Stellene Volandes

New York

Editor-in-Chief at Town & Country

Editorial and Brand Director at ELLE Decor

Articles

Gems of Wisdom: My Chanel Guide to Kyoto, and Everything I Wore (and Saw) at the Tony Awards

1 week ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

You’re reading the latest edition of the Gems of Wisdom newsletter. Sign up to receive the next edition when it hits inboxes later this month. Sign Up NowHi, it’s Stellene, now fully recovered from my Kyoto Chanel jet lag (is there any other kind?). The journey to Japan was the last of my High Jewelry trips for this season and the Chanel itinerary—and HJ necklaces—were worth every second of that flight (I flew to Osaka through L.A., a route I recommend.
How Did Christie's New York Magnificent Jewels Auction Sell $88 Million Worth of Jewelry?

1 week ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

There was history on offer—a stone with ties to Marie Antoinette’s daughter, a carved emerald connected to Mughal emperors and English queens—and iconic examples of signed jewels—Van Cleef Mystery Set brooches, Cartier Art Deco, JAR—so the market was certainly optimistic about the Magnificent Jewels auction at Christie's New York on June 17.
Anne Bass's Necklace Sold for $1.2 Million at Auction Today

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Stellene Volandes

Update, June 17, 2025: The JAR Necklace that belonged to Anne Bass sold today at auction for $1.2 million. The original story on the auction of Bass's jewelry, below.
Christie’s Is Auctioning a 470-Carat Emerald With a Royal History

1 week ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

The three jewels are presented in a room of their own. Visitors to the preview of Christie’s “Magnificent Jewels” sale are ushered in to the space, with its dimmed lights, and triptych of vitrines, and are faced with history. The title of the sale makes it clear from the beginning, these are Mughal jewels “from a royal collection” and, should someone miss it, the stones themselves declare their importance: natural pearls, inscribed spinels, carved Colombian emeralds.
The Royal Mystery at the Heart of This 470-Carat Emerald

1 week ago | yahoo.com | Stellene Volandes

The three jewels are presented in a room of their own. Visitors to the preview of Christie’s “Magnificent Jewels” sale are ushered in to the space, with its dimmed lights, and triptych of vitrines, and are faced with history. The title of the sale makes it clear from the beginning, these are Mughal jewels “from a royal collection” and, should someone miss it, the stones themselves declare their importance: natural pearls, inscribed spinels, carved Colombian emeralds.
Inside a Baroque Milanese Palazzo, the Palazzo Durini

1 week ago | elledecor.com | Stellene Volandes

The 17th-century frescoes and antique mirrors should immediately tip visitors off: This showroom has something it needs to say. Palazzo Durini Caproni di Taliedo is a historic building in Milan, designed and built in the mid-1600s by Baroque architect Francesco Maria Richini. Among many other monumental works and churches, he also designed Milan’s Palazzo di Brera, which currently includes the Pinacoteca di Brera museum.
The Secret History of That Van Cleef & Arpels Necklace on T&C’s Summer Cover

2 weeks ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

The truth is, you really shouldn’t wear pearls or diamonds in the water, but that never stopped Sara Murphy. The American heiress and ex-pat, wife of Gerald, friend of Picasso and Hemingway and Fitzgerald, liked to throw on her pearl necklace for the beach in Antibes (she hung strands down her back, to get some sun, she told Picasso, but also, we assume, to avoid tan lines?).
Inside a Sprawling Harbour Island Beach House Designed with All Things Considered

2 weeks ago | elledecor.com | Stellene Volandes

“Great design is the highest consideration of someone else.” Such wisdom issues forth often from Alessandra Branca. The Rome-born designer cultivates her philosophy and practice with all the European refinement her upbringing implies, but with an equal dose of American ingenuity: She has called Chicago home for decades. “The best designers,” runs another Branca aphorism, “have lived and entertained.
Gems of Wisdom: Inside the Secret World of High Jewelry Trips

2 weeks ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

You're reading the latest edition of the Gems of Wisdom newsletter. Sign up to receive the next edition when it hits inboxes later this month. Sign Up NowI’m writing from my room at the Grand Hotel Timeo in Taormina, and all anybody really wants to know about this trip to Sicily is how I do it with just a carry-on. A carry-on and an extralarge L.L. Bean Boat and Tote with a zipper.
The Jewelry Trend that Defined This Awards Season

2 weeks ago | townandcountrymag.com | Stellene Volandes

You're reading the Gems of Wisdom newsletter archive, which is available for premium members only. This edition originally ran in March 2025. On Sunday, the final day of Milan Fashion Week, we went to the Giorgio Armani show in the morning, had lunch with friends at Bice in the afternoon (veal Milanese for me, that creamy telefono pasta and the broccoli for the table) and then, as many headed to Paris, I took advantage of the evening and bought a ticket to Eugene Onegin at La Scala.