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Hi, it’s Stellene, now fully recovered from my Kyoto Chanel jet lag (is there any other kind?). The journey to Japan was the last of my High Jewelry trips for this season and the Chanel itinerary—and HJ necklaces—were worth every second of that flight (I flew to Osaka through L.A., a route I recommend. I like to be in a city I know whenever I have a connection. If I miss it, I can always call a friend to put me up for the night). We stayed at the Six Senses Kyoto where I loved the serene vibe and the truly excellent breakfast (I will never not wake up dreaming of an onsen egg with white rice and rice bread with matcha butter). We walked through the exquisitely meditative Moss Garden, marveled at the radical modernity of the 17th-century Katsura Imperial Villa, ate every single drop of the Daigo Soba at Saryo Tesshin, wondered how much tempura is too much tempura as we devoured everything at Ten You, put ourselves completely in the hands and world of artist/chef Masayo Funakoshi at Farmoon, and stood longingly outside of Monk while admiring the polite bluntness of the sign outside the impossible-to-book restaurant basically telling people not to even try, but in a really nice way. But now, for the jewelry at hand.
Stellene Volandes
Hearst Owned
The Best I Have Seen This Month
Stellene Volandes
-The Chanel High Jewelry collection I was in Kyoto to see was called “Reach for the Stars.” In case we had forgotten the phrase was written in the sky during a drone show at the gala dinner, preceded by drones illustrating some of the pieces we had seen earlier that day. There were audible gasps. The collection itself was marked by the house’s jewelry icons (the comet, the lion) and its new Wings motif (“If you were born without wings, do nothing to prevent them from growing,” said Coco Chanel). The stones in the collection are incredibly impressive (that 20-plus-carat Padparadscha sapphire), but also, as fellow jewelry obsessive Vincent Meylan (follow him!) pointed out to me, Chanel has established its jewelry signatures quite definitively in a relatively short amount of time. This is certainly true of High Jewelry but also of the Coco Crush line. I’ve worn a yellow gold bangle from that collection for the last two years nonstop and people do recognize the quilting almost immediately. It’s not an easy thing and it’s what everyone is after.
Stellene Volandes
I was especially drawn to the “masterpiece” comet necklace (more on that soon in T&C) and another that used rock crystal in a way that was both contemporary and Art Deco (a period celebrating a centenary this year). There was an elegance about it all, everything felt exquisite but not excessive. I realize that might be a ridiculous thing to say about one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry, but it made sense to me that this collection was shown in Kyoto, a place where intention and thoughtfulness in all things, and especially in design, is paramount. I am always interested to see how the big ideas presented in the High Jewelry collections appear in the “ready to wear” fine jewelry lines. The comet, for instance (and it’s a comet, not a star, which makes a huge difference once it is pointed out. There is action to a comet, power, less twinkle twinkle), appears in charm form. A woman was wearing one at the gala dinner in Kyoto and several editors present took pictures for future reference.
Stellene Volandes
-On the way to Japan (it’s a long flight) I got to thinking about “flight jewelry”—those pieces you wear every time you get on a plane, mostly because we are all, even if secretly, pretty superstitious. I looked down at my own Ten Thousand Things lapis and coral evil eye charm and then started asking friends about theirs. The jeweler Jennifer Meyer messaged me about her good luck charm necklace, her large turquoise leaf (“Turquoise is a very protective stone for traveling!”) and her grandmother’s pearl ring. Jewelry PR exec Danielle Gadi sent me a picture of her Marlo Laz Porte Bonheur pendant, and Christina Juarez’s travel stack includes an old Helen Figelora initial charm, an Ippolita diamond Paloma, her dad’s Italian horn St. Christopher’s medal, and a Jennifer Creel initial clover necklace. The only issue, she told me, is that it all “really pisses off security.”
Stellene Volandes
-The Jessica McCormack (she of Zendaya engagement ring fame) store opened on Madison and it’s one of those places you are going to want to live in. Especially if it comes with one of her gold torque necklaces with the Exceptional Stone diamonds.
Stellene Volandes
-Speaking of torques, I have a prediction: I think it’s going to be a Torque Girl Summer. The ancient style, which was #trending in Celtic mythology, has been dominating my jewelry appointments. There was a wood and emerald torque (see below) at my Antonia Miletto meeting at Fred Leighton (Miletto was a chapter in my first book, is a close friend, and also one of my must stops in Venice). Sidney Garber has a great gold one with a hanging pearl. And I wore a torque with an Edwardian gold and ruby locket hanging from it (thank you Rebecca from Fred Leighton—and Sirens fame!) at the Tony Awards. I much prefer this strong and simple style to the “neck messes” of yore.
Stellene Volandes
Stellene Volandes
-I am newly obsessed with the classic Elsa Peretti gold starfish. I have the one on the black cord. It’s a great summer jewel but I’ve been wearing it for the last few months. Also just saw it in diamonds at the Tiffany Landmark on Fifth.
