simmons jewelry company

It just keeps getting better. We've been covering the various luxe Hello Kitty collections over the past few years with delight and wonder -- this year Hello Kitty is even sparklier and more fabulous than before.

Simmons Jewelry Company's Hello Kitty collection (available from Zales) now includes more than just jewelry -- how about a pink crystal studded Hello Kitty compact, or even a 2GB USB flash drive (right, $125.00)? We love the cute rubber watches and the glittering, multicolored sapphires, tourmalines and rubies in the current collection, as well as the "big rock" pendants and rings created by Kimora Lee Simmons for Hello Kitty's 35th Anniversary (available from Neiman Marcus).

To check out some of our favorite picks of the litter (haha), see below for photos and prices.

For even more Hello Kitty bling, check out these exceptional Hello Kitty iPhone covers. Wow!

Russell Simmons gave me a SpongeBob SquarePants alarm clock radio. No, I did not dream this.

I was recently at an event for Simmons Jewelry Company when who should walk in but Russell Simmons himself, wearing a glimmering SpongeBob SquarePants pendant! He was very cordial and said I looked familiar. I said he looked familiar, too. He said "I'm Russell Simmons."

The event was to celebrate and exhibit the new Simmons Jewelry Co. collections that will be coming out this fall and for the holidays, and there is a whole line of luxury SpongeBob SquarePants jewelry for men and women.

"Why SpongeBob?" I asked Russell. His answer was simple: "SpongeBob is the Hello Kitty for men."

Genius! As you may know, Kimora Lee Simmons of the Simmons family has had a line of Hello Kitty jewelry for quite awhile now (you can read Rigel's article about the Zodiac collection here) -- and even designed the $50,000 Hello Kitty necklace Britney Spears wore in her music video for "Do Somethin'." There's a lot of great new Hello Kitty stuff coming this fall, too -- including Swarovski crystal studded earbuds and a USB drive I've got my eye on.

For now, let's have a look at the SpongeBob and Bikini Bottom items, which come in sterling silver, 18kt gold plating, enamel work and Swarovski crystals (as shown). Who knows? Maybe they'll make a $50,000 one for Justin Timberlake!

As for the alarm clock radio in the gift bag? I gave it to my landlord's kids.

The allure of cartoon characters on jewelry eludes me but there must be a market for it since we've seen a fair amount of it on the market. Simmons Jewelry Company, Russell Simmons's company and Nickolodeon have partnered on a new fine jewelry and watch line inspired by SpongeBob SquarePants, The line will include pieces in gold, silver and enamel and products will sell for $150 to $75,000. The line will debut in the fall. The 12-carat total weight diamond-encrusted SpongeBob pendant shown here will be auctioned off for charity with proceeds benefiting Simmons's Diamond Empowerment Fundwhich funds schools in Africa. Simmons Jewelry is also the creator of the Hello Kitty fine jewelry line.

Simmons Jewelry Company, the company owned by Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee Simmons, is going green. They are launching the Green Initiative, a line of jewelry that raises money for the Diamond Empowerment Fund, whose mission is to raise money for African communities. The designs feature steel, rubber, diamonds. At the Academy Awards, Forest Whitaker wore the Los Angeles stainless steel and green rubber cross bracelet with laser engraved logo and diamonds. 25% of the proceeds from this piece and most of the others in the collection go to the Diamond Empowerment Fund.

The Green Bracelet shown here features malachite beads and a rough diamond, catching on to the current trend for rough diamonds in jewelry designs. 50% of the proceeds of the piece go to the Diamond Empowerment Fund. Each bracelet comes with a Kimberley Process certificate, a Gem Certification Assurance Lab certificate, and a DVD message from Russell Simmons with footage from his trip to Botswana and South Africa last year. Prices for the collection range from $200-$35,000.