It has been a rough couple of months for Celebrity Apprentice contestant and motorcycle customizer Jesse James in the wake of his high-profile divorce from Sandra Bullock. Now the Real Estalker reveals that James seems to be having some trouble unloading a piece of real estate. James quietly put his Sunset Beach, California on the market in May for $6.75 million but now it is listed for $4.995 million. At one point James lived in the home with his now ex-wife Sandra Bullock. James has said he wishes to leave Southern California behind for a little while and settle in Austin, Texas.

James bought the four-bedroom beach house in 2003 when he was still with married to his second wife Janine Lindemulder. The property is right on the beach and on the street side it has a courtyard that offers a modicum of privacy. Listing info states that the home was newly remodeled from the ground up in 2002. It's on a small 40' by 90' corner lot directly on the sands of Sunset Beach.

The two-story residence has a great room with Canterra stone floors, a custom fireplace, dining area and a gourmet kitchen with granite counters,maple cabinetry, a walk-in pantry, and Viking stainless appliances.The room overlooks the beach, ocean and a glass-enclosed lanai with pool, grotto, waterfall, and waterslide, surrounded by auto-lighted tiki torches.

The second level includes the master bedroom with a fireplace and master bath with a steam shower and Jacuzzi tub. This level also has a spacious media/game room with a granite wet bar, an office/bedroom with ocean views, and a another guest bedroom. The three car garage has built-in tool wall and space for that extra car or workshop. The home also has a state-of-the-art surveillance system.

The Real Estalker reports that another Sunset Beach property owned by James, a townhouse stuffed with animal print furniture, is also on the market for $1.195 million. Both properties are listed with Chuck Buscemi & Cathy Noonan of First Team Real Estate.

Read more →

Now here is a limited edition watch which has a wooden dial made from a 200 year old barrel in oak that was used to mature a very good French wine. That news alone should excite enough people to buy it. Wood is used on watches from time to time with various themes. Often meant to evoke a look similar to sail boats or classic car interiors. Here however the theme is French wine, and Boucheron can only take half the credit for the timepiece. Actually, a little bit less. Inside the Boucheron Reflet XL Château Latour Millésime 2005 is a Girard Perregaux Calibre GP4000 automatic movement.

From Château Latour comes the grand Millésime 2005 vintage wine. Considered quite a special collection, I don't think any of the wine is due to come with each of the 100 watches. The dials of the watches are made from specially selected wood used for the barrels to age the wine that is 200 years old. I like the clever design element where a barrel shape is place in the middle of the dial. That motif is extended to the engraving in the square steel case that is 31.5 x 45mm in size. Is that really "XL?" Of course it is pretty - most Boucheron pieces are. Pricey too, at $14,200 for each of the 100 pieces. Are you sure it doesn't come with wine?

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

Flip-flops have gone way beyond being just beach and gym shower footwear to being an essential part of a summer wardrobe. And since most of love a new pair, but occasionally have to rein in the spending just a tad, Lindsay Phillips's versatile Jordi ($24) is a good choice because it can be accessorized with "snaps" ($12) that secure to the center front and can change the look to match your outfit or mood (see the gallery for just a few options). Jordi comes in six colors and sizes 6-11.

If you want to start a fight among people who love to travel, raise the subject of Elizabeth Gilbert's book Eat, Pray, Love. It was a bestseller, which means that many people really liked it, but the backlash against it has been pretty vociferous -- in summary: self-absorbed, navel-gazing, "me, me, I, I," not-really-travel-writing, crap.

A good even-handed exploration of the backlash is here. Personally, I thought the book was fine and believe that the strong negative reaction is actually against the concept of a woman who does not follow a cookie cutter path to being a happy wife and mother. Although I will concede that the movie's official URL - letyourselfgo.com is cringe worthy.

Anyway, in August, the book that people love to hate will be better known as a movie that they'll love to hate, starring Julia Roberts who many people love to hate, or hate to love. (To say nothing of eating and praying.)

Since there's an obvious travel tie-in, get ready for many EPL-themed travel packages. My colleague, Deb West, wrote about an early adopter this past January, and now there's news that guidebook publisher Lonely Planet is a promotional partner of the film. There's even a special page to help you plan your own Eat, Pray, Love journey.

Here's hoping no one hates you for it.

From the NY Post:
--The Wainscott estate that was the home of Stuyvesant Wainwright II, a former Republican congressman who died this year, is now on the market for $18.5 million. The listing is here.
--"Law & Order: SVU" star Mariska Hargitay and actor husband Peter Hermann have picked up an 11-bedroom home in East Hampton. The home was on the market for $8.9 million, but a source says the deal just closed for $7.34 million.
--Baz Luhrmann checked out a three-bedroom, $21,000 penthouse rental at 304 Spring St. in the Hudson Square area. Actress Meg Ryan and comedian Lewis Black have also seen the penthouse duplex. The listing is here.
--Fashion designer John Varvatos is renting a 12th-floor, two-bedroom apartment at 923 Fifth Ave. for $10,500 per month.
--A two-story shingled Water Mill farmhouse built in 1826 just hit the market for $40 million. The home is owned by John Sargent, who was once the president and CEO of the Doubleday publishing company, and his wife, Elizabeth. The listing is here.

