A prime selection of Huguette Clark's baubles hit the auction block last night at Christie's, exceeding expectations on almost every lot. The reclusive copper heiress who died last May at age 104 had not worn—or even laid eyes upon—the jewels in over 70 years. They've been stored in a bank vault since the 1940s. Much to the delight of auctioneer Rahul Kadakia, those with a little extra pocket money snapped up seventeen dazzling items at prices well over initial estimates for a total sale of $21 million. more ›

Yesterday, Giants linebacker Clint Sintim Tweeted photos of what he claimed were the team's new Super Bowl XLVI ring, but later wrote, "Saw the ring online not official yet....official release will be presented by GIants organization... Sorry." Then Justin Tuck said, “People, I don’t know who started the post of the ring. But we haven’t decided on the final ring yet. Still working on it." Well, some NYC jewelers hope so, because they think it sucks! more ›

A woman who worked for the guy briefly married to Nicky Hilton is insisting that she didn't steal $900,000—to fund lavish trips and jewelry— from her hedge fund boss. Instead, Renata Shamrakova insists that she and Todd Meister were lovers. But Meister tells the Daily News, "She didn't work out of my house, she worked out of my office. I've never even had a meal with her - not even a cup of coffee... When she found out she was about to get caught, she fabricated a relationship with me." more ›

After news of a Greenpoint jewelry store selling swastika earrings made news yesterday, area politicians wasted no time heaping on the outrage. It's good red meat for the base, but there's just one problem: the symbol—which as we noted yesterday, predates the Nazis by thousands of years—isn't the same one that Hitler used. There has been plenty of analysis about this, but if you look closely (below), the differences are undeniable. Whereas the Nazi symbol is angled in the shape of a diamond, the symbol when used in Tibetan Buddhism is oriented as a square. And, more importantly, the branches of the symbol are reversed for the Nazi sign. But whatever, outrage! more ›

We just can't keep up with fashion, what with the chocolate and jewel-encrusted brassieres that seem to be all the rage these days. Still, these earrings that a reader found at Bejeweled in Greenpoint strike us as a fashion "nein." more ›

Guy Fieri's such a busy guy these days—between riffing on poop and teaching Cheech Marin how to cook, it's a wonder he's had any time to design an entire jewelry line at all! And yet, somehow, inexplicably, he has, and it's probably best to just let him explain it to you himself: more ›

The landmarked space that used to house Gage & Tollner on Fulton Street has been inhabited by some less-classic joints in the recent past, and with every reopening, it gets worse. Most recently it was a T.G.I. Friday’s, followed by an Arby's (that closed after 7 months), and now: a discount jewelery store. more ›

Yesterday, it was discovered that Urban Outfitters had yet again ripped off the work of an independent designer, this time profiting disproportionately on the designs, descriptive copy and love for New York of Etsy seller Stevie Koerner, AKA Truche. Today, the story reached Miley Cyrus, and provoked her well-trained righteous indignation: "Not only [does Urban Outfitters] steal from artists," she tweeted, "but every time you give them money you help finance a campaign against gay equality." She followed up by quoting Rick Santorum, the "paleolithic" anti-Gay Republican senator to whom the CEO of Urban Outfitters has donated over $13,000, a second reason for her rage. But now there's a twist: Koerner is hardly the first jewelry maker to have the idea of slapping a heart shape on the silhouette of a U.S. state. more ›

Manhattan jeweler Jacob & Co. (whose founder Jacob Arabov was recently released from federal prison) is taking Courtney Love to court after claiming she lost some pricey jewelry they loaned her. If the pieces aren't returned, they want their cash value of $113,700. According to the Daily News, a suit filed yesterday in Manhattan Supreme Court says claims the rock star borrowed the jewels in September, including two white-gold and diamond chains, a white-gold floral mesh cuff bracelet, and white-gold and diamond hoop earrings. While the bracelet was returned, the rest of the items are still missing. more ›

The name "Fred Leighton" is familiar to anyone who has read People magazine or watched red carpet coverage of an awards show—stars (like Amy Adams, pictured) are frequently decked out in the jeweler's baubles. However, today, the Daily News reports that owner Ralph Esmerian "was arrested Monday morning on bankruptcy fraud and wire fraud charges, according to law enforcement officials. Esmerian is being charged with lying to U.S. Postal Inspectors about embezzling and double-pledging in connection to more than $210 million in loans used to finance his company, Fred Leighton." more ›

By the time Anne Hathaway got done with former boyfriend Raffaello Follieri, he was locked up in a federal penitentiary in southwest Pennsylvania. And that might have been the last we ever heard of him, if not for a lot of flashy jewelry that the Devil Wears Prada star was forced to turn over to the feds. Follieri is in the news again today because all the expensive jewelry he gave to Hathaway is being auctioned off, with the proceeds going to benefit our needy government. more ›

