Lustre

A Most Precious Future

by Lady Ruby Sapphire

Being a typical Sagittarian, Ella Gafter, the jewelry designer behind all those luscious and very expensive baubles at Ellagem, loves to travel. So it's not surprising that I caught up with her at a security checkpoint in Rome's airport. While standing in lines waiting to be searched can be murder on your feet, Ella made my lengthy wait a delight with tales of her endeavors. Not the least of which is the completion of her "Zodiac" ring collection, a project that was three years in the making.

Well, my dears, you wouldn't believe these limited edition pieces in 18k gold, pearls, diamonds, and a few precious gemstones thrown in. The very sight and scope of them inspired me to deliver a special astrological chart for fall 2003, which despite terrorist alerts and the war, promises to offer some relief – and escapism – from the 24/7 crawl of bad news that seems to be zipping through my mind these days. What better way to prepare for the future than to speculate on what could be a brighter fourth quarter?