Marc by Marc Jacobs Store in Paris

• Scarfs for 15 euros.
  
• Rubber Marc by Marc Jacobs boots 5 euros.
• An excuse to keep shopping? Priceless.

Two new Marc by Marc Jacobs stores in Paris (one for men and the other for women) have opened up their doors with products starting as low as €2.00 (euros for those of you that don't know the symbol).
What is the World is coming too!! Can we see Valentino for a 5ver?

"Suits You Sir" - Tailored-made to Recession

The Amerikan luxury department store, Saks Fifth Avenue has announced a new service of made to order mens suits with "accessible prices.

The suits will be made from pre-existing patterns which then will be tailored to fit a customer's measurements and tastes. Prices in this new made-to-measure program will range from $1,195 to $1,395, compared to $1,600 and $1,900 for designer versions.

This service will be available in 12 Saks stores and will offer five styles and more than 200 Italian fabrics. Sport coats will cost $795 to $995 and trousers $295 to $395.
The average turnaround time for a made-to-measure item is three to four weeks.

Suits You Sir!

These Boots are Made for Walking

Louboutin’s Made to Order - The Ultimate Luxury

I don't think that we need to do a formal introduction when we speak about Christian Louboutin. Every woman in this planet knows about him and his sexy creations! Renowned both for his flattering stilettos and his sparkling personality, Christian Louboutin has become a darling of the chic-shod set.

Yet, the restless designer has ratcheted up his luxury profile even higher by quietly opening a Made-to-Measure salon on a courtyard across the street from his rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau headquarters.

“I was scared,” Louboutin says; At first I thought, What if I don’t have any clients?” Au contraire. In the past six months, 70 of Louboutin’s most faithful regulars—Sofia Coppola, Zoe Cassavetes, Arielle Dombasle, Liliane Bettencourt and Nobel laureate Toni Morrison among them—have given his bespoke service a whirl.

“This is a world of standardization,” he says. “So when a woman comes to me with a wish, it’s exciting to be able to realize it. To fulfill a woman’s precise desire—that is the ultimate luxury.”

And what can be more indulgent then your very own Custom made Louboutins!

If it's too Good to be true...EBay's Faux Case

Ever heard the expression: "If it's too Good to be true..."!

On June 4, a French court ruled against eBay in a case brought against it by French ultra-chic luxury retailer Hermès over the sale of three Hermès bags, including two fakes, for a total of 3,000 euros ($4,715.50).

It's not so much the size of the fine that's likely to be keeping eBay executives awake at night: 20,000 euros ($31,439.30) is relatively small change for a company the market values at $38.5 billion. Rather, it's the precedent that the ruling by the court in Troyes sets, as it could apply to cases that might cost eBay a lot more and force it to rethink its entire selling strategy.

In France, Christian Dior and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton have pending cases against eBay over counterfeit goods, worth 17 million euros ($26.7 million) and 20 million euros ($31.4 million), respectively, while in the U.S., Tiffany's case against the company completed its hearing stage last December.

Hermès is the first successful case against eBay in France, and the second time an online intermediary has been found liable in relation to counterfeit charges, says Georgie Collins, an intellectual property lawyer at London-based business law firm LG.

Europe is taking a tough look at the responsibilities of online vendors across the board. Last year in Germany, Rolex successfully sued eBay over a breach of its intellectual property rights, using the European Enforcement Directive of 2004, which harmonized intellectual property rights across Europe. The European Commission's e-commerce directive, which looks at the liability of intermediaries, is also under review.

The International Anti Counterfeiting Coalition estimates that counterfeiting has skyrocketed over the past two decades into a $600 billion industry. In her book on the history of luxury, Deluxe: How Luxury Lost Its Luster, Newsweek journalist Dana Thomas argues that the multibillion-dollar luxury goods industry has been particularly vulnerable. The democratization of the industry in the early 1990s brought luxury goods within the reach of the world's middle classes, in no small part fueled by China's emergence as a low-cost manufacturing center.

