H2-Au??

Gold jewelry will always make my heart sing (despite the skyrocketing price these days), but there are some folks who take their gold obsessions to ridiculous heights.

Sure, we've heard of gold iphones, gold cars and gold fashion - but some folks want to trade in their Evian for a fancy bottle of gold-leaf spring water at a price you won't believe.

Billed by Exousia Luxury as an 'anti aging and anti-stress elixir', the company is putting natural spring water in a fancy bottle, throwing in some 24 karat gold petals and calling it the fountain of youth. Think Goldschlager for the health conscious.

So how much does it cost? Well, that's a big secret. You have to fill out a form on their website to qualify for that information, apparently. (Is this the Soho House or glorified tap water?). HOWEVER, this entry on the Luxury Insider site claims one bottle is $24,000! Seriously!!

I suggest staying young by indulging in a little gold retail therapy instead. These gold hoops from JCPenney are under $50 on Jewelry.com - just one example of many gold gems you can get without taking out a second mortgage to quench your thirst.

Yellow Gold Continues to Shine for Fall

Gold jewelry was all the rage this summer, with stars sporting it to red carpet events and fashionistas adding yellow gold sparkle to their spring collection selects. Now, InStyle is predicting that the sunny hue has serious staying power right into fall.

Claiming that jewelry mavens should focus on pieces that are "glossy, gilded and gorgeous", InStyle picked a selection of 18kt yellow gold items that illustrated their point, including a gold pendant from Sophia Flore and a striking gold butterfly brooch from celebrity jeweler and Christina Aguilera BFF, Stephen Webster.

But not all of us have gold record royalties to use when snapping up our jewels for the fall season.



Enter: JewelClub.

You Jewelry Insider veterans are well aware of this great Friends and Family site that I’ve been sharing with my readers for the past year. Trust me: you’ll be hard pressed to find prices this low out there in the real world.

Just enter the code: INSIDER when you login to www.jewelclub.com and shop hundreds of fine jewelry styles – from diamonds and gemstones to silver and yes, yellow gold – all at prices well below retail.

Check it out for yourselves. If you’re not a ‘trendy’ shopper, it's a perfect way to stock up on staples. I, personally, need some diamond studs like pronto – and am snapping up a pair for less than $100. Seriously.

So grab your yellow gold, your diamond studs, whatever jewel is calling your name – and let me know how you make out. Summer is almost over but that doesn’t mean the sparkle has to stop, right?

Diamonds, Yellow Gold and Bunny Ears Marvel at The Met

The jewelry, the gowns, the divas, the drama – all were present and accounted for at The Costume Institute’s gala at The Met last night in the Big Apple. And true to its reputation as the fashion world’s Oscars, anyone who is anyone in the fashion and celebrity circles got their grubby little hands on an invite.

Jewelry was - for the most part - an understated affair, with lots of diamond studs, cuffs and statement earrings. And model, Agnyess Deyn, sported a huge diamond necklace to rival the likes of those on the Hollywood red carpets.
But it was the clothes that took center stage last night with yellow gold and blue emerging as the colors of choice, hemlines ranging from ‘too short’ to ‘tutu-esque’ and the pants suit threatening to steal the girly gown’s thunder.

The winners for me were classics like Marion Cotillard in Dior and Chopard diamonds, Renee Zelwegger in olive green Carolina Herrera with a matching statement necklace, and a vampy Anne Hathaway in Marc Jacobs and Van Cleef. Love that she’s taking a page out of the Drew Barrymore bed-head playbook, right?














And my favorite jewelry look had to be on Jessica Alba, who sported Angelina-inspired emerald earrings to go with her Jason Wu bejeweled number.















And the losers? OK. You know how I loathe the misguided pants suit. And I would have made an exception for Rihanna, had the mini-mouse sleeves not put the look over the top. I just really wish I could embrace the D & G sleeve silhouette they've littered their spring and fall lines with – but it just looks silly to me. Am I right?





























Leighton Meister and Kate Moss in a Liz Taylor-inspired turban (yes, a turban) went a bit too far off the fashion trail for my taste.















And finally, a word (or a few) about Madonna. A part of me knows she is aware that the blue bunny ears are ridiculous. A part of me knows she wears the thigh-high boots and lingerie-inspired outfits because - well – she can.

But a part of me is longing for a Madonna fashion paradigm shift like she used to give us when she emerged with black hair or a kimono or a pointed bra. This is just feelin’ tired.

What do you guys think of the looks last night? Weigh in!

And don’t forget to Twitter with me and my sugar mamma, Jewelry.com for all the latest jewelry tidbits from the around the globe.

It’s a tough life, but somebody’s gotta Twitter it!

Julia Is Back in Basic Black

Julia Roberts is back on the red carpet promoting her film, Duplicity, after a long hiatus. And while it’s great to see the Pretty Woman back in action, the Hollywood A-lister is clearly not taking any big risks in the fashion department.

Roberts wore a (yawn) black pants suit with yellow gold hoops on the carpet in London and a Lanvin LBD with classic diamond drops in gay Paris. She looked stunning, of course, but here’s hoping she takes it up a notch once she makes it back states-side.



















While Julia Roberts is arguably the most bankable leading lady working today, it took a bit of coaxing from co-star Clive Owen to get the mother-of-three out of semi-retirement.

"I [took] her out for lunch and told her that I'd read a script that was dynamite and it would be great for the two of us to do it," he said at the premiere. "She was actually pregnant, so I had to wait another year before she finally read it and said yes."

And even though the superstar made noise to red carpet reporters about wanting to work in the London theater, she isn’t making any big plans in the near future.

“I’d like to do it when by kids are a little bigger. It’s a big transplant to come over here, though, and it would take up a lot of time. But a girl can dream!”

Maybe she'll get used to the spotlight again and start taking more risks - in front of the cameras and in the fashion department (a girl can dream). But, for now, I'll take classic Julia while I can get it.