In My Dreams - Luscious Luberon

I just read on the Provence Post that "A Year In Provence" author Peter Mayles has put his house up for sale.
Sud Luberon. A 30 minutes d’Aix-en-Provence, à deux pas d’un des plus beaux villages classés de France. Dans un lieu très privé au cœur d’un environnement rare et intact, au plus grand calme, majestueuse Demeure provençale des XVII et XVIIIème siècles s’articulant autour d’une cour intérieure. Elle comprend 600 m² habitables dont un logement d’amis et diverses dépendances sur 5,7 hectares de parc avec une magnifique oliveraie, potager, roseraie, fruitiers, étangs ainsi qu’une piscine à débordement et son pool house. Beaucoup de charme et de quiétude.

I love this lush little oasis in Luberon.

This gorgeous French Country house just seems to have BHB written all over it, don't you think?

The real estate ad shows 5 chateaux in the price category...I believe that means that it is above my budget.

But I wonder, where does one move to after living in such a beautiful place?

Modernist Maharajas

Made for the Maharajas: A Design Diary of Princely India

This book is definitely on my recommended reading list. 
It was a fun read and an excellent resource for images and information for my presentation on 'Jewels of the Maharajas: The Splendor of the Indian Royal Courts'. My talk focused on how Moghul jewelry styles influenced European jewelry design, specifically that of the Art Deco Period.

But what was particularly interesting in the book was the cross cultural exchange that occured between the wealthy Maharajas and the Europeans in terms of design. A select group of  sophisticated Maharajas came to appreciate the Art Deco aesthetic and used it in their custom made clothes, yachts, cars, and palaces.

The Umaid Bhawan Palace, built in 1929 for the Maharaja  Umaid Singh of Jodhpur and the Manik Bagh Palace, built in 1932 for the Maharaja Yeshwant Rao Holkar, are two superlative examples of Art Deco architecture and interior design in India. 

Art Deco Pool at the Umaid Bhawan Palace

Art Deco Streamline Modern Bath at the Umaid Bhawan Palace

The First Modernist Maharaja

Maharaja Yeshwant Rao Holkar II by Bernard de Monvel 1929

Manik Bagh, the Modernist Palace of Holkar built 1930 -1932

Holkar's miminalist structure was filled with amazing furniture and fixtures by European designers Louis Sognot, Charlotte Alix, George Djo-Bourgois or France and the great Eckart Muthesius of Berlin.

Holkar's office at Manik Bagh

I like the fact that these uber wealthy Maharajas brought Modernist design to India through their commissioned Palaces.  Today this tradition continues with the world's largest house in Mumbai, built by the Mukesh Ambani, an industrial Moghul worth an estimated $27 Billion.

I wonder, if Holkar were alive today, would he have built something like this 27 story house, with a theater, ballroom, garden, swimming pool, salon, health club, three helipads and an air traffic control station on the roof, requiring 600 in staff?

Off My High Horse

It's Friday, the sky is blue and the sun is shining and I'm off my high horse.
Hopefully, this weekend I will have time to check in on everyone's blogs and see what I've missed during my hiatus.
Inspired by the posts about India at Amid Privilege, I've delved into a stack of books about Moghul jewelry. It's a big subject but a beautiful one because bright color and rich ornamentation was so important in the Moghul culture. 

Amazing isn't it?
Hopefully the weather will stay nice and I can continue my reading poolside this weekend.

On the opposite end of the artistic spectrum we've got the exhibition of paintings by Salvatore Rosa at the Kimbell Art Museum in Forth Worth.

A contemporary of Lorraine and Poussin, Rosa created works in the mid 17th Century that melded elements of Classicism with Romanticism.

From the WSJ review
Whatever he was like in real life (apparently he was a combative, rebellious prototype of the bohemian artist), Rosa is not a painter you fall in love with. The first things you notice are what he does not have. There is little playfulness or joie de vivre. He was a contemporary, and knew the work, of Claude Lorrain and Nicolas Poussin, but he lacks the gentle softness of the former and the impeccable coloring of the latter, although his mythological scenes often replicate Poussin's neoclassical geometry. His unsettling landscapes move beyond Claude's pastoral harmonies, replacing them with dangerous, wind-swept, "sublime" ravines and crags, gloom and doom.

