Jewelry Sparkles at Dior and Bulgari Bashes

When two of the most celebrity-friendly fashion houses celebrate themselves, they usually have plenty of A-list wattage on-hand to turn up the star power.

Case in point? The Dior Store re-opening in New York City last night, that featured the likes of Amy Adams and Natalie Portman in black and white with minimal sparkle and Liv Tyler in a feathery frock with a funky statement necklace.

The 57th Street flagship store was closed for the past five months for a complete makeover, WWD reports. Architect Peter Marino aimed to bring the spirit of the Parisian flagship on Avenue Montaigne to New York with a look inspired by the residential feel of a Paris hotel.

The jewelry jaw-drop award, though, had to be the chunky emerald earrings worn by Wendi Murdoch (yup, wife of Rupert). With a household income like theirs, you can bet your assets those puppies are real. Wow.

Alas, my favorite Dior girl, Charlize Theron, was nowhere to be found. Maybe because Natalie Portman is the new face for their new perfume, Miss Dior Cherie? Hmmm...

Across the pond in Paris, the venerable Italian jewelry house, Bulgari, continued to celebrate their 125th year with the opening of '125 Years of Italian Magnificence Bulgari au Grand Palais.'

 

On display until mid January will be some 600 shiny baubles, including famous jewelry worn by the biggest movie stars of the century, including the stunning diamond and emerald brooch Elizabeth Taylor wore at her first wedding to Richard Burton, alongside sparklers worn by style icons Sophia Loren and Grace Kelly.

Bulgari's A-list spokesmodel, Julianne Moore, was there to celebrate in what appear to be peacock-inspired gemstone earrings, along with celebs Juliette Binoche, Lenny Kravitz and Clive Owen.

 

Dear, Santa: All I want for Christmas is a jewelry spokesmodel contract. Love, Laura

Paris Haute Couture Fall/Winter - A Jewelry Recap

As promised, jewelry hounds, here is a recap of all the jewelry worth drooling over from the 2010 Fall/Winter Paris Haute Couture shows.

Today, Haute Joaillierie lit up the Place Vendome - including Chanel's feathery diamond collection (remember Diane Kruger rocking this look at Cannes?):

Dior's Bollywood-inspired jewels:


and Van Cleef & Arpels' Les Voyages Extraordinaires collection:

Catwalk carats included these crazy cuffs from Karl Lagerfeld's Chanel show:



Armani's sculptural styles made from metal and wood:


And these mirrored fairy tale creations from Jean Paul Gaultier's collection:


But this is just a small sampling of the sparkle. You can find a complete gallery of Paris Fashion Week finds on the Jewelry.com Facebook Page. In the meantime, how amazing is that Dior serpent ring? I gotta say it again: ' J'adore Dior!

Weigh in with your favs!

Floral Fashion Explodes in Paris

The Paris Fall/Winter Haute Couture shows are kicking off this week with a wild display of flower power from one of my favorite designers, John Galliano for Dior.

Jewelry was a no-show on the runway, but once you get a glimpse of the cornucopia of color, you'll see why it would be a useless afterthought.

The eccentric British designer explained to the press that he wanted to do something bold and fresh with flowers, "allowing their color, texture and structure to inspire a new, modern beauty."

According to a report from France24, "The floral influence was palpable in the cut of skirts which looked as if they were composed of petals, and bustiers, sprouting fragile filaments in silk chiffon like pistils. Organza frocks appeared to have been constructed from hundreds of buds sewn together."

And the models had their heads covered in a veil of cellophane, like a bouquet fresh from the florist. J'adore Dior!

While I love the Alice In Wonderland whimsy of these frocks, I'm drooling over what appears to be the only black and white number in the collection - this perfectly petaled gown I could see any number of A-listers work on the awards show circuit (Maggie Gyllenhaal would be at the top of my list).

Stay tuned for more couture coverage - and hopefully some creative new jewelry statements to gawk at! In the meantime, weigh in with some of your favorite Dior designs!

Diamonds and Dial Tones - The Dior Phone Rules

Jewelry hounds, you all know that I J'adore Dior. So like any Charlize Theron wannabe, I'm falling in love with their latest round of blingy phone products due out just in time for the holidays.

Last year, Dior blew all the other designer phone brands out of the water with their Dior Phone Diamonds (Glorious Black) set with a whopping 641 diamonds, weighing in at 3.251 carats. Not enough bling for you? They threw in 34 black sapphire crystals for good measure for a pricetag of a mere $28 grand (yup, that's three zeroes).


This year, the recession must be affecting their price points since the new diamond phone offerings run from $7900 (red Zelie model) to $13, 400 ((white Zenaide model). No word yet on the carat count, but if you'd rather not have a diamond blingtone, there's a sapphire and gold-plated clamshell option covered in black PVD for $6500.

