Simply Luxurious!

Please pop over to The Simply Luxurious newsletter where I am interviewed for the "Reader Spotlight". I gave my views on all things luxurious and had a really fun time asking the questions posed to me. I LOVE this newsletter and corresponding blog because at a time when "luxury" is something most people cannot even consider, it's a great way to dream. Shannon (the writer of both the blog and newsletter) always reminds us that luxury isn't only about living the "rich life"; it's more profound than that. Luxury can mean different things to different people. Her blog always has the most "luxurious" images;it's real decadence without taking out your credit card. I am always telling her what "blog envy" I have for her blog!

Pop over and see if you agree with my interpretation of luxury, and a BIG thank you to the wonderful Shannon for featuring me/Luxuria in this weeks newsletter.

Here's the link to the newsletter.
http://aweber.com/b/1xCZJ
Click on her image/button to the right of this post to go straight to her blog; you will not be disaapointed.

The Drink of All Divas!

One drink that is always associated with decadence and divas, is Champagne (well bearing in mind Mariah Carey won't sing a note without a dressing-room supply, then you can see how this perception has grown.

Here's some more facts/trivia about the bottle we always love to pop when there is a celebration:


*Hip hop favourite Cristal was the first prestige brand created in 1876. P Diddy did his bit for the brands street cred when for his 29th birthday at New Yorks Cipriani, the bill for SIX free-flowing champagne bars was $500,000!

*The world's ritziest concoction is the Diamond Martini served at London's Sheraton Park Tower. For up to 4,000 Pounds (approx $6,500) a glass, you get a heady mix of vintage cognac, Champagne, Angostura bitters, a sugar cube- oh, and a loose diamond of your choice!



*Despite the recession, Champagne sales leapt by 14% in the UK last year.

*Legend has it that the champagne "coupe" (a shallow broad rimmed goblet) was modeled on the shape of Marie Antoinette's breast, using wax moulds.

*James Bond is portrayed as a frequent drinker of champagne. A count reveals 35 occasions in which he is portrayed drinking Champagne. I am surprised as I always thought his drink was Martini; shaken not stirred!



*A Champagne corks leaves the bottle at a velocity of approx.38-40 mph, but can pop out as fast as 100 mph!

*The pressure in a bottle of champagne is 90 pounds per square inch, about three times that in an automobile tire.



*There are approximately 49 millions bubbles in a 750ml bottle calculated by scientist Bill Lembeck. Wouldn't you have loved to be involved in the fact-finding?



*Marilyn Monroe is said to have once taken a bath in the bubbly. According to her biographer, it took 350 bottles to fill the tub.

*The average 120ml glass contains 90 calories and contains antioxidants that lower blood pressure.Compare to some calorie laden cocktails,what more excuse do you need to indulge?

So there you have it, some facts about the Divas drink of choice. Having put this post together, I can now confess I don't like Champagne!

What about you? Can you take it or leave it, or is it really your drink for celebrating in style?


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Friday Jewellery Quotes

"You can always tell what kind of a person a man thinks you are by the earrings he gives you." (Audrey Hepburn)




"My husband gave me a necklace. It's fake; I requested fake. Maybe I'm paranoid, but in this day and age, I don't want something around my neck that's worth more than my head!" (Rita Rudner)




"I would rather lose a good earring than be caught without make-up." (Lana Turner)

Hope you enjoyed these quotes. Wishing all you lovelies a great weekend.


(All images are the property and copyright of Luxuria).

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If it's Good Enough for James Bond.........

This blog is about everything decadent (as the tag-line for our company is “Decadence for Divas”) and what more decadent a place than Monaco.
If you are from the USA you have Vegas. But if like me you are from Europe, then we have to settle for this little principality.

I have been to Monaco a few times, but the thing that strikes me is just how over-crowded and built up it is.

Here are some more facts I’ve gathered about the “playground for the rich and famous” :-

*Monaco is only about the size of Hyde Park (London), which is ony about 350 acres. Now you get a feel for just how small this prinicipality is.

