This year's G8 Summit takes place in L'Aquila, Italy. The Italian Government has decided to move the G8 Summit venue from La Maddalena to L'Aquila, the city symbolizing the earthquake that hit Abruzzo on April 6. The world leaders taking part in the global summit will likely be tired after long days of discussing the future of the world. Good to know then that they will be sleeping in personalized hand embroidered sheets by Frette. The linen company will also be giving the particpants, his and hers personalized plush robes and towels.

Changing out plain, old ceramic tiles in a boring color can have a dramatic effect on your kitchen, bathroom or fireplace. Creating interest while adding ambiance with sculptural elements can really punch up the volume in a space. I'm especially drawn to the effect produced by Ann Sacks' decorative tiles. Using a time-honored, Italian technique called sgraffito, which uses clay carved reliefs, each tile becomes a unique expression all on its own. Available in either 'Dahlia' or 'Nautilus', tiles can be purchased in groups of fifteen to create a mural for approximately $480 plus tax and shipping. Personally I'm taken with the Dahlia design in persimmon and the warm effect it would have in a kitchen or around a fireplace.

[via Trendir]

The Endangered Parrots of the World chess set from Grant Dawson gives chess a whole new avian spin, Each of the playing pieces represents a different species of endangered or threatened parrot. The box for the set is made of Forest Stewardship Council certified walnut and maple finished with a gold-plated border featuring the endangered Laelia Xanthina orchid. The set is available with a sterling silver and gold-plated birds or in a set with a brilliantly colored enamel finish. The enameled set sells for $4,790.

One of the reasons I love working from home is the fact that I can step outside and enjoy the beautiful summer weather whenever the mood strikes me, and you can bet my patio furniture sees plenty of use. To that end I would love to get one of these Handpainted Garden Umbrellas to sit under once the heat of July and August hits -- they're so artistic and beautiful in earthy tones of parchment, sage, and mahogany. And if you're into evening parties you can get them with a light up under the canopy. $1,599 - $1,999

The titans of luxury in New York, Paris, London, Tokyo, and Dubai have spoken, and their mood is, generally, upbeat. The Reuters Global Luxury Summit, which started yesterday and ends tomorrow, is a three-day blitz of interviews with chief executives and chairmen of Hermes, Burberry, Tiffany and Co., Rolls-Royce, Montblanc, Chopard, Estee Lauder, and Saks, to name a few.

Here are some highlights:

• Designer Jonathan Adler, says his mandate for the Christmas season is "irresistable giftables. "I hope that when you walk into my store you will feel like you're in a crack-den of adorableness." As for how his business is faring in the recession: "I think that my design aesthetic is probably the right design aesthetic for right now," he told Reuters. "I've always called my design philosophy happy chic, and it is about creating design that is chic, luxurious, and I hope beautiful, but adding an element of levity and irreverence that I think makes people feel good. And probably in these grim economic times, the element of happiness is resonating with consumers."
• The new Rolls-Royce Ghost model, to be available in September, may help double the carmaker's annual sales. The projection is based on the 1,500 deposits already received for the Ghost.
• Hermes is breeding crocodiles on its own farms, mainly in Australia, to keep up with demand for its exotic-skin $50,000 handbags, because, as Hermes chief executive, Patrick Thomas, put it, "The world is not full of crocodiles, except the stock exchange!" [Meanwhile, Louisiana alligator farms are struggling.]
• Classical styles for handbags are winning out over "it" bags, according to Burberry chief executive Angela Ahrendts. "They (shoppers) want them to last. They want to be able to psychologically know they can carry them for the next couple of years and no one will know how old it is."
• Montblanc is planning to open four boutiques in Saudi Arabia this year. Pens account for about half of total sales since the company has diversified into watches and fine jewelry.
• Chopard has seen sales drop 15-20 percent this year, but is hoping a recovery will level off the sales drop to just 10 percent. "We already feel a little bit of a comeback," Chopard's chairman, Karl Scheufele, said.
• Juicy Couture is increasing the number of products sold for $200 and less to adjust to the recession, Juicy Couture's president, Edgar Huber said.
• Sales of traditional Japanese doll sets, costing from $2,000 to $50,000, have held in the recession.
  

