THE BLING BLOG

Tiffany & Co's Long-Awaited Frank Gehry Collection? Wait Some More!

We went for a stroll in the local Tiffany & Company with two goals in mind:

1.  get Trey's platinum Lucida wedding band cleaned up a little
2.  get Susie a good look at the new Frank Gehry-designed jewelry pieces

So, turns out Trey's ring didn't need a polishing.  And turns out T & Co. in our (red)neck of the woods won't be getting the Gehry Collection until August.  While it is in stores in the "big" cities (NY, BH, maybe Chicago) now, we peasants out in the provinces must wait.

Has anyone seen any of these goodies?  Of course we can see them on Tiffany & Co's website, but I will gain no satisfaction until I see them in vivo.

(note to Tiffany & Co. - folks in Texas, they gots the big money and they spends it...  market accordingly!)

Colored Diamonds Are Here To Stay

In light of yet another successful auction featuring some heavy-hitting colored diamonds selling for well over $1 million each, I think it's safe to say at that the colored diamond rage is neither fad nor fleeting.

My most recent issue of the Neiman Marcus "Book" featured suites of multicolored diamond baubles from Damiani and Michael Beaudry.

A walk through the local Saks Fifth Avenue revealed a Graff boutique with strand after strand of various hues of Champagne, Cognac, brownish-pink, brownish-yellow and pale brown and yellow diamonds married to create a wonderful, Earthy symphony of sparkling goodness.

And of course, because it's what they do, we'll always have celebrities leading the way as walking product placements for jewelry.  Remember J.Lo's pink Harry Winston diamond engagement ring?  (I wonder if she gave that back?  You know how I feel about the whole engagement ring thing.)  And who can forget Kobe's purple-diamond-set-in-yellow-gold-rah-rah-Go-Lakers "sorry about that wee lil' indiscretion with the Rocky Mountain trash" diamond?

Regardless, I think they're here to stay.  And I like that.

Oh, Bother. Another Celeb "Designing" Jewelry

According to the Luxist, we have yet another celebrity who has decided to branch beyond their day job and design him some jewels.  This time, it sort of saddens me, and I've been forced to be more thoughtful, since I kind of like this guy.

Evidently, that adorable Pharrell Williams has been chosen by Marc Jacobs to make a new line of pricey baubles for Louis Vuitton.  Pharrell has previously collaborated with Jacobs on a seriously  flashy sunglasses collection for LV.  It should be known that Pharrell will be working with a real jewelry designer, Camille Miceli, to produce the jewelry line.

According to the article, the goodies will be in the marketplace early next year.  Miceli has stated that the jewelry, "Is going to be jewels with such scale, so large - and of course very, very unique."

As opposed to only "very unique?"  Or simply "unique?"  Uniqueness, last I checked, didn't have disparate levels, no?  Unique, is, well, unique.

I digress.  Sorry, I had to snark a little because you all know exactly how I feel about celebrities adding new "qualifications" to their resumes, right?  Just say NO.

But, as the title said, "Oh, Bother..."  Because I simply adore that cute little Pharrell!  I can't help it.  The moment I saw his video for "Beautiful" - you know the one...  where he's all preppy-nerdy chic, singing in that falsetto with Snoop Dogg...  romancing the Brazilian honies...

I dunno, I was captivated.  He was selling something altogether new and refreshing.

When I saw that, I really had renewed hope for hip-hoppers, and I still do to some extent since Pharrell and the Neptunes are very much in their scene, and selling the Hell out of their records.

Pharrell likes him summa those canary diamonds (oh, yeah, he wore them waaaaaay before Poop Doody did) and dresses himself all fine and shit.  So maybe the goods he's "designing" for Louis Vuitton may actually be... good?

If anything, they will be decidedly high-end.  No QVC or HSN for Pharrell or Louis Vuitton.  Also not a snowball's chance in Hell they'll be sublimely, uh, sublime.  But for once I am cautiously curious.

Just, pleeeeeeease, pleeeeeeeease keeping making records, Pharrell.  This thirtysomething woman adores your music.

TypePad Problems

Okay, FINE.