*70% of people rent their homes in Monaco, including one of their richest residents Sir Phillip Green (owner of TopShop).

*the average rent for a “normal” apartment in Monaco starts at 25,000 GBP/ $40,000 or 30,000 Euros PER MONTH!

*A 4 bedroom duplex, facing the harbour will set you back 60M Pounds to buy. That works out to about 30,000 GBP/squared metre!

* 1.5 Million GBP will buy you 47 squared metre; basically a shoe box with no garden, or no pool. The most basic accomodation you can imagine.

*There are more millionaires per squared metre than anywhere else in the world.
There are approximately 2,000 Millionaires and 50 Billionaires currently living in Monaco.

*There is NO crime, and the papparazzi are banned from the principality.

*Every car licence plate is scanned and recorded as it enters Monaco.

*The streets are scrubbed clean every morning, and there is no graffiti anywhere

*40,000 workers from France cross the border everyday to work.



*Monaco is 6X the size of the Vatican

*It is the most densely populated independent country (as you can see from the photos)

*The Gran Prix started in Monaco in 1929,and is now broadcast to 100M people. It is now deemed the most glamorous Gran Prix in the world.

*Lets not forget the principle reason people move to Monaco; it is a tax haven.

* Jack Nicholson called Monaco “Alcatraz for the rich!”



So there you have it, some trivia about one of the most glamorous places in Europe.
If you could, would you want to live there in a shoe box simply because your postcode was Monaco? I’m really not sure I would. I think I would prefer to live just across the border in France and get more “bang for my buck!”
I would love to hear your views, and if Monaco is on your list of “Places to see before I die!”



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Every DIVA's Dream!

My favourite store in the whole world (Selfridges) had a huge event last week. They opened their doors to the biggest shoe department in Europe (wouldn't you have loved to have been there). Just reading about it made me feel SO homesick.

Even Carrie Bradshaw could not have dreamed it up;35,000 sq ft of shopping space dedicted sole-ly (sorry!) to shoes.

It was unveiled on the eve of London Fashion Week.
Fashion royalty such as Vivienne Westwood were among the guests celebrating the London department store's new Shoe Galleries, where Paolo Nutini serenaded guests.

The vast space - which is bigger than Tate Modern's Turbine Hall - will showcase over 5,000 pairs of shoes from 120 brands, ranging from designer styles by the likes of Roger Vivier and Jimmy Choo, to collections from high street chains including River Island and All Saints.

Designed by architect Jamie Fobert, there are six different salons, each with a different look. In one, shoes are showcased like works of art on floating glass panes, appearing to float across the room. In another they are spotlit on long dark blue shelves.

And in anticipation of the shoppers likely to spend hours trying on the coveted designs, there is plenty of plush fuchsia pink seating.
The space will play host to 30 designs from labels including Balenciaga and Marc by Marc Jacobs, available exclusively to Selfridges.
There are 11 designer boutiques too, each with their own distinct style. The Chanel area is a recreation of Coco Chanel’s apartment, while the Christian Louboutin boutique boasts a red carpet and a trompe l’oeil chandelier.Can you imagine how wonderful to spend a Saturday afternoon playing about in Coco Chanel's apartment?

Ugg Australia hopes to inspire shoppers to buy its sheepskin boots with a chalet-style boutique, while Topshop's is the brand's first footwear department outside of its own stores.

The department even has its own restaurant, an outpost of French eatery Aubaine, should you run out of steam mid-shop.

Selfridges’ director of accessories, Sebastian Manes, said: 'The Shoe Galleries will be a new and exciting way to experience shoe shopping within one huge space.
'The new department will fit perfectly into the essence of what Selfridges is - a place where everyone can find something extraordinary to buy, from the inexpensive to the luxurious.'

Definitley a "pit-stop" for me when I go in December.

Next blog post I will bring you more fun facts about the fabulous shop called Selfridges.



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