SKORPYO LUXURY CLUB

Insanely prolific Vogue cover girl Kate Moss has nabbed her first Vogue UK cover of 2012. And based on her track record, there’s a pretty decent chance it won’t be her last. She’s now been on 32 (!?!) covers of the magazine’s British edition alone since her first in March 1993.

For the June cover–shot by Mert and Marcus–Moss is giving us old Hollywood vibes in Versace. The rope she’s grasping must have something to do with “sport” theme of the issue. Let’s hope she’s doing some Olympics-esque acrobatics inside.

What do you think of the cover? Do you think her Vogue UK Cover tally will soon catch up to her age?

Since 1989, the perfume Red Door tells the classic world of Elizabeth Arden.The symbol of luxury and glamour, an icon of timeless elegance: the fragrance today changes its face to recall, with its bold ruby color, the magic of the red door in New York’s Fifth Avenue, the entrance to universal temple of beauty.
The vintage look of the new design by Jean Antretter holds the famous bouquet signed by Carlos Benaim of IFF, a mix of intense and rare essences.

From the delicate lily of the valley to the lively freesia, African floral fragrance with a sweet accent and almost fruity, to the wild violet that enriches the heading notes with a fresh accent, symbol of femininity and seduction.

The magical notes of red roses, round and spicy at the same time, hug the romantic hear of the Moroccan orange blossom, of the jasmine and of the lively ylang-ylang giving a feeling of elegance and style; the honey and the sandalwood, combined with the oaken moss, dry and woody, awaken your innermost senses.

Dedicated to self-confident and curious woman, who tends to be the most beautiful she can be, this perfume will be available in from December in stores.

[ Source ]

China overtook Japan as the world's second largest luxury goods market in 2010, according to the "Luxury Goods Worldwide Market Study" recently released by the world's leading consulting firm Bain & Company and an association of Italian luxury product producers.

The luxury goods market has completely recovered from the international financial crisis and the total sales value of luxury goods worldwide stood at 172 billion euros (around 250 billion U.S. dollars) in 2010, exceeding Bain & Company's prediction in October 2010 of 168 billion euros.

Global luxury goods sales are expected to reach 185 billion euros in 2011

The luxury goods sales value set a new record in 2010, reaching 172 billion euros (around 250 billion U.S. dollars). This topped the peak sales value before the international financial crisis and is 12 percent higher than the sales value of 153 billion euros in 2009. Luxury goods consumption will be fully restored and maintain its fast growth in 2011.
Luxury brands LVMH, Burberry, PPR and TOD have all posted better-than-expected sales since the start of 2011. LVMH group, with various luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, recorded a 17 percent increase in sales, with their sales volume for all categories of goods, including fashion, leather goods, watches and jewelry, on the rise.
Bain & Company has accordingly raised its estimate of the luxury goods sales growth rate in 2011 to 8 percent. The global luxury goods sales value will reach 185 euros in 2011, topping the sales of 172 billion euros in 2010 and setting a new record.
China becomes world's second largest buyer of luxury goods
According to the report, if the Chinese people's overseas spending on luxury goods is counted, China has already overtaken Japan as the second largest luxury goods consumer in the world, only after the United States. Chinese spent 16 billion euros on duty-free luxury items in airports and on flights in 2010, indicating that more and more Chinese are ready to enjoy luxury travel.
The report found that luxury sales in the United States, Europe, and Asia grew 12 percent, 6 percent, and 22 percent, respectively, in 2010, with the sales on the Chinese mainland rising 30 percent. Bain & Company forecasted that luxury sales in North and South America are set to grow 8 percent in 2011, while Japan will see luxury sales fall 5 percent. Luxury sales on the Chinese mainland are expected to grow 25 percent at constant currencies this year to 11.5 billion euros, faster than any other luxury goods market in the world.
The report also noted that India's lack of retail space and preference for traditional dress and homemade jewelry made it tough for European luxury brands to penetrate.

[ Source ]

Jimmy Choo turns 15, and what better way to celebrate it than a series aptly called the Crystal Anniversary Collection. And crystals there are. A stunning weave and waft of contemporary style and vintage aesthetics, the collection sees the signature bejewelled shoes, which made the brand so famous, get an updated and modernised to suit the new generation. So what exactly is on offer? A masterpiece of Plexiglas engineering, Ciara is a quintessential stiletto with the 1920s vintage jewellery style look. Available in nude, it’s priced for a cool $2,650. While Niagra, the modern day spin on the back in the time glamour is in silver and can be yours for $2,250. Sexier shoes just got sexier!

