A-Listers Bring the Bling to Dubai

How do you throw the priciest party the world has ever seen? It’s simple. You build a billion-dollar hotel on a man-made island, invite a slew of celebrities and billionaires, fly in world-renown chefs and designers, and create a fireworks display so huge it can be seen from outer space.

And drop a cool $20 mil.

The economic crisis was nowhere to be found in Dubai this week, as the Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, the Executive Chairman of Nakeel, celebrated the grand opening of his $1.5 billion luxury hotel, Atlantis - The Palm, with a party rumored to be the biggest bash history.

“I’m thrilled and proud,” beamed the Sultan. “Five years ago where I am standing now was water.”

There was enough pomp and security for a royal wedding, as the 2,000 guests had to go through several check points to gain entrance to the soiree. The entire artificial palm-shaped island where the hotel is located was locked down several hours before the festivities began, and a special “exclusion zone” was established along the coastline, which banned boats from coming within two nautical miles of the shore.

Glittering guests included Lindsay Lohan in a gorgeous diamond and onyx Y neck with matching drop earrings, the always-stunning Charlize Theron in gold chandelier drops, uber-model, Agyness Deyn, in a unique diamond statement necklace, and designer Jade Jagger in a layered series of pearl strands.

Other A-list attendees included Denzel Washington, Robert DeNiro, Sir Richard Branson, Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, Janet Jackson and fashion moppets Mary Kate and Ashley Olson. Notable no-shows were Oprah Winfrey and Ben Affleck.

The guests were treated to a banquet prepared by several Michelin-rated chefs, a private performance by Kylie Minogue, and an after party at the nearby Royal Afterglow bar, where DJs, including Samantha Ronson, played live sets.

Paris Goes to London

Designer clothes, jewelry and a rock and roll circus – seems the perfect recipe to lure Hollywood ‘It’ girls out of their luxurious lairs. Edgy clothing label, Diesel xXx, came up with the winning combination by hosting what they called “the biggest international party the world has ever seen.” It's no surprise, then, that Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and other celebs took the bait.

The party started in Tokyo and continued on to Beijing, Dubai, Athens, Amsterdam, Milan, Zurich, Munich, Paris, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Oslo, Helsinki, London and Sao Paulo with a grand finale in New York City.

Whew! Even my head is spinning…

We found Paris in London of all places, doing her best Joan Jett impression with a goth-y necklace and a blonde bff as her two most prominent accessories.

Lindsay showed up in Brooklyn with a black and white diamond ring, layered diamond pendants and a series of gold bangles and cuffs. Former Destiny’s Child, Michelle Williams, rocked a vintage onyx statement necklace and Taylor Momsen and rock royalty, Zoe Kravitz, wore a series of beaded necklaces, gold chains, and bangles.

Inspired by the old European traveling circuses of yesteryear, the Diesel xXx "Rock and Roll Circus" featured theatrical circus elements including cabaret, fire eaters, trapeze artists, sword swallowing, female roller derby squads and a Mash Up-inspired concert featuring performances by T.I., Pharrell, M.I.A., Hot Chip and Chaka Khan.

Seems like a lot of work to get folks to buy your jeans.

Two Diamond Engagement Rings, One Couple!

Presenting a diamond ring on bended knee has long been the traditional way to seal the deal when it comes to a proposal of marriage. The man agonizes over how exactly to pop the question (and how big a rock he can afford). The woman feigns surprise (even though she knew this day was long in coming – perhaps a little too long). Tears flow...And scene. But this ritual may soon be recast and revamped by a bevy of gay couples who are rewriting the way a proposal goes down.

According to E! online, Heather Matarazzo, best known for her gawky roles in Welcome to the Dollhouse and The Princess Diaries, proposed to her girlfriend, Caroline Murphy, last week. Because they don’t have the traditional male-female roles, they BOTH popped the question. “It was really cute,” says Matarazzo’s publicist, Lisa Jammal. “First Heather proposed to Caroline, then Caroline proposed to her!” Good for them, and good for the jewelry industry, no?

And the bling? There will always be fans of the tried-and-true diamond solitaire. But The Jewelry Insider looks forward to seeing some new designs on the ring finger as more and more couples (gay and straight) put their own stamp on the ritual. Diamond right hand rings, with their multitude of stylings, are starting their migration left. Gemstones such as rubies, emeralds, and sapphires can offset a diamond or replace it altogether, if you so desire. And guys are getting in on the act by creating unique interpretations of the (snore) traditional gold band.

No matter who you are or who you love, the good news is the engagement ring is opening its doors to more looks and now more and more fingers. Lindsay and Sam - -are you taking notes?

Diamond Rings For Nicole And DeAnna

This week, it's all coming together with diamonds, gold and some rocking rings. Nicole had her Sunday (that's the name of her new baby girl - not the outrageous idea that the Australian actress had eaten some ice-cream....... god-forbid) and hubby Keith Urban is rumored to have gifted his wife a $73,000 Cartier diamond 'trinity' ring. It's actually three rings intertwined - a yellow gold ring dusted with diamond that represents friendship - a rose gold diamond encrusted ring for love and a white gold ring with diamonds symolizing fidelity.

As we talked about yesterday, Lindsay's love give her a diamond ring for her B-day and then on Monday, the suspense was finally over thanks to a Tacori diamond ring. Yep, the world has been put to rights and we can all rest easy - the Bachelorette, DeAnna Pappas has chosen her man.

Cyncism aside (as well as issues such as gas prices and the threat of an Iranian super-missile) -

DeAnna Pappas chose pro-snowboarder Jesse Csincsak to be her man. Both Jesse and account executive Jason Mesnick proposed to the once-spurned 'Bachelor' contender, but DeAnna went for the snowboarder who presented her with a platinum and 2.3 carat diamond ring that featured a princess cut center stone and princess-cut channel set diamonds.

The nuptials have apparently been set May 9 in Bahamas.

LiLo's Diamond Promise Ring

Are they or aren't they? One of the great questions plaguing modern civilisation. Nope, it's nothing to do with the price of oil, Middle-Eastern conflict or global warming, according to the amount of press coverage - most Americans are truly considered with knowing whether Lindsay Lohan is involved with DJ Samantha Ronson. Now more fuel has been added to the love tryst rumours. Samantha has allegedly bought her actress girlfriend a $22,000 Carter diamond ring.

The ring is apparently a 'promise ring' for Lohan's 22nd birthday - a token of Ronson's 'commitment' to Lilo.

According to a British tabloid, Lindsay, whose partying ways have been curbed by Sam, is said to be “thrilled".

Now, back to global warming......