-I did not attend the annual jewelry trade shows in Vegas (though I enjoyed following T&C’s Hannah Morrolf and our friend Briony Raymond’s adventures there) but I did get a preview of the Lalaounis collection from the sisters themselves. That black and gold choker I wear comes in carnelian, and also in a bracelet, and the classic Lalaounis double lion open bracelet now comes in wood and gold. You will want it. I do.
Stellene Volandes
Hearst Owned
A Perfect NYC Night
I like to say this is why we live here because otherwise, even I have to admit it can get hard. My plans this month.
Stellene Volandes/Getty Images
-I went to the Tony Awards, and, at least for me, you don’t get a more perfect NYC night than that. The Hamilton 10-year reunion was as great as I expected and a reminder that Leslie Odom Jr. is reprising his role as Aaron Burr (sir) on stage starting in September. And Nicole Scherzinger’s Sunset Boulevard has extended until July 20. I am also going to go see Buena Vista Social Club again and want to make sure to get to John Proctor Is the Villain. I also put several shows on my fall calendar, including Art by Yasmina Reza starring Bobby Cannavale, James Corden, and Neil Patrick Harris; Chess with Lea Michele and Aaron Tveit; Ragtime; and The Queen of Versailles with Kristin Chenoweth. I saw Versailles in Boston last summer and can’t wait to see how it has evolved, and also to see that set take over Broadway. Now just waiting to hear when the Florence Welch Gatsby I loved so much on that same theater trip will be opening.
Stellene Volandes
I was very happy with all the winners. And loved seeing my friend Tony Marion (below, with Ariana DeBose) up on stage with Andrew Lloyd Webber when Sunset won Best Revival (he was in rock crystal and diamond vintage Cartier studs and cufflinks from Briony Raymond). I wish everyone had the chance to hear Harvey Fierstein’s Lifetime Achievement Award speech and the one given by Gary Edwin Robinson, head of the Theatre Arts Program at Boys and Girls High School in Brooklyn, who got the Excellence in Theatre Education Tony. Hoping next year they are incorporated into the live broadcast. Look them up if you can. They were filled with the kind of raw emotion and genuine joy that makes the Tonys different from other award shows. When I interviewed production designer Steve Bass about the set he created for the event, he mentioned the “grit and glamour” of theater life—and it’s what I love most about this ceremony. I also love the after-party Broadway PR czar Rick Miramontez always throws at the Caryle. I don’t last long enough for the breakfast buffet but one day I will.
Stellene Volandes
-Gus & Marty’s, a relatively new Greek place in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, does a table-side ouzo service. It’s an acquired taste I admit, but an ouzo on ice and a plate of grilled octopus and I am immediately in summer mode. They have the Plomari brand and it’s one of the best (my other favorite is Barbayanni Blue Label). I am on a mission to bring ouzo back.
Stellene Volandes
-I went to the Yankees vs. Red Sox game and was reminded of the thrill of being in that stadium on a summer night. A more innocent time, even if they now have Uber Eats. Best way to get there is on the 4 train. And I never say that.
Stellene Volandes
-A reminder about seeing Chloe Misseldine do Swan Lake at ABT in July. And also about programming at Little Island. And the return of Shakespeare in the Park in August.
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Sticks & Stones
How a jewelry person organizes the random thoughts in her head.
Sleep aid gummies from Olly for promoting relaxation and sleep.
-Japan jet lag. It’s no joke but I fared better than expected both ways. A few things that might have helped. The Olly Melatonin sleep gummy our fashion director Dania Ortiz made me buy at Whole Foods (I’m kind of a chicken about pills but these do work!). And the day after I was back I went to Daphne at Aida Bicaj for a Palper Rouler treatment. It’s a kind of lymphatic drainage that involved a pinching and rolling of the skin (supposed to help with overall skin toning, too). I always feel lighter and less bloated after I do it, and I also trust her completely. Did a facial with Martyna after as I always do post long flights. I also, and I never really do this, brought my own blanket for the flight, the one (Linus like I know) I use at home from Me&K. Something about that security helped me sleep well on the flight and even at my hotel.
-I am always in search of under-eye masks for puffiness. These are my new favorite.
-For the last two summers I have been wearing these K Jacques fisherman sandals almost exclusively. They are great to walk in and work well at the beach and don’t require a perfect pedicure.
K Jacques
-I got tickets to Evita in London for July 3. I’m already seeing shots of Rachel Zegler doing “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” outside of the London Palladium. There is also a Fiddler on the Roof there until July 19 at the Barbican. I might not make it, but you should.
-I am going to douse myself in that Diptyque citronella and geranium body spray, get sandwiches from Sant Ambroeus and do Central Park picnics this summer, and hope for the best.
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See you next month!
X Stellene
Hearst Owned
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