The 7th annual Tibet House US Benefit auction is taking place on November 18th at Christie's Auction House in New York City. The event is aimed at promoting and preserving Tibetan culture. Proceeds from the auction will be divided to sustain the Tibet House and another organization with like-minded initiatives. Some funds will support projects and programs spawned by the Tibet House in their mission of displaying and maintaining the ancient traditions of the Tibetan civilization. The event will also donate to Tibetan Children's Village an integrated educational community for destitute Tibetan children in exile located in Dharamsala, India. The fundraiser will also benefit the Tibetan Community of New York and New Jersey.

Items to be auctioned off include a package of four VIP concert tickets and a meet and greet backstage with Sting, internships at Rolling Stone and US Weekly, a private journey for two to Bhutan with guest accommodations, a luxury yacht cruise for seven to the Bahamas with a week long stay in a private house on the beach, lunch at the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City with Uma and Robert Thurman, shopping and lunch with Donna Karan at her store, John Lennon, Martin Scorsese, and Miles Davis memorabilia, a one-week stay in a villa on the French Riviera, contemporary art and photographs from Annie Leibovitz, Patti Smith, Ed Ruscha, Donald Baechler, and more. TIckets to the event are $225 per person with VIP tickets that include a preview and private reception available for $500.

I'm almost starting to feel bad for Trudie Styler and Sting. It seems like every time they fly private they are taken to task. This time it's Trudie on the hook. The pair, who co-founded the Rainforest Foundation 20 years ago, attended the White House Correspondents' Dinner. The Daily Mail says she took a private flight from New York to Washington D.C. accompanied by an entourage of eight people including Manhattan-based hairstylist Antonio Prieto. Sting took a commercial flight from London to the Washington DC event. While it is true that she could have taken a shuttle or a train, it seems a bit much to grill her over this one.

Rock star Sting is the latest celebrity to get into the wine business. The British singer purchased a 16th-century villa, called Il Palagio, in Figline Valdarno, Italy back in 1997. He has turned the 860 acres of land into an organic farm producing honey, olive oil and fruit and vegetables. There are also extensive vineyards on the property. His first wine will be a 2007 vintage which is mostly Sangiovese with Merlot and Cabernet added. According to an AP story, 30,000 bottles of wine which were produced on the property will go on sale in September and will be sold in the U.S. A 2008 Chianti may also go on sale if it is ready by this fall.

Cityfile leads us to the much-anticipated listing for Sting and Trudie Styler's duplex at the Brentmore at 88 Central Park West in New York City. It was originally rumored that the apartment was going to be listed at $26 million but it hit the market for $19 million with Halstead Property. The Brentmore is a pre-war Beaux Arts building built in 1910 and the apartment is an 18-room beauty with 6600 square feet of space. The home has five bedrooms and as the listing puts it "this home sings with excitement!" There are large windows facing Central Park, a formal dining room, eat-in kitchen and a prep kitchen with a butlers pantry. French doors, parquet wood floors, lead glass and plenty of bookcases stuffed with books add to the charm. There is a music room with a large piano and guitar cases tucked underneath it and just about every room features a beautiful rug atop the hardwood. Every room in the listing pictures (except for the bordello-red boudoir) seems to invite you to come in, sip a cup of tea, pick a book off the shelf and spend an afternoon watching the city pass by below.
Experience more lush living in luxury homes and mansions or see the stars living large with celebrity homes galleries at AOL Real Estate.

In commemoration of their final appearance together (scheduled for August 7th at Madison Square Garden) auctions started this week on eBay for a complete set of Police instruments autographed by the band. The set includes 4 instruments that are each available for bidding separately and include Sting's Signature Bass, Sting's Sennheiser Microphone and Stand, Andy's Signature Fender Telecaster, and Stewart's Tama Star Drum Set.

100% of the proceeds will go to benefit Public Television Rocks! in honor of their dedication to art, music, and culture.

The celebrities who espouse a green lifestyle often find themselves in trouble when they indulge in some of the privileges of the wealthy. Al Gore has taken the heat for his energy consumption and now Sting is in the spotlight for a private jet splurge. Sting took a solo flight to Germany recently on a Falcon 2000 to meet the rest of the band, The Police for a concert in Leipzig. A spokesperson for the airport confirmed that he was the solo passenger on the plane which can carry 14 passengers. He flew back to England less than 24 hours later via private jet but it's not known if he was alone.

