New Favorite Picture Book: Rumors I've Heard About Anna Wintour

By Lisa Hanawalt. Check it out.

-B

Paris Hilton - Jewelry Thief?

Is Paris Hilton the latest paparazzi princess to add jewelry thief to her illustrious resume?

According to the New York Daily News, the 'heirhead' is being sued by German insurance giant, Allianz, for not returning $60,000 worth of Damiani loaner jewelry that was stolen (and subsequently recovered) from her house in that notorious celebrity jewelry crime spree back in 2009.

Why do I feel like I've been in this movie before?

"Despite having recovered Damiani's jewelry, \[Hilton has\] failed to return all of the jewelry to Damiani as required by the Agreements," the suit said.

In court paper, Allianz said Damiani in 2007 loaned Hilton $60,000 of jewelry to wear for public appearances. As part of the deal, Hilton agreed to stash the jewelry in a safe or a vault whenever she wasn't wearing it.

But, or course, our Paris does whatever she darn well pleases - so she left the baubles for the world to grab in her unlocked, unalarmed Beverly Hills mansion. And now that the police have long recovered the stolen bling, she just hasn't 'bothered' to return it to its rightful owners.

I'm of half a mind to think she's doing it to get back in the headlines after Lindsay Lohan and Kim Kardashian stole her 'famous for being famous' thunder this year. But my guess is? She's just not into details.

No comment yet from the Hilton camp. Why can't these ladies get their diamond details down? Is this just poor planning or an 'I'm above it all' attitude gone bad?

Spring Clean Your Jewelry Box

Jewelry hounds, it's time to start thinking about the dreaded spring cleaning ritual. And I'm not talking about the dust bunnies under your bed or the windows that are now a dull shade of charcol.

Nope - I'm talking about your jewelry box. You know, the one with three stray gold chains, four random earrings and that cocktail ring that's missing a stone?
With spring jewelry trends looking bigger and bolder by the minute, it's time to get that treasure chest in tip top shape. Put down your iPad, stack up the fashion mags and step away from Facebook for just an hour or two and get this shiny show on the road.

Step one: Gather up all 'one' piece earrings. If the earring doesn't have a partner then place it a Ziploc bag. Keep the bag somewhere safe - after all you never know when the errant partner may turn up, but at least for now all singles are safely stored.

Step two: Detangle chains. If a pendant is missing, throw the chain (or set it aside to sell later). You know you'll never wear it again.

Step three: Everything (and I mean everything) deserves a jewelry spa day. Clean, brush and wipe - and I promise you - 'like new' is a phrase you'll say over and over.

If using a commercial jewelry cleaner, use a brand name and follow the instructions on the label. You can also soak your diamond jewelry in a small bowl of warm, soapy water made with any mild liquid detergent. Gently brush the piece with a soft toothbrush while it is in the suds to dislodge any dust or dirt from under the setting. Then, rinse under warm running water. Pat dry with a soft, lint-free cloth.

You can also clean your jewels by soaking them in a glass of vodka. Now we're talking!.

Step four: Do a basic jewelry checklist.

• Diamond studs
• Pearl drops
• Cocktail ring
• Diamond Right Hand Ring
• Gold necklace
• Pearl necklace
• Chandelier earrings
• Diamond pendant

Step five: If any of the above are missing, go directly to sample sale sensation, Jewel Club  to get wholesale prices and below for all of your basic jewelry needs.


See? Doesn't that feel better?

Prince William's Wedding Band Diss

What gives, Wills? I've been bombarded with reports that the King of England-to-be will (gasp!) NOT be wearing a royal wedding band.

Kate Middleton, of course, will be putting the pedal to the metal with a Welsh gold band bequeathed by the Queen, but her famous fiance is rejecting the most hallowed of bridal traditions for no other reason than - he just doesn't have a taste for jewelry.

Yeah, neither does most of the warm-blooded male population, but they suck it up and wear the universal symbol for 'I'm taken' just the same. Just sayin'.

“It was something the couple discussed, but Prince William isn’t one for jewelry,” a St. James Palace aid tells the Daily Mail. “It really is just down to personal preference.”

It’s a bold decision for any groom to make, royal or no. Even Will’s father, Charles, wears a wedding band beneath his signet ring. But according to insiders, the Prince has Kate’s blessing.

What do you guys think of William's wedding band balk? Is it OK for guys (any guy - not just the most famous groom on the planet) to take a pass on the wedding band tradition? Or is it all's fair in love and ring fingers? Thoughts?

DIY Shredded Shirt

Shredded tees have been on the scene for a while now, but I wasn't too sure about how I felt about them -most are super grungy looking, something I wasn't sure I had the guts for. Plus, such shirts are really expensive considering they're just de-constructed.

(This top, although really cool, is for sale on Etsy for $58.00)

After beginning to clean out my stuff to make moving out in a month (WEIRD) easier, I found a few old t-shirts and decided to give it a go with the help of this tutorial, which got rave interviews by everyone in the crafting community. Watch it -she explained it better than I ever could!

The process is really easy, but takes a few hours, so this is a good project to do while you're watching a movie.

This is the second shirt I shredded, the first was a polyester-cotton blend and was a little harder to do. This one is 100% cotton and took about 2 hours. Experiment with stripes and the looseness of shredding depending on what look you want!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

-B

Transformers Dresses

I recently found this video of a runway show,

from British avante-guarde designer Hussein Chalayan's 2007 collection, and it is insane.

Take a look, there is technology in the clothes that actually allows it to transform into a completely different look before your eyes! Watch out for a special surprise at the end!

4

What do you all think?

<3

Claire

p.s. it has been SO SUNNY in Walla Walla lately,

and it is killing me that summer is so far away!

April Is Diamond Month - Birthstones, Brides and Brits, Oh My!

Jewelry hounds, just when we thought our Awards Show jewelry withdrawal was going to get the better of us, in walks April with a swagger and a promise:

Hold on to your "holy cow!" - It's going to be one doozy of a diamond month!

Why? Well, let's get the most obvious reason out of the way first.  For those of you living in a cave, the royal wedding is this month! Not only will we get to ooh and ahh at Kate Middleton's wedding jewelry, we can gawk at all the other crown jewels and gems that are sure to make an apperance.

These ladies never met a tiara they didn't like, Mary. For reals.

Stay tuned for all my jewelry-laden lead up to the big day on April 29th. And I'm of half a mind to Live Tweet the darn thing. Any takers for #royaljewelry?

OK. The next big reason to celebrate April? It's this month's birthstone. (Please excuse me while I seethe with envy at all you April babies). BUT even if you're not born in April, many folks in bauble land are celebrating - including JewelClub with their April Is Diamond Month extravaganza.

Today, for example, I saw on their FaceBook Page that they are cutting the price of this 1/2 ct three-stone diamond anniversary ring by 83%. Not sure what they're smoking over there, but as Meg Ryan famously said in When Harry Met Sally...

"I'll have what they're having..."

And they promise to slash the prices of lots of diamond classics all month - just check in on their Homepage and bring on the ice.

So we while we red carpet jewelry gawkerts have to wait until May 2nd to get a legitimate fix (The Met's Costume Institute Gala is scheduled then - stay tuned), April is picking up the slack in a MAJOR way.

No foolin'!