* Top central banks move to avoid global liquidity crunch

* China in surprise move to inject cash

* Dollar falls sharply, equities, euro rise

By Susan Thomas

LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Gold rose to the highest in almost two weeks on Wednesday after top central banks announced a co-ordinated move to avoid a global liquidity crunch, and the dollar fell.

Centrals banks from the world’s leading economies, including the U.S. Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank, said they had agreed to lower the cost of existing dollar swap lines by 50 basis points, as well other measures.

Spot gold rose more than 2 percent to $1,749.54, its highest since Nov. 17. It was $1,744.79 per ounce at 1525 GMT, from $1,714.29 late in New York on Tuesday.

The latest trend in jewelrery are Hair Diamonds. As reported last year in my 2010 Bridal Trends article, ‘Hair Jewelry: The days of old-fashioned veils are gone. Now you’ll see tiaras, headbands, hair vines, and jeweled combs on the women in the wedding. Bridal jewelry for hair can be crafted from beads, crystal, ribbons, or wire, all with opportunity to be a unique reflection of your look or wedding themes.” We were seeing brides use chains and diamond encrusted brooches doing double duty as hair pins. This trend has crossed over into daily style and claiming to be the newest, hottest jewelry accessory.

Visit Maddaloni Jewelers and create your

hair statement piece!

but this year watch brands are bringing it on BIG! As we are all looking forward to Basel in March, we have been hearing the color ‘brown’ in many different hues is the notable trend in timepiece design.  The standout look is weathered brown, complementing a strap and case, which transcends military chic and of course fierce functionality!

New comer to the watch industry is ‘Bremont’. The collections are making big noise and has the quality and design to back them up. Many celebrities have been spotted wearing the fashionable timepieces around the globe. Ryan Secrest will be sporting the Alt1-C on the 2011 season of American Idol. We are so excited to see the P-51 Limited Edition watch which

Tom Cruise Wearing U-Boat's Alt1-C

will be unveiled on May 5, 2011 with there NY retailor Maddaloni Jewelers.  The collection will be limited to 251 pieces and will be built with original parts from the famous 1944 Mustang WWII aircraft. Tag Heuer is keeping their rise into the more complicated timepieces with their Carrera collection.  Alpina is coming out with an Aviator collection to round out the brand. Ladies pieces are all the rage for Fredique Constant adding another ladies collection to the brand. The most exciting news comes from Christian Dior, with the launch of the highly secretive new ladies timepiece constructed in sapphire crystal.

]]> http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/02/timepieces-the-most-distinguished-accessory-has-many-surprises-for-2011/feed/ 0 http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/01/2011-jewelry-trends/ http://www.longislandjeweler.info/2011/01/2011-jewelry-trends/#comments Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:52:49 +0000 maddaloni http://www.longislandjeweler.info/?p=936 Accessories create a look that defines your style. Classical, whimsical or funky, the most refreshing style in jewelry for 2011 is blended color. Large and medium sized necklaces, mis-matched earrings and bold rings are shown in soft multi colored pieces. Designers have taken to bold color creations as well. Chandelier earrings in many hues were outed as the must have for 2011.

Stacking your baubles has taken it up many nothches take a look at Halley Berry’s super woman look:

Brides are also taking to color this year. Bridal shows are reporting a resurgence of the colorful affair. Bridal dresses have pops of color on sashes or embellishments on the gowns. Big bold earrings of emerald, ruby and sapphire are shown. Another huge trend for brides is hair jewelry, which began in 2009 and is now becoming a dominant high fashion accessory. We have been taking vintage brooches and turning them into hair clips and in some cases brides have asked for gem encrusted scalloped chains to be worn as part of their veil, these additions complete the colorful ensemble.

This story appears in the JCK Magazine.

Retail Details: Maddaloni Jewelers’ Lou Maddaloni

The watch man on Swiss tourbillons, Florida sushi, and Long Island guys’ nights out

1. What’s your most memorable sale and why?

A few months back, a client of mine expressed interest in buying a very special timepiece by Ulysse Nardin. So I arranged a visit to its U.S. head quarters in Boca Raton, Fla. The customer suggested we fly down on his private jet. Then, Ulysse Nardin was nice enough to welcome us with a sushi lunch and a private viewing of their spectacular timepieces. It was during that visit that my client purchased a limited edition royal blue tourbillon set with round diamonds and blue baguette-cut sapphires for $400,000, as well as a few others.

2. What’s the best idea you’ve come up with for your store?

We recently instituted a watch collectors club that meets two to three times per year. At the meetings, we host a five-course dinner in the store—with tablecloths and silverware—and have [representatives of ] a featured watch brand come and speak, bring in their newest products, and talk about limited editions and introductions for the year ahead. It’s kind of a guys’ night (we have cigars). The club fosters the interests of watch collectors and connects them to others who share their passion.

3. When you walk through your front door, what do you like most about your store?

I have to say that when I come into the store every morning, I look forward to the people I work with. The Mad daloni team is dedicated to giving each customer a positive experience. Customer retention has been a key to the success of my business.

4. How do you differentiate your store from the competition?

We are passionate about watches. Maddaloni can converse about the finer points—like swan-neck gaskets underneath screw heads—of models we don’t even stock. Sometimes we know more about models than the brand representatives or stores that do carry them. We also write down everything—any and all information the customer gives, from their pets to the type of car they drive—on a job envelope. Even the most mundane information can be a tool to use in a future sale.

5. What was your finest hour in customer service?

We had a customer buying a particularly complicated platinum limited-edition perpetual-calendar pocket watch, which also happened to be the last one available in the world! In the midst of the sale, it became evident there was a screw loose inside the watch; the head of the screw had actually broken off inside. Since we have a Swiss-trained timepiece technician on premises, we were able—in the span of a few short hours—to disassemble the watch, remove the screw, and fabricate a new one from scratch, right there in the store. The watchmaker then reassembled the watch, and Maddaloni delivered the piece, a $102,000 sale, in time for the owner’s dinner plans that night. If that watch had had to go back to the manufacturer, it would have been sent back to Switzerland and would have taken four to six months to repair.

In addition to the ‘Asscher Diamond Collection’, the company has unveiled their new collection named ‘Stars of Africa’ the collection feature floating diamonds that float freely  inside natural sapphire domes, like “snowflakes” inside a snow globe. All are set in 18k yellow, white, or rose gold and range in price from $4,950 to $7,900. The collection now boasts pendants and earrings, absolutely breathtaking!  All  will be available at Maddaloni Jewelers 12/22 and 12/23.