Swarovski Elements decks out Rodeo Drive with holiday bling

As if Rodeo Drive needed any more glitz, the retail mecca is about to get crystallized for the holiday season, thanks to Swarovski Elements.

The crystal company is known for providing glittery pieces to countless fashion and accessory companies. On Monday it plans to unveil a holiday installation that will remain through Jan. 3 on Rodeo Drive’s median, just north of Wilshire Boulevard.

This is the first time Swarovski Elements is taking over the street for the holiday season. It has similar installations at Harrod’s department store in London and Takashimaya stores in Tokyo and Singapore.

Nearly 55,000 crystals will festoon Beverly Hills’ famous shopping street, 41,775 of them used for the interactive sculpture on the median. The sculpture isn’t in the shape of an evergreen, twinkling star, angel or swan, as you might expect around the holidays. Instead the company went for a more modern and somewhat scientific approach, designing the sculpture to look like a DNA helix to convey the idea of communication and the various ways in which we transmit information.

The ribbon-like sculpture with intertwining strands  -- that's an artist's rendering, above --  will display messages sent from people all over the world. Participants can tweet a message with the hash tag #letitsparkle or, in the U.S. only, text the word “sparkle” followed by a greeting to 877877. The messages will appear on a ticker tape-like structure built into the sculpture. People’s sentiments will appear in the languages in which they are sent.

Tweets and texts aren’t the only interactive portion of the Swarovski Elements holiday event. Shopping is part of the equation too, since several retailers on the street have created items using Swarovski Elements crystals that are exclusive to their Rodeo Drive locations. Missoni, La Perla, Escada and Ferragamo are among the shops participating.

In addition, more than 1,700 crystals will embellish Rodeo’s palm trees and about 10,000 crystals will deck holiday banners.

Swarovski couldn’t comment on how much all the bling is worth, but given that single beads offered on the company’s website start at about $10.50 each, a display using more than 50,000 crystals is lavish indeed.

For anyone who loves bling (and we’re guessing that’s the majority of those who flock to Rodeo, whether to buy or drool), then the combo of crystals and high-end shopping should be festive indeed.

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Swarovski Elements and Jessica Alba kick off holiday season with sparkle

--Melissa Magsaysay

Image: Artist's rendering of Rodeo Drive holiday installation. Credit: Swarovski Elements

Swarovski Elements and Jessica Alba kick off the holiday season with some sparkle

The holidays are on the horizon and Swarovski Elements, the crystal company that supplies the shiny baubles to countless designers as well as their own line of jewelry and accessories, is ringing in the season right with tons of sparkle starting with an event at the Soho House on Wednesday night.

Jessica Alba hosted the intimate dinner to kick off the company's crystal installation on Rodeo Drive, which includes a sculpture and an array of crystals up and down the shopping mecca to be unveiled Monday, with Alba doing the honors.

Clad in a nude lace Dolce and Gabbana dress, the actress punctuated the neutral color with a statement-making Swarovski Crystallized Winter Garden necklace, which is available at Swarovski Crystallized boutiques and swarovski-crystallized.com. Proceeds from the sale of the Winter Garden necklace benefit the Baby 2 Baby charity, an organization that provides essentials such as diapers and formula to families in need. Alba is on the board of the charity.

Reinhard Mackinger, executive vice president of Swarovski Elements, also announced that the company would be making a monetary donation to Baby 2 Baby, to which Alba expressed her gratitude, saying it was a cause very near and dear to her heart.

Guests dined among an impressive centerpiece of large, almost cartoon-like white roses that snaked the distance of the long dinner table and were sprinkled with hundreds of loose crystals that sparkled against the mirrored base.

Someone who knows a lot about sparkle is the fuchsia-haired jewelry designer and dinner guest Tarina Tarantino, who shared her excitement over her beauty collection with Sephora. The Sparklicity shimmer dust is a best seller, and no wonder -- just thinking of her whimsical designs, bling and color are the first things that come to mind.

More sparkle and whimsy is to be had when Swarovski Elements unveils their Rodeo Drive takeover Monday. More than 40,000 crystals were used to bedazzle the street between an interactive sculpture, signage and decked-out palm trees. 

