A Modern Greek Villa Fit For The Gods By KLab Architects

The Wide Open Villa by KLab Architects

A stunning single family home in the suburb of Ekali in Athens, Greece. Begun in 2006 and completed in 2009, the monolithic volume gives the home an impression of having two fronts; a curved one along the street and a planar one towards the back yard, pool and private garden. From the outside, the building has an austere, almost intimidating character. Inside, plan and section work together to create a fluid space that undermines the initial monumental impression by inviting extended exterior views to enter.

There are thoughtful and functional details like a fireplace that faces both inside and outside the home, mitered glass walls serves as catwalk railings and an indoor pool with neon lighting set in the recessed ceiling.
























above: Konstantinos Labrinopoulos of KLAB architects



photos and information courtesy of KLab and Archdaily

architect/designer: Konstantinos Labinoproulous
employer: A property developer and contractor
surface: 1050 square meters
date: 2006-2009



KLab Architects (KLab stands for kinetic lab of architecture) was named by Wallpaper magazine as one of the top 50 up and coming Architecture firms in the world.

Oops... Barielle sale

I was totally disappointed by the lack of good Cyber Monday sales. So disappointed that I completely missed this email sitting in my inbox...

Until December 2nd, get 20% off your entire order at Barielle! Plus buy 2 get 1 free and free shipping over $50 as usual.

The email doesn't specify a code, so it might just apply automatically.

I don't have too many Barielle swatches (Fall 2009, Fall 2008 and Summer 2009) but you can take a look here if you need help.

The only other polish-related Black Friday/Cyber Monday deal I saw was Essie giving away a sheer pink polish on Friday and a 2oz lotion on Monday. lol. Better than nothing I guess!

EDIT: Holy crap, apparently Zoya had an awesome 'Green Friday' sale too.... I totally dropped the ball on that one. I guess that's what happens when I don't pay attention to my email or Twitter over a long Holiday week/weekend! Boo :(

'Good' Emerald Sparkle versus 'Bad' Emerald Sparkle

A *lot* of people have been asking me about the two different versions of Emerald Sparkle, and I totally didn't realize I actually had pictures of both.
Here's the 'good' Emerald Sparkle. This bottle happens to be the 2009 release, but it's identical to the original 2008 release. Note how it's bright green glitter in a very deep, dark vampy green jelly base.

Here's the 'bad' Emerald Sparkle. This is also from 2008, but after the original release. When it first came out, it was a limited edition and everyone went bananas over it and it sold out in... how long did it take? Days? Hours? Either way it sold out very quickly. Word from China Glaze was that there wouldn't be any more produced since it was limited edition for holiday. Then, a few weeks later, there was some new stock of Emerald Sparkle at the various etailers and beauty supplies and it looked like this. The glitter is the same color, but it's in kind of a murky medium bluey-green base. Not a deep green jelly like the original. The glitter in this one didn't look as sparkly either. For what it's worth, I haven't seen this version since I bought it in late 2008. I have purchased several bottles since then (gotta have backups, man!) and they've all been the 'good' version.

Eventually I'll dig out the bad bottle and the good bottles and do a side by side, but this set of two pictures speaks for itself. There are two versions of Emerald Sparkle in existence. There's only officially been one version, and the off batch was attributed to uneven batch mixing, or so I've heard.

Sometimes companies do release inconsistent batches, it's really not totally unheard of. The main one that comes to mind is the notorious OPI My Private Jet, of which I own two slightly different versions but have seen in person a third variation and have also seen pictures of at least one additional variation. I don't know why or how it happens- formula was slightly off during production? Pigments were discontinued? Who knows... But it's very odd, and sometimes a bit frustrating.

I swear I own two different versions of Ruby Pumps and Purple Panic as well. *cue Twilight Zone theme*

la dolce mila

ontd

The Sake Bomb. A Modern Drinking Vessel Inspired By The Puffer Fish

What better eay to get bombed on sake than with the hand crafted ceramic microwaveable Sake Bomb, a modern sputnick looking vessel with four incoporated sake cups that can hold hot or cold sake.



The Sake Bomb is hand crafted in Los Angeles. It is available in a variety of vivid colors with a sealed matt ceramic finish. To ensure the complexity and geometric nature of the sake bomb remained true, the manufacturing process combines both high-tech modern technologies with traditional handcrafted techniques. The vessels were initially design in 3D CAD software and printed using a 3D FDM printer. From these objects plaster molds were taken and traditional slip-casting procedures are employed to create the ceramic versions for kiln firing.



This whimsical pouring vessel is a comical take on the western slang “Sake Bomb”. The inspiration is a juxtaposition of the Fugu Fish (Blowfish or Puffer Fish), the most opulent of sashimi cuts and a WW II sea mine. The small drinking cups perch neatly on the spines making it a compact entertaining tool.


above: the Fugu, also known as the Puffer Fish or Blowfish served as the design inspiration

The Sake Bomb was designed by Alexander Purcell founder of APRRO an interdisciplinary design studio based in Los Angeles.



Available in four colors:



Because the Sake Bomb is ceramic it keeps both your hot sake hot and your cold sake cold. To heat sake you may place Sake Bomb in microwave for a minute. Sake Bomb holds 8 FL OZ (235 ml)

$98.00 USD Buy it here.

$3.2 million iPhone 3GS Supreme. Officially The World's Most Expensive.

In the battle of the bling, Stuart Hughes presently holds the top honors with the introduction of his iPhone 3GS Supreme, officially the world's most expensive mobile phone at $3.2 million dollars ( or £1.92 million).




The ostentatious piece of technological hardware is encased in 271 grams of 22ct solid gold.




The front bezel houses 136 flawless diamonds of F color which total a massive 68 cts and the rear apple logo, set in solid gold has 53 flawless diamonds totaling 1 carat:


The major eye-popping feature is the front navigation button which is a single cut very rare diamond weighing a whopping 7.1 cts:


The chest which houses this unique handset is made from a single block of Kashmir Gold Granite, the inner lined with Nubuck top grain leather and which weighs is a massive 7kg.



Designed by Stuart Hughes of Liverpool, England, the phone was 10 months in the making and commissioned by an anonymous Australian businessman from the Gold mining industry.