The first images from Coco avant Chanel are now online. The pics give us a first look at Audrey Tautou as Chanel, the celebrated fashion designer.

Bita Daryabari, former wife of billionaire Omid Kordestani, married Dr. Reza Malek in a multi-million dollar ceremony at Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Here are the first images from Karl Lagerfeld’s Spring 2009 ad campaign for Chanel, shot in November at his new Vermont home (we kid you not, the man recently bought a house in Grand Isle, Vermont, in the Lake Champlain Islands. Built in 1843, …

Princess Fati Farmanfarmaian
We are very grateful to Princess Fati Farmanfarmaian for telling us about an organization called ROCK (Real Options for City Kids), which for the past 14 years has been providing sports, fitness and outdoor adventures for low income kids in the Visitacion Valley.
“One …

At a recent luncheon to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of this website, jewelry designer Amber Marie Bently surprised SFLuxe’s Damion Matthews with a beautiful pendant she created herself.

The pendant reads “Live, Love, Luxe” — three words which we’ve taken as the new tagline for the site.

Those three words are a summary of what we strive for, but also our wish for you in the exciting year ahead.

One of the sad realities of “progress” is that it often requires of us to bulldoze some of the structures that might keep history alive for us as we go about our day. In this case, a clipping from an old issue of “Jet” magazine …

A reader recently pointed out a new use for Google: it makes a nifty ATM!

And not just any ATM, but one that spurts out millions of dollars at a time. What fun! Well, at least it is for Omid Kordestani, the company’s Senior VP for Global Sales & Business Development. Two million one day, a million the next — he’s been selling off his Google shares throughout 2008, for a total of at least $33 million.

The previous year, he had exercised some of his stock options for approximately $32.7 million.

So what did Kordestani get for his money? For one thing, one of the most coveted addresses in the country: 15 CPW.

As you are well aware this is the week in December when we take a day off to stop our normal routine and celebrate someone very special to us all. We refer, of course, to Tatiana Sorokko (did you have someone else in mind?)
As …

When we heard that Absinthe Brasserie executive chef Jamie Lauren was going to be Honorary Chair for the Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board’s pre-launch party on January 16, we immediately jumped at the chance to do an item on her.

She is not only the sole Bay Area contestant of Bravo’s “Top Chef” this season, but would truly be the new star chef of San Francisco with or without a major national TV show behind her.

Despite her hectic schedule of work and travel, she was able to squeeze in a quick chat with SFLuxe’s Damion Matthews, and we’re delighted that she did.

Exclusively to visitors of SFLuxe.com, we present this clip of Elisabeth Laurence of “Lives of Style,” as she interviews Jennifer Siebel Newsom at a private cocktail party at Cartier in San Francisco about her new film project, “Women and Power.”

Exclusively to visitors of SFLuxe.com, we present this clip of Elisabeth Laurence of “Lives of Style,” as she interviews Kristi Yamaguchi at a private cocktail party at Cartier in San Francisco.

Exclusively to visitors of SFLuxe.com, we present this clip of Elisabeth Laurence of “Lives of Style,” as she interviews actress Louisette Geiss at a private cocktail party at Cartier in San Francisco.

We recently had the pleasure of watching a preview of the documentary that Jennifer Siebel Newsom is producing and co-directing, entitled “Women and Power.”

Because Cartier has a rich history in supporting the film arts, they decided to help support the project by hosting a private cocktail party (with co-hosts Gavin Newsom, Regina Kulik Scully & Kimberlee Acquaro) at their beautiful Post Street store in San Francisco, where the preview was shown.

We have found a wonderful new Holiday Gift option that we’re excited to tell you about: Membership to Quintessentially, a new private members’ club that has just launched in San Francisco.
We first heard of Quintessentially last year through some friends who are members of the …

How delightful to open the New York Times Style Section this weekend and see San Francisco’s Pamela Joyner in full glam!
Her appearance at Unicef’s 2008 Snowflake Ball was also singled out by New York social blog, “The Quest For It.”
Do city’s have Ambassadors? If so, …