On the Move

Star Power

The next best thing to riding with the top down? Installing a customized night sky display on the ceiling of your Rolls-Royce. The company places as many as 1,340 fiber optic strands inside the car ceiling at different depths and angles. For $30,000-$50,000, the manufacturer can even copy the exact arrangement of stars in a particular locale, a process that takes 17 hours to complete. Dimmitt Automotive Group, 1518 State St., Sarasota, (941) 256-2825, dimmitt.com 

Nice Paint Job

If you’re paying half a million dollars for a Lamborghini Aventador SV Roadster, consider splurging on a $60,000 pearlescent paint job. The upgrade creates an effect in which the color of the car looks different depending on the viewing angle. A pearlescent in Sarasota varies from orange to purple to blue as you walk around it. A guaranteed head turner. Lamborghini Sarasota, 5145 Clark Road, Sarasota, (941) 556-2980, ext. 293, lamborghinisarasota.com 

Flying High

For serious deep-sea fishers who have plenty of ducats to drop, a custom flybridge is a must-have upgrade to a 37-foot-long Grady-White powerboat. Roughly 14 feet tall and built with its own steering wheel and throttle, the flybridge gives anglers the perfect perch from which to spy mahi-mahi and tarpon slipping through Gulf waters. The boat itself goes for $500,000-$600,000; a custom flybridge starts at around $17,000. Cannons Marina, 6040 Gulf of Mexico Drive, Longboat Key, (941) 383-5600, cannons.com

Hog Wild

Kory Souza starts with a Harley-Davidson bike, strips it down to the frame and then tricks out your ride. One recent $85,000 project involved adding a big front wheel, rewelding the frame and rewiring the bike, then applying a gray matte paint job and caricatures of figures like The Notorious B.I.G., Michael Jackson and Mr. T. Kory Souza Originals, 5720 Lawton Drive, Sarasota, (941) 993-1812, korysouzaoriginals.com

Gimme Shelter

Sarasota’s Most Expensive Residential Listing

At $26.5 million, it’s Serenisima, a 19,300-square-foot beachfront beauty in the Longboat Key Club. The Italianate mansion has luxury details like a glass and bronze elevator, gold plumbing fixtures, a 10-car garage and even an ice cream parlor. It’s getting look-sees from “obviously well-off” locals and newbies, including some Europeans, says listing agent Michael Moulton of Michael Saunders & Company. “For many of them, this could be their second home.”  Michael Saunders & Company, 1605 Main St., (941) 951-6660, michaelsaunders.com

If You’re Well-Heeled

A rug connoisseur might think nothing of dropping $250,000 for an antique Persian Bidjar rug, circa 1740. Eileen Hampshire, co-owner of Art to Walk On, where the unique 7-foot, 6-inch-by-14-foot rug resides, believes it was hand-spun by desert weavers for the Shah or an important ruler because of the images of the man on horseback and the lion with a sun on its back, the symbol of Persia. Art to Walk On, 16 S. Palm Ave., (941) 951-5454, arttowalkon.com

But Is It Stain Resistant?

The high-style Let It Be sofa, designed by the Italian architect/design team of Ludovica + Roberto Palomba for Poltrona Frau, is so named because its modular format allows the owner to arrange it any which way. And at $26,000 in the fabric shown ($33,390 in high-grade leather), why not? Available at Home Resource, one of only two Florida retailers to carry the Poltrona Frau collection. Home Resource, 741 Central Ave., (941) 366-6690, homeresource.com

For the Second, Third…or Fourth Home

It’s hard to maintain your vacation home when you’re out of town or to open it up for a restful weekend when you fly in on your private jet. Key Concierge will meet you at the airport and have chefs, nannies, personal trainers, bartenders, office staff and massage therapists ready to serve. Full-service management with all the bells and whistles—grocery shopping, wine cellar management, fresh flowers, tickets to shows—with the utmost discretion—could run up to $250,000 a year. Key Concierge, 301 John Ringling Blvd., (941) 388-2611, keyconcierge.com

Binging on Bling

Tick, Tick, Tock

Time is of the essence—but elegance even more so—when a new owner dons the $425,000 Patek Philippe World Time ladies’ watch, complete with 18K gold case, alligator leather strap, minute repeater and white gold prong buckle set with 26 diamonds. McCarver & Moser Jewelers, 482 John Ringling Blvd., (941) 388-1331; 1301 Main St., (941) 387-8000, mccarvermoser.com

Eternally Yours

The course of true love runs a whole lot smoother when you’re flashing these natural white, yellow and pink diamond eternity bands—$19,240, each. Diamond Vault Jewelers, 3979 S. Tamiami Trail, (941) 921-4016, diamondvaultjewelery.com

In the Money

The Half Eagle gold coin is one of four known surviving examples minted during the California Gold Rush in 1854. The $5 coin was recently graded 45 on a 70-point scale of coin condition by Lakewood Ranch’s Numismatic Guaranty Corp. after being submitted by its New England owner. NGC president Rick Montgomery says it’s “up there” with a rare 1933 gold piece estimated at $7.5 million in value. This, too, may sell for millions at auction or privately, if you’re feeling acquisitive. Got a coin you’d like to have inspected? Contact NGC at P.O. Box 4776, Sarasota FL 34230—you don’t just drop those precious metals off at the door, hgccoin.com

Spare Change in Your Pockets? 

