I was out in a familiar neighborhood today and had some time to kill, so I stopped in a tiny bookstore to browse in. As I passed the art and photography books I noticed The Audrey Hepburn Treasures prominently displayed, which made me smile. On the next shelf over, however, were two Tiffany books worth looking over.
The first, Tiffany Pearls, has been mentioned here before, and showcases Tiffany's many masterpieces involving pearls. Audrey, as Holly Golightly, is featured on the front cover and on the inside of the dust jacket. I had never looked over the book in person, and now that I have I must say that you'd either have to be an obsessive Audrey Hepburn collector or just really like pearls to buy this book. Audrey herself is hardly mentioned despite her covergirl appeal, and the pictures in the book are nothing we haven't seen before. It is a beautiful book to look over, though. (For the record, the pearl strands Audrey is wearing in the film are in fact imitation pearls used many times by Paramount Studios.)
Bejewelled by Tiffany, however, has a little more to offer. No new or interesting pictures, and still not a lot of Audrey mentions, but it does give some interesting history on the Tiffany diamond, which Audrey wore for publicity photos of Breakfast at Tiffany's. Word had it that Audrey was one of only two people to ever wear the diamond, but I could never find out who that mysterious other person was. Bejewelled was kind enough to offer more information! It turns out that a Mrs. Sheldon Whitehouse wore the Tiffany diamond a scant four years before Audrey, and Mrs. Whitehouse also wore it as a necklace, although in a different setting. The "ribbon" necklace setting was designed especially for Audrey to wear for the Breakfast at Tiffany's photos, and the necklace was dismantled shortly afterwards. The mounting for the diamond was reused with an aquamarine stone and sold, and the rest of the ribbon necklace was reworked and sold as well. So there are two lucky people out there with jewelry that only Audrey Hepburn has worn before them! I wonder where they are now.
There's a really excellent article about UNICEF and the trials and tribulations of charities in the Guardian today. We've been seeing more and more articles popping up lately talking about the celebrity charity drive and how it can actually hurt charities more than help them, and this article lists some of UNICEF's more recent issues with its image and its partnerships. It also talks about certain big labels doing two-faced work by making their clothes via Third World sweatshops, yet launching conscientious items or lines to raise money for Third World citizens. *cough* Gap Red! *cough* It of course mentions Audrey's work and how she sort of started the celebrity spokesperson trend (though really the credit should go to Danny Kaye, who worked for 40 years as a Goodwill Ambassador and got Audrey involved), and how there are special classes celebrities take now to learn about charities and become spokespeople. Classes. It all seems very strange. Still, I highly recommend reading the whole article.
Next up, a book on Tiffany's pearls! I don't know how I've missed this one before, but Tiffany & Co. has released a book about their history with the lustrous gems. The history tends to be more entertaining than educating, but look who's on the cover:Also featured inside is Liz Taylor and other pearl-loving stars. More information on the book and purchasing information can be found here.And lastly, where would we be without another article marveling at Audrey's staying power? This is actually a very good write-up, and lists several recent mentions of Audrey I wasn't even aware of. It also gives a good mini-biography of her and has some good quotes by her and Sean. Go here to read the full article (2 pages).
EDIT: The Audrey reference mentioned in the last article about the TV show "The Class" is this; it's Halloween and a little girl has had help with her costume. She comes out like this:
Her mom doesn't get it. "Hello?!? Audrey Hepburn, Breakfast at Tiffany's!" It's cute, but I wouldn't have mentioned it if I hadn't noticed what a spectacular job the costuming people did on the outfit. The tiara is great, the necklace is spot-on, and the dress is a near clone. Even the sunglasses are like mini-Wayfarers! Which made me wonder what one earth was wrong with the costumers on The Audrey Hepburn Story, if a 6 year-old could out-dress Jennifer Love Hewitt:
The first, Tiffany Pearls, has been mentioned here before, and showcases Tiffany's many masterpieces involving pearls. Audrey, as Holly Golightly, is featured on the front cover and on the inside of the dust jacket. I had never looked over the book in person, and now that I have I must say that you'd either have to be an obsessive Audrey Hepburn collector or just really like pearls to buy this book. Audrey herself is hardly mentioned despite her covergirl appeal, and the pictures in the book are nothing we haven't seen before. It is a beautiful book to look over, though. (For the record, the pearl strands Audrey is wearing in the film are in fact imitation pearls used many times by Paramount Studios.)
Bejewelled by Tiffany, however, has a little more to offer. No new or interesting pictures, and still not a lot of Audrey mentions, but it does give some interesting history on the Tiffany diamond, which Audrey wore for publicity photos of Breakfast at Tiffany's. Word had it that Audrey was one of only two people to ever wear the diamond, but I could never find out who that mysterious other person was. Bejewelled was kind enough to offer more information! It turns out that a Mrs. Sheldon Whitehouse wore the Tiffany diamond a scant four years before Audrey, and Mrs. Whitehouse also wore it as a necklace, although in a different setting. The "ribbon" necklace setting was designed especially for Audrey to wear for the Breakfast at Tiffany's photos, and the necklace was dismantled shortly afterwards. The mounting for the diamond was reused with an aquamarine stone and sold, and the rest of the ribbon necklace was reworked and sold as well. So there are two lucky people out there with jewelry that only Audrey Hepburn has worn before them! I wonder where they are now.
