If your were watching every second of Season 8 finale of Dancing With the Stars (and, really, who wasn’t?), you might have noticed a bracelet on the wrist of winners Shawn Johnson and Mark Ballas. The former Olympic gold medalist and her partner were sporting Energy Muse Luck Bracelets, which are designed to boost luck and clarity. (Judge alert — does that constitute an unfair advantage??)
The couple wore the bracelets during the last two weeks of the competition.
In an unrelated act of deep mojo, Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson has been wearing the Energy Muse Luck Necklace. And his team? Well, they are playing in the National Basketball Association Western Conference finals. Coincidence?
The company says soccer star David Beckham, Olympic volleyball players Elaine Youngs and Nicole Branagh, hockey players Natalie Darwitz and Kelly Stephens, and professional golfer Annika Sorenstam are among the athletes who wear also Energy Muse.
The necklaces and bracelets are made from Black tourmalinated quartz, Heishe shells, and — don’t miss this — ancient Chinese coins that invite luck and opportunity. The company says all these ingredients “unlock energy blockages and create an overall balance for the wearer.”
Sounds perfect for those of us who are “blocked and unbalanced”!
Since Mother€™s Day will be here before you know it, it€™s time to start thinking about a gift for the special mom in your life. New moms celebrating their first Mother€™s Day deserve special consideration.
If you want to give a gift that is sure to become a treasured family heirloom, check out jewelry designer Barry Kronen€™s new Babylicious collection, available at Ylang 23. When you send in a cherished photo, this image is then etched into the 18-karat gold charm of your choice using state-of-the-art technology.
Spring is the season not only of Easter but also of First Communions and confirmations. For little girls, the major purchase related to their First Communion (also called the First Holy Eucharist) is the celebratory white dress. MyGirlDress.com (also a good site for flower girl dresses, junior bridesmaid outfits and ring bearer tuxedos) has several of these pretty, long-skirted, white lacy dresses. The cap-sleeve Communion dress has a satin bodice and triple-layered tulle skirt ($59.50). A tea-length satin trim dress with organza skirt (pictured) has an adorable flower waistband and sash ($43.50). Sacco Company sells a wide variety of religious gifts and accessories. A First Communion Bible with a special prayer section comes in blue or pink ($22.95). The Catholic Company sells an attractive brushed-metal First Communion photo album ($15) and a pewter picture frame ($16), etched with First Communion symbols. For confirmation, Catholic teens traditionally select a saint from whom to take their confirmation name, and a medal of that saint in gold or sterling silver, with a chain, makes a nice present. The Catholic Company€™s catalog of saint medals has medal and chain combinations priced from $28 to $50. Abbey Press has a nice etched glass Confirmation plaque, decorated with a cross and dove ($30). Appropriate for both boys and girls, this Confirmation bracelet includes a pewter accent on a black cord ($12).
The designers at Ecoist have made a name for themselves with cute, clever goods that sturdily rework material that would otherwise have gone to waste: a line of handbags made from old movie billboards, for instance, or bracelets made from folded-up candy wrappers. Their new line of clutches, though ($58 each), sports a design that suggests the purses might have their own second life after serving their initial purpose: The sleek handbags (the Diva clutch is pictured), in materials ranging from funky to mod, are already available in a dainty 7.5-inch length, but are about to be offered in a swanky foot-long version that will look good at a nightclub. If and when the winds of fashion make them undesirable, though, give them to a guy like me, because I’ve found a perfect reuse: One of those foot-long clutches is the perfect size to hold a pocket digital camera, an iPod, a GPS and a cell phone (plus a couple of stray wires and headphones) so they won’t jostle around or get smashed in your backpack or suitcase; the quilty con- struction makes it rigid and padded enough that you needn’t worry much when struggling through airport security, and it can be retrieved easily from a plane’s overhead compartment for all your digi-entertainment needs. (Incidentally: The candy wrappers, soda labels and food packages used for this line are “repurposed” instead of “recycled,” which means they’ve never contained anything edible or ant-attracting; instead, they’re manufacturer misprints or excess packaging that would have gone into landfills if someone didn’t find a way to use them.)
It€™s almost sandal weather, tank-top and shorts time, the season of swimsuits drying on the line. If you’re already showing a bit more skin than usual, you might want to add one or two pieces of jewelry in an unexpected place.
No, we aren’t suggesting a new piercing, but maybe a toe ring? They’re fun and they bring an exotic flare to one little piggy while the other nine reap the extra attention.
Toe-rific Jewelry makes simple, inexpensive fitted rings, such as the sun-catching, gold-filled silver multi-hammered ring ($15). If you prefer gold jewelry, the Plumeria band ($60), a circle of little flowers, is delicate and feminine.
You may think you’re looking chic at work with those cute oversized hoop earrings or that trendy chunky bracelet, but you’re not.
That’s because of what is hanging around your neck. That clunky ID badge, bearing your name, rank and employee number, pretty much blows any style statement.
It generally hangs on a utilitarian black cord thingy and is probably the first thing people notice about your carefully crafted look.
But you don’t have to live under the thumb of the workplace fashion police. What you need is a bejeweled practical accessory.
