Vivian Alexander Luxury Blog

Mardi Gras in Full Color!

See the details on this Whimsical Mardi Gras!
If you saw my post of last Friday, you will see some familiar designs on the post today. Since we are not heading to the Super Bowl I thought concentrating on Mardi Gras would help soften the memories. So we changed Black and Gold to Purple, Green, and Gold!

The Saints Come Marching In!

See the details of this Saints sculpture.
The Saints have come from nowhere nationally to the point of betters setting odds on their chance to win the Super Bowl.
Vivian Alexander Gallery and Studio is down the road a ways from New Orleans and the Super Dome, so we thought it fitting to honor their achievements with one of our popular sculptures.
Go Saints!

"Twelfth Night, Mardi Gras Festivities Have Arrived!"

Mardi Gras Silver Ornaments
The Christmas holidays were wonderful, and everyone had lots of companionship, great food, and wonderful gifts. Now that is behind us and we are concentrating on the days after Twelth Night, the days of Mardi Gras.
Two years ago, Vivian Alexander introduced the first (2005) limited edition Mardi Gras ornament. That fine silver beauty, limited to 200, is still sitting on our shelves. I guess our valued customers just didn't appreciate our introduction of a fine silver Mardi Gras ornament in all of it's glory.
Last year we tried again with the limited edition 2006 Mardi Gras ornament. Our limit of two hundred signed, dated, numbered fine silver ornaments sold out before the season was over. And people are calling in to get on a waiting list if we have any returns or word of resales.
This year we are sticking to the limit of two hundred ornaments of our new Mardi Gras presentation. As before, they are made of fine silver, numbered, dated, and signed. But, at popular request, we are including a registration certificate with the sale; you name the recipient.
Only time will tell the value of those first edition (2005) fine silver ornaments; but as ornament collectors know, the sky is the limit.
For a look at the three ornaments, 2005, 2006, 2007, we have details! Fine Silver Mardi Gras Ornaments!

2006 Limited Edition Christmas Ornaments

A few of you have written and asked about the details of the markings on our ornaments. The picture above is a good illustration to work with:

• Most of our ornaments are limited to a maximum of two hundred. Read the description on the individual ornaments to tell which.
• All limited series are marked with the series number ( the one pictured is three of two hundred).
• All silver ornaments are hallmarked by the creating artisan. This one is MC.
• All of our fine silver ornaments have a silver tag embedded under the enamel as required by Federal Law for precious metals. The tag must identify the maker (Vivian Alexander) and must show the quality and type of precious metal (fine silver .999).
• All of our Silver Ornaments are marked Fine Silver .999; designating them as Fine (or pure) Silver, or silver with no impurities. Sterling silver is .925; most other silver ornaments are marked sterling or silver plate.

You can see details on this ornament and others here. Be sure to use the Zoom feature to see the detail work of our artisans.

Stuller November Catalog

This is the inside front cover of the November 2006 Stuller catalog. Scroll down to see the outside cover and get the details.
PS: These three ornaments are signed, numbered, and limited to two hundred. This catalog was sent out to 43,000 jewelers this week.
If you are interested in one, get in touch with your jeweler at once. He can order for you if he doesn't already have them coming. They are not going to last long.

Stuller November Catalog

This is the front cover of the Stuller Monthly Magazine. Stuller is the largest jewelry manufacturer in the world, and possibly supplies some of the items in your favorite jewelry store.
Vivian Alexander has created a custom Christmas Ornament for Stuller for the last three years. You will notice that this new ornament and the two others on the inside cover page are not shown in our catalog. If you wish to purchase any of these, your jeweler should have them in stock or can order them for you overnight.
In keeping with our own policy, I have restricted Stuller to only two hundred of each year's style. And they are signed and numbered just like our own ornaments listed in this catalog.
Scroll up to see the inside front cover of their publication.

"You Request, We Listen"

On our site you will find several places where we state "We will be happy to redesign any of our pieces for you."
Last week a couple visited our Gallery looking for a gift, but couldn't find exactly what they wanted. They finally decided they wanted one purse design but with a different enamel color. Their question: "Is that possible, and if so how much more would it cost and how much extra time would it take to create?"
My answer: "We can do it for no extra cost and no extra time!"
The purse design they wanted: Elegance!
Another happy customer. (The husband told me, on the side, that he would be back right after Thanksgiving.)

Cyberspace

Needless to say, I have "Google" tuned to report any news about Vivian Alexander. To my surprise and amusement this "news" popped up on my screen this morning:
Just Out:
Ocean's 12: The Ocean gang goes to Europe to heist valuable art objects. The most valuable and the most well known is the Imperial Coronation Egg. To see the one created for Warner bros and used in the film: http://www.eggpurse.com. I have always given Google credit for being the first to know; but this news is two years old? Go figure!

Southern Wedding

Last Saturday I had the pleasure of attending an outdoor wedding in front of a multi columned Southern Plantation home. The grounds were beautiful, the home looked as if it was still occupied by gentry, and the weather was picture perfect.
The bride chose to give her seven bridesmaids Vivian Alexander custom designed purses for the grand march. Each purse was themed differently but each was encased in a silver sparkle enamel. The purses shone against the maids' blue dresses. The bride chose to design her own Vivian Alexander purse to complement her bridal dress. She chose to embellish the Night and Day Easter Lily purse with additional clear crystals and color it with pearlized ivory enamel. Even though the purse created a white-on-white color scheme, the pearl encrusted purse was quite noticeable and most appropriate.
The bride also arranged for the seven groomsmen to have identical custom-designed Vivian Alexander enameled gold jewelry boxes. They were displayed during the following reception along with the bridal layered cake and the bridesmaids' purses. The wedding cake was topped with a custom-made Vivian Alexander heavy lace egg cake topper. The mother-of the-bride also came in for special treatment. Her Vivian Alexander purse had a Victorian look and was embellished with rose and ivory enamel that complemented her dress, down to the antique brooch she pinned on her waist. The oval, gold, filigree locket on the front of the purse held a photo of her daughter, the bride.
Last, but far from least, the two little flower girls carried specially made beautiful blue and silver VA ornaments that complemented the bridesmaids' dresses.

Cast Iron Sculpture

Several years ago I had an opportunity to purchase some salvaged materials from a 100+ year old cypress column and beam warehouse. The warehouse was located on the banks of the Mississippi River in downtown New Orleans, just a few blocks from Canal Street. The cypress beams were put to good use on another project but I was left with a very large group of beautiful cast iron structural members.
I have hoarded these pieces for many years with the idea of a sculpture tucked in my head. Last week I brought my dream to fruition. I present to you my Cast Iron Sculpture. It is about eight feet tall, ten feet wide and weighs about three tons!
The Sculpture is located on the front lawn of our estate, and can be viewed from both the Gallery and the Studio. By the way, our facilities are open daily by appointment; drop by if you are ever in Cajun Country; view our extensive Gallery and watch the artisans at work in the Studio. I will personally guide you.