More like I CAN'T FOLLOW INSTRUCTIONS PROBLEMS.

I wrote some stuff in the last ten days (yes, I did) and they were all saved as drafts.  And now I am unsure of whether or not to post them.  At this point they read like crap.  Irrelevant crap.  But maybe I should reread them, make some changes and post them using the "publish now" option.  Now there's a thought.

I'll get on that right away, m'kay?

The Quaaludes Made Her Do It

Never one to miss a breaking fashion news story, The Luxist reports today that none other than Miss Paula Abdul will be launching her own jewelry line.

The good people at Luxist, including contributor Nicole Weston who reported this item, are always so polite and professional.  They just report and hardly ever opine.  And if they do opine, it's either positive or neutral.  Don't get me wrong, I love those guys and I rarely miss a day with them, because they never miss anything newsworthy in the world of luxe goods and related items.

But not me.  I'm not so polite.  I am going to say what polite people won't say.  Freedom of snark.  Which is why you come here.

Shall we?

Where to begin?  Regular visitors know that in the past I have not been very complimentary, nor have I applauded, or even thrown a bone to celebrities who have their own jewelry line.  Put it this way, unless they're going to sell something and give every last cent to charity, I have a littany of things to say to them, but most of all this:

SHUT UP AND SING.  (or dance, or act, or judge whatever you are actually qualified to do)

Long, long ago, in the infancy of American Idol, Miss Paula Abdul was the voice of sweetness and light.  The kindly big sister who was rah-rah positive and cheerful and apparently gave the kids little necklaces with medallions with treacly little sayings and shooting stars and stuff on them.  And the kids cherished them, they called her Miss Paula, and basically adored her.

Cut to the cross-eyed, bumbling, nonsensical-gobbledy-gook-talking, font-of-public-self-humiliation trainwreck that is Miss Paula today.  The trainwreck that just re-upped her contract with Fox for three years and millions of dollars.  The trainwreck that falls down in nightclubs and blames it on an innocent bystander.

Now those cherished medallions and charms and things are for sale.  On QVC.  Price range $20-$90.

All aboard?

No thank you.

(I say "innocent bystander" because the Jim Lefkowitz I knew six or seven years ago would have been far too busy occupying his time with the ladies half Miss Paula's age.  As for the rumor that he might have "accidentally on purpose" pushed her because he wasn't impressed with her "smirky" attitude?  Well, who is impressed with that attitude?  If he did cause her physical harm, shame on him.  But I really doubt it.)

A Divine New Facet For A Seasoned Cutter

I check in frequently with the Rapaport News to learn about what's new in the diamond world.  And so it is with great relief that I report that perhaps there might not be so much grey glass out there anymore?  Can we cross our fingers?

In recent news, it seems that Shlomo Cohen, the designer of the Princess Cut, has created and patented "The Vinci Diamond."  My feeling about the Princess Cut is that it has been diluted, overused, improperly used and abused.

When I hear "Princess Cut" I actually cringe a little.  Everyone seems to want one of these.  And unless they buy a very finely-cut Princess cut diamond, of high color and clarity, they're going to get a piece of grey glass.  The grey glass we see in the mall is so far-removed from Cohen's original vision that it's really tragic.  What kind of princess would wear it?

If you have a Princess Cut diamond and it's lovely, I am thrilled for you, because that's what the designer envisioned:  beauty and brilliance, not boring and blah.  Please tell me about it in the comment section!

Other square cuts, like the Radiant and the Starburst and the newer Square Asscher provide far more brilliance and life to the diamond.  Tiffany's patented Lucida cut is a modified square and is nearly unmatched for liveliness and fire.  And I have to mention Lazare Kaplan's Square Emerald Cut.  Breathtaking, truly.

This new cut, "The Vinci Diamond" is a pentacle cut.  I'll save you from googling "pentacle."  If you do, you'll get to read a lot about demons, Satan, black Magic, pentagrams and Motley Crue.  No, no, no.  The pentacle cut is a five-sided or five-pointed cut, like a five-pointed star, visible from the top of the stone.  Like the Pentagon!  I'm guessing these pentacles won't be used to conjure up the dark side.

