I Love Me Some Sparkle!

Recently the hubby, RL, and my sis, CB went to see the Bulgari jewlery exhibit in SF.  It. Was. Amazing.  There were 150 pieces in total, but what we especially wanted to see was the eight pieces that belonged to Elizabeth Taylor.  But let me veer off course for a bit so I can explain how/why I REALLY wanted to see her jewelry....besides the fact that I love lots and lots of sparkle.

Background:  Elizabeth Taylor, love her or leave her, lead a life befitting an acclaimed actress and (certainly) one of the most beautiful women ever to take a breath.  I have always like her movies, well, most of them anyway, since I saw her in National Velvet when I was a teenager.  

Up to that time I was aware of who she was and had only known her as an "older" actress....wrinkly (according to my 15 year old or so eyes), bloated, suffering from substance abuse, and considered past her prime.  Then I saw NV and, even as a teenager, I couldn't believe how beautiful she was as a child.  So that's when I became a fan, and I would watch her movies whenever they came on television (pre-VHS rental, DVD players, and waaaaayyy before streaming and Netflix and all the other ways we view movies today).  My most favorite of her movies is Butterfield 8, for which she won an academy award...and she deserved.

 She played a fiesty call girl who was involved with a married man played by Laurence Harvey.  She becomes disillusioned with him, her life, everything, and in the  end, she dies in a car wreck; if you haven't seen this movie, I recommend it.  But I digress.  

Back to my story: So we all know ET amassed quite a jewelry collection from her husbands and beaus and admirers throughout the years.  A book was published showing all of her collection and when it came out I really wanted it, but it was pricey and all of my hints to hubby went unnoticed.  One day I was in the, now defunct, Borders and lo and behold, my ET book is on clearance!!!  I snatch that tome and take it home to ooh and ahh over.  I love all of the stories that were written about the pieces, the beautiful pictures, and everything, not ever thinking I'd ever have the opportunity to ACTUALLY see her jewelry.  

Fast forward to 2013 and I find out that there will be a jewelry exhibit at the deYoung Museum and some of her jewelry will be on display.  Oh joy. Oh rapture.  I need to see this.

I finally manage to talk hubby in to going up there with just a couple of weeks left before the exhibit leaves the bay area.  And I'm glad I did.  Talk him in to it I mean.  We wandered through the exhibit and had a wonderful time...he even enjoyed it despite his reservations at first.  Afterward, we meandered through several galleries before our stomachs were growling and we needed lunch for sure.  The place were going to go to (Izzy's Steakhouse) wasn't open for lunch so we headed over to another meat palace, Hillstone's, for some grub.  Let me say, we really wanted beef, pork, or any other delicious barnyard buddy because we were really hungry.  I saw this place reviewed on a bay area PBS show and the reviews were good so I thought we could give it a try.  All I can say is YUM! One of the best meals we ever ate in SF...and that is saying a lot for the place.  The wine flowed and the eats were so amazing; it was a wonderful time.  Most of the convo centered around the sparkly sparkle of the exhibit.  We were reliving seeing all of the spectacular jewelry, especially the ones owned by ET.