A fitting winter wonderland for Los Angeles.

-- Melissa Magsaysay

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Photos: Top: Baby 2 Baby co-presidents Norah Weinstein, left, and Kelly Sawyer Patricof, right, are joined by Jessica Alba. Right: Tarina Tarantino and Jamie King at party. Left: Reinhard Mackinger, executive vice president of Swarovski Elements, with Alba. Credit: Todd Williamson / WireImage

Your morning fashion and beauty report: Katy Perry on Elle's March cover, Crystal Renn on weight and health and Urban Outfitters' new take on bridal

When it comes to fashion and beauty, we often waste time wishing we had something we don't -- or that we didn't have something that we do. Even Katy Perry, who is on the March cover of Elle,  spent a long time wishing for a smaller chest. But she's learned to love the curves she has. [People]

For some time now, Crystal Renn has been at the center of the ongoing conversation about models and weight. She's gone from anorexia (88 pounds), to plus size (14 and up)  and now to walking runways at a size 8. She credits exercise for her most recent weight loss and seems tired of the pressure of outside expectations about her weight and health in an interview on the Ford Models blog. [Telegraph] [People]

Ralph Lauren launches a luxury denim line, to take the American classic to the next level. [WWD] (Subscription required.) 

Donna Karan plans to offer a virtual trunk show of her fall line. Her runway collection will be shown live online on the “what’s new” tab on the company’s Facebook page on Monday at 2 p.m. Then starting Feb. 22, customers can order Karan's top recommendations from the collection on NeimanMarcus.com. The clothes will ship around mid-August. [WWD]

The custom Swarovski red dress and heart-themed necklace that Julianne Hough is to model in Heart Truth’s Red Dress Collection Fashion Show on Wednesday is quite a showstopper. It reportedly took 150 hours to make, and the necklace has 10,000 crystals. [People]

The toll of unemployment and its effects on retailers could last a generation. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

Urban Outfitters jumps into the off-the-rack bridal business with its new Bhldn collection. Yes, you read that right. Bhldn collection. [WWD] (Subscription required.)

Actress Elizabeth Olsen --- younger sister of Mary-Kate and Ashley, whose clothing line Elizabeth and James is named for her and their older brother, (James) Trent Olsen -- has her own style and a way with layering and accessories. [FabSugar]

-- Susan Denley

Photo: Katy Perry at January's People's Choice Awards. Credit: Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

What to do with all those iPhones, iPads and iPods? Tech-savvy and stylish accessories for your digital gear

The recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas showed us there are some fashionable, functional accessories in store for all your favorite electronic gear. Among some of the cool, clever stuff we found are these iWatchz watchbands. They are part of the iWatchz Nanoclipz Watch Integration System, which elegantly transforms the iPod Nano 6 into a watch/music player by securing it in the watch band. The Q Collection is available now from Apple stores, Apple.com and www.iwatchz.com. The Carbon Collection and Jelly Collection (pictured) arrive in mid-February. (Q and Jelly Collections: $24.95; Carbon Collection: $49.95.)

Among other covetable items for the image-conscious, we discovered:

This cute little bunny, Karotz by Mindscape. This smart rabbit responds to your voice and watches over your household. You can ask Karotz for a weather report, a radio station or to call when your kids get home from school. His RFID chip sensor, integrated webcam and microphone help him keep watch while his speaker plays music from your smartphone, iPod or MP3 player. Karotz arrives in April; this Easter, kids of all ages may want a rabbit (www.karotz.com for retailers).  Karotz with 2 Flatnanoz (little rabbits with RFID chips): $179.99.

 

Swarovski Elements cases, by iWave.
These iPhone 4/iPod Touch 4G cases wear up to 500 Swarovski crystals. The TPU Swarovski case has protective bumpers; the plastic case has more crystals. TPU Swarovski case,  $149.99; plastic case, shown below left, $199, from iwaveaudio.com in April. For way less, try one of the Glitter cases, below right,  available now from Walmart, $9.99.