An extremely rare translucent pink diamond fetched a price of $10.8 million at a Sotheby’s auction on Tuesday, the third-highest price ever paid for one of the pink stones at auction.
“It is the third-highest price for a pink diamond at auction,” auctioneer David Bennett told journalists after the sale.
The 10.99-carat, emerald-cut stone was classed as a type IIa diamond, with the type II category making up less than two percent of gem diamonds.
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Reputed fashion blog Fashionista is reporting that Italian designer Riccardo Tisci is set to take over as the new designer for Christian Dior.
The former creative director for Givenchy is rumoured to replace John Galliano following his sacking over Anti-Semitic charges last month
“He’s also…openly discussing his move to Dior with certain acquaintances,” writes editor Lauren Sherman. “And while we still don’t think the official Dior announcement will happen until September, we’re pretty sure the deal is sealed.”
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The wait is almost over: two years after the Lebanese designer Elie Saab announced his debut scent, the launch has been scheduled for this summer.
Called simply Le Parfum, the fragrance developed by perfumer Francis Kurkdjian (Le Male by Jean Paul Gaultier) will be available from July.
Kurkdjian came up with a flowery-woody composition of orange blossom, jasmine, cedar, patchouli, and rose honey that will come in 30, 50 and 90 ml eau de parfum bottles as well as matching body products.
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The House of Martell has launched The Martell Trunk made in collaboration with Pinel & Pinel, the renowned French luxury malletier.
This journey of the senses takes place against the gently lit backdrop of the leatherlined compartments and drawers, offering the Martell Collection such as Cordon Bleu, XO, or L’Or de Jean Martell.
Furthermore, Martell has endowed this trunk with twenty-eight montres that contain the most unique and exclusive blends.
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French labels are the most sought-after luxury products for Chinese shoppers as a booming economy creates a growing legion of newly affluent consumers.
French brands are the top choice for mainland buyers, followed by those from Italy and Hong Kong, consultants KPMG said in their report “Luxury experiences in China”, based on a survey of 1,200 consumers from 24 cities.
“China continues its march towards becoming the largest luxury market in the world,” said Nick Debnam, the firm’s head of consumer markets for Asia Pacific.
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South Korea’s capital city has told Italian fashion house Fendi to remove all fur items from a show of its fall/winter collection due to complaints from animal rights groups.
“We have received complaints from animal rights activists and saw negative public opinion on the Internet… we can’t let such a controversial thing be staged at a public property,” a spokesman for the city government told AFP.
Fendi has scheduled the show on June 2 at a newly-built floating island on the Han River, which the city wants to promote as a landmark.
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Confirming earlier rumors, actress Hailee Steinfeld has been named the latest star to represent the Italian fashion label.
A Prada spokesperson told E! News: “I can confirm Hailee Steinfeld has been shot to appear in the new Miu Miu fall/winter 2011 campaign.”
The young actress, who bagged an Oscar nomination for her role in True Grit, was one of the past award season’s red carpet favorites, wearing everything from Prabal Gurung to Alberta Ferretti, but mostly opting for Prada‘s younger sister label Miu Miu.
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For several years now, the only real option for sports car lovers who wanted to go electric was the Tesla Roadster — a Lotus Elise-based EV with a top speed of over 200km/h and a range of nealr 400 km.
But this week, a British engineering company unveiled a new prototype which one day could present a real challenge, the Delta E-4 Coupé.
Boasting a carbon composite chassis, the two-door vehicle can reach 60 mph (97 km/h) in less than five seconds, thanks to its lightweight frame which weighs just 85 kg — the whole vehicle weighs an impressively low 975 kg.
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On the occasion of the Cannes International Film Festival, Louis Vuitton has opened a pop-up store on the Croisette.
Next to its existing Cannes store, the temporary shop focuses on what the town is famous for: incredible films and elegant eveningwear.
“The Maison celebrates its attachment to the city of Cannes by unveiling an exceptional custom tailored store in homage to the world of cinema.”
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Moet Hennessy, the wine and spirits arm of LVMH luxury group, said Thursday it was planting its first vineyard in China to produce a premium sparkling wine.
The 66-hectare (163-acre) vineyard will be planted as a joint venture with the publicly-owned agricultural development firm of the Ningxia Hui autonomous region in northwestern China.
