Dr & Mrs gonzi - MaltaRightNow.com

| FASHION |DRIPPING IN BLINGIs all about mega visual impact says Noemi Zarb.Glitter. Glimmer. Shimmer. Pile-on-the-accessories isvery much the look of the season … just the thing tomax your sex appeal for all those Christmas parties.Gone are subtle and muted tones; the catwalks andthe high street are pumping up the volume on glitz.And the flashier the better. Chandelier earrings, chunkychains, wristfuls of bangles and fistfuls of rings… plusno apologies for the clang and clatter of fake gold.Although some A-celebs are giving the impression ofstashing away their ingots and rocks, who ever saidthat bling is out?Lashings of flash trash or oversized pieces madefrom the genuine article are the signature of sleazebecause dripping in gold and diamonds singles youout as rotten at heart. Flaunted by gangsters, spivsand rappers, the gaudy gilt look carries no guiltcomplex. Carried off with humour it’s a staple ofcontemporary chic proving how excess and kitschmake wonderful bedfellows. Perfectly in sync with thecurrent high on maximalism that exudes more than awhiff of decadence; golden-threaded, bead-encrustedaccessories have never been so irresistible … and socommonplace. Like metallic fabrics they show off yourassets best. So with a little luck and less of a delicateskin, the current gold rush or cool crass of brass isn’tgiving you a rash.No doubt gold’s lack of subtlety has underminedits mythical mystique. Its glare embodies ostentation.For real money, serious wealth is invisible. But theitch to sparkle spells out how good it feels to tell theworld you’re worth a fortune. Meaning loving goldand indulging in arresting jewellery is saying you loveyourself to bits. This is mainly what’s firing the craze forbig, bold and brazen jewellery. For all its flamboyanceand pretentiousness, there’s no denying gold as theuniversal signifier of excellence and staggering riches.The spell of gold is ingrained in our worldview.Everywhere the winner lifts gold. We tout youth asgolden. Economists insist that crude oil is black gold.(Politicians wage war on the flimsiest of excuses soas to get hold of seemingly fathomless oil wells.) Theunique power of gold does not merely symbolisewealth. It is a concrete image of wealth itself andits derivative pleasures. Nor does the allure of goldsimply emanate from its extraordinary sheen. It isalso malleable and indestructible – properties thatconjure the enigma of metallic sensuousness. Andeven though our perception of gold changes accordingto the ebb and flow of fashion, when it comes tothe crunch, the power of gold feeds on its ownseductiveness……A seduction which lavishly touts an unending egotrip. “Buying yourself jewellery is a wink at yourself.It’s a smile at your shadow. You do it in complicitywith yourself,” Diane von Furstenberg asserts. Thiswoman certainly knows all about it. Her fast-livingglam is mirrored in her own designs of impossibleto-missgold jewellery. Nor does she differentiatebetween the significance of buying and receivingjewels. “When a man gives you jewellery, it showshow much he cares for you or how much he doesn’twant to lose you or how valuable he thinks you are,”she adds. “And when you buy it for yourself, it’s theexact same thing.” So you don’t have to wait forCupid’s arrows to get you noticed.L&s | DECEMBER ’07 37