But along with the low-cost goods has come a raft of counterfeits. "The convergence of the two, big demand and big supply," Thomas argues, has had a "cataclysmic" effect on the luxury business.

SWAROVSKI RUNWAY TO ROCK LONDON

Swarovski RUNWAY ROCKS celebrates jewellery design and innovation showcasing the internationally acclaimed couture collection of spectacular catwalk jewels, specially commissioned by Swarovski from the most directional designers around the world!

This is a spectacular couture show with jewels from leading international designers including Manish Arora, Erickson Beamon, Francesca Bristol, Alexandra Byrne, Hussein Chalayan, Ana de Costa, Ligia Dias, Naomi Filmer, Elizabeth Galton, Collada Garcia, Zaha Hadid, Kirt Holmes, Christopher Kane, Farah Khan, Shaun Leane, Julien Macdonald, Hannah Martin, Corto Moltedo, Nusch, Mr Pearl, Johnny Rocket, Marios Schwab, Pippa Small and Rodrigo Otazu Jewellery!

Nadja Swarovski is bringing the company's Runway Rocks presentation — in which jewelry and fashion designers present one-off pieces created from crystallized Swarovski elements — back to London. The event made its debut in the city in 2003, and now designers including Shaun Leane, Christopher Kane, Pippa Small, Ana De Costa and Zaha Hadid , Rodrigo Otazu will produce pieces for this year's runway show, which takes place Wednesday at London's Phillips de Pury gallery. The event is presented in association with Coutts London Jewellery Week, which runs from June 11 to June 15.

After the show, Swarovski will also present its Atelier Swarovski collection of high-end pieces for fall. Designers including Christopher Kane, Giles Deacon, Jonathan Saunders and Doo.Ri have produced jewelry for the line, which is sold at retailers such as Selfridges and Harvey Nichols in London and Colette in Paris. The Atelier pieces, along with the jewelry made for the runway, will be shown at Phillips de Pury & Co. throughout the day Thursday, with the exhibition open to the public. Rock On!

Jean Charles de Castelbajac opens debut UK store

Brand house and supplier Marchpole opened the first UK store for its Jean Charles de Castelbajac brand in London today.

The 2,500 sq ft shop in Conduit Street has a pop-art themed concept and sells the French designer's men's and women's collections, as well as accessories, footwear and luggage.

"The store represents another important step in raising the brand's awareness on the international fashion stage. The JCC label has an established popularity in key brand driven markets and we continue to work with Jean Charles de Castelbajac to build on the success of the brand to date."
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How to Buy Gold Jewellery

Gold jewellery have been in vogue for centuries and they never go out of style for a good reason. Pure gold is as wearer-friendly and rather beautiful and doesn't react with other elements to create tarnish. However, buying gold jewellery can sometimes also be confusing. Whether you're considering a gift of jewellery for someone special or as a treat for yourself, here is a list of things you should know in order to get the best quality gold jewelry for your money, whether you're shopping for pure gold jewellery or Designer and Costume gold jewellery in a traditional brick and mortar store, by catalog or online.

1. How Pure Is Your Gold Jewelry?

When shopping for Gold jewellery you might find different markings on gold accompanied by a different range in pricing. Gold can be marked 18K, 14K, or 10K and in some countries even down to 9K.

But what does this means?

K is standing for karat, the system used to describe the proportion of gold is mixed with the other metals. The higher the karat number, the higher the percentage of gold in your gold jewellery and of course the higher the price. Most gold jewelry is marked with its karat quality, although marking is not required by law.

• 24K gold is pure gold. Because 24K gold is soft, it's usually mixed with other metals to increase its hardness and durability.

• 18K gold contains 18 parts gold and 6 parts of one or more additional metals, making it 75% gold.

• 14K gold contains 14 parts gold and 10 parts of one or more additional metals, making it 58.3% gold.

• 12K gold contains 12 parts gold and 12 parts of one or more additional metals, making it 50% gold.