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Luxury Living: New York, the latest volume in teNeues' luxury series, affords a rare inside peek at a truly privileged world. The book features some of the Big Apple and environs' finest architecture interior design, from a glinting modern masterpiece in Manhattan to a solidly traditional structure set in the Hamptons. More than just the most expensive living spaces, however, the featured abodes all express opulence married to great taste, even on a small scale; one of the apartments included in the volume measures a mere 300-sq.-ft., while others are multimillion-dollar palaces. Dazzling photographs by Reto Guntli adorn every page.

After many years of planning, Hotel Missoni Edinburgh is set to open in June, and is now accepting online bookings. The 136-room hotel is a collaboration of Rosita Missoni, one of the brand's founders, and The Rezidor Hotel Group. The hotel's palette is officially described as black and white, with splashes of color throughout, but as you'd expect from Missoni, the overall effect is more exuberant rather than restrained -- it's about layers of patterns and textures, in rich colors and in black and white too.(See lobby photo above.)

If this sounds chaotic, overall, design lines are kept modern and simple, which should balance out the effusive use of pattern and color. Still, I'm not sure I'd want to pack anything other than basic black in my suitcase without the aid of a stylist, lest I clash with the hotel!

In any event, black wardrobe works just fine to attend Edinburgh's Fringe Festival, the largest arts festival in the world which goes off August 7th-31st-- always a late summer highlight. With its central location, Hotel Missoni should make a fine base of operations for the festival, and as of now, still has rooms available.

Next up for the Hotel Missoni brand? A property in Kuwait, slated to open in Fall 2009.

Mirrors are a favorite luxury item of ours at Luxist, whether it's extravagant pieces for the bathroom like Alchemy Full Moon Mirrors or the elegant, light-spreading Mirrored Furniture from Horchow. That's why we were excited to chat with artist Michael Solomon, who makes custom mirror art for homes and businesses all over the United States.

Luxist: Why mirrors? What interests you?

Michael Solomon: Mirrors help open up space with natural and artificial light - they reflect room colors and familiar surroundings and are a wonderful contrast to the strong colors of my glass mosaic borders.

L: What were you doing before this?

MS: I sold commercial printing business to business -- the art was my hobby that evolved into my vocation, and the sales experience has helped in my success.

L: What's the furthest place you know of where one of your creations is hanging?

MS: San Francisco - I shipped this 46 inch sunburst circle there in 2007. I met the client at the Bruce Museum Craft show in Greenwich, Connecticut (see gallery for photo).

L: What was the most extravagant piece you've ever created?

MS: Actually there are two of them that live together -- I completed them in November of 2006. The design is a reflection of each other, and they hang in the front hallway of a home in Bethesda, Maryland. They are 30 feet apart and can be seen from the upper balcony and front entranceway, dining and living rooms. The pattern flows like wind from the windows. Each piece is 7' tall by 5' wide -- and they have NO mirrors!

... But still, they are unmistakable Michael Solomon creations. Check out all the pieces he mentioned, plus the man himself and his five personal favorites in the gallery!

Want to see more? Visit Michael Solomon's website, Reflective Art, email him at info at reflectiveart.com, or give him a call at 973-376-0203.

Now that Memorial Day has passed, and it's unofficially, officially summer, it's time to think about switching bed linens from winter coziness to summer crispness. If you're going to freshen your linen closet, the folks that make the fine linens at SFERRA have a message for you: stop obsessing about thread count.

Most of us use thread count -- that is, the number of threads per square inch of fabric -- as a proxy for quality. And it is definitely important -- just go to any good linen department and give the samples of different thread count a good stroke and scrunch. But it's not the only thing that matters, nor is it what matters most: the quality of the fiber matters more. (You could have a sheet of densely woven straw, for example, and you wouldn't want to sleep on it.) Egyptian cotton is most used in luxury linens because it produces a long fiber, or staple, which means it's easier to spin into smooth, fine yarn.

After that, the weave that's used influences the feel of the sheet. For summer consider linen, a loose weave of long flax fibers, like SFERRA's Classico line fitted queen sheet for $210, king flat sheet for $315. Or go with percale, a tight uniform cotton weave that results in a matte look and a smooth, crisp feel. For example, pictured here is SFERRA's Sereno line, fitted queen sheet for $410, king duvet for $1,080. But okay, just because you're not obsessing about thread count doesn't mean you have to forget it entirely: the Sereno line has a very luxey thread count of 800.

Learn more about SFERRA's "Lose Count" campaign by friending the company on Facebook.

