26 Extravagant Gifts, for When Money Is No Object
For the person in your life who seemingly has it all, we’ve curated 26 unexpected and over-the-top gift ideas guaranteed to set you apart. (Provided that you’re willing to fork over some major cash.) You can give bracelets made for the Duchess of Windsor, a balloon ride to space, a windmill for sale in Essex, or home speakers that put a movie theater to shame. Prepare your black Amex and find more ahead.
*This article appears in the November 23, 2015 issue of New York Magazine.
Michael Jordan’s Estate Just outside Chicago, in Highland Park, and behind a set of gates emblazoned with No. 23, is Jordan’s 56,000-square-foot,...
Michael Jordan’s Estate Just outside Chicago, in Highland Park, and behind a set of gates emblazoned with No. 23, is Jordan’s 56,000-square-foot, nine-bedroom mansion full of late-’90s charm — as well as a humidor, a wine cellar, an infinity pool, a movie theater, and a regulation-size basketball court. To sweeten the deal, the agent will throw in every Air Jordan made in the buyer’s size.
Photo: John S. Eckert/Courtesy of The Agency/©2012 JS ECKERT PHOTOGRAPHY 847-373-3937.
Jellyfish Earrings Three-inch strands of mixed-cut 9.24-carat diamonds dangle and swish below striking black opals.
The Moby-Dick of Truffles A rare one-pound white truffle from the Piedmont region; gourmands can shave it on risotto for 100 of their closest fri...
The Moby-Dick of Truffles A rare one-pound white truffle from the Piedmont region; gourmands can shave it on risotto for 100 of their closest friends.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Life-Size Speakers A special release timed to Bang & Olufsen’s 90th anniversary, with 18 drivers, 18 amps, and the ability to project 8,200 w...
Life-Size Speakers A special release timed to Bang & Olufsen’s 90th anniversary, with 18 drivers, 18 amps, and the ability to project 8,200 watts of sound — an output greater than that of a movie theater.
Art Jugs These artist-designed jugs are less for serving Dr Pepper and more for displaying out of reach of the kids.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vend...
Art Jugs These artist-designed jugs are less for serving Dr Pepper and more for displaying out of reach of the kids.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Prime-Time Emmy Originally presented to Dragnet star-producer-director Jack Webb for Best Mystery, Action, or Adventure Program back in 19...
A Prime-Time Emmy Originally presented to Dragnet star-producer-director Jack Webb for Best Mystery, Action, or Adventure Program back in 1952. Vintage Emmys, Oscars, Grammys, etc. are rare, so you gotta take what you can get. Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Your Caricature at the Palm A caricature of your loved one’s mug can hang alongside Dolly Parton and Random Finance Guy at any of the restaurant’...
Your Caricature at the Palm A caricature of your loved one’s mug can hang alongside Dolly Parton and Random Finance Guy at any of the restaurant’s 27 outposts, so long as you pay the $25 membership fee to the Palm’s club — and then buy $15,000 in gift cards.
Photo: @PalmRestaurant/Instagram
A Ride on Frank Gehry's Boat The architect and avid sailor recently designed this striking wooden sailboat, Foggy, with Argentine naval architect...
A Ride on Frank Gehry's Boat The architect and avid sailor recently designed this striking wooden sailboat, Foggy, with Argentine naval architect Germán Frers. For a $100,000 donation to Gehry’s Turnaround Arts: California charity, the yachtsman or -woman in your life can spend a day on it (Gehry himself not included). Photo: Todd Eberle
A Pet Chimp A disarmingly lifelike chimpanzee made from wool-and-steel armature, by farmer-slash-artist Kiyoshi Mino.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Balloon Trip to Space Better than space camp: A two-hour ride aboard World View Experience’s helium-balloon-powered capsule that floats almost ...
A Balloon Trip to Space Better than space camp: A two-hour ride aboard World View Experience’s helium-balloon-powered capsule that floats almost 20 miles above the Earth’s surface.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
An Investment Watch The diamonds may be everywhere on this gold watch—paving the bezel, radiating around the mother-of-pearl dial, even dotting t...