Yeah, maybe he's jumping on the DaVinci Code speed train, but I give him credit for a good source of inspiration.  As inspiration goes, better Leonardo DaVinci than some vapid princess.  Here's the story.

Diamond designer Shlomo Cohen, who in 1982 was credited with developing the Princess Cut, has created and patented 'The Vinci Diamond,' a 62-facet, pentacle cut, which incorporates the precise ratios of the Divine Proportion.

The idea behind Divine Proportion or the Golden Ratio is based upon the relationship of three lines of which the longest is 1.618 times the length of second longest, which in turn is 1.618 times the length of the shortest line.

The combinations of the three are the basis for everything that is perfectly proportional. The ratio is considered divine because it is repeated over and over in nature.

“I have been studying the geometric possibilities offered by the Golden Ratio since 2001, which is before I ever heard of Dan Brown or The Da Vinci Code,” Cohen said.

“Interestingly, like Dan Brown, I was inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci’s study of the human body, the Vitruvian Man, and discovered that the artist had adopted the Golden Ratio to emphasize the understanding that symmetry denotes beauty," he said.

Cohen created The Vinci Diamond with the assumption that the stone would be "aesthetically more pleasing if it conforms to the ratios of the Golden Ratio."

The design concept is also widely used in art and architecture. But for Cohen the design of the 62-facet The Vinci Diamond presented a special challenge, for he was intent that at least two pentacle stars be visible inside the polished diamond. If possible, Cohen wanted three pentacle stars to be visible when the diamond is viewed from above through its table.

The end result was stunning, he said, and three pentacle shapes conforming to the exact dimensions of the Divine Proportion are visible. With its precise form, The Vinci Diamond reflects both a fire and brilliance that surpasses that of the standard 57-facet round diamond.

“The completion of my work at the same time as The Da Vinci Code has enjoyed such amazing international success is a happy coincidence,” Cohen says.

“And the fact a major Hollywood movie by the same name will soon be released is an added bonus." Cohen is currently developing a marketing plan for the new cut, which has already been patented in Japan, Israel, Belgium, and the United States.

(Update 4.15.06:  there is a photo of The Vinci Diamond at Luxist, they reported on this yesterday - Thanks, Wendy!)

Prom Jewelry Musings

I read this fun article in the Jewelry Weblog and it reminded of, literally, half a lifetime ago!

Last Saturday night, we went to Austin to celebrate our sixmonthaversary at a trendy and tasty restaurant called Fino.  It was legit Spanish food, and having lived abroad in Spain, I felt like I could accurately assess the authenticity of certain dishes.  It was good stuff.

So, anyhow, on the way in, we were greeted and taken to the dining room (away from the bar) to a nice corner table.  As we walked in the second room, we passed a table of twelve Prom-goers.  As we arrived at our table, we groaned and asked to be moved to the other side of the restaurant.  Call it contempt prior to investigation, but we didn't want to be in Romper Room.

As soon as we were seated in the other room, we laughed and said that our moving would give them ammo for spinning great tales later in the night and gave them a little thrill.  We could almost hear them...

"So, like, we had, like the whole room to ourselves and stuff, and then these OLD people came in.  And they saw us, and were like all, LET'S GET OUT OF HERE, HONEY to get away from us.  They were all OLD and stuff."

Anyhow, I noticed that the girls were dressed nicely.  What I mean by "nicely" was that they weren't all slutted-up.  They wore decent and tasteful dresses, with decent necklines and hemlines.  They had Prom Hair, to be sure, and there were at least four sets of spankin' new claw-like pink and white acrylic nails.

They had been to the Clinique counter for a free makeover, or their mom's Mary Kay lady stopped by.  In spite of that there was a delightfully refreshing absence of war paint and sluttiness.  No mini-Paris Hiltons or Kimoras-in-training.

Trey said, "Maybe they signed THE CONTRACT..."  Possible.  While Austin is decidedly liberal, and these kids were eating in a very trendy restaurant (indicating the influence of very trendy parents), he reminded me that we are in Texas and the firm hand of the preacher man is far-reaching.

