Can being well hydrated improve one’s mood? Sharpen mental machinations? The researchers behind the new Pryme Vessyl cup ($99) think so. “Mood balance, cognitive performance, attention, focus—all are dramatically impacted by your hydration,” says Hanson Lenyoun, MD, a Harvard University graduate and Columbia-trained physician who helped develop the 16-ounce glass-lined cup, which logs how much fluid a person imbibes throughout the day. The cup syncs up with a smartphone app that collects details abou…

While acknowledging that his new aircraft looks like a jet fighter, David Loury compares the Cobalt Co50 Valkyrie (cobalt?-aircraft.com) to a car.

“Talk to pilots about what they want in a plane, and they will tell you they want speed, safety, comfort, and cool looks—the same things you want in a car,” says Loury, a native of France who in 2007 established Cobalt, which is now based in San Francisco. “But in the aviation industry, being concerned with aesthetics can be looked down on. It’s not considere…

Since acquiring Lanai from his fellow mogul David Murdock in 2012, Larry Ellison has tinkered constantly with the Hawaiian island’s only beach resort. He redesigned its lobby three times in three years, opened a Nobu restaurant on the property—only to renovate and reopen it a few months later—and shut down an entire wing of the resort to re-create it to his contemporary-Hawaiian tastes. Eventually, last June, Ellison shuttered the Four Seasons Resort Lanai to finalize its multimillion-dollar transformation, ov…

Originally published in the December issue of Robb Report Collection as “Superpowered”

If you want to spot the next hot item in the comic book–collecting world, read Variety. News of films to come—even the mere announcement that a studio has acquired the rights to a comic book—boosts prices for copies of that comic, especially the issue in which the lead character first appears. “It jumps up in value overnight in anticipation that a character appearing in a movie or TV show will blow up and be…

Originally published in the December issue of Robb Report Collection as “British Ovation”

Among the 30 remarkable automobiles crossing the block at Bonhams’ annual Bond Street Sale in London are two standouts from the collection of Gordon Willey, a retired businessman based in Lancashire and enthusiast of prewar cars. Willey’s 1938 Frazer Nash BMW 328 Roadster ($850,000 to $1 million) is one of just 200 known to exist today. Previously owned by Billy Cotton, the British big-band leader and amateur racer, th…

Originally published in the December issue of Robb Report Collection as “Minding the Score”

In February, sports fans will gather to watch the most hyped game on the planet: the 50th-anniversary Super Bowl. But in the weeks before the kickoff, some of the most devoted will engage in a bruising competition of another kind. Several landmark auctions are expected to crush records for Super Bowl memorabilia, and in “Get Ready for the Blitz”, we meet collectors like Glen Christensen, a lifelong Green Bay Packers …

Sun worshippers have a reason to rejoice over a new means of protection from the sun’s damaging rays. A recent study confirms the benefits of ingesting vitamin B3 to protect against ultraviolet radiation. The phase 3 study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, examined participants in a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial who had at least two nonmelanoma skin cancers, such as basal-cell carcinoma or squamous-cell carcinoma, in the last five years. Compared with those in …

When Manufacture Royale’s 1770 model debuted last year, its design all but overshadowed the relatively conventional tourbillon movement it encased. And although the brand’s new 1770 Voltige (starting at $33,000) is not as complicated as a tourbillon, its mechanics quite literally rise to a new level. Thanks to a set of elongated pinions, the entire escapement—including balance, anchor, and escape wheel—are set above the movement and dial. The arrangement makes for a captivating mechanical exhibit that stands a…

Valérie Messika’s jewelry designs lay bare the gemstones’ beauty.

The diamonds in Valérie ­Messika’s imaginative jewelry designs appear to float, with no obvious metal settings to detract from their pure sparkle. “Diamonds are already a creation; I’m only here to put [them] on the skin of a woman,” says Messika. The 39-year-old Parisian jeweler herself dons layers of diamond bracelets, rings, and necklaces comfortably, with a casual elegance, and it makes sense that she would wear them with ease: …

Originally published in the December issue of Robb Report as “Sleep on It”

Alistair Hughes wants to find your perfect match in the bedroom. As the managing director of the London-based Savoir Beds, he believes that a bed should fit like a glove—or a custom-made suit. “It’s about comfort, style, and allowing the client to have whatever they want,” he says, drawing a comparison between his company and a Savile Row tailor. “You need a bed that takes your shape.”

In the spirit of sartorial artistry, Hughes h…