Well this is simply shocking: Urban Outfitters is allegedly taking original designs, mass producing them, and reselling them for a low, low price at their store. Crazy, right? What next, novelty t-shirts and coffee table books?! more ›

Two men were arrested for allegedly stealing four packages—which contained over $6,000 in diamonds—from a UPS truck in the Diamond District last week. According to the Post, Pedro Montanez and Juan Rivera had "swiped nearly $20,000 worth of diamond charms and rings from two UPS trucks and a Rockefeller Center office tower" on May 10 and 19. But then last week, a cop noticed them casing the UPS truck at West 48th and 6th Avenue for 45 minutes. "After Rivera stole the packages, the officer quickly moved in." The pair were charged with grand larceny. An oldie-but-goodie: A UPS deliveryman's scheme to "steal" cellphones bought with stolen credit card numbers. more ›

Crooks cut holes in the roof of a Brooklyn bank and actually got into the room containing safe-deposit boxes on Sunday, but they fled without taking anything. After chiseling one hole in the wrong spot on the roof, the thieves hacked another hole and got into the bank's heating vents at around 5 p.m., according to the Daily News. They then crawled into a room containing the safe-deposit boxes, but took no money or valuables. Even though the perps didn't steal the jewelry or the "significant amount of cash" that 31-year-old Gravesend resident Sara Cohen keeps in the bank, she's not taking any chances. "I'm going to change my bank first thing tomorrow morning." more ›

Cops are looking for two jewel thieves who posed as buyers, then bound and tied the employees at a Diamond District gem store, before committing a robbery at gunpoint. "One of the hawkers on the street who grab people brought the guys up," a security guard on the scene yesterday told the Post. They ascended to the second floor of the building, at 55 West 47th Street, then one man pulled a gun; using zip ties they immobilized three workers and a customer at Royal Gems. It’s unclear how much cash and jewelry they took, reports the Post, but as they were fleeing the man who’d ushered them inside collapsed to the ground, leading onlookers to fear the worst. more ›

Yesterday at the Belvedere Hotel the Manhattan DA auctioned off glitzy bracelets, watches and cuff links from the collections of two convicted Wall Street crooks. Benefits from the sale will got to victims of equities trader David Holzer and onetime Morgan Stanley boss Richard Garaventa. The former was sentenced to 15 years after stealing $15 million from friends, claiming he’d invest it. The latter took $2.5 million from his company and is serving two-six years. Both bought lots of jewelry. more ›

Prompted by Toyota's recall of millions of cars (as well as other recalls: baby carriages, children's jewelry, etc.) Sen. Chuck Schumer proposed that a comprehensive list of all recalled products be posted online, reports the AP. It seems incredibly obvious, but according to the Democrat, under the current laws businesses aren't required to tell customers that an item has been recalled. Really, people should be alerted if a stroller is likely to sever an appendage or if a car is likely to drive itself into a synagogue. "To be forewarned is to be forearmed," Schumer said. "New Yorkers should know what they're getting." more ›

Investigators are questioning a "person of interest" in a Madison Avenue jewelry store robbery that left an elderly employee dead. Though they aren't calling the man a suspect in the fatal Jan. 28 hold-up, the Washington Heights resident was brought to the 19th Precinct after pieces of jewelry stolen from the R.S. Durant shop were discovered in his possession. more ›

From stroller recalls to toxic baby bling, it’s been a bad few months for children’s products—that’s why Toys “R” Us wants to give back. From now until February 20 the mega-retailer for all things kiddy is holding a massive trade-in event for those many items that may have proved hazardous to your child’s health. NY1 reported that during this year’s “Great Trade-In” event customers are urged to hand over their strollers, cribs and other baby items in exchange for a 25 percent discount (personally I would ask for a full refund). Eddie Bauer, Evenflo, Graco and Jeep have all volunteered to take part in the promotion, but do they have a choice, really? more ›

The robber who killed a 71-year-old man in an Upper East Side jewelry heist stole so many valuables that investigators believe he threw away a Fabergé-style egg during his escape. According to law enforcement sources, the gunman who shot Henry Menahem in the R.S. Durant shop on Madison Avenue on Wednesday grabbed more than 700 items worth nearly $1 million, then dumped the decorative egg, valued at between $100 to $1,000, in a bag next to a trash can at the northwest corner of Lexington Avenue and 73rd Street. more ›