• 10K gold contains 10 parts gold and 14 parts of one or more additional metals, making it 41.7% gold. In the United States, 10K gold is the minimum karat that can be called "gold".

• Solid gold refers to an item made of any karat gold, if the inside of the item is not hollow. The proportion of gold in the piece of jewelry still is determined by the karat mark.

2. European Markings:

European gold jewellery is marked with numbers that indicate their percentage of gold, such as:

• 18K gold is marked 750 to indicate 75% gold
• 14K gold is marked 585 for 58.5%
• 10K gold is marked 417 for 41.7%

In Italy and Greece gold jewelry are mainly produced in 18K & 14K gold, with 18K gold being the most popular.

3. Why Gold Is Mixed With Other Metals?

Pure gold is soft and isn't practical for daily wear. In order to make gold jewellery more durable and lower its cost, other metals are mixed with it.

Adding other metals to the mix also allows metallurgists to change the color of gold.
• Palladium or nickel can be added to create White gold.
• Copper produces a rose or pink tint, while silver gives gold a greenish cast.

When metals are added to the gold the result is an alloy, a blended mixture.

4. When Gold Is Used as a Coating

There are many ways to mechanically apply a coating of gold onto a much less expensive metal, reducing the item's cost. The thicker the layer of gold, the less likely it is to wear away easily and expose the metal underneath. Jewelry can be plated with gold in a variety of ways which are explained below:

5. Gold Vermeil

Gold Vermeil is a process which was developed in France in the mid-1700s and describes the combination of sterling silver with a heavy gold electroplating of 18k, 22k or 24K gold. A minimum thickness of 2.5 microns of gold must be deposited before a piece of jewellery can be marked or sold as Vermeil and is higher in quality. (Regular plating is less than 2.5 microns).

The White House has a collection of vermeil tableware kept on display (when not in use) in the Vermeil Room.

6. Gold Filled Jewelry

Gold-filled, gold overlay and rolled gold plate are terms used to describe the process in which a base metal, usually copper, is bonded with thinner ingots of gold. A "sandwich" is formed by mechanically bonding a layer of gold on both sides of the copper ingot. This "sandwich" is then cold worked by rolling or drawing until a much thinner gauge metal is achieved.

Products are then formed or die-struck from this layered material. The object is then gold plated to hide the edges, as they would otherwise reveal the sandwiched construction. Hallmarking will appear as 1/20th 14k gold filled, indicating that by weight, 1/20th of the metal content of the product is 14k gold.

7. Gold Plated Jewellery

Gold plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of gold onto the surface of another metal, most often copper or silver, by chemical or electrochemical means. The terms gold electroplate, or gold plated, indicates an applied coating of gold over a base metal.

The plated coating must not be less than 10k in fineness, to a minimum overall equivalent of seven millionths of an inch of fine gold. If the coating is equivalent to 100 millionths of an inch of fine gold it may be marked Heavy Gold Electroplate or HEP.

A coating that is any thinner must be marked Gold Flashed or Gold Washed.

Gold can be worked into nearly any shape, including tiny strands that do not break easily and can be manipulated nearly in any way a jeweler or artisan desires. However the price of a finished piece of gold jewelry, whether is made with real gold, gold plated or gold vermeil, will also be dependent on the Design, Craftsmanship and the Brand or Designer name that has signed off that piece of jewellery.�
You can view our collection of Designer & Costume Gold Jewellery here at Farfallina.net, most of which a finished in Gold Vermeil.

Back to Black - Giorgio Armani Emporio Collection

Theo Fennell quiting the jewellery firm

Jewellery designer Theo Fennell is to quit the jewellery firm he founded 26 years ago.

"Design has always been the hub of my professional life and so it will remain," said Mr Fennell. "However, there are a number of other design areas outside luxury goods with which I would like to become involved.

"Going forward, I hope to continue my relationship with the group and yet have the flexibility to enter new creative arenas." The Firm have unannouched that Discussions with Mr Fennell concerning a new long-term design contract were ongoing.