Stationer Mrs. John L. Strong, one of the world's leading boutique luxury brands whose customers included Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Vogue editor Anna Wintour, Oprah Winfrey and the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, is shutting down after 80 years. The company has decided to close its Madison Avenue atelier, its boutiques, web site, catalog, wholesale and corporate businesses due to the recession, the Times reports.

Nannette Brown, the company's chief executive and creative director, said that an inability "to finance the business's expansion plans combined with a challenging retail and economic environment, left the company with no alternative but to close." Efforts to sell the company also failed. "This is a sad day for Mrs. John L. Strong," Brown said in a statement, "and a sad day for luxury as the world has become increasingly bereft of unique, hand-finished products." Indeed.

In our technology driven lifestyle, I can't remember last I sat still and played a boardgame that had no rings, buzzers, computerized cash register, credit card swiping sounds or batteries to it. When I was a kid I could play a board game for hours on end. I remember when my dad first taught me how to play chess and backgammon and even though I had no idea what I was doing, it was fun just to play with my dad. Or when I got Monopoly and Life and my "too cool for anyone" older brother and sister actually played with me. Or when my friends taught me how to play the card game Spit and we would have fierce competitions during recess. Dominos was the best to play solo because you could build with them or line them all up in a pattern and watch them fall one by one.

Don't get me wrong, I am a strong supporter of video games, so much so that my husband and I have been training our 8 year old daughter for the past 3 years on how to play all the video game systems possible, but nothing beats the old school board games that have created fond memories from your childhood. If I could have the ultimate gaming room with no thought to cost, this chess set by Grahame Fowler ($1,725) would be the first purchase. It's made from 6061 U.S. Aircraft-grade aluminum and has such a sleek and modern design aesthetic that you might as well have this displayed as a piece of art. Take a look below for other memorable board games.

Inventive, illuminating and progressive the silky designs of Sil.Lux bring contemporary flair to your home. Boring pendants and expected luminaries will not be found here. Instead, constructive implements meet bold and unique materials shaped into one-of-a-kind pieces. One particular line I adore are the suspension lamps exemplified by the Redentore. Its spider-like appearance shaped from blown pyrex glass and chrome drips into tiny lights creating an eye-catching statement in any room. Peruse the gallery for more inspiring choices that will transform your home into a twinkling work of art.

[via Trendir]

Luxury linens company Frette is offering the chance to win a luxurious escape to Italy for a break from recessionary ennui. Frette chose the ultra-luxe Mezzatorre Resort & Spa (above), perched on a bluff above the sea on the island of Ischia off the Amalfi Coast for the getaway (of course they use Frette linens). Grand Prize is a trip for two to Ischia including seven days complimentary stay at the Mezzatorre Resort, including business class airfare for two. Second Prize is a free bedroom makeover by Frette Creative Director Scott Formby, including a complete set of Frette linens. Third Prize is a Frette Essentials bed set and duvet cover.

Anyone in the U.S. can enter via www.frette.com or at the Frette stores located in New York, Beverly Hills, Boston, Manhasset, Chicago, Aspen, South Coast Plaza, and Palo Alto. No purchase is necessary and there are no tricky questions. Deadline for entries is July 15th. The winners will be chosen through a drawing at Frette's U.S. headquarters in New York. Founded in 1860 and based in Milan, Frette blends Italian craftsmanship and contemporary design to create elegant and luxurious collections for the home, bath and body. Frette has provided linens to royalty, the Vatican and the world's most prestigious trains and ocean liners including the Orient Express and the Titanic.

I'm not sure just how long these items have been available but I honestly had no idea Swarovski carried a line of architectural lighting options. Whether you choose a single crystal for a more modern setting or an artsy array of crystals designed to dazzle the eye Swarovski has a variety of choices to suit your home decor. Glam up your home with wall-mounted, recessed ceiling, or hanging luminaires each showcasing a unique design and glittering glow. I wonder how much light the single cut crystal of the 'Octa' and 'Madison' actually gives off -- is it a fancy nightlight or contemporary mood lighting?

A bed of rose petals has often been associated with romance, luxury and femininity. Although the act of sprinkling flowers on a surface is lovely for a day or two the scene will quickly fade. Not so with Tokujin Yoshioka's 'Bouquet Chair' which envelops the same sentiments but preserves the moment in a piece of furniture. Hand-folded Alcantara fabric petals cover a simple egg-shaped shell with a lacquered steel base creating this fanciful seat. Even after the chair has been sat in the petals resume their original shape. ($7,830)

[via Book of Joe]