According to the Daily Mail, the Police was named 'dirtiest band' in January for the scale of their carbon footprint. It's been a tough year for Sting and his eco-actions. He started off the year by renting a private yacht in Australia and as I mentioned back in May, his Rainforest Foundation has come under fire for its record of giving. Sting also starred in an ad-campaign for the notso eco Jaguar cars.

Sting has long been known as one of Hollywood's most philanthropic people but this week Sting and his wife Trudie Styler are under fire for their charity The Rainforest Foundation. Charity Navigator has reported that only 41 percent of the money raised by the couple's Carnegie Hall charity concert in 2006 actually went to fund programs that save the rain forest. In their rating system they have given the charity 0 stars.

Trudie Styler is quoted in People as saying that the foundation is in it's 20th year and that alone speaks to the efficacy of the nonprofit. In 2006, the charity reported $10 million in net assets including almost $5 million in cash which has caused some to speculate as to what they are doing with the money. This news comes as the Rainforest Foundation's next Carnegie Hall concert is set for May 8 with performances by Billy Joel, James Taylor and Brian Wilson and also includes a charity auction with a variety of donated items to raise money for the foundation.

If the nude supermodels in Christie's' upcoming auction are a little out of your price range, but you'd still like to try your hand at starting a photo collection, check out Swann Galleries' NYC sale on May 15. While short on supermodels in their birthday suits, the Swann sale does have some high-profile and provocative celebrity pix at considerably lower prices than the Christie's event.

Highlights include Francesco Scavullo's 1984 portrait of Sting, est. $1,800 - $2,200, pictured here; Roy Schatt's 1954 photo of James Dean, est. $1,500 - $2,500; several works by Herb Ritts including a 1986 Madonna portrait, est. $4,000 - $6,000, and a muscle-bound Fred With Tires, 1984, est. $8,000 - $12,000; a 1977 Christopher Makos photo of Andy Warhol, est. $4,000 - $6,000; and Helmut Newton's 1981 full-frontal Sylvia in My Studio, Paris, est. $4,000 - $6,000. Catch a preview below.

Sting and his family have idyllic New Year's plans. The rock star his wife Trudie and their four children are in Sydney, Australia, where it is summertime, and have rented out one of the most expensive yachts on Sydney Harbor, the Phoenix 1. The yacht rents for a daily charter rate of $13,200 Australian (around $11,575). The yacht has two VIP stateroom plus a double and twin cabin with accommodations for eight guests. The fly bridge includes a spa, sun pads, bar and barbecue. It has a dining room, main saloon with an entertainment suite and a gym (pictures of the interior are at the yacht's charter listing. It is expected that Sting will be enjoying the New Year's Eve fireworks from Sydney harbor along with Nicole Kidman and husband Keith Urban, and Hugh Jackman and wife Deborra-lee Furness.

Sting's wife Trudie put together a few Christmas hampers (well, 100 of them actually) filled with hand-selected items from the couple's country estate in Wiltshire, England and they've become insanely popular. Available in London at Selfridges, the hampers included a variety of organic goodies including a bottle of champagne, a Christmas cake, beetroot chutney, a couple of beeswax candles, and a chocolate coin. There were 9 treats total in the $300 hampers, and they must have be good because they've already sold out -- with "a number" of them going to Sharon Osbourne.

From the NY Observer's Manhattan Transfers:
--The $50 million Kress Family penthouse duplex at 1020 Fifth Avenue is off the market. It hasn't been sold, the family is just tying up some loose ends.
--Ahmass Fakahany, a top-ranking executive at Merrill Lynch, and wife Alsun Keogh have sold off one of their apartments at the Police Building, thelaw enforcement HQ turned co-op at 240 Centre Street for $2.93 million.
--Actor Tim Blake Nelson and his wife Lisa just sold their 7.5-room prewar co-op at 37 Riverside Drive for $5.25 million. Their buyer is Jonathan Morris, co-founder of the retail fashion Web site Bluefly.
--Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen have put their 12-room condo at One Morton Square, shown at right, on the market for $11.995 million which is $4,695,000 more than they paid for it three years ago, The apartment has been rented out for much of the time. The listing is here.
--Zach Braff has paid $3,200,000 for a 2,500-square-foot apartment in the building at 840 Broadway.


