Decadent Palais de Cristal Comes With 15-Car Garage That Turns Into a Nightclub

Palais de Cristal (meaning “palace of crystal”) is the family home of founder, president, CEO and chief designer of AICO (Amini Innovation Corporation), Michael Amini. He also goes by the self-given title of King of Bling, so that you know what you’re heading into when reading about his dream family home. A palace, no less.

In 2007, Amini bought the home site for $5.1 million. Perched on a hilltop at the pinnacle of Crystal Cove and offering breathtaking views all around, including all the way up to Los Angeles, it was supposed to accommodate the family residence of his dreams within four years. The 2008 financial collapse and the 2020 international health crisis delayed the completion of the project considerably, as also did Amini’s desire to include only items and furnishes either designed by himself or hand-picked by him. After all, you don’t become the CEO of a world-leading luxury home furnishing company by going for mainstream stuff.

Built with O.C. luxury home builder Tony Valentine Construction and with help from interior designer Sue Capelli of Passione Inc., the mega-mansion was eventually dubbed Palais de Cristal due to the fact that it combines and incorporates precious materials like Swarovski crystals, onyx, real 24K gold and the finest marble in the most mundane objects. Amini tells The Robb Report that his goal was to create his dream home “no expense spared,” and you can tell from the first glance.

The palazzo itself offers 15,500 square feet (1,440 square meters) of living space across seven bedrooms and various areas for entertaining. The listing with Compass notes that it was designed for “hosting on a grand scale,” which is rich-people-speak for offering spaces for grandiose formal events of all kinds. This means it has a formal dining room with its own wine cellar, a gourmet chef’s kitchen, a catering kitchen, an outdoor kitchen – even the master suite has its own kitchenette.

Outdoor space is just as generous: 3,640 square feet (338 square meters) of decks and loggias, and the most eye-catching (both in a good and a bad way) oversize swimming pool ever. It’s called “Sunrise to Sunset” and it was built by the artisans at Graig Bragby Pools in the UK, with hand-painted tiles that mimic the sunrise at one end and the sunset at the other.

Another impressive highlight is the foyer, which is dominated by two spiraling staircases with iron and gold railing, and the so-called “Eye of the Phoenix:” a stained glass centerpiece made by Judson Studios in Los Angeles, with Swarovski crystals, and glass and gold pendants.

The garage is yet another highlight of this insane compound where everything is taken up a notch in terms of customization and opulence – and then blown out of the water. It can normally accommodate 10 to 15 cars in a massive, 3,725 square foot (346 square feet) climate-controlled unit, with marble floors and a car turntable. When not in use, though, the same garage turns into a genuine nightclub, complete with laser shows and smoke machines, and state-of-the-art sound system. The turntable can be used as a revolving dance floor.

Elsewhere, the Palais de Cristal includes the mandatory spa-like bathrooms, actual spa (with steam room, saunas and “zen massage room”), fully-equipped gym, library slash office, walk-in wardrobes of the kind you find in luxury department stores, cinema with starry roof, a bar, and countless dining and lounging spaces of various sizes – and even designer toothbrushes and hand towels. With a project of this kind, nothing is left to chance.

“My aim with the house was to create a legacy of who I am and what I like. Every step of the way, my goal was to make sure everything was unique, and created with no expense spared,” Amini tells the same media outlet. This was his dream family home and he was finally able to build it.

So why is he selling it, then? Like other multi-millionaires and billionaires, once the project was completed, Amini realized it was too big for his family, especially since his kids had moved out. So, if you were ever thinking about a mega-mansion with a garage that could double as a nightclub and money is no object, you’re welcome for the tip.