HOW TO BUY
DIAMONDS

To help you do just that, Seymour Kaplan &
Company, the diamond people for over 50
years, offers a few good tips:

1. Deal with trained Graduate Gemologists.
2. Compare diamonds. Don't automatically
buy the lower priced diamond.

3. Be wary of large discounts. If a sale
seems to good to be true, it probably is.

An item on sale is often marked up to
many times its regular price and then
marked down to a sale price.

4. Know the store's return policy before
buying.

5. Buy diamonds for pleasure, not for
investment. Think of the purchase as an
investment in beauty and enjoyment.

Graduate Gemologists and Diamond Appraisers

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Quality compared, nobody sells diamonds for less!

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The Diamond People for Over 50 Years

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30555 Southfield Road

1,w
Suite 100/Congress Building
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BLOCK SOUTH OF 13 MILE ROAD)

Southfield. Michigan 48076

CONTEMPORARY SOUTHWEST ART

Pendant By: Ray Tracey Knifewing

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PAINTING • POTTERY • JEWELRY
FOLK ART • FURNITURE

Gallery Hours: Tues.-Fri. 10-5 p.m.,
Sat. 11-5 p.m. or by appointment.
32800 Franklin Rd., Franklin, MI
313-851-9949

120

STYLE

HOT COSTA

Ecole de La Chambre Syndicale de la
Couture Parisienne. There, he for-
mulated his training as a copycat
designer, which he later parlayed into
big business when he designed for the
Suzy Perette label, owned by an
American manufacturer. "During my
job at Suzy Perette, I would go to Paris
and buy the models of the garments,"
he says. "From one Chanel suit, I was
expected to make six or seven versions
of it. So when I decided to open my
own business 15 years ago, I was
prepared."
The training was essential but Costa
admits it is his association with and
respect for the press that determines his
collection each season.
"I've always felt that the public is
brainwashed by the press and televi-
sion," he says. "When a customer
tunes in to Elsa Klinch's fashion report
on Cable News Network or reads
Woman's Wear Daily, she becomes
aware of what fashions are the latest.
So when she goes shopping, whether
she likes it or not, it's imprinted on her
brain. She probably doesn't understand
that she wants it, but once in the store
she can relate to it."
Thus, while Costa says he enjoys at-
tending 12 to 14 couture shows abroad
per year, where he views over 1,400
styles, he doesn't decide which ones to
adopt until he reviews the press.
"It's wonderful for me to see how the
top names in the world exercise their
design laboratory fantasies, but I wait
to see which collection gets the most
press, then I make versions of it in mine.
The press is a wonderful guide because
they are quick to select the garments
which are the most innovative and
outlandish. So rather than being in my
own design cocoon and doing what I
think is the most current, I just watch
all the trends, and that's how I stay cur-
rent," he says.
But all does not end there. Costa
travels the world to establish his own
sense of color and fabric. "I have my
own design laboratory," he says of his
Dallas studio, a 50-foot room with a
triple-tiered section, "where I lay out all
the piece goods in front of me and wait
for them to talk to me."
What they say has resulted in a boom
for Costa's work. His fashions are be-
ing purchased by a whole new range of
customers, including a separate shop
for 13-year old girls in New York City's
Bergdorf Goodman. Costa says, "Since