In honor of Mothers Day, Dominion of Light Jewels will be offering free shipping through May 8! And as always, all orders are sent out in lovely gift boxes with gift cards. If you would like a special message on your gift card just send me an email!
Edited: April 29th, 2010
One of the best reasons to go to the movies in my humble opinion (or watch them on Netflix for that matter) is for the costumes and jewelry: the textures, the colors, the sheer dramatic opulence of costume dramas is all too wonderful to my eyes. There is a plethora of films wherein the jewelry is magnificent: think of An Ideal Husband, Room with a View, Howard’s End, (none of which unfortunately, could I find images for the fabulous jewelry that I still remember).
Of course, there’s Titanic with Kate Winslet in the fated diamond necklace—
Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth, resplendent in oodles of pearls and precious stones—
Liz Taylor as uber-Cleopatra—
Audrey in Funny Face wearing a stunning red gown and diamond necklace—
Audrey, gorgeous once again in Breakfast at Tiffany’s—
Nicolle Kidman, Juliane Moore and Meryl Streep wearing lovely pieces from their respective eras in the Hours —
Helena Bonham Carter as villainess in one of the Harry Potter films —
Emily Blunt as The Young Victoria —
And in a complete change of scene, the wealthy Roman ladies—one of them being Lucy Lawless from Xena fame—from the new series Spartacus (more on that later) —
Edited: April 28th, 2010
Hummingbirds — it’s said that seeing one brings Good Luck! Here are 3 to feast your eyes upon—
All photos from National Geographic.
Edited: April 23rd, 2010
Pearls — shimmering, mysterious, illuminating. Chic, and classic today, treasured for centuries as the “Queen of Gems”, pearls are equated with wealth, nobility, purity and otherworldliness.
In ancient India it is said that Krishna plucked one from the sea for his daughter’s wedding, Queen Elizabeth the 1st went around covered in them.
Pearls have been desired and worn by women for their beauty and for their talismanic properties.
Coco Chanel loved them and brought them out of the realm of the very wealthy, making them fashionable and accessible for everyone.
Jacqueline Kennedy and Grace Kelly looked gorgeous in their simple strands. And then of course, there’s Audrey —
I have recently fallen head over heels in love with the pearl’s iridescent allure. And so for these newest additions to the collections, you will find pearls in many beautiful colors and shapes. Here are three of the newest necklaces with pearls—
Click on All Jewels to see the new necklaces and earrings!
Edited: April 16th, 2010
The Paramount — just the word paramount conjures up something gloriously bigger than life. And it is. Probably the most spectacular movie palace in the US, only 3 miles from Emeryville, in Oakland, CA
Designed by renowned San Francisco architect Timothy L. Pflueger, the building was completed in 1931. I’m quoting here from their website:
“After its initial brief blaze of ‘movie palace’ glory in the 1930′s, this remarkable auditorium suffered three decades of neglect and decline until its rescue by the Oakland Symphony, the City of Oakland and numerous private donors. The building was purchased by the Board of Directors of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra Association in 1972. A painstaking and authentic restoration was completed in 1973 and the theatre was entered in the National Register of Historic Places on August 14th of that year”.
We went with some friends to “Movie Classics” Night. One of the best deals in the world and absolute heaven. For a mere $5 you get to walk around this wonderful space, admiring the stunning artwork and grand vistas, see a fabulous show which begins with live music on the original Wurlitzer pipe organ, a spin the wheel game (wherein audience members win dinners at local restaurants), old cartoons, vintage newsreels and finally a grand old film. The screen is huge. The theater is usually filled and the audience (we’re talking a few thousand people) is wildly enthusiastic — clapping along with the music and cheering during the film. We saw Captain Blood (b&w, 1935) with Errol Flynn, one of the original swashbuckling hunks (gorgeous) and Olivia D’Haviland, fabulous as the beautiful and precocious young woman who falls for Captain Blood.
At the end of the film, the audience files out to more live music played on the organ. Everyone seemed so happy. How lovely to go back in time, to an era that sometimes seems more innocent, and perhaps romantic — for just a few carefree hours.