Spa Daze

For a day of head-to-toe pampering, head to The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota for five spa treatments. Start with the 80-minute Crystal Quartz Muscle Melt, an 80-minute facial, a Chardonnay manicure and pedicure (accompanied by a glass of wine, of course), make-up and a shampoo and style. The day starts at $805 and you can go up from there. (Don’t forget to tip!)  111 Ritz Carlton Drive, (941) 309-2000, ritzcarlton.com

Looking for Love

Tired of the impersonal, soul-crushing experience of continuously swiping left? A personal matchmaking service may be just the thing you need. LUMA provides boutique matchmaking services for elite professionals looking for love. Not only will its matchmakers set you up with a date, but they’ll also provide personalized love coaching, a complete style makeover and an individualized date-planning service. Services begin at $1,200 and can go up to $50,000. LUMA – Luxury Matchmaking Dating Service, 1680 Fruitville Road, #503, (844) 822-5862, lumasearch.com

Pamper the Pooch

Bayside Pet Resort’s tagline proclaims that the pets who board there are “so pampered, you’ll wish you could stay.” Picture this: Rover arrives for his overnight stay ($22-$66 a day, depending on breed) and participates in a one-hour group play session with other dogs ($11) and works out on the treadmill ($7). He can request a daily gourmet treat, which differs each day of his stay ($4); he can go to the salon ($15-$100) and add a blueberry facial ($6). And at the end of the night, he’ll receive “tuck in” services ($7). Price for a week with all the extras? $771. Bayside Pet Resort, 8154 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota, (941) 351-0730, baysidepetresort.com

Wine and Dine 

Dinner for Your Nearest and Dearest 30

Caterers to some of Sarasota’s wealthiest residents, Jeremy Hammond-Chambers and Danny Gibbons of Innovative Dining recently created a dinner event for 30 for the CEO of a Fortune 500 company for $51,000. On the menu? An eight-foot-long, four-foot-tall ice wall with pockets for sushi; Petrossian Special Reserve Osetra Caviar at $6,000 a pound; and a four-course dinner with menu ingredients flown in from around the world. The Japanese Grade 5 Wagyu Beef at $225 a pound was a favorite. Cost per person?  $1,700. Alcohol not included. Innovative Dining, 1431 Tallevast Road, (941) 373-5678, innovative-dining.com

The Perfect Hostess Gift

Described by wine connoisseur Michael Klauber as “pure velvet with countless waves of perfectly ripe fruit that expresses a wonderful purity,” this magnum ($1,200) of Chateau Cos d’Estournel, St. Estephe, 2009, is meant to impress. Klauber also says it’s difficult “to imagine this remarkable wine not lasting 40 years.” But who can wait that long? Michael’s Wine Cellar, 1283 S. Tamiami Trail, (941) 955-2675, michaelswinecellar.com

Sunset Beach Dining

Elegant, sand-between-your-toes dining on the beach is an option if you’re a member or a guest of the Resort at the Longboat Key Club. The deluxe package—a waitstaff, a customized menu, fine wine and music—can reach $5,000. The pared-down version starts at $350, but who wants to skimp when the sun is slipping into the Gulf and the stars are aligned? Longboat Key Club, 220 Sands Point Road, (941) 388-8821, longboatkeyclub.com

Travel

Croatia or Bust

The newest hot spot for the wealthy traveler is Croatia, and Key Culinary Tours can arrange for an exclusive cruise on a private yacht like the 100-foot Horizon (this boat is going for $5.6 million at Worth Avenue Yachts) with multiple decks, the ultimate in luxury appointments and fine dining, of course. At $80,000, this weeklong cruise can accommodate up to four couples. You’ll leave from Port of Montenegro, hopping to six other islands before ending in the port city of Split on Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast. With a captain, private chef and stewards, you won’t have to lift a finger except to clink champagne glasses. Key Culinary, 301 John Ringling Blvd., (941) 893-4664, keyculinarytours.com

A Passage to Africa

An African safari is on everyone’s bucket list, and Admiral Travel has designed an Isak Dinesen-worthy adventure for $37,950 per person departing from the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport on May 9, 2019. Eighty lucky travelers will board the chartered Boeing 777-200LR Crystal Skye jet (big enough for 300 seats, but on this jet includes only 88) and fly direct to Johannesburg, South Africa, for a six-night Singita Safari. The full-recline seats are leather, the bar is stocked and the gaming tables are ready. Even after 16 ½ hours in the air, you won’t want to deplane. Price includes one night at a Sarasota hotel before departure, the Crystal flight, the luxury safari and a return business class seat home on Etihad Airways. And if you want to extend your vacation, your return ticket is good for three weeks. (941) 951-1801, admiraltravel.com

Major League Dreams

Money can’t buy love, but $4,601 can get you a week in Sarasota with the Orioles, playing daily doubleheader games at the Orioles’ Ed Smith Stadium and the Buck O’Neil Baseball Complex. You’ll learn from pros like National Baseball Hall of Famer and Orioles legend Jim Palmer and former Orioles Al Bumbrey, Rick Dempsey, Mike Devereaux and more. The package also includes a personalized uniform, locker, meals and plenty of social events. Open to men and women 30 and older, all abilities. Includes airfare from Baltimore to Tampa and accommodations at the Lido Beach Resort. (410) 547-6063, orioles.com/dreamweek