An Investment Watch The diamonds may be everywhere on this gold watch—paving the bezel, radiating around the mother-of-pearl dial, even dotting the Omega logo—but it’s still delicate enough to wear every day.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Ghost Town Johnsonville, Connecticut, an abandoned mill town that’s now apparently haunted, is for sale. Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Living in an Old Caboose The last car on the train, this one from the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line (its route was Chicago to Los An...
Living in an Old Caboose The last car on the train, this one from the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line (its route was Chicago to Los Angeles), was built in 1974. It’d make a great guesthouse.
Living in a Tiny Cabin Dave Bates builds these cabins on wheels, so one could theoretically spend July in Bozeman and August in Sullivan County.
...
Living in a Tiny Cabin Dave Bates builds these cabins on wheels, so one could theoretically spend July in Bozeman and August in Sullivan County.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Living in a Floating House It’s like that riverboat from the “Karma Chameleon” video meets a modernist getaway. Designed by Portuguese firm Frida...
Living in a Floating House It’s like that riverboat from the “Karma Chameleon” video meets a modernist getaway. Designed by Portuguese firm Friday, the solar-powered FloatWing comes with two outboard motors.
Vintage Atoms One for each member of the chemistry department: A collection of 23 molecular structures from Harvard University, hand-built by stu...
Vintage Atoms One for each member of the chemistry department: A collection of 23 molecular structures from Harvard University, hand-built by students in their crystallography classes during the 1950s.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Garden Maze The world’s premiere hedge-maze-maker Adrian Fisher works closely with his clients on crafting these backyard wonders.
Photo: Courte...
Garden Maze The world’s premiere hedge-maze-maker Adrian Fisher works closely with his clients on crafting these backyard wonders.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Serious Motorcycle The latest from New York’s Venier Motorcycles: Every detail (from the fenders to the headlight buckets to the nose fairing) ...
A Serious Motorcycle The latest from New York’s Venier Motorcycles: Every detail (from the fenders to the headlight buckets to the nose fairing) of this glossy-black ride with a 1,400-cc. engine has been pored over.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
Royal Cuffs These bracelets, composed of carved chalcedon, sapphires, and diamonds, were made for Wallis Simpson, a.k.a. the Duchess of Windsor. ...
Royal Cuffs These bracelets, composed of carved chalcedon, sapphires, and diamonds, were made for Wallis Simpson, a.k.a. the Duchess of Windsor. They’ll be auctioned on December 9.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Home-Movie Palace So they can binge-watch House of Cards like a king in a private theater designed by Theo Kalomirakis.
Photo: Courtesy of the...
A Home-Movie Palace So they can binge-watch House of Cards like a king in a private theater designed by Theo Kalomirakis.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Panic Room So they’ll be ready for the apocalypse: Gaffco specializes in creating in-home spaces with blast-resistant doors and chemical and ga...
A Panic Room So they’ll be ready for the apocalypse: Gaffco specializes in creating in-home spaces with blast-resistant doors and chemical and gas protection.
Photo: Columbia Pictures
A Real Toy Car An ingenious Brit turned the classic Little Tikes push car into an actual car that goes up to 70 mph.
A Silver Saber A collaboration between French silversmiths Christofle and those saber-lovers over at the St. Regis. Each purchase comes with a fr...
A Silver Saber A collaboration between French silversmiths Christofle and those saber-lovers over at the St. Regis. Each purchase comes with a free Champagne-opening lesson from a hotel butler.
Photo: Thomas Schauer / Courtesy of the Vendor
A Clone of Your Dog Before you put Fido down, take him to the vet to get a tissue sample, and mail it to Korean company Sooam Biotech, which has ...
A Clone of Your Dog Before you put Fido down, take him to the vet to get a tissue sample, and mail it to Korean company Sooam Biotech, which has successfully cloned more than 700 dogs.
Photo: Life On White/Getty Images
A Plot For Your Dog Give Fido a proper burial in an above-ground mausoleum at America’s oldest pet cemetery in Hartsdale, New York. Photo: C...
A Plot For Your Dog Give Fido a proper burial in an above-ground mausoleum at America’s oldest pet cemetery in Hartsdale, New York. Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
A Windmill Located in Essex, on the banks of the Connecticut River, it’s been renovated and converted into a three-story, livable house.
Photo: ...
A Windmill Located in Essex, on the banks of the Connecticut River, it’s been renovated and converted into a three-story, livable house.
Photo: Courtesy of the Vendor
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