From the LA Times Hot Properties:
--Actress Estella Warren has put her Beverly Hills Post Office-area home back on the market at $1.795 million. We checked this home out as an estate of the day last year when it was listed at $1.95 million.

--The family home of Jack Haley, who played the Tin Man in "The Wizard of Oz," has come on the market at $3.599 million. After Haley retired from show business, he and comedian Jackie Gleason formed the Kramden Investment Company which bought and sold commercial and residential real estate. The listing is here.
--The Pacific Palisades home of actress Mary McDonnell and her husband, actor Randle Mell, has sold for $2 million. The couple bought the property in 1999 for $1.4 million.
From Move Trends:
--Tennis star Jennifer Capriati's Wesley Chapel, Florida home is still on the market, and listed for $2.1 million.

From the Real Estalker:
--Scarlett Johansson may have sold her home which was recently listed at $4,995,000.
-- Elin Nordegren, the soon-to-be ex-wife of Tiger Woods has been spotted house shopping in Boca Raton, Florida.


From the Wall Street Journal's Private Properties:
The estate of Nancy M. Daly, the late ex-wife of former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, has reduced the price her Malibu home to $47 million. The listing is here.
Debbi Fields and her husband, Michael Rose, the former chief executive of Holiday Inn, are still searching for a buyer for their 501-acre ranch near Aspen, Colorado. It's now listed at $28.5 million.
Ruby Tuesday's founder Sandy Beall and his wife, Kreis, are asking $3.75 million for a waterfront home they recently renovated in Beaufort, South Carolina. The home, known as the Castle was our estate of the day back in February when it was listed at $3.95 million.

Read more →

A brand new ranch home with Big Horn views in Sheridan, Wyoming will go up for auction on July 22 through J.P. King Auction Company. The Double H ranch is on 37 acres and will be sold at absolute auction, with no minimums and no reserves. "It's pretty rare to see a brand new home like this be sold at absolute auction," said Craig King, president and CEO of J. P. King Auction Company. "Sitting in such a prime location, its beautiful location with no expenses spared makes it a prime opportunity to own a luxury home with phenomenal views at a great price."

The four-bedroom home is located in the gated community of Eaglestone. It has a separate guest suite that is completely self-sufficient for children or family to stay in the guest wing. The master suite has a cross-beamed ceiling, and spacious dressing and closet areas and heated floors in the bathroom. The property also has a wood-paneled barn with three stalls and an upstairs loft area that opens up to mountain views. The auction will take place on Thursday, July 22 at 11 a.m. on site at 85 Hollow Creek Road in Big Horn, Wyoming.

What are you going to light up for the World Cup festivities tomorrow? I'll be on the road, unfortunately, but I know many of my friends will be gathering at our local cigar shop and digging into their usual favorites. If you want to do something a little different, follow the advice of Vin Lee, CEO of the Beverly Hills Cigar Club. He has a decadent pairing that will help turn the game into a memorable occasion, regardless of who comes out on top.

Start with the club's Louisxs cigar. At $50, it's truly an investment in happiness. You'll plunk down a fistful of dough, but at least you'll get a lot of time out of it, thanks to the cigar's slow burn. You'll taste the rare Rosoda leaves from start to finish and enjoy the "pure magic [that] is meant to linger all evening." What could you possibly pair with a cigar of this caliber? Only Moet, of course.

It's not too early to start thinking of fall accessories, and although this Lanvin Amalia Medium Metallic Leather Bag comes in a perfect molten metallic tone it could work for a summer ensemble as well (would really pop against a white dress). It has convertible double chain and leather handles than can be adjusted to make one long shoulder strap if desired, and the bottom is convertible also with a zipper that opens it up to make more room. Other features include black fabric embellishments on the handle, a signature print lining, and two interior pockets. $2,300

Can leather flooring be sustainable? Merida Meridian has created a new recycled leather-flooring product called Veledo. Merida has been a large area rug manufacturer focused on natural fiber rugs, this is their first foray into leather. Veledo is a 96% natural bonded leather plank (4% pigment), made from postindustrial waste collected from European mill scrap leather. Unlike traditional leather tiles, Veledo offers a hard, durable surface with the look of real leather. It is designed with an attached subfloor and an interlocking channel system so that it can be installed over almost any surface. It comes in four different styles including crocodile.

Sometimes there's nothing better after a day of exertion than a good beer. The 2010 Paddles and Pints rafting trip combines both. Rogue Wilderness Adventures is partnering with Oregon brew master Mark Vickery for three days of whitewater rapids and tasty brews. For the last five years Mark has been the head brewer at Golden Valley Brewery in McMinnville, Oregon and he has over 20 years of brewing experience. This trip will be a rafting excursion down the wild and scenic Rogue River Canyon in Oregon. During the day, the staff of Rogue Wilderness Adventures will take paddlers down one of the most beautiful whitewater rivers in the country. Evenings will be spent camping on sandy beaches as guides serve dishes like steak, grilled shrimp, and fajitas paired with a variety of beers. Mark will be lecturing each evening on his favorite beer types and how each one is created. The trip runs Friday August 27, 2010 to Sunday August 29, 2010 or Friday September 10, 2010 to Sunday September 12, 2010. The cost is $899 per person. Other special trips are available including the Paddles and Paws Rafting trip that pairs dogs and owners for an exhilarating adventure.