More details have emerged about the Upper East Side jewelry store robbery that left a 71-year-old man dead. The gunman entered the R. S. Durant shop on Madison Avenue at around 12:20 pm yesterday, tossed canvas bags at victim Henry Menahem and another 49-year-old worker, and told the employees to stuff the bags with jewelry. When both workers refused, the perp popped the magazine out of his 9-milimeter semiautomatic pistol and showed them that the weapon was loaded, the Times reports. "You think I'm kidding? This is real," he said, according to NYPD spokesman Paul Browne. more ›

A gunman shot the owner of a Madison Avenue jewelry store in the chest during a brazen robbery this afternoon. The perp fired at the victim at around 12:25 pm before fleeing the R.S. Durant shop, which is on Madison Avenue between East 75th and 76th streets. The Times reports that it's unclear what, if anything was taken, though the police scanner indicates the "PERP FLED WITH 80% OF THE MERCHANDISE" and MyFoxNY notes the crook escaped with "a significant amount of jewelry." The victim was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital, where he is reportedly in serious condition. Police called for a high-level mobilization to track down the suspect, who "is described as a black male, 5'10" tall and wearing a black wool hat." more ›

Cheap-o jewelry sold at Walmart, Claire's and at NY-area dollar-stores contains a dangerous metal that could harm children, according to recent investigations. After Chinese toys were outed for containing lead last year, overseas manufacturers were forced to find different building blocks for their products. Some settled on cadmium, a metal that is extremely toxic, even in low doses. And kids don't even have to swallow the jewelry to see its ill effects! more ›

The Scarsdale mom who stole $12 million in gold from her job at a Queens jewelry manufacturer has been sentenced to six months behind bars, according to the Post. Teresa Tambunting pleaded guilty after investigators realized she had stolen about 500 pounds of gold — one piece at a time — by slipping the items into the lining of her purse. Law enforcement sources told the tabloid the 51-year-old former vault manager got such a lenient sentence because had no criminal record, she turned herself in, and she returned all of the gold she had taken (though she brought it back bit-by-bit). "I'm sorry. I'm sorry," she reportedly told Queens Supreme Court Justice Pauline Mullings. more ›

"Don't bring expensive jewelry while giving birth" might be one lesson of this story from the Post: "An Upper West Side mom and Citigroup exec is suing to get back the baubles she left at Mount Sinai Medical Center's maternity ward. Alison Coen Searcy's suit accuses Marie Pugh, a since-fired nurse's aide, of grabbing $50,000 worth of bling on March 5, two days after Searcy's son was born." Searcy claims she left her "$22,000 diamond engagement ring, $8,800 wedding ring, $4,000 Cartier watch and $3,500 diamond ring on a windowsill before showering"—apparently Pugh was "allegedly captured on videotape entering the room about 15 minutes after the Searcys left." Coen Searcy wants the jewels or the money to cover them. more ›

Bravo's alleged boyfriend-beating "housewife" is at it again. Page Six now reports that Kelly Bensimon allegedly stole an idea for a jewelry piece from a former Elle Accessories co-worker, Celeste Greenberg. The story goes like this: Greenberg procured a vintage owl pendant for then editor-in-chief Bensimon to wear for photo shoots, and together they promptly made a deal to manufacture a replica of the design. Trouble is, those verbal agreements are always so tricky. Greenberg is now filing a lawsuit that claims Bensimon "cut Greenberg out and went ahead and manufactured the pendant on her own," which she currently sells for $325 and has been happily hawking the piece during her Real Housewives screen time. more ›

It's hard to swallow Bernard Madoff's lawyer claim that his scamming client "innocently" mailed gift packages to relatives, given that one of the packages alone had $1 million worth of jewelry in it. Also, since when do you mail $1 million worth of goods? Isn't that something you do face-to-face? Anyway, according to Bloomberg News, that package had "13 watches, a diamond necklace, an emerald ring, and two sets of cufflinks" while another two had "a diamond bracelet, a gold watch, a diamond Cartier watch, a diamond Tiffany watch, four diamond brooches, a jade necklace, and other assorted jewelry." The U.S. Attorney's office is trying to argue that Madoff is dispersing his assets, therefore violating his bail (and further making him seems like a flight risk), and wants him in jail pronto. Madoff's lawyer says the disgraced investor and his wife are trying to retrieve the items, which might be hard since the feds are in possession of some. In other Madoff news, he borrowed $250 million from a friend right before his arrest. more ›

Prosecutors say that (alleged) $50 billion Ponzi scheme mastermind Bernard Madoff should be in jail after violating his bail conditions by sending packages to relatives. The feds say he's transferring his assets, but Madoff's defense lawyer Ira Sorkin claims they were just innocent gifts—the Post describes some objects as "expensive watches, pens, cufflinks and a $200 pair of mittens meant as a Hanukkah gift" and the Daily News adds there was jewelry and that the packages were apparently worth $1 million. more ›