Talks to us About His Book Once Upon a Diamond

By Esther Herrero

I interviewed Dimitri on a cold rainy day in his Manhattan home but all of that is forgotten when we start talking about his book Once Upon A Diamond published by Rizzoli. It is beautiful and very interesting, I would say, a unique creation that has acquired a lot of attention in Manhattan and elsewhere. It really makes you curious about those days.

There is a picture in your book of you, as a small child, pointing at a jewel that Queen Elisabeth of Belgium is wearing Yes! I always had this sort of chemistry and affinity with stones, jewels, gemology...my mother had a very beautiful emerald ring that I always liked, a big cabochon… and my grandmother too and I loved them.

How does it feel to see that many of these beautiful pieces have disappeared or have been sold? It is a bit sad, but thank God that I believe in reincarnation! I believe that we truly learn the lessons of this life. Everything that happens to you is for an evolutionary purpose, the purpose of the enlargement of your soul, so I have this ability to put the things in a different perspective...more acceptable. You know, this time I am a Prince, maybe the time before I was a soldier who died in a battle.

But you do not remember! It doesn’t really matter! No, no, it doesn’t really matter...but if you believe in it, it gives you a different perspective, it makes things easier to deal with them. It is a sort of wisdom that gives you an acceptance, a detachment from things...I tend to get less upset by things that might affect me. People who believe in reincarnation get less upset about things in life than people who don’t.

But next time might be better or worse! Yes. It is karma.

When did you decide to create this book? Well, I did not decide! It was Rizzoli! They had seen all my posts in Instagram ...a lot of people had already started suggesting that I write a book ..then this lady from Rizzoli, during a dinner three years ago, proposed presenting the idea to her publisher...and this was the result! I selected the best stories. I had to limit them, because otherwise it would have been a thousand pages.... maybe I’ll do another one later.

When did you decide that you were going to dedicate your life to jewelry? How did it happen? First, I went to work for Sotheby’s after I finished Law school. I was in the Jewelry Department and stayed there for 20 years and really liked it. It happened because a friend of mine had a pair of cufflinks that needed to be redesigned. Beautiful stones from Brazil but they needed a different mounting because it was too thick. I thought they needed to have an invisible mounting and I had the idea of drilling holes in it and the result was to put the stones in the center with nothing around them , it was very light, like floating.. After that I did earrings, bracelets, and a whole collection. It is very minimalist.

www.artbodegamagazine.com www.artbodegamagazine.com

Ocean Prime has style

A Cameron Mitchell Restaurant

Dan Hodges

www.retailstoretours.com

If Dan could do it all, he would do it all. For the last thirtysomething years of his well-established career, Hodges knows intricately the retail world that so much envelops our world. Through his advisory firm, he’s learned the in and outs of the complex necessities for humans to create, purchase and consume goods in the global chain we so much depend on. Hodges runs Consumer in Motion, a global strategic advisory firm and he is also the CEO of Retail Store Tours. His very enjoyable journeys on topics that range from security, safety, advertising and marketing for brands, has positioned him as an expert in this field. “If we don’t adapt, we don’t create and the long chain of manufacturing and retail collapses. Humans enjoy experiences, going out for dinner, going out shopping with family members or friends. Will it change? It always does, and it is our job to learn and educate about the new shopping habits, be it in Asia, or America.”

Kari Hansbarger

www.nue24.com

Kari is a tall, slim, sharp woman from NYC who has given advice to luxury brands, as well as produced incredible content for companies looking to sell with an edge. Her career spans for more than 20 years and her office is located in Manhattan. “We leverage tech experts, images makers, cultural disruptors, and our 20+ years of experience, to help brands gain an edge by developing digitally driven marketing vehicles that flow with the fast pace of modern life.” Here she wears Rad + Refined sunglasses.