Swarovski Crystals

By Sora Song

TREND High-quality Austrian cut-crystal gems studded on everything from flip-flops to fingers

HOW IT STARTED The '80s fashion comeback paved the way for dazzling glitter-chic

JUDGMENT CALL Diamonds may be a girl's best friend, but for affordable glam these are hard to beat

Swarovski crystals used to conjure up visions of little glass animals perched on card-store shelves. But since designers like Julien Macdonald, Alexander McQueen and Jimmy Choo discovered the Austrian gems a couple of years ago, they have been stitched by the hundreds of thousands onto haute couture frocks and heels. The stones are adding a touch of luxe to a growing array of everyday wear too, from T shirts and bandannas to sunglasses and socks. Brad Johns, New York City hair colorist to the stars, has just unveiled his line of crystal-encrusted barrettes and elastics.

"What started out as crystals on evening gowns has become crystals on underwear," says Swarovski's Melissa Carden. "We're in an opulent time." Opulent and a little nutty. For $105, the Completely Bare salon in New York will bikini wax you, well, completely bare, then dress up your newly dewy private parts with crystal curlicues, butterflies or hearts--self-adhesive "tattoos" that stick for about three days. Too coy for Mariah Carey, who borrowed a $12,000 Kawasaki motorcycle studded with more than 50,000 stones for the cover of her next CD, Glitter. And still, Swarovski keeps churning out its collectible menagerie of animals. Next up: a goat, an ox and a rat, the first in a series of Chinese zodiac-inspired figurines.

--By Sora Song