She's the original
Gaga, having survived an early career as an infamous cabaret singer, and several marriages to curious gentlemen of European extraction. She's been around the world more times than she cares to recall. She loves to collect souvenir items, and doesn't think it's touristy at all. She has a flaming bouffant and long lacquered nails to match, with impressive stones on almost every finger. She wears Cleopatra eyeliner and flowing caftans in loud prints. She makes flourishing gestures with her bejeweled wrists and hands for emphasis, as if casting a spell. She drinks
bellinis at 10, espresso at 4, martinis at 6,
Campari and soda at 8, followed by a continental dinner at 10, her only meal of the day.
She is your aunt, not you, of the understated chic urban set. But you love touristy things too, especially little hand painted enamel
charms from fabulous places you and your husband are too busy to visit, what with careers, a family, and a home to manage. Maybe some day, you tell yourself, when the kids have grown, you'll plan fabulous trips around the world, more times than you care to recall.
Cynthia Rybakoff one of a kind sterling silver and vintage enamel travel charm collection, available weekends at Artists & Fleas, Brooklyn.
