. The home was built in 1887 and is part of Aiken’s Historic District The 10,500 square foot residence has 11 bedrooms, 10.5 bathrooms and 10 fireplaces and has been used as a bed and breakfast. It is listed at .39 million.

Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

Sandhurst, Estate of the Day originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 13:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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Filed under: Jewelry, Timepieces

Use of natural shapes and themes often fares well for jewelry and watch designers. Though sometimes you get tired of seeing the same flower, star, leaf, or other cliche symbols from nature transformed into luxury goods. Swiss fine watch maker Bertolucci received inspiration from ocean shore tide pools in the design of the new woman’s Stria line of watches.

No luxury woman’s watch is seemingly complete without a healthy portion of diamonds. Stria watches will be available with 162 or 274 count diamond studded cases and dials. Diamond free versions are also available on the rose gold or steel cases sized at a large-for-ladies 37.5mm wide case. In going with the barnacle shell theme, the dial itself is off-centered, and the sapphire crystal is domed to enhance the pyramid effect of the case shape. Guilloche engraving on the case body is meant to suggest the complex patterns seen on shell surfaces. Perhaps not a perfect emulation of natural patterns, but a nice effect.

Dials come in either black with (seriously) a “snail decor” index pattern, or in mother of pearl with a sunburst pattern engraved into the surface. The snail decor is presumably meant to mimic (with diamonds), the glistening trail of mucus left by a snail. Strap is either black or white satin. Bertolucci is really taking the mollusk theme to elegant extremes.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Bertolucci Stria Woman’s Barnacle Shaped Watch originally appeared on Luxist on Sat, 13 Dec 2008 12:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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