Friday, May 25, 2007

Shinebox Print Business Cards

Everybody's got a business card these days, even soccer mom's have them! It's just the easiest way for everybody, not just business types, to keep in touch and communicate sometimes. So why not design your own, and have something unique and stylish instead of the standard boring layout everybody has? Business cards from Shinebox Print are not only cute in their little box with perforated edges, but you can personalize them however you want by including your own pictures, graphics, layout and everything on the front and back. Of course you can get personalized cards from lots of places, but these are so much more artistic, and a little different. And if you like the idea but don't necessarily want business cards, Shinebox can make calling cards, coupons, or any number of other projects. Prices start at $150. Via LuxuryLaunches

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XJet Private Club Set To Open


A couple of years ago I wrote about the plans for the XJet Club, a new private jet club opening at the Centennial Airport in Colorado. Now it seems that the club is finally set to open next month (it was originally set to open last year). The club has a a 100,000-square- foot facility and promises a luxury setting, and, more importantly fuel at cost. The club has a clubhouse, a restaurant and concierge services. The Denver Post reports that members pay $60,000 or more to join and have access to a fleet of private jets. The fleet may also someday include Aviation Technology Group's coveted Javelin jets. So far there are around 20 members and the business plans to also set up a smaller facility at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Mich. and they hope to have eight locations within five years across the country.

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'Matte' the HAMANN Ferrari F430 Black Miracle

Matte finish paint seems to be all the rage these days in higher-end vehicles and concept cars (BMW M-series, anyone?), and HAMANN has no problem jumping on the bandwagon, down to the bright orange 20-inch rims. The company's new modified F430, dubbed the "Black Miracle," features orange and black matte finish, showing off ground effect details, brake calipers, wheels, side-view mirrors and bold racing stripes down the middle in bright orange, with the rest of the body beautified in black. The secret is in the foil treatment, which, if the owner would like to see glossy finish again, can be reversed.

HAMANN decks out the interior as well with the color scheme, and even adds lambo doors for show. Even with the paint job, however, no Ferrari modified this heavily visually could earn the street cred it's due without some performance modifications as well: the ECU and exhaust is modified for 50 extra horses, and special HAMANN suspension completes the low-slung feel.

[Check out Autoblog for a gallery of the vehicle and the HAMANN press release]

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$100,000+ For An Audi?

Sure, if it feels like it should cost $200,000. The always-funny Ezra Dyer got to take a spin through Beverly Hills in the 2008 Audi R8 for the New York Times, where he bemoans the car's sideblades (or "sideburns," as Dyer calls them) but not much else.

Despite the price tag of $110,000 and up, the DNA shared between the street-bound R8 and Audi's lauded race car R8 -- midengine layout with most of the torque going to the rear wheels, dry-sump lubrication, etc. -- makes the 2008 Audi R8 one of the few cars allowed on municipal pavement that truly feels like a race car. In effect, the R8 is more like its Lamborghini cousins (also owned by VW) than like its other Audi siblings.

Unlike most Audis, which Dyer says are criticized for lacking any soul, the R8 offers up plenty of meat to get us grunting like cave men -- yes, even the women -- from an exhaust note that gets your blood rushing to optional LED lights that appropriately light up the engine under its transparent cover when the parking lights are on (should you be showing things off under the hood after dusk).

Click through for the full review, and watch this space in the coming months for more news about the R8, including rumors that it will soon be packing an optional V10 courtesy of Lamborghini.

[Source: The New York Times]

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Versace Designs An A319 Jet

Versace and TAG to are teaming up to design a luxury interior for private Airbus 319 jet. If you've seen the many Versace designs for helicopters, jets and homes, the picture above is no surprise. The Versace look of black and white with high-end furnishings and the Greek key motif is so well-established you'd think anyone could just copy it. But then it wouldn't be a Versace. The A319 is being designed for a European client and will go into service in the fourth quarter of 2008. The plane will have four compartments with 16 luxury seats, a salon, galley, business office and a state room with an ensuite bathroom.

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