Luxury Item of the Week

Tired at the end of the day and want to make your bathing time a bit more special?

Nothing screams decadence more than a bath tub that costs as much as a V8 sports car, or a plot of land on the Ecuador's central coast, or tuition for one year at a private college, or adoption fees for a three and a half-year old Russian orphan in Siberia....

It took three years for Lori Gardner to painstakingly affix each and every one of the 44,928 small pink-colored Swarovski crystals by hand to the exterior of a nineteenth-century style cast iron, claw foot tub.

Does soap scum and gummy hair spray residue coat your bathroom frequently? Gardner has hidden one real diamond among all the crystals. You can search for it while cleaning the tub. Rather your cleaning lady can. With a price tag of $39,000 for the tub, who would be cleaning their own bathroom?

A portion of the proceeds from the sale will go toward Breast Cancer Research. Or another charity of your choice.

Still think it is too expensive? The bathtub features another secret: when you're crawling around on the floor to swifter up those tumble weeds of long hair that always seem to collect, you can place a mirror underneath the tub and see a surprise.

If pink doesn't match your current tile color, you can custom-order another color.

The Diamond Bathtub is on display at Fleur de Lys, 369 E. 17th Street in Costa Mesa, CA. For more info visit: The Diamond Bathtub.

Nefertiti Phone: I have no positive comment

It’s the little things in life that can help our mood for the day. Things as small as making every green light when we are driving like a bat out of hell late for work. Or watching our dog happily stretch out on the green fluffy grass and bask in the sunshine. Waking up to find all the tulips have bloomed. Or a little retail therapy -- buying a new object we have coveted for some time (especially after a bad week or month? Several months?). Some of these objects can be so small and exquisite. Not for everyone to see, but we carry the item with us hidden in a pocket or a handbag. This isn’t anything new. Throughout time people have always desired the latest snuff box, bonbonnière, match safe or etui willing to pay a high price for an item crafted from precious materials or painted with exquisite scenes. These items were things used everyday. Today we have a cell phone or blackberry -- the more expensive, the better, we are told. (I find the more expensive, the more apt to break.) The fashion forward are always searching for the latest ‘must have’.

Well… last year (I’m always behind on the latest electronic), Givori introduced the exclusive, limited edition Nefertiti phone. “Inspired by the great royal wife of the Pharaoh known for her beauty throughout Egypt,” it “exudes the decadence and mystery of a bygone era.”

(Not seeing it… but that is only my opinion…)

Only fifty of the Nefertiti phones were created and each one designed differently with its own limited edition number. The individual phones feature “vintage 1930's collectibles (not sure what that means other than those plastic bits glued on) and 24 carat gold coated Swarovski crystals”. And it is available in luxury stores in Dubai for approximately $4440. (Ouch.)

A collectible investment for the future? Or an absolute eyesore?

Like a beautiful piece of jewelry? Or a bunch of crusty old barnacles?

(Interesting info about the barnacle I was completely unaware of can be found here –- be sure to scroll down to the photo to read below.)