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Romain Jerome Steampunk Tourbillon Watch Hands-On

One of the more "interesting" options when it comes to acquring a high-end timepiece is to get something from Romain Jerome. The collection that put them on the map was the Titanic DNA range of watches -and this Steampunk Tourbillon is the newest flagship for that collection. Available in gold (as seen above), the watch is mixed with oxidized steel that is meant to look like metal harvested from the actual Titanic. According to Romain Jerome, a small percentage of the metal is actually from the sunken Titanic ship. This is why they use the "Titanic DNA" term.

The Steampunk collection takes the concept further to make the dial look inspired by the ship's engine room. There are piston-like elements on the highly detailed dial that look like a diorama. It is quite fun to inspect all the little details. The hands of the watch are meant to look like anchors. At 46mm wide, the case is still quite comfy although it is large. The polished 18k rose gold mixed with the oxidized steel makes for a very interesting look. Inside the watch is a Swiss Concepto made automatic tourbillon movement. Look to the back of the watch for another anchor - here done in gold as the rotor of the movement. Really an amazing talking piece and cool addition to a high-end collection. Price for this model is 169,000 Swiss Francs.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch reviews site aBlogtoRead.com.

Gallery: Romain Jerome Steampunk Tourbillon Watch

Tags: dna, hands-on, review, Romain Jerome, steampunk, titanic, tourbillon, watch

Charlotte Chosen To Host Democratic National Convention, Let The Hotel Packages Begin

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels

Charlotte Chosen To Host Democratic National Convention, Let The Hotel Packages Begin

The Democratic Party has announced that Charlotte, North Carolina will host the 2012 Democratic National Convention. The city beat out St. Louis, Minneapolis and Cleveland to be the city where President Obama will accept the Democratic nomination and begin his campaign for reelection. The convention will begin on September 3, 2012. The Republican Party will host its convention in Tampa, Florida.

The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte has launched today a Red, White, Blue and Green package to celebrate the announcement. Red, White, Blue and Green will feature overnight accommodations and a wine and cheese experience in the hotel's Urban Sip Wine and Scotch Bar. The new bar on the 15th floor provides beautiful views of Charlotte and offers Carolinas' largest selection of premium wines by the glass, as well as the city's largest menu of Scotches. Flights for two of both red and white wines and a flight of artisanal bleu cheeses will highlight the Urban Sip portion of the package. The green factor comes in both because the hotel is LEED Gold-certified and because package guests driving an electric or hybrid car will receive included overnight hotel parking. Offered Thursday through Saturday evenings from today until the Convention, and based upon availability, Red, White, Blue and Green at The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte is priced from $269 per couple per night. Reservations may be made at 800-241-3333, at http://www.ritzcarlton.com, or through a travel professional.

The Charlotte Observer reports that after the announcement was made hotel managers sprung into action as they fielded calls looking for rooms. Some hotels are already running out of space. There are approximately 15,000 hotel rooms in or within 30 minutes of uptown and access to at least another 15,000. The Republican National Committee is expecting similar action in Tampa, planning on filling 15,000 hotel rooms. Rooms and houses for rent have also popped up on Craigslist and through other residential listing sites, a phenomenon that will only increase as the event draws closer.

Tags: Democratic National Convention, dna, dnc, hotel packages, north carolina, ritz-carlton, ritz-carlton charlotte

Romain Jerome Eyjafjallajokull Volcano DNA Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

I was more or less expecting something like this from Romain Jerome. The brand that brought you the Titanic DNA and Moon Dust DNA watches has been struggling to "find what is next' after they lost Yvan Arpa, their charismatic former CEO. He invented the "DNA" watch concept and this Volcano DNA watches doesn't really fit into that concept. I will get to that below.

In a nutshell, Romain Jerome was able to collect some of the volcanic ash from the now popular recent eruption from the Eyjafjallajokull Volcano. This ash was used in making this one-of-a-kind watch. The case and dial are mostly adapted from the Moon Dust DNA collection, but instead of a moon surface, the dial is meant to look like molten lava - red hot on the inside and black carbon colored on the surface. The look is carried over in segments on the bezel. Hands on the watch are meant to look like little airplanes, a reminder of what effect the volcanic eruption had on our society for that limited amount of time. As a "right now" novelty, the watch is fun. The piece unique will have just one piece made. I am sure someone will buy it. But they better get it soon, because in the coming weeks, and of course years, the memory of airport nightmares will fade. Unlike previous RJ DNA watches, this material and name has no real lasting quality or commemorative value. Pretty much everyone around the world knows about the Titanic (thanks in big part to James Cameron), and the moon? Well that is pretty self evident in its popularity.

Which allows me to return to the topic of what the original DNA watch concept was all about. Yvan Arpa imagined using a material that was 1) almost unattainably rare, 2) luxurious, 3) and known by most people for a long time. There is nothing rare or hard to attain about volcanic ash, not even from Eyjafjallajokull. In time people will have no idea what this watch is about, or why we should care. RJ claims that the watch is meant as one of an ongoing collection of pieces that "illustrate the legends of our time and the mythologies that will forge the memory of the 21st century." Perhaps. In the end they made just one piece so their investment in it is low, and with a primary of goal of getting media for the brand, the watch wholeheartedly succeeds.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: dna, Eyjafjallajokull, romain jerome, volcano, watch

Immortalize DNA, a Fingerprint, or a Kiss for Valentine's Day

by Annie Scott (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Art

From the same people who brought us the gorgeous Kiss Portraits, DNA11 also makes portraits of DNA (above) and fingerprints. These too make great Valentine's Day gifts, just in a less overt way than the Kiss Portraits.

