Dutch hospitality group La Bergère is developing a new hotel in Maastricht, dubbed Hotel X for the time being, and is going to decorate it using furniture and knick-knacks purchased from ordinary consumers.

The underlying concept for Hotel X is described as "style, sex and soup", which—in a nutshell—stands for design, attraction and authenticity. To find unique furniture and nostalgic elements that will create the desired look and atmosphere, Hotel X is calling on people to rummage through their attics, spare rooms and garages, and offer their unused objects for sale. People can upload a picture of the item they'd like to sell, along with a short description and their asking price.

To give a sense of what they're looking for, www.stijlsexensoep.nl shows examples for a wide array of categories, from chairs and tables to art, ceramics, posters, 'collections', boardgames and even plants (cacti, preferably).

While authenticity and nostalgia are design styles that hotels have been adopting for a while, this is an unusually clever way both to find remarkable pieces, and to garner interest in the hotel before it opens. Moreover, by encouraging people to look for cash in the attic, it taps into a very of-the-moment trend that our sister site trendwatching.com calls sellsumers: a recession-induced need for cash is fuelling concepts that help consumers make money instead of just spending it. (Related: Qbic, a high design, low touch hotel, which is also part of the La Bergère Group.)

Website: www.stijlsexensoep.nl
Contact: info@la-bergeregroup.com

The venerable Moleskine-style notebook may claim the likes of Picasso and Hemingway among its past users, but an Oregon-based printing and publishing company recently launched a new alternative that offers the added appeal of eco credentials and customizability, and squarely targets (artistic) minipreneurs.

Pinball Publishing's Scout Book is a pocket-sized notebook with saddle stitching and a durable chipboard cover. Artists, designers and other minipreneurs can customize the 32-page notebook by uploading their own cover art and choosing an interior paper style—lines, grids or blank, with a choice of 18 Pantone ink colours. Both the cover and interior are made from 100 percent recycled paper, inks are soy-based, and Pinball uses renewable energy sources in its manufacturing. Minimum order is 250 notebooks, and multiple cover styles can be included in one order. Pinball specifically targets artistic entrepreneurs on Etsy and elsewhere with the Scout Book, which seems a natural for branded promotional giveaways, too.

Besides bringing one more product category into the ever-expanding realm of customizability, the Scout Book is also a testament to the growing ranks of (part-time) artistic and crafty entrepreneurs, who have become an attractive market of their own. Give them new options, make their lives easier, and they'll return your love in kind! (Related: White lines make paper stand out — Design-before-you-buy on German version of Etsy.)

Website: www.pinballpublishing.com/printing/scout-book?sec=scoutbooks
Contact: info@pinballpublishing.com

For the common man, gravanity can mean ordering a doll in one's likeness or using a bank card that bears a photo of one's kids. Not so the ultra rich, for whom money is no object in the quest for immortality. Enter You Look Like a Million Dollars, a service that creates hand-crafted sculpture portraits in precious metals and stones.

A project from renowned London sculptors Wrightson & Platt, You Look Like a Million Dollars combines traditionally sculpted forms with elements that are cast from life to create what the company calls "astonishingly lifelike and innovative works of art." Drawing inspiration from the gold mask of Tutankhamun, the fabulous Fabergé eggs and the works of Gustav Klimt, sculptures are created in precious metals, bronze and glass. Surfaces are then embellished with precious gems and miniaturised objects used as tiny narrative devices. Each piece takes months to complete; commissions begin at about GBP 50,000, according to a report in Born Rich.

Similar in many ways to Requiem for You, which we covered last year, You Look Like a Million Dollars sits high up in the ether where gravanity and uber-premium meet—a place where few mortals can afford to tread. Those who can, of course, can make it highly worthwhile for the entrepreneurs and artists that serve them. Recession... what recession? ;-) (Related: Cufflinked gravanity, for the shirt that has everything.)

Website: www.youlooklikeamilliondollars.com
Contact: commissions@youlooklikeamilliondollars.com

Spotted by: Born Rich via Raymond Kollau

Polaroid may have stopped production of its analogue instant film last summer, but such is the strength of the product's fan base that some have decided they won't take "no" for an answer. Specifically, a group of aficionados in the Netherlands has bought an old Polaroid factory and plans to bring the technology back into production later this year.

As part of what it calls The Impossible Project to bring back integral film for vintage Polaroid cameras, Impossible b.v. has signed a 10-year lease on Polaroid's Enschede-based film-production factory, which still includes everything needed to produce up to 100 million units of instant film per year—all fully connected and operational, and valued at about EUR 100 million. With support from Ilford Photo, the project has also engaged an experienced team of integral film experts from around the world. Among the team's challenges is retooling and modernizing Polaroid's integral film, in part to reflect the fact that some of its key components are no longer available.

The project website explains: "The Impossible mission is NOT to re-build Polaroid Integral film but (with the help of strategic partners) to develop a new product with new characteristics, consisting of new optimised components, produced with a streamlined modern setup. An innovative and fresh analogue material, sold under a new brand name that perfectly will match the global re-positioning of Integral Films." Impossible is seeking various types of support for its effort; one to get in on early...? (Related: Lush brings back discontinued products — Out-of-print books, printed on demand.)

Website: www.the-impossible-project.com
Contact: doc@theimpossibleproject.com

Spotted by: Elisa Barents

It's not unusual for an art gallery to sell rare or limited edition pieces, but a new, online gallery based in London is banking on exclusivity to set it apart by offering just a single, limited-edition creation from each of a handful of select artists.

The Few Gallery commissions limited-edition art prints exclusively for its shop from a set of hand-picked graphic artists and illustrators from around the globe. Each artist makes only one design for the gallery, which prints each of 30 editions of it individually using the Gicleé process for high resolution and life spans of at least 100 years. Prices begin at EUR 300 for each 60-by-80-cm print. In exchange, owners get a hand-numbered certificate of authenticity to go with it, along with the knowledge that 10 percent of the price is donated to a select set of charities, including Survival, Concern Worldwide, Save the Children and the World Wildlife Fund. Perhaps more importantly, once the design is sold out, it will never be printed again. The Few Gallery was founded by Hannes Unt, who is also the creative director and founder of Estonian design agency LOOVVOOL, specializing in high-end brands.

The economy may be a shambles, but that doesn't mean status and exclusivity are going by the wayside. Nothing like a little planned scarcity to keep the massclusive wolves at bay and make a consumer feel truly unique! (Related: Luxury etailer focuses on planned scarcity — Limited edition lingerie.)

Website: www.thefewgallery.com
Contact: contact@thefewgallery.com

Spotted by: Alar Ojastu