A few photos: From inside, looking at the front entrance—
Details of wall art —
One of the Ladies’ Lounges—
Mural from another lounge —
Bartender, looking like a Hopper painting, in the cocktail area —
An entrance to the seating area —
The Grand Stage —
Edited: April 13th, 2010
You may wonder what clouds have to do with new necklaces and earrings?
Well, it’s like this: I recently designed some lovely new pieces for the collections, which we planned on photographing this weekend.
The photos are done with natural lighting. The weather for the last week was fabulous with golden sunny days, and the weatherman predicted a lovely weekend. Perfect for photography!
However, when I woke up this morning the sky was filled with clouds and it’s gotten darker and grayer as the day progresses.
The clouds outside our window—
Unfortunately, tomorrow’s supposed to be more of the same —
Hopefully they’ll be sunshine on Monday . . .
Edited: April 10th, 2010
You peer longingly outside your office window to see that the clouds of early morning have given way to a bright sun. Outside you know it’s warm and balmy. And then you make the decision to leave your desk right smack in the middle of this workday. You pick up your bag, and while going towards the elevator, you smile enticingly at the cute guy down the hall (he wishes he knew where you’re going). You go down to the parking structure, jump in your car and head for the beach. A few hours later you begin to smell the salty air. You roll down your windows and feel the wind rippling your hair. When finally you arrive, you leap from your car and head for the water. The sand is hot under your feet. Just beyond, the blue-green waves roll gently in to shore.
It’s heaven.
You rip off your work clothes (you just happen to have a bikini underneath). You begin to run, plunging into the warm ocean, glorying in the caress of the sea on your body.
Later you lie lazily on the sand. Wishing you had brought the book (Lorna Doone) you had started reading last night. Suddenly your eye is caught by something green. You pick it up, turning it around in your hand. It’s a necklace of green stones with a shimmering mother of pearl center. You wonder how it got there—looking as it does—that it could have belonged to a Naiad; who perhaps left it there for you—a gift for the free spirit that you are.
“Hey! Wake up!” Someone is jostling your shoulder.
It’s the cute guy down the hall.
“You dozed off,” he says, “we’ve got a meeting in 5 minutes.
You shake your head, trying to wake up.
“I was dreaming,” you tell him while looking into his blue-green eyes.
He grins, takes your hand and pulls you up. ”What are you doing tomorrow?”
“What’s tomorrow?” you ask.
“Saturday!”
“Think I’ll drive to the beach,” you say.
“Mind if I come along,” he asks.
“Maybe,” you answer enigmatically, “if the spirit moves me.”
“Nice necklace,” he says as you brush past him .
Your hand flies to to the space just below your collarbone. OMG, you feel the smooth stones resting against your skin . . .
Edited: April 8th, 2010
A client called me yesterday to tell me that she wore one of her Dominion of Light Jewels necklaces to a party over the weekend and got not one, but three compliments! The one that she loved the best was that her necklace was a wonderful “flight of fancy”. I too love this idea — as flights of fancy are what take us out of our everyday and often stressful lives, giving us feelings of happiness and exhileration. And so I started thinking about flights of fancy as they appear in the other arts—
Architectural flights of fancy:
Gaudi of course—
The fantastical House of Chimeras in Kiev—
Midford Castle in England—
In fashion, the marvelous creations of the late Alexander McQueen—
In art (where do I begin, the choice is endless) — just a few— Rousseau for example —
Chagall —
And of course ( in another example of shameless self-promotion) the creations of Dominion of Light Jewels. Check out the collections!
Edited: April 6th, 2010
The magic of color!
Blooming —
Glorious color!
The delights of Spring —
The promise of Summer —
Edited: April 3rd, 2010
— one must always be different. ” Coco Chanel
Words from a strong and highly successful woman. I would also add —in order to be remembered, admired, even perhaps, (do I dare go this far) adored.
And what is the definition of different: distinct, differing from all others, unusual, unique. As in life, fashion and oh dear, how can I resist — jewelry!
Edited: April 1st, 2010
