Roberto Cavalli Opens First Nightclub in Florence, Italy

Designer Roberto Cavalli opened his first nightclub in the beautiful city of Florence in Italy this past week. Cavalli chose a 15th century deconsecrated church as the location of the club which was in a desperate need for a restoration. The church, and now his nightclub, is near the 13th-century Basilica di Santa Maria del Carmine, and it is adorned with Renaissance masterpieces by artists such as Masaccio and Masolino. “I feel I helped recover a real jewel,” says Cavalli of the recovered church which is now turned into a luxurious nightclub. Cavalli along side with architect Italo Rota took full advantage of the high ceilings of the original building and also added additional level. A lounge bar is located on the ground floor; a stage with a piano is placed in a niche where the altar used to be, and a 50-seat restaurant is on the upper floor. The decor is greatly nature inspired including steel leaves decorating the columns, a huge twisting steel snake on the side of the bar, an aquarium, an oversize shell on one wall, and seats with the designer’s infamous animal prints. Cavalli will open two more nightclubs in the upcoming year, one in Dubai at the end of January 2009, which will have a “a huge stairway” and plenty of glittering Swarovski crystals, and the other in Milan in February 2009. The designer is also working on renovating Milan’s former Just Cavalli Café and turning it into a Club.

Versace’s Luxury $2,100 Fragrance “Gianni Versace Couture”

Donatella Versace presents the ultimate fragrance “Gianni Versace Couture” which is meant to return the Italian brand on top of the luxurious beauty sector. The fragrance was created in cooperation with Euroitalia Company from Milan and it targets the high class with its high class price tag of $2,100 per bottle. It comes in a white leather small suitcase with golden details. The distribution of Gianni Versace Couture will be exclusive and it is expected to hit European markets in November of 2008 and in December for the US.

The limited edition comes in a 100 ml bottle and the fragrance was created by Sophie Labbe of IFF. The perfume is floral-woody with irresistible scents of the citrus juices of bergamot, mandarin, red berries and tangerine combined with floral romance bloomed in Sambac jasmine, heliotrope and almond and woody essences like Tonka beans, patchouli and sandalwood.

Christian Dior Luxury Spa in Paris

Christian Dior opened its first spa, Dior Institut, at the Hotel Plaza Athénée in Paris (you can see the spa in the photo on the left.) The spa’s grand opening was by none other than Monica Belucci and the spa offers five luxurious treatment rooms in its large 2,900 square foot space. It offers many massage and beauty treatments and techniques for the face and body using the brand’s skincare products. “We want to help more of our clients to associate Dior with skincare, as well as with clothes and fragrances,” said Dior’s skincare director, Louis de Saint Michel to WWD. For all of us not in Paris right now, not to worry as Dior has plans to open similar institutes in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Milan and Seoul.

The Hotel Plaza Athénée is situated in Paris’ fashion “golden triangle” and it is 300 m from the Pont de l’Alma. The entry of the Hotel is on a wide street shaded by chestnut trees, exactly like stepping into the world of your most romantic dreams of a Parisien love novel. The Plaza is the haute couture of luxurious hotels worlwide and its impressive decor with large crystal chandeliers designed in Regency and Louis XV and XVI style and elegant suites overlooking the Eiffel Tower are just some of its many beauties. You may also recognize this Hotel as the setting for the last two episodes of Sex and the City, when Carrie went to Paris, and also for films such as The Devil Wears Prada and Something’s Gotta Give.

Milan Spring 2009: Versace

Get ready for a hot, hot, hot Spring! Short dresses dominated the runway at Versace in every color and style from bubbly-shy to slick and chic. Golds were a main trend either in a croc-embossed skin or shimmering materials. My favorite detail were the cute hearts on the dresses, which were actually the zippers turned into the shape of a heart. So adorable! I am so in love with this entire collection.

* Versace Milan Spring 2009

Milan Spring 2009: Fendi

Karl Lagerfeld sure knows how to create silhouettes for every season. For his Spring collection, the bubble skirt was the accent piece with laser cut-outs and lots of lace and layers. Very feminine and very chic. The color palette was mostly in taupe, black and icy blue and was romanticised with the soft pinks and reds of the two stunning nude dresses which had large roses sewn onto them.

* Fendi Milan Spring 2009

Milan Spring 2009: Gucci

“It was an exotic tour in Acapulco, the Americas, Miami,” explains Gucci’s designer Frida Giannini about her collection. “It was interesting to bring back the idea of the tailoring from menswear and mix it with a shorter, softer silhouette. The common idea of the entire collection is the prints and the color, which are so strong. It is all in the same attitude.” Indeed, the spring collection brought many prints like the Hawaiian-print capris, safari and exotic bird prints. Gold hardware and bright large bags were the accessories alongside bondage platforms. Beautiful long chiffon gowns closed the show in stunning colors such as royal blue, lavender and prints. Bright, fresh and modern, this collection will surely be a sell-out.

* Gucci Milan Spring 2009

Armani Presents Special Halloween Chocolates

Giorgio Armani’s sweetest line Armani Dolci will feature special Halloween chocolates which will be available starting this week until the end of October. The special Dolci are dark chocolate pralines all enclosed in white chocolate coating suggesting a “tiny ethereal ghost.”

Armani Dolci is a line mainly consisting of delicious pralines in five different flavors and it is made from the finest cacao in the world. Whether you chose white, milk or dark chocolate you can be sure to fall into the world of sweet temptations. True to Armani, the Dolci come packaged in very elegant boxes. Besides the heavenly tasty pralines, the line also features tea, jam, dragees, panettone, and torrone. Yummy!

Unfortunately, Armani Dolci cannot be found everywhere. Its limited access is within larger Armani shops worldwide, like the Milan flagshop on 31 via Manzoni and the Armani Chater House on 11 Chater Road, Central in Hong Kong.

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