HOLLYWOOD — London jeweler Stephen Webster stopped by the Chateau Marmont penthouse here this month for a champagne-filled private reception to celebrate his newest diamond collection, Femme Fatale.
The stop concluded a three-month, 19-event tour that started in Moscow and zigzagged to Puerto Rico, Chicago and Dubai, among other locales.
“It ends in L.A., in Hollywood, with its old, glam history of film noir because that is the inspiration of Femme Fatale,” Webster said. “The world is so flooded with diamonds now that you have to build a story around a collection. You have to offer something special and a bit provocative.”
Femme Fatale showcases webbed Gothic-like designs of black-and-white diamonds, a departure for Webster, who is known for mixing diamonds with colored stones. Much of Femme Fatale also is convertible, with dangling elements and other features that are removable.
At the Chateau party, the jeweler’s compatriots turned out, including Sir Paul Smith, who had been host of his brand’s Melrose Avenue flagship opening the previous night, and designer Paula Thomas of Thomas Wylde and Lady Victoria Hervey.
Despite bronchitis that kept her voice to a raspy whisper, Christina Aguilera came by with her new husband, music mogul Jordan Bratman.
“He’s a rock star and the cutest,” Aguilera said of Webster, who designed the couple’s wedding rings, as well as the bride’s engagement rings — one with pink diamonds and the other with white so as not to clash with her favorite pink nail polish.
The pop star will have more to add to her growing Webster cache when he launches his first signature watch at the Baselworld Watch and Jewelry Show in March.
“To complete your brand, you need a watch,” Webster said, adding he just signed off on the dial design hours before the party.
The watch, his second after a model he created with Audi last year, is being produced with the Swiss firm Art Concord, which also produced the edition for the auto firm. It will come in two styles: a simple steel and a diamond-encrusted version.
As Webster expands beyond the U.K., he’s been upping his frequent-flier miles to the U.S., where sales have risen 60 percent this year compared with 2004.
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While he declined to be specific, Webster said total company sales are expected to reach more than $10 million in 2006.
“This year, I’ve noticed a significant increase again,” he said. “And I don’t know if it’s because the market is more buoyant or we have the right product. But it’s been great business.”
With its celebrity factor, Los Angeles has become his most regular stop. Plans are already under way for him to return for Oscar week.
This time, he coupled a meet-and-greet party with a two-day public appearance at Neiman Marcus to introduce Femme Fatale. The store is Webster’s largest account in the U.S., with 12 doors offering the designer’s work. Webster’s wares also are available at Bergdorf Goodman in New York, a handful of Saks Fifth Avenue doors nationwide and independent retailers such as Maxfield in West Los Angeles.
Representatives declined to provide sales figures for the trunk show. Among the larger pieces snapped up were the 5.55-karat diamond, web-cut drop earrings, priced at $60,000.