Saudi Arabian beauty brand Asteri has released a new eye shadow palette inspired by date palms. Photo Asteri
Saudi Arabian beauty brand Asteri has released a new eye shadow palette inspired by date palms. Photo Asteri

Black Book: My Dior jewellery, Asteri’s desert-proof make-up and Degas wallpaper



Every week, The National's Luxury magazine team puts together Black Book, a cheat sheet of the most interesting and noteworthy arrivals in fashion, watches, jewellery and cars.

My Dior by Dior

First launched in 2012, the My Dior jewellery collection is adding 15 pieces. Photo: Dior

Dior has added 15 new pieces to its My Dior jewellery collection. First launched in 2012, the My Dior jewellery takes its inspiration from carnage – the distinctive cross-hatch patterning that appears throughout Dior, on ready-to-wear, bags, shoes accessories and watches. Inspired by the rattan weaving on the chairs used in the first ever Christian Dior show in 1947, here the pattern appears as delicate twists of 18 crt gold, interwoven to create rings, ear cuffs, bracelets and a diamond-studded wrist cuff.

Prices start at Dh12,409

Art wallpaper by The Met & Sedar

You can now welcome Edgar Degas's dancers into your home decor. Photo: Sedar Global

Cedar Global and The Metropolitan Museum of Art have come together to offer pillows and wallpapers based on priceless works of art. Utilising artworks housed in the New York museum and thanks to Sedar's wallpaper expertise, now it can create copies of artwork as pillows and custom-made wallpaper panels. Dancer and The Rehearsal of the Ballet On Stage by French impressionist Edgar Degas, and 1894's Confetti by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec are some of the works on offer, as well as winterscapes by Claude Monet, and Morning After a Snowfall at Koishikawa in Edo by Japanese master Katsushika Hokusai.

Pillows start at Dh220, wallpaper is priced to order

2025 Corvette ZR1

The most powerful Corvette ever made is also the most powerful American V8 ever produced. Photo: Chevrolet

The new 2025 Corvette ZR1 is the fastest Corvette to date. Packed with a staggering 1,064hp, it is the most powerful V8 ever developed by an American carmaker. It gets from nought to 60 miles per hour in 2.3 seconds. It clocks up a top speed of 347km per hour, a number unrivalled in any other production car under a million US dollars. It is equipped with the Corvette’s standard Launch Control, which optimises revs per minute, transmission clutch application rate, wheel slip and tyre spin. Owners can also upgrade to the ZTK system, which delivers enhanced suspension, aerodynamics and tyre control for better control across all driving conditions.

Prices start at Dh687,141

Asteri’s desert-proof make-up

The new Walk in the Palms eye shadow palette is priced at Dh217. Photo: Asteri

Created by Saudi Arabian entrepreneur Sara Al-Rashed, Asteri is a make-up line built to withstand the Middle Eastern climate. Made using vegan ingredients, each formula has been created to cope with humidity, air conditioning and extreme heat, and hydrating formulas include the Swoosh Blush Stick for cheeks and lips – now in three new colours – and the new Walk in the Palms eyeshadow inspired by date palms and are highly pigmented.

Prices start at Dh58 for a mini lip gloss

Stanley Kubrick inspired Urwerk UR-230 Polaris

Limited to just 35 pieces, the Urwerk UR-230 Polaris in white is inspired by a Stanley Kubrick film. Photo: Urwerk

Limited to just 35 pieces, the UR-230 Polaris is inspired by the aesthetic of Stanley Kubrick’s movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, and as a result, is carved from a block of white ceramic enhanced with fibreglass. Powered by a UR-7.30 calibre, it has a 'revolving satellite' complication to ensure the hour is always facing the viewer. At 44mm wide and 53mm long, and elongated towards the 6 o’clock position, the trapezoidal shape helps distribute the weight evenly across the wrist, while the rubber strap is closed with a hook-and-loop fastener for comfort and ease.

Dh642,687

Updated: December 27, 2024, 7:02 AM