From the NY Post's Gimme Shelter:
--Sting and Trudie Styler have pulled their Central Park West duplex off the market. The couple have also purchased a $30 million condo at 15 Central Park West.
--A minor fracas has developed over the listing of Christie Brinkley's $30 million Bridgehampton estate. Stribling agent Jessica Mansell Ambrose has it listed as an exclusive on her site but Corcoran Group broker, Susan Breitenbach is supposed to have the listing.
--Billy Joel and his wife Katie Lee have closed on their latest Sagaponack property for $11.625 million. It was on the market for $12.99 million. Apparently restrictive building codes prohibited the couple from adding to the home they bought from Roy Scheider last spring for $16.75 million. The new property, just west of Scheider's old place, has a three-bedroom home that Joel may use as a studio.
--Seagram heir Edgar Bronfman Jr. has picked up a 10-room apartment for $18.75 million in the Carhart mansion. Bronfman and his wife Clarissa already have a posh co-op on Fifth Avenue so it is not clear what they will do with their latest acquisition.

From the NY Times Big Deal:
The $45 million triplex at One Madison Park, the tower going up at 23 East 22nd Street, will include a one-bedroom unit on a lower floor for use by a private butler, who will be provided by the condominium indefinitely and paid by it as well. The proposal is still in the planning stages.

From Berg Properties Big Time Listings:
--Actress Rashida Jones, daughter of Quincy Jones, has paid $1,240,000 for a two-bedroom Cape Cod-style house in West Hollywood.
--Todd Stashwick, who stars on "The Riches" on the FX network, has paid $1,255,000 for a three-story home in the Hollywood Hills.
--Actress Denise Richards has sold one of the two houses that she owns in Hidden Hills, Calif. for $3,800,000.
--It looks like Avril Lavigne has finally sold her home in the Mulholland Estates neighborhood in Beverly Hills. The house, which was listed at $6,200,000 now shows that it is "looking for backup" in the LA MLS.
--British celebrity Anouska De Georgiou has paid $1,180,000 for a four-unit apartment building in the Los Angeles' Grove area and a few months ago she paid $1,167,000 for a three-bedroom, Spanish-style house in Los Angeles' Fairfax/WeHo area.
--Victoria's Secret model Emma Heming is the latest celeb to pick up in an apartment in the Broadway Hollywood building in Hollywood, paying an undisclosed amount with her then-fiance, party promoter/DJ/nightclub guru Brent Bolthouse for a unit in the building that she no longer occupies. The couple split up and she moved back to New York City picking up a condo in Chelsea.
--Actor Wilmer Valderrama has also picked up a unit in the same building as above.

From the Real Estalker:
--Rumor has it that Jason Lee may be moving to the Los Feliz home currently owned by musician Robert Cray and on the market for $3,250,000.
--The house in Palm Springs that Cher flipped and put on the market at $2,495,000 has been reduced to 1,999,000. It was our estate of the day back in January.
--House flipper turned reality star Jeff Lewis has listed another home, this one in the Los Feliz area for $1.795 million.
--Actor Eddie Cibrian and his wife Brandi have put their Encino home of the market for $4.395 million. The Real Estalker mama wasn't a fan of the property but someone was, is already listed as "looking for backup." Check out the virtual tour and make your own judgement, Valley palace or slapdash decorating at its highest iteration?
--Britney Spears' former NY penthouse is back on the market for $6,995,000. Considering how much trouble Spears had selling this it is pretty amazing that Beverly Hills 90210 producer and writer Jessica Stein and her husband Isaac Levenbrown have put the home on the market for $2,995,000 more than they paid for it in August 2006. Spears also appears to have taken her Beverly Hills house off the market yet again. This after various gossip blogs have reporting that Spears has a fantasy room in the home and that Spears is not exactly the tidiest of housekeepers.
--Actress Angie Harmon and football player Jason Sehorn have put their three-bedroom Beverly Hills home on the market for $1.895 million. The listing is here. The Real Estalker Mama reports that the couple actually live in Hidden Hills in a much larger four-bedroom home that is right next to the one that Melissa Etheridge and Tammy Lynn Michaels recently purchased.

