shopping for the big event

I just finished an afternoon at Christie's Auction House in New York,
and I am happy to report I was the winning bid on a fabulous over-
the-top vintage gown. Amazingly enough, it fits me like a glove and
won't need a bit of alterations. I'm keeping it secret, though, until the
big event. I really wanted to bid on this glorious little Spanish crown,
but it was a tad too small. On me, it conjured images of the fairy

godmother, not Cinderella.

.

Mr. Mmm was telling me about how his mother worked at the South
Kensington branch of Christie's in London for over a decade, and was
in charge of the natural history section. What an amazing job. He told
me of one particularly thrilling auction of Napoleon's famous jacket.

The official company literature states that founder James Christie
conducted the first sale in London, England on December 5, 1766.
Christie's main London salesroom is on King Street in St. James's,
where it has been based since 1823. It has a second London
salesroom in South Kensington which opened in 1975 and primarily
handles the middle market. Christie's South Kensington is one of the
worlds busiest auction rooms. As of January 2009, Christie's had 85
offices, not all salesrooms, in 43 countries.

Did you know the Christie's New York sign was created by Nancy
Meyers during the production of the film Something's Gotta Give,
for an exterior shot? The auction house liked the sign so much they
requested the production leave it after shooting finished.