Wednesday, June 20, 2007

My Love Don’t Cost A Thing (Well maybe something.)


Cartier has just made next Valentines’ Day extra excruciating for married men, adulterers and the like by launching the new Love Cuff (priced at a mere $40K) as an addition to their growing Love collection of white and yellow gold bracelets, lockets and rings- all representing the supposed un-priceable l’amour. This 4-inch, solid gold cuff complete with three iconic screws gleams with such gilded perfection it would make King Midas green with envy.

The brilliant bauble originally was sold with a miniature gold screwdriver giving a new meaning to prisoner of love. The semi-permanent object immediately earned cult status - flashing the bracelet meant you were somebody who was willing to sacrifice ease and utilitarianism for hardship and opulence (anyone who’s anyone has spent their fair share lecturing airport security why TSA regulations do not apply to Cartier.)

But today, the Love bracelet has reached mainstream status by becoming, well easy. The bangle now comes in an un-screwable version like a high-end snap bracelet and worse, even allowed a mention on HBO’s Entourage. Was executive producer Doug Ellin’s wife pining for a cuff of her own? Or is it that this band of gold has become such a common symbol of our material culture that trendster-du-jour Adrien Grenier must wear one to prove his it-ness. One can't be sure, but it is certain that this will be the next cause celebre for those wishing to prove the authenticity of their heart's obsession- if they can afford it, that is.

Final Word: Cartier’s ad for the new Love cuff aptly reads, “How far would you go for love?” Well everyone has his or her limits, but in this case, I'd say pretty damn far.

1 comment:

Lance Ingram said...

Hi thanks for postting this