They had their Prom Jewels on, but they looked properly appointed and not overdone.  There were dainty and appropriate earring, necklace and bracelet sets.  No one looked like Claire's Accessories threw up on them.

In total, it made me smile.  And it was fun for us to leave the room in an apparent huff of disdain so they could later tell their friends about us.  Us OLD folks.  Okay, I was wearing Pucci and showing lots of leg, I admit, but it's fun to think that they might see us as old.

My prom?  You ask?  Hmmmm.  There were four of them.  And I always wore pearls.

Tiny dangly nests of pearls that looked like a bunch of grapes one year.  Mother-of-pearl "poker chip" pendant and ring (etched and engraved mother-of-pearl disks set in 18K gold rope bezels) another year.  Single strand choker of fine white 6mm pearls and pearl studs another year.  A great double strand choker of the same fine white 6mm pearls with a triple-strand bracelet another year.

I was a pearl girl back then and I still am.  This week I had my paws on a 15" strand of gorgeous 11-12mm metallic peachy, gold, and white pearls with a yellow gold and diamond pave ball clasp.  I sorted them and strung them for a customer.

Back then it helped to have a mother who could whip these things up in a flash.  I always felt very special that my stuff was "homemade."  Not quite what we think of when we think of homemade, but you know what I'm saying.  I was a very lucky girl.

By the way, the customer mentioned above is my mother.  So these things come around eventually in a great way.  Which is really, really neat.

What about you?  Do you remember what jewelry you wore to the Prom?  Anybody have a daughter going to the Prom already?  I'd love to hear about it.

Hey You... Wanna Buy A Watch? For $1 Million?

Two $1 million dollar watches were on display at BaselWorld 2006 according to JCK News.  Any guesses about who might be peddling such pricey goods?

If you said Jacob the Jeweler, you'd be right.  New York's luxury wristwatch purveyor was offering an all-diamond tourbillon watch with 24 time zones.  That's 20 more time zones than the paltry 4 or 5 time zones that accompany the bedazzling "The World Is Yours" timepiece which won Travel + Leisure's coveted design award earlier this year.

This watch has 30 carats of "special cut" (whatever that means) diamonds, and it takes Swiss watchmakers three months to set the diamonds for each watch.  Better jump on this one, kids...  there are only six made for this ultra-limited edition.

As well, Robert Wan, a black pearl producer has introduced the very first pearl watch ever.  It, too, comes in at a price of $1 million.  It is called, appropriately, The Pearl.  How clever!

This pearl watch with a mother-of-pearl dial only took 18 months to create.  It is set with two 13mm gemstone-quality pearls, in addition to many diamonds and sapphires.  This watch is of a slightly larger edition; a total of ten watches are produced in this limited edition.  Oh, and this one comes with a pearl necklace, a pearl ring and pearl earrings.

All I can say is, Those Better Be Some Big Diamonds...

Ham On The Street

Entirely off-topic, but does anyone watch "Ham On The Street" on the Food Network?

Read the interview with him where he describes the two kind of people in the world.

"Hi, I'm George Duran - and I believe there are two kinds of people in this world: those who love nothing more than a good, stiff shot of warm hot dog water..."

At the moment he is deep frying hot dogs (in the bun) and will later be preparing "Twinkie-misu."

He went to culinary school in France.  So he knows food.  And he's a bit fleshy.  I don't trust a skinny  chef.  It's a stereotype I happily embrace; the pudgy kitchen genius.  And this is what he does for work.  Has entire episodes about foods on a stick.

This is my kind of human.  He has the training, he has the skills, and absolutely every reason to take himself entirely too seriously.  But he doesn't.  In the least.

How often I wish there were more people like this in the world.  Anyone else wish that?

(photo from The Food Network)

Happy (6 Month) Anniversary To Us!

Wow!  Married six months!  Today!

We're off to Austin to buy food for the Pugs and to have a nice dinner.

And it is a very happy day.

(not be an insufferable pedant, but it's not technically an anniversary, Latin word annum meaning year of course, so it's more of a sixmonthweddingaversary)