Famed French champagne house G.H. Mumm, founded in 1827 and now owned by Pernod Ricard, has unveiled a chic new gift box in time for the holidays. The limited edition Sabre G.H. Mumm was designed by renowned Paris-based architect / designer Patrick Jouin. He very cleverly re-interpreted the iconic Mumm Cordon Rouge ribbon that adorns the bubbly's label as the handle of a modernistic sword for slicing the top off the bottle. The curled handle is covered in luxurious red hand-stitched leather while the blade is made of stainless steel with a blunt square end.
The set, priced at about $850, is presented in a white lacquered wood and leather box with a pull-out drawer specially designed to hold ice and keep a bottle of Cordon Rouge at the ideal temperature for serving – after you perform the ceremony of sabre-ing off the cork.

[via Luxist ]

Renowned jeweler Tiffany and Co. has released its 2010-2011 Blue Book Collection right in time for the holiday season. The annual book published by the famed jeweler features a presentation of the many precious jewels that are up for sale. The highlight of this year’s Blue Book Collection is definitely the Tiffany Majestic necklace which will surely make any bauble-loving beauty swoon. Consisting of 300 pear-shaped and round brilliant stones that took more than a year to procure, this necklace came to life after 700 hours of labor. A dazzling creation like no other, this necklace is a work of bejeweled art.

The smaller stones are set into diamond florets surrounding a 30.31-carat, E color, internally flawless detachable diamond drop. The platinum mountings were individually crafted and linked to create a flexible setting while the white diamonds adorn the Fringe necklace which features a 20.01-carat, D color, internally flawless diamond in a rectangular modified brilliant cut with 61 round, 33 cushion and 30 marquise diamonds in platinum.

Besides this dazzling piece, the Blue Book also features colored diamonds including a necklace based on Art Deco jewels in the Tiffany & Co. archives which features a triple-drop pendant with three rare fancy vivid yellow diamonds. Of course, other than the diamonds, there are also a number of other precious stones like a 28.01-carat unenhanced Kashmir sapphire which looks stunning sitting in a necklace of round brilliant diamonds. Don’t forget to check out the new version of the popular Jean Schlumberger Bird on a Rock design. This year’s rendition features a 104.66-carat cushion-shaped kunzite distinguished by a deep purplish pink hue.

A breathtaking collection, it is sure to attract the bauble lovers like bees to honey.

[ via Luxist ]

Recently we wrote about the return of passion investing. We aren't the only ones with interest in these sorts of investments. This weekend the Wall Street Journal published the October issue WSJ, its luxury lifestyle magazine. The magazine features a guide on how to acquire luxury goods.

The "How to Buy" article looks at passion investments across several broad categories including rare wines, estate jewelry and investment handbags. Expanding beyond passion investments, the article also why now is a buyer's market for helicopters and how to get the safest facelift should you be in the market for a little nip/tuck (be sure to tip your nurse). The article seems like just another sign that the rich are ready to open up their wallets and put the recession behind them.

There's certainly no missing this bag, especially if you carry it against a little black dress. Versace does metallic in bright jewel-toned blue and highly polished patent leather on this Patent-Leather Small Shoulder Bag. The bag boasts a chunky silvertone chain shoulder strap, turn-lock closure on the fold-over front, double patch pockets on the back, and (the best part) a functional over-sized hinge for a top. The interior is lined in brown suede, which is pretty and always luxe to the touch, but I'm not crazy about the color choice. Nevertheless this bag is a gorgeous alternative to carrying a clutch. $ 1,895

[ via Luxist ]

For the astronomical price of $38,000 per pair, Italian luxury leather goods label A. Testoni is now offering the world's most expensive men's dress shoes. Testoni, founded in Bologna in 1929 by Amedeo Testoni, painstakingly handcrafts the Moro monk-strap model in the world's finest exotic alligator skin using the techniques of Norvegese, or Norwegian construction, for durability and added water resistance. Stiched with custom-made linen twine, the shoes are lined with glove-soft goatskin and adorned with a rich but discreet gold and diamond buckle. To make the eye-poppingly elegant footwear Testoni also employs a second proprietary process, called the piuma rapid, which requires some 200 manual operations to complete. Each pair is made up, deconstructed, and then put back together again in a patented method that results in a shoe as light as a feather yet which guarantees protection from hot, cold and humid weather.

[via JustLuxe]

GAYDON, England — As expected, the Aston Martin Cygnet has been approved for production in 2011 and will be assembled at the company's manufacturing facility here.

The Cygnet, which is based on the Toyota iQ minicar, was officially unveiled earlier this year at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show, but Aston Martin has been actively promoting the car for 16 months.

The company said it would release details on pricing and specifications later this year. Press reports in Europe have speculated the Cygnet will be priced from $45,000-$75,000.
 


It is expected that the car will retain the Toyota 1.3-liter four-cylinder engine from the iQ, perhaps with some Aston Martin modifications.

[via Insideline ]