From the LA Times Hot Property:
--Looks like I got it wrong on which Rising Glen house belongs to Rachel Zoe a few weeks back. Check out the listing for her home listed for $2.995 million here.
--Jerry Rice and his wife, Jackie have put their Atherton, California estate on the market for $22 million. You can see pictures here.
--As we mentioned above, Jeff Lewis of the Bravo reality show "Flipping Out," has listed a home in Los Feliz. Ruth Ryon puts it at slightly more than $1.8 million whereas the Real Estalker Mama had it at $1.795 million. He also recently sold a Spanish-style home in Los Feliz for about its $4.5-million asking price.
--For the first time in 50 years, the Shavelson estate in Studio City has come on the market. The home belonged to directpr and producer Melville Shavelson, who worked on films starring Lucille Ball, James Cagney and Frank Sinatra. The home is a four-bedroom 1930s traditional listed at $4.795 million. The listing is here.

From the NY Post's Gimme Shelter:
--Sting and Trudie Styler have picked up a penthouse at 15 Central Park West for $30 million.
--Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey has bought three townhouses for just under $3 million apiece at the new Henley on Hudson complex  on the shores of Weehawken, N.J. Shockey wanted all six but townhouses but was limited to three.
-- Old Trees, a Southampton estate has one on the market for  $48 million. The estate includes a 20,000-square-foot, 13-bedroom Georgian mansion,  barn with a gym, kitchen and three bedrooms, a cottage/pool house with three bedrooms, a clay tennis court and a pool with a blue-stone patio.
--Howard Stern and Leonard Stern are each working on the construction on their mansions on side-by-side properties in the Hamptons.
--Yet another reality TV set turns into a listing. This time it's the Gastineau Girls apartment. The Battery Park City apartment rented by Lisa and Brittny Gastineau is listed for $3.4 million. No pets are allowed in the building, which explains most of the first season of the show's subplot (I confess, I caught an episode or two). Check out the listing here.
 B-movie actress Lisa Marie has sold her two-bedroom condo for $2 million.
--Hmmm... the listing for the Kips Bay decorator showhouse owned by Jean Doumanian and Jacqui Safra has been pulled.
--Fox anchor and former mayoral spouse Kimberly Guilfoyle and her new husband, Eric Villency are buying at the Trump International Hotel & Tower for $3.9 million.

From the LA Times Hot Property:
-- Denise Richards has already put her Westlake Village home at $4.3 million. She's owned the house for only around a year, buying it just after her separation from Charlie Sheen. She bought it for just under $4 million so she's not going to be making a big profit but she really must want to get out of the neighborhood. No surprise since Heather Locklear, the soon-to-be ex-wife of Richards' current beau Richie Sambora, lives down the street. I can't resist, it's our estate of the day later on.
--Greek shipping heir and tabloid fodder Paris Latsis has settled on a three-story, Beverly Hills-area house for $9.2 million.
--Film producer Jonathan King has put his Venice home  on the market for close to $1.4 million. The listing is here but it looks sold they are just looking for backup now.
--The Kresge Seismological Laboratory,what was the former Richter Lab in Pasadena is listed at $4.2 million. The most recent owner planned to restore the Pasadena landmark but is now selling. The lab will remain on the property and has 18-inch poured-concrete walls and tunnels into the hillsides for measuring earthquakes. A comprehensive slide tour is here. It's in rough shape but it could be a great project for someone with money and vision.

From the NY Times Big Deal:
--Susan Weber Soros, the ex-wife of the billionaire financier George Soros has picked up a  five-bedroom apartment this month at the Majestic for more than $20 million. One of the former owners of the apartment was hotelier Ian Schrager who had the place tricked out by Philippe Starck. She's not sure if she is changing the decor yet.
--A company controlled by Harvey Weinstein has bought a five-story town house in the West Village which had an asking price of $12.5 million. Weinstein plans to redecorate the seven-bedroom home which also has a screening room
--Stephen Dorff  has picked up a $1.65 million, 1,100-square-foot apartment at 251 West 19th Street, in Chelsea,.
--Glenn Gissler, an interior designer, and Susan Harris, a freelance curator and writer, bought a 2,700-square-foot apartment this month at 40 Fifth Avenue that had been owned by the late Sir Edwin A. G. Manton, an art collector and benefactor of the Tate Gallery in London. They already live in the building in a smaller place which they are selling for $3.695 million. A photo is above and check out the lovely listing here.

From the NY Observer's Manhattan Transfers:
--The  former home of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis was sold to hedge-fund manager Glenn Dubin for $32 million.
--Ricky Martin has listed his Time Warner Center condo for  $9.95 million, according to a source with knowledge of the listing. He bought the place for  $6.8 million in 2004. The condo is 3,000 square feet, including four bedrooms and floor-to-ceiling windows with Central Park and city views.