eae bed (or ‘The Christmas season is what jewelers live for, or rather, it's what they live on. Scrambling like ants stocking up for a long cold winter, the weeks leading up to December 25 are by far the busiest and most lucrative for the jewelry in- dustry, with many stores doing as much as 50% of their yearly sales in this period. With the economic slowdown that is now officially a full-on recession, every interested publication is predicting the collapse of the luxury market. Add to that challenging situation the fact that the more the economy goes down, the higher the buying price of gold and precious metals becomes, making it even harder for people with reduced pur- chasing power to afford jewelry. This would seem to be a very worrisome Christmas to be a jeweler, Recently, WWD published an article saying that big department stores were actually banking on jewelry sales to get them through this bleak buying season, and asserting that jewelry sales are still strong despite predictions. Jew- lry, it seems, is making more sense to people because it lasts and remains precious, unlike clothing and gadgets. Itis, by some logic, a good investment. This is of course only true if you have some money and are not among the many unfortunates who have recently lost their jobs. And this definitely seems to be holding true for the rich, who have lost some money but still seem to have plenty. | witnessed this stunning revelation myself recently, when | was lucky enough to get a hand-me-down invite to the Christmas party at Place Vendome, the home of Paris’ luxury jewelers. | showed up close to opening time to witness some strained-looking salespeople anxiously watching the door at Bulgari. Still empty, my friend and | emptied our champagne and moved on to Chaumet, Van Cleef, and Leon Hatot- each one more expensive than the last, and filing up with people- elegant, well-groomed people who gleamed with money. They were buying. It was shocking. While my friend and I sampled every flavor of macarons and kept a glass of champagne in hand at all times, we were surrounded by people who were keeping their hands clean to try on watches and diamond bracelets. They were walking out with tiny shopping bags. While my friend and | aspired to a bit of Audrey Hepbum elegance, in our own Breakfast at Tiffany's fantasy, around tus were the people who feel no strain from economic downtum- or if they do, they invest in diamonds. As | walked out, dizzy from the glitz and the bubbly, | realized I was in a plaza created 400 years ago for the royal jewelers. Since then, Place Vendome has always been the home of the highest echelon of jewelry in France, and it has been such through many wars, a Great Depression, and more hard times than | can conceive of. At that moment, | felt quite honored to be there, in this centuries-old place dedicated to the same craft. All is not lost for the jewelry in- dustry. There will always be rich people and they will always want these beautiful treasures. | am just grateful to see the magnificence of the creations, by Laura Rysman