Elizabeth Taylor: My Love Affair with Jewelry

This is an absolutely breaktaking book. It has 280 illustrations, 175 of them in color, and many of them from Elizabeth Taylor's personal collection. I cannot stress how vivid and gloriously they capture the beauty of Ms. Taylor and her jewelry. The wonderful stories that go along with many of the pieces portray Elizabeth as a witty, warm ... and yes, cunning woman. I've always been a huge fan of hers, but this book has made me even more so. Although Ms. Taylor own magnificent pieces from some of the most famous jewelers of all time ... Cartier, Bulgari, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Jean Schlumberger (Tiffany & Co.) ... many of my favorite's were her historical pieces. Like the Duchess of Windsor's diamond brooch, the Taj Mahal diamond, La Peregrina, and a beautiful bracelet from the collection of King Farouk. The book also has a wonderful index that describes almost every piece in the book, along with who bought it and where. Some of you may be surprised to find that although Richard Burton and Mike Todd sure knew how to spoil a girl, Ms. Taylor did buy a lot of her jewelry herself. I also read from one of the following reviews that Ms. Taylor did not say who or why she sold the 69.42 carat Taylor-Burton diamond. I can't tell you why she sold it, but the index says she sold it in 1978 to a jeweler named Lambert who in turn sold it to Mr. Robert Mouawad in December of 1979. So, even if you don't particulary care for Elizabeth Taylor and her legendary love affair with jewels, this book leaves little or no doubt that Ms. Taylor is definitely one of the most beautiful women of all time and her jewels are some of the most fabulous.

I recommend this book even if you are not very interested in Elizabeth Taylor. The jewelry designs are beautiful and the sizes of the stones are impressive. I bought this book for my mother because she is a fan of Elizabeth Taylor's, but I couldn't resist taking off the plastic cover and poring over the photos before I gave it away. I've heard a little bit about Liz's jewelry, but I had no idea what a collection she had! The book is large, the photos are beautiful, and the commentary is interesting but brief enough to make you want more. She casually mentions that she sold the huge Burton-Taylor diamond but doesn't say why or to whom. She claims that the men in her life bought her many of these amazing peices of jewelry to suprise her, and after seeing the pieces I'd love to know how she was able to inspire that kind of adoration.

Elizabeth Taylor's MY LOVE AFFAIR WITH JEWELRY is one of the most sumptuous and beautifully-made books on the subject of fine jewelry. This is not only a great gift idea for the Elizabeth Taylor fan or for jewelry lovers, it is also a wonderful book to be pored over time and time again.The quality of the photos is top-notch, many are full-page and in gloriously rich color. The book itself is quite large, so many photos of the individual pieces are enlarged to show the superb craftmanship and detail from the world's premier jewelers: Harry Winston, Bulgari, Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Schlumberger (of Tiffany fame), and on and on.The stories behind some of these world-famous gems are quite charming and have been told in countless biographies of Dame Elizabeth. My favorite has to be the story of the Cartier-Burton diamond, at the time of its purchase in 1968, the highest price paid at auction for a diamond. The flawless 69.42 carat pear-shaped diamond was even featured in the Guiness Book of Records for many years. The pictures featuring La Liz wearing it are breathtaking. There is another story that Liz and Richard Burton were visiting Lucille Ball on the set of The Lucy Show, as Liz was going to guest-star in an episode. Of course, the Cartier diamond was the talk of the world, so Lucy asked if she could try it on. Liz Taylor has always been more than glad to let friends try on her jewelry, so she obliged Lucy. Well, Lucy could not get it off and she literally panicked. They tried in vain to get the ring off and finally succeeded, with much giggling from everyone. It is the spirit with which Liz Taylor enjoys her jewelry that I find so endearing and fun.Many of the pieces in her collection are of historical interest, like the Shah Jehan Diamond and the La Peregrina pearl. Liz even wore La Peregrina in a movie starring her husband Richard Burton. There are several movie stills showing her wearing it while in period costume. This is a book to be enjoyed for many years!

This book is rich with photograph after photograph of the beautiful jewelry collection of the equally beautiful Elizabeth Taylor. Featured with the pictures of each piece are her stories or recollections that go along with it. There are pictures of the piece alone as well as pictures of Elizabeth wearing the pieces. I disagree with the reviewer who says that this is selfish book, as Elizabeth Taylor gives much of her time and money to charitable causes and each book includes a request for donations to her AIDS fund. Also, she held an auction of some of her pieces for charity in connection with the release of this book. So, this was not an entirely greedy endeavor for her. This book is a treasure as Elizabeth allows us a peek at her AMAZING collection. She is famous for letting people try on her jewelry and this is as close as some of us will ever come to that! Thank you, Elizabeth!!!

A wonderful storybook about some enchanting jewels cared for by one of our finest leading Ladies. This is a book I've long dreamt to see, even before the press releases about "My Love Affair with Jewelry" commenced to appear last year. Seeing the real gems would be nearly impossible even though Elizabeth allows most anyone to try on her mobile museum acquisitions.This book is a must for anyone who has an affection for our most sacred symbols of love and affection. As a fine Jeweler, I love to pass on to my interested clients the rich folklore and captivating legends behind Elizabeth Taylor's jewels. I suppose there are enough stories for some of Dame Taylor's baubles to fill a historical text but this intoxicating tome is indeed a sharing tour of her incredible collection. You will certainly turn each page slowly, relishing the beauty, the dialogue, and certainly feeling very fulfilled when reaching the end many pages away.As an added touch to this very historical, personal and jewelry box of a book Elizabeth kindly invites her readers to contribute to the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation, her most noble cause as our grandest leading Lady.