Pelosi's Power Pearls
Jackie wore fakes that charmed her children -- and that ultimately sold at auction for $211,500.
Barbara Bush wore fakes to hide her neck wrinkles -- courtesy of star costume jewlery designer Kenneth Jay Lane.
Now another important woman in Washington has made pearls her signature -- only this time, they're real.
Nancy Pelosi, the first female Speaker of the House, apparently shares my weakness for South Sea pearls, including the champage strand that she wore with a plum suit for her swearing-in. It seems that with real power comes real jewelry (even if the ornament of choice for women in politics is soft, round, and usually pale -- but that's an analysis for another day).
Of course, if you're still working your way up to that kind of authority, tips for sourcing pearls of much better price abound -- real or fake. Then again, authenticity -- like authority -- may be relative.
