Life and Style wRap: A monkey comes home from space

MANILA, Philippines – Missed some life and style stories this week? Here’s your weekly fix!

Iran sends second monkey into space

Iran said on Saturday, December 14, that it had safely returned a monkey to Earth after blasting it into space in the second such launch this year in its controversial ballistic program.

President Hassan Rouhani congratulated the scientists involved in the mission, in a message carried by Iran’s official IRNA news agency.

In January, Iran said it had successfully brought a live monkey, which it named Pishgam (pioneer), back to Earth from orbit.

But the experiment’s success was disputed, when a different monkey was presented to the media after the landing.

An earlier attempt had failed in September 2011.

Jewels documenting royal romance sell at auction

Jewels belonging to the Duke of Windsor and his American wife Wallis Simpson – the couple whose relationship scandalized 1930s Britain – sold for a million dollars at a London auction on Thursday.

The top-selling lot at the Sotheby’s sale was a sapphire bracelet by Cartier, designed as a series of oval links set with gems, which sold for £230,500 (US$377,000).

The duchess wore the piece when Queen Elizabeth II visited Paris in 1972, the last time she saw the duke – her uncle – before his death.

The Duke of Windsor had been king, taking the throne in 1936, but abdicated months later to marry Simpson, a divorced American socialite.

Other jewels by Cartier included a coral, emerald and diamond choker, an amethyst, turquoise and diamond bracelet and an emerald, ruby and diamond brooch.

Jewels by Van Cleef & Arpels – including a pair of enamel, coral and diamond clips – also went under the hammer at the auction, which brought a total of £620,125 (739,000 euros, $1,017 million).

Jane Birkin’s daughter Kate Barry dies after apartment fall

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Photographer Kate Barry, daughter of singer-actress Jane Birkin and famed Bond film composer John Barry, died after falling from her 4th floor Paris flat in an apparent suicide.

The 46-year-old was found beneath her flat in the city’s wealthy 16th district on Wednesday evening.

Barry lived alone and anti-depressants were discovered inside her flat, which was locked from the inside, police said.

She was the daughter of British-born Birkin, best known as the muse and partner of late French singer Serge Gainsbourg, and British composer John Barry, famous for writing 11 James Bond movie themes including “Goldfinger” and “Diamonds Are Forever.”

Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti paid rich tribute to Kate Barry, saying that her “loving and heartfelt thoughts” were with a “family we all love.”

Barry had studied fashion but turned to photography later. She had drug and alcohol problems which prompted her to open a center for addicts near Paris.

Pakistan fashion casts off ‘dark cloud’ of extremism

Mention the Taliban to Pakistan fashion designer Kamiar Rokni and his irritation is clear.

“One of the things we feel diminishes our work is whenever our story is linked to Talibanization and whether we are doing this to fight extremism,” he told AFP in Paris.

“We’re not. We’re doing this for the business of fashion!”

Tired of the country’s “bombs and burqas” image, Rokni is far from alone in his desire to see fashion for fashion’s sake.

Certain precautions are unavoidable, however, and the locations of fashion shows are never disclosed in advance.

“It’s the one thing we do to protect ourselves,” said Rokni who runs his House of Kamiar Rokni label with two cousins.

“Apart from that you just have to have faith and carry on.”

Fellow designer Hassan Sheheryar Yasin, founder of the HSY label, is equally keen to distance himself from any political motive.

“We’ve been lumped up with a very bad dark cloud that’s been over our heads… but this really isn’t our war,” he said.

Extremism aside, the designers – who recently held a catwalk show in Paris – say Pakistan fashion is finally starting to establish itself. – with reports from Agence France-Presse/Rappler.com