Self Indulging in Illy’s nude....crystal cup!

Christmas is probably long due but I still haven’t got one present for myself. So I went ahead and indulged myself with something that I had my eye on for a very very long time. Though very likely, I would be scorning at myself in the future when I look back at this impulsive purchase! But meh, it’s a Christmas present! :P *trying to convince himself to feel less guilty* hahaha..

Anyway, here it is!!A big box came earlier than expected! And the sender is Illy! What’s inside?? *Roll the drum please*

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Tadaa! It’s a pair of Illy crystal nude cups designed by Matteo Thun.

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It’s a crystal  espresso demitasse with the shape of signature Illy espresso cup. The crystal cup surface was frosted with a very nice touch of snowy coating, just perfect for Christmas! The old Illy nude crystal cups were said to have a very low level of lead, inevitable from the crystal glass manufacturing process. It’s probably why Illy has discontinued them, only to come out with a new improvised version. So these new improvised crystal cups, manufactured using LUXION technology, have the right material of Lead Free Crystal just for this purpose. These new crystal cups might have felt a little less heavy as compared to the older ones, but there is no lead to worry about and it was said to be even more durable! I can survive with that less weight!


Every part of the cup is an excellent craftsman’s work of art. The finish in every detail of the cup is just perfect, unlike my other ceramic cups that has a slight imperfection under the demitasse- there is no flaw in the whole crystal cup!


On the crystal cup itself, there are two transparent windows for you to look through into the cup, for you to indulge yourself in the thickness (or in some cases, lack) of the luscious crema. So, do make yourself mentally ready and expect some espresso ‘porns’ from my future post with these classy crystal cups :P

There was some minor drama behind this purchase. I was deciding whether to go all nude, or the frosted crystal cups. It was tough, I wanted both of them. But the price was so inhibitory high and the rationale part of me keep myself checked. The bad news however: one day, I went through the Coffeegeek forum’s gift list and saw this. It was $40, not a bad price. Still a little on the high side for 2 demitasses, without the shipping. The final push came when I googled for Illy’s coupon code,and came out with a discount code - UWfriend (Unfortunately this doesn’t work as of now, I wish I had shared it earlier,sorry!). This cuts the price down by 25% and it’s 37.5 including shipping. So needless to say, I’ve bitten the bullet. The complete nude Illy cups were not considered because it was $70 for a set of 4 even though it’s cheaper per cup. I just don’t have that much to burn.

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or this

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Anyway, here I am, with the crystal cups. Life is so perfect and blissful right now! Oh, and did I mention, there is a pleasant surprise of snowy white coffee flower (not that I know how coffee flower looks like) hidden beneath the demitasse on the saucer? It’s that perfect!