Putting your loved ones' fingerprints or DNA on your wall or desk not only shows you love them, but that you value their uniqueness and want to know every part of them. It makes them feel special.

DNA11 sends you a lip-print kit with a M.A.C. Viva Glam lipstick (which happens to be a great color), a fingerprint kit, or a DNA kit to make the print. Don't worry, DNA extraction is not scary; you just have to swab the inside of your cheek.

The DNA11 portraits are available in wall sizes or desk/shelf sizes, which we really love. The mini portraits start at $169. The Fingerprint Portraits start at $190 and come in three different sizes. The Kiss Portraits start at $290. You can choose from a wide variety of colors. Check out the Gallery below for ideas!

Gallery: DNA, Kiss, and Fingerprint Portraits

A fingerprint in a gorgeous color combination

Tags: art, dna, fingerprint, fingerprints, gifts, valentine, valentines, valentines day, ValentinesDay, warhol

Is Complete Knowledge of Your Genome The Ultimate Luxury?

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services

As I recently relearned when I became sick this week, your health is your most important commodity. One potential way of protecting it just might come from a firm in Cambridge, Massachusetts called Knome. Knome will offer you, for a hefty $350,000, the chance to look at your DNA structure. While other companies let you see some of your genes for more modest prices, Knome is the only company that checks out all three billion letter pairs in your genome. Unfortunately, scientists don't fully know how genes interact to produce a particular disease so this isn't the magic key to the fountain of youth. But what it does offer you is the ability to stay current on future genetic discoveries as they become available. It is a chance to be at the very forefront of medicine.

Also, the for-profit company is taking on just 20 clients, meaning that you would join an elite club of people who have had direct knowledge of their entire genetic code. The information provides complete details on your ancestry and heritage as well. Knome keeps your information confidential and your genome is yours to manage as you like.

[via Forbes]

Source

Tags: dna, genetics, genetics testing, knome, science

DNA11 Kiss Portraits

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

DNA11, a company which we have covered before for their personalized artwork offerings has a new idea, using a lipstick print as art. The process begins with a Kiss collection kit that includes M.A.C. Viva Glam lipstick. You apply the lipstick and make a lip print on the provided sheets. The sheets are then sent in and the company creates artwork from your kiss. The kiss can be ordered in a variety of colors and sizes which start at $290. A portion of every Kiss portrait goes toward the towards the M·A·C Aids fund.

[via CNet]

Source

Tags: art, dna, dna11, kiss, lipstick

New DNA Art from the UK

by Anton Friant (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor, Art

If you're anything like us, you probably appreciate the convergence of art and science slightly more than the average Joe; there's just something extra appealing about sleek, aesthetically attractive representations of the hyper-complex. We found some of this cool 'DNA Art' a while back from a company called DNA11, but it seems they're finally being challenged from the Brits at DNA ART UK Limited. They'll run your DNA as a graphical interpretation (the method that seems to have been popular in the past), but they'll also etch out every letter of your DNA code into a cube of crystal. A little more unique than that Van Gogh print you've had on your wall since college, eh? Just be careful if you're a wine mogul using your DNA to protect your cellar.

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Tags: art, decor, dna

Using DNA To Protect Your Valuables

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Services, Wine, Art

CSI for your wine cellar? Well, sort of. Wine Spectator reports that Applied DNA Sciences has created a DNA-based system, called SigNature that embeds a customized botanical DNA segment into the ink on a wine bottle cork or a label. The SigNature could not be removed and therefore acts as an encrypted identification system that could help identify bottles belonging to a collector if they are stolen. It could also help verify the authenticity of bottles that are later sold at auction. The service costs about $16 per bottle to prepare and apply a marker for a 5,000- to 10,000-bottle collection, including authentication certificate and scanner but the price drops for producers who want to brand a whole vintage. The SigNature has a variety of applications including the protection of artwork by embedding a DNA signature in a certificate, receipt or sticker.

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Tags: art, collections, collectors, dna, valuables, wine

DNA Gloframe

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

We have seen some interesting things that have designs inspired by DNA, but the DNA Gloframe actually turns DNA into a work of art. The designer, DNA 11, will use a sample of your own genetic code for the piece so that your Gloframe will truly be unique to you. The frame is about 1-inch thick and looks similar to a plasma screen TV, with a proprietary backlighting technology that ensures an even lighting throughout the piece. There are seven color tints available, if the standard green hue strikes you as resembling a prop in a science fiction movie. Price: $900 (small) or $1,300 (large).

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Tags: art, custom art, dna, dna 11, dna art, dna gloframe, gloframe, plasma, unique art

DNA Tables

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Decor

Is it possible to have too many puzzles in the house? Probably, but that doesn't mean that I like the design of these DNA Tables any less. Far less difficult to assemble than the human genome, the series of tables is comprised of four different table styles that can be fit together in a variety of ways to make a larger, more useful table that bears an uncanny resemblance to a strand of DNA. With metal bases in silver or chrome and brightly colored tops, the tables do look a bit like they would fit in at a 50's diner, but that's part of the appeal, since they're visually much more interesting than many other cocktail tables you'll find. Prices range from $695 to $795 per table.

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Tags: cocktail table, design, dna, dna tables, home decor, party, tables

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