See? They're being reasonable.

I've already added this little ditty to my Christmas list - but one can apparently only get ones hands on the Dior dazzler by special order - so sharpen those claws and start praying to the fashion gods now. Santa doesn't have quite the pull in this arena.

Jewelry Fit for Kings and Queens

Jewelry hounds, you may be the only folks who really understand this next sentiment. You know that moment when the jewelry stars align, and you see a piece of jewelry so perfectly designed - so beautifully crafted - so YOU - that you know it will be forever ingrained on the fashion-obsessed part of your cerebral cortex?

I just had that moment when reviewing the new Dior Joaillerie line - their royal ‘Kings & Queens’ collection by Victoire de Castellane. The jewels feature one of my favorite trends – skulls – in an adorable brooch and ring pair. Yes, you’re meant to buy them as a royal couple! Adorable!


Just look at these little beauties. Can you imagine the gasps as you wear the skull ring to your next big event? Or better yet? Imagine the skulls' shine as you reach for that orange chicken Lean Cuisine during your next trip down the frozen food aisle. Glamour, people. Glamour.




The collection is made out of diamonds, opal, jade, quartz and obsidian, which along with the skulls symbolizes “eternity”, according to Dior. I’ve not been able to track down price points - which I’m thinking is just as well.

The King and Queen pieces even have cute little names: Queen of Jadélénie and King Opal to name a few.

Sigh.


So have you ever had a jewelry epiphany that rivals my new Dior skull obsession? If so, share the wealth! And what do you think about the royals? You die? Or not your style?

Jewelry Makes a Statement in Paris

It’s my favorite jewelry fashion time of year – the Paris Haute Couture Shows. And while this go-round has not delivered the Christian Lacroix craziness that lit up the runways last year, there are some serious statements worth coveting.


Dior did diamonds in flowers and bows, and pearls in both black and white and ‘bigger means better’ silhouettes.



Armani kept the statement necklace trend going strong with grey, metallic, chunky looks that must have weighed more than a newborn.



Valentino used headpieces as his accessory du jour, with stunning lace looks that oozed style and sophistication.


And gold kept glittering at the Givency and Christian Lacroix shows (a sad showing since this will be his last Couture collection due to financial issues).

And Fashion Week isn’t over yet! The stars are still arriving and the catwalks still cracking with fashion that you can’t even afford in your dreams. But what’s a jewelry fantasy without a dash of inaccessibility, right?

Stay tuned for more couture coverage, and check out a complete album of stunning jewelry looks fresh from Paris on Jewelry.com’s Facebook page.

Drool, dream and covet, jewelry hounds!

Jewelry Explodes in Paris

The Paris couture shows are taking the runways by storm this week, and while folks generally take a gander at the often-outrageous looks and wonder who on earth would ever wear such nonsense, I find couture gawking the perfect indulgence – especially in these trying times. It’s like rolling around in a vat of Cherry Garcia or having that third - ok fourth - margarita.

So imagine my dismay when I came across the Karl Lagerfeld show for Chanel. It’s all white. It’s suit skirts. It’s a jewelry wasteland. Of course there were fabulously intricate white hats that dazzled the well-heeled crowd, but I’m not in the mood for white right now, Karl. This economy blows. I’m no longer getting my hair highlighted. I want an escape, not a reminder of how bland life is now that I'm off the $4 lattes.

























Thankfully, Christian Lacroix is my new ‘white’ knight in shining couture. Not only are there colors exploding all over his catwalk, but the jewelry is an over-the-top display of decadence the likes of which I’ve never seen before. It’s like going down a bauble-filled rabbit hole on crack.
















































Dinner plate-sized hoop earrings, stacks of mismatched lacquer and crystal cuffs, multiple layerings of giant necklaces, gilded heart-shaped lockets, faux fronds of coral, beaded everything but the kitchen sink… Clearly, words don’t do the show justice, but Style.com’s reviewer comes close:

“(The show) was a pleasure to witness and something to be inspired by. Even if only the very few will own a part of this collection, there's an idea in there for every fashion watcher: If you've got jewelry, it's time to bring it out and try piling it on all at once.”

























So perhaps we mere mortals can take a lesson from the ivory tower of runway fashion. If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Anything goes. If you’ve still got those rubber bangles from the 80s, put 'em on with your diamond necklace and that beaded choker you're afraid to wear for fear it makes you look 'easy'.

I may be getting a little couture-crazed, but if you don't want to scare the neighbors, you at least have to get the full effect of the Lacroix jewelry dreamscape by checking out the dizzying pics on Style.com. And be sure to pair your viewing with a nice pint of New York Super Fudge Chunk. You’ll thank me for it later.