The Kimbell's silvery light allows us to see the somberness up close. The pictures here are, by and large, dark: They have little bright color. Some come close to Goya's horrifying late black paintings. Shades of brown and other earth tones predominate even in the landscapes. The sun seldom shines. Rosa brings the underworld up to the surface. He is both classical and (pre-) Romantic.

Unfortunately, there won't be time to see the Rosa exhibit on my trip to Texas next month.
I wonder, why isn't this exhibit coming to the Getty, LACMA or the Norton Simon Museum?
That is just wrong.

Sent goods off yesterday for a Mert and Marcus cover shoot with Gisele for Vogue Turkey.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that that the bad weather conditions in Louisville and New York didn't keep the goods from getting to the shoot...because you never know with snow.
We shall see.

Happy Friday everyone!

Taking A Break

Blogging has been curtained recently because life has been busy. 
I was hoping to action a little hiking today or a trip to the gym but I've got 6 auction catalogs and 2 books to peruse today for a lecture on Indian Mughal jewelry that I'm giving next week.
Besides that, I've got the upcoming antique and estate jewelry show in Miami Beach to prepare for, some technical and graphic spiffing up to do on both websites, and you know, a life.

I started this blog for the purpose of SEO and branding because I didn't have the funds to hire a big NY firm to do those things for me.  And, I admired Wendy B's hands on approach to blogging for her business. (btw, congrats Wendy on the new site and the FGI rising star nomination) Originally I planned to post only about estate jewelry and vintage fashion.  Later BHB morphed into something else entirely, because I have trouble staying on topic and keeping my opinions to myself. Today BHB is all over the place, sort of everywhere and nowhere at the same time. 

So, I'm going to take a break from blogging for a while to concentrate on my "tacky online jewelry business" as a fellow blogger described Beladora in a personal email to me.  I'm aware of the fact that I'm not curing cancer but my little business provides gainful employment, brings value to the customer and is green....and yes, I'm proud of it.

I will of course keep up with the many blogs that I read and stay in touch.
à bientôt

Red Carpet Days On Rodeo Drive

There's a lot going on out there in the world.
The US is losing its AAA credit rating.
Eastern Australia is under water.
Oil is nearing $100.
The government in Lebanon is failing.
Brazil is having landslides.


But let's talk about something really important...awards season has started in Beverly Hills!
Stylists are rushing up and down Rodeo Drive collecting gowns and goods.
We've got the Golden Globe awards this weekend and the crush for red carpet looks will be ongoing until the Oscars in March. 

The beautiful stylist, Anya Sarre, stopped by our office this week to get goods for the gorgeous women at Entertainment tonight who will be working the red carpet. 
Anya is a busy babe.  Not only is she a professional stylist with her own website, she produces "Look for Less" segments for ET and she styles weddings and other events. 
Now her wedding picks are featured in Inside Weddings magazine.
She even twittered about Beladora.
Seriously, does this woman ever take a break?

and...

We are anxiously waiting for the mail man to show up with the February issue of ELLE Magazine because we want to get a good look at the cover shot with Katie Holmes. 

We love the fact that Mrs. Cruise is wearing this Beladora bangle in the cover shot.

Carlo Weingrill Diamond Bangle Bracelet in 18K $3250

and...

A new blog that I've been reading Collecting Fine Jewelry has some of the most beautiful jewelry from auctions, museum exhibits and the regular gang of estate jewelers.  There are lots of pretty pieces to admire on this blog including this one of a kind piece from Beladora.com. 

Jean Mahie Cuff Bracelet in 22K

Finally, spring has arrived in Los Angeles.  It is sunny and hot today.

But we haven't forgotten our friends in the frosty east.

Designer/blogger Tartanscott has posted beautiful photos of Central Park in the snow.

I'll leave you with this pretty picture. 

Be sure to check out his blog to see the rest of his images.