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This 1979 picture of Lauren Hutton has grabbed my attention. Is it the periwinkle boxy blazer with jeans and maybe a pair of wing tipped oxfords? Is it the idea of a casual cool style icon stepping out sola to a Dire Straits concert? Or is it the jaunty chapeau?

I'm going with the Panama hat. Here's an updated version of a snazzy straw fedora as styled by the eclectic imaginations at J. Crew.

I'm loving the classic panama hat this spring, but I would skip the tween romper in favor of this Liberty inspired tiny floral print school boy blazer! How would you wear this season's hot new accessory?

Images courtesy of Jezebel and J. Crew.

Let's Get Minimal

I stumbled upon this romantic minimalist set at Polyvore with my Bubble + Chain stiletto earrings. I love the neutral taupe colors, the softness of the slip dress and all the different textures going on with the accessories. The blunt-toe platform shoes are an interesting contrast... don't you think?

Image courtesy of Polyvore. Cynthia Rybakoff sterling silver Bubble + Chain Earrings $22 at Supermarket.

Spring Ahead!

It's official. My new flagship website has launched in previews, with more fabulous jewels and pages to be posted over the next few weeks. It's a fresh start for Spring 2010, and one that feels as good as an old fashioned closet purge of items that are sadly no longer relevant. The old site was a labor of love, yet it was no more than a pretty face for the brand. And with the surprising success of my Supermarket store, which launched one year ago this month, I wanted something akin for my higher end Collection and Estate pieces. The new site is built on a solidly reliable e-commerce platform, powered by fine folks who make shopping easy at Supermarket, so you can imagine my excitement in presenting my fans with a new and improved home for the Cynthia Rybakoff Collection.

Crystal Palace

Joseph Paxton's Crystal Palace of 1851 was grand cast-iron and glass building erected in Hyde Park, London, England. It's revolutionary modern design referenced the great cathedrals of antiquity with it's monumental and awe inspiring presence.

Another magnificent crystal palace, albeit fictional, is Superman's frozen Fortress of Solitude, the  inspiration for my super popular sterling silver and crystal spike Fortress Of Solitude Series.

The Fortress Of Solitude Series available exclusively at Supermarket.

Here's my Smallville hero Clark in his Arctic fortress and a certain superwoman wearing the Fortress Of Solitude necklace with super styling!

Good news for Superman fans, the fortress actually exists! This awesome image is from a giant crystal cave called Cueva de los Cristales in Mexico..

Images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, Dylan Cole Studio, Cynthia Rybakoff, TV,  all the mountains...

Top Shelf Goods

Do take 10 minutes out of your busy day to watch this charming and rather wacky short film entitled "Damaged Goods", by London ceramic artist Barnaby Barford. It's tragic tale of  low born boy meets upper class girl played out by porcelain figurines in a  cluttered bric-a-brac shop. 

The film explores forbidden love between the different strata of society, their world portrayed here quite literally as a hierarchy of shelving, with the messy floor of the shop representing the lower class origins of the boy, to the top shelf lifestyle of the privileged class girl amongst the crystal and silver.

It's also a classic rags to riches story with shattering consequences! I love the mix of characters  and the choice of animating classic porcelain figurines - they remind me of my mother's Royal Doultan collection I played with as a child.

Images courtesy of designboom.

Reclaimed Rococo

Everything today is being designed with reclaimed materials for their upcycled chic appeal. So why not create a luxurious collection of 18th century French Regency inspired furniture and decor, done up in salvaged and raw looking materials? Weathered wood, brass nailheads, unbleached rough textured linen all in a desaturated palette of soothing neutrals.

I love the idea of grand furnishings of a golden era, hand crafted in down to earth materials,  with the ornately carved  wooded forms left unembellished with only an aged patina... The Restoration Hardware Spring 2010 Collection captures the essence of this Reclaimed Rococo style with studied elegance.

This modern vintage Van Dyke Brown peacock feather art print by Matt Shapoff for Handmade On Peconic Bay in  sepia tones would look perfect in an ornate Rococo frame stripped of it's gilded past...

For post-economic downturn luxe, choose neo-classic forms that look fresh again with roughly textured upholstory, like this natural Belgian linen nailhead bench.

18th century inspiration for a modern wingback chair, plainly upholstered in raw Belgian linen with a bare nailhead finish.

Sepia tones + romance = heaven!

Images via Restoration Hardware, Meade Design Group, French Essence, Trouvais, Handmade On Peconic Bay, The Frick Collection, National Gallery of Art.

Preppy Italian Style

Perfectly worn denim jeans with white flip-flops and tanned toes for a mid-morning visit to the rocky Amalfi coastline. Hey, these cabanas match my top! Check the time, we need to start thinking about where to have lunch... the traffic will be horribile.

The sexy side of preppy Italian style... I think we'd better take that swim now. It's getting kind of caldo around here!

Renting these motorini was the best idea. Ever. There's a really great bar about half a kilometer from here, andiamo!

Such a long hot day of sightseeing and posing for the Leica has made me thirsty. How about a sparkling Sorrento lemonade? Thank god we got a room with a breezy patio... sigh.

Images via Gant Magazine Spring/Summer 2010.

Women's Things

I was perusing the J. Peterman Owner's Manual 76, when I became inspired to create some stylishly entertaining anecdotes of my own, pairing iconic fashion looks with coordinating vintage tabletop pieces and cookware! These dotted Silk Palazzo Pants are fab with a fisherman stripe Vallauris Shirt and this copper fish poacher for a family seaside dinner alfresco...

Now I'm channeling my mother, who might have thrown a dinner party in the late 60's wearing this Jaisalmer Dress, while whipping up some chicken tandoori in this flame colored tagine. These rustic antique ceramic refractory pans would make the perfect serving pieces!

I watch Antiques Roadshow, and tend to get very excited by anything with the words English, silver, Sheffield or flatware. I love this one of a kind English Canteen Set of Sheffield silver plated flatware with faux bone handles. It will go perfectly with this grassy green Art Nouveau Floral Skirt and Swan Blouse for a Spring buffet.

I think I'll completely spoil dinner by indulging in a late afternoon cream tea. Care to join? I'll serve cocktails as well, just so I can show off this charming antique bistro wicker and glass seltzer dispenser and these swirl pattern absinthe glasses. I actually have a bunch of these French bistro money plates, which are perfect for lady treats. This shapely Long Sleeve 1947 Dress, is lovely and so Katharine Hepburn, don't you think?

Mad Tea Party

All this talk about Alice In Wonderland makes me want to have a mad tea party!

J'adore these Alice in Wonderland inspired windows at Printemps, Paris, as inspiration for a dreamy tablescape. Fine china, lady treats and furry friends…

No proper tea party would be complete without some delectable, multi-hued Ladurée macarons with a spot of lavender tea. Oh my!

Of course, I'd need to wear some appropriately silly jewels to my party. This broken china and miniature tea cup necklace is purrrfect! See more wacky Wonderland jewels created by sometimes surrealist jewelry designer Tom Binns here.

Do watch this mad tea party clip from the 1966 BBC production of Alice In Wonderland. It's most curious...

Images via Socialite Life, Bardot In Blue, La Tartine Gourmande, Tiny Sparkly Things.