The maker of Moet and Chandon champagne will build and own a facility near the vineyard to produce the high-end sparkling wine, which is to be sold locally under the Chandon label, LVMH said.
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American Express and French internet sales specialist vente-privee.com announced Thursday a new joint venture to introduce an online platform to sell designer brands in the United States.
Each partner will invest around $20 million in the new enterprise, which has yet to be named, vente-privee chief executive Jacques-Antoine Granjon said.
The new online shopping destination will be launched before the end of the year, added Granjon who was voted “Businessman of the Year 2010” by GQ Magazine.
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Louis Vuitton is the world’s most valuable luxury brand for the sixth consecutive year according to Millward Brown Optimor’s 2011 BrandZ study.
The brand, owned by Paris-based LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, has a value of $24.3 billion, an increase of 23 percent from 2010.
That’s almost as much as the combined values of Hermes, Gucci and Chanel, which ranked second, third and fourth in this year’s luxury-brand standings.
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Tours of the world’s first space port, which is situated in the state of New Mexico, are to begin this week, it has been confirmed.
Spaceport America will open its doors to the public for three-hour tours from May 13, giving visitors an insight into the space flight facility.
The port is currently set to be the launch pad for Virgin Galactic as of 2013, when Richard Branson’s attempt to take tourists into space is expected to blast off.
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Following the release of Violent Lips’ zebra- or cheetah-print temporary lip tattoos and the growing popularity of leopard-print eye makeup, Dolce & Gabbana, are jumping on the bandwagon with their new beauty collection Animalier.
Inspired by the Italian designers’ famed feline patterns, the range, which centers around a leopard-print bronzer, launches at the end of May.
“What I especially love about the Animalier collection is that it is so versatile — there are no rules because the palette is so compatible.”
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Etihad Airways has launched new amenity kits for male and female passengers travelling in First class on flights between Abu Dhabi and selected cities.
In the following weeks, the new kits will be made available progressively across the airline’s First class long-haul route network.
Women’s kits include moisturises, lip balm and hand cream from La Prairie as well as a Swarovski crystal adorned black purse suitable for storing cosmetics.
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Two dresses worn by the late princess Diana were sold at an auction house in Beverly Hills Sunday for a total of $276,000, Julien’s auction house announced.
The first dress — a black crepe evening gown with diamante paste embroidery on the short-sleeved top inspired by Indian motifs — went for $144,000.
It was purchased for Diana’s 1992 visit to India, when she accompanied her then-husband, Prince Charles on the trip.
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The French fragrance foundation awarded its annual prizes exclusively to local brands last week.
Its main awards for best fragrance of the year went to Yves Saint Laurent’s Belle d’Opium, in women’s perfumes and Bleu de Chanel in the men’s category.
All other winning brands, including Lancôme, Hermès, or Biotherm, also hail from France.
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The buildings housing the British parliament could host wedding receptions and open their restaurants to the public under plans unveiled on Tuesday.
A cross-party committee of lawmakers even suggested that the historic Westminster Hall, where king Charles I was tried and Winston Churchill was laid in state, could be hired out for private functions at £25,000 ($41,000).
The dining terrace alongside the River Thames may also be opened to the public.
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Giambattista Valli has just been elected as guest of the French Chambre Syndicale, the organization in charge of the haute couture shows.
In what is an unusual move for the notoriously exclusive committee consisting of design houses such as Armani, Valentino and Elie Saab, a young and independent designer has been granted a spot on the official schedule for the July shows.
According to the calendar, his show will take place at the Galerie de la Madeleine where his new store and atelier are based.
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The House of Martell, the oldest of the great cognac houses, presents the most exceptional object ever created in the world of cognac, a unique trunk made in collaboration with Pinel & Pinel, the renowned French luxury malletier.
A mobile trunk-case which is the largest ever produced: an impressive 2,06 meters high, 2,20 meters wide and 0.70 meters deep.
After the design phase, ten craftsmen have built, assembled, fashioned and fitted this trunk for a total of almost a thousand man-hours.
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Celebrities including Vanessa Paradis, Blake Lively, and Rachel Bilson looked on as Karl Lagerfeld showed his annual Croisière collection at the Hotel du Cap in Antibes on the French Riviera on May 9.
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