Sotheby’s kicked off its Luxury Week sale series with a little help from celebrity stylist Kate Young, who partnered with the legendary auction house to act as a curator across categories, from designer handbags and sneakers to rare watches and the most jaw-dropping jewels.
Inaugurated in 2020, the exhibition will run from June 8 to June 13 in New York City, with auctions being held at Sotheby’s through June 23. Showcasing collector cars, wines and whiskey’s, Sotheby’s sneaker collection will celebrate the Nike Air Force 1’s 40th anniversary, offering some of the rarest styles, one-of-a-kind autographed pairs, and a reintroduction of the 2022 Louis Vuitton x Nike Air Force 1 by Virgil Abloh.
Sotheby’s impressive Magnificent Jewels collection features two outstanding diamonds clocking in at over 100 carats. The 101.41-carat pear-shaped Internally Flawless “Juno” Diamond is estimated to garner $10 million, while the 111.59-carat pear-shaped Fancy Deep Orange-Brown diamond “Earth Star” is estimating $1.5-2.5 million.
Young caught up with GRAZIA USA to chat about some standouts of the sale, including a Louis Vuitton handbag shaped like airplane (only three were sold within the U.S.) and an Alexandre Reza emerald-cut diamond ring, weighing in at 7.67-carats. She also gave an update on what’s next for her impressive array of celebrity clientele.
How did you get involved with Sotheby’s? What is your partnership with them?
Frank Everett [Senior Vice President and Sales Director for Jewelry at Sotheby’s] and I are actually friends. I love jewelry. It’s funny, once you love jewelry, you start to know all the people who love jewelry in the city. Everybody kind of introduces each other. Frank and I have been friends for a couple years, and we had dinner and he was like, “I have an idea,” and that’s how this came about.
Which pieces from Luxury Week are your favorites?
Some of the Cartier Deco bracelets are very covetable, and they have really rare ones. They’re very unusual ones. I really love the emerald-cut diamond ring by Alexandre Reza, a 10-carat diamond that’s set east-west. I just think it looks really design-y and cool. There are some amazing Verdura bracelets. Then the Louis Vuitton bag shaped like an airplane is kind of rad.
What would you be bidding on?
I’m growing more and more attached to the Alexandre Reza ring actually.
There are so many standout jewelry pieces. How do you approach accessories when styling your clients?
I do the looks first, and I think that accessories can really add something. Sometimes you can take something simple, like a white dress, and add a red shoe and a pink bag, and give it a different tone, but I do the look first, and then do the accessories and jewelry after.
What was the most surprising thing we’d hear went down when you styled your clients at the Cannes Film Festival this year, with Michelle Williams, Julianne Moore and Nina Dobrev?
I’m a real control freak, so there’s never any surprises. I think it was a surprise to a lot of people that Michelle [Williams] is pregnant again because nobody’s seen her.
We’re so excited to see some of your clients out this summer with their new projects coming up. Dakota Johnson has some new films. Selena Gomez has Only Murders in the Building. Can you clue us in on what we can expect for their press tours?
I have Dakota’s fitting tomorrow and Selena’s on Friday, so your guess is as good as mine. I’m thinking summery, cool, new. We’ll see tomorrow and Friday. I don’t think with either one of them that it’ll be a real serious departure from what you expect, but I hope that it’s exciting at the same time.
Is there a style narrative or a specific aesthetic you try to go for on these press tours?
Yeah. With each girl, I try to make sure that there’s a narrative thread. I do have a mood board or a list of icons for each girl, and I try and make sure that the stuff I’m pulling fits within that world, that I don’t suddenly put some weird floral puffy dress on Dakota’s rack. It wouldn’t make sense. That’s not who she is. She’s sort of minimal and androgynous and then super over the top, with mostly bodycon. It’s sleek, her look. So there’s not going to be a multi-tiered floral dress with puff sleeves. It’s not who she is.
How far in advance are you working with them on these looks?
A couple weeks. I think about it longer than that. I think about it from the time I see the latest collections, but it’s a couple weeks before that we request the clothes. Then we do the fittings quite close because we do alterations in the fitting.
What are you most excited for in your upcoming work?
Vacation. Since September, it’s been so full-on. It’s been busier than it was pre-pandemic. I think it seems like in July and August, I’m going to have a few weeks off. I’m really excited to recharge and get creative again because it has felt just so busy that it’s hard to even think. The thing is, I think I get creative again by not doing anything and by not thinking about fashion. I get creative again by cooking, and going on hikes, and playing tennis.
