Dhamani Jewels
With Valentine's Day right around the corner, Dubai-based Dhamani Jewels couldn't have picked a better time to launch its exclusive partnership with Argyle Pink Diamonds. The jewellery house is the first Middle East affiliate and distributor for the Argyle Diamond Mine in Australia, the only known consistent source of pink and red diamonds. Only 34 ateliers around the world offer rare pink diamonds from the mine, and Dhamani is now one of them, offering a 150-piece collection showcasing the glorious jewels. Whether the stone is set in a rose gold knuckle ring or in the centre of a necklace of brilliant white diamonds, the new DPink collection highlights the natural iridescence of pink diamonds. Argyle Pink Diamonds have previously been auctioned for between US$2 million and $4m (up to Dh14.7m) per carat. With the Australian mine scheduled for closure in 2021, this may be the optimal time to make an investment in the rare coloured stones. Seeing as 2017 is the Year of Giving in the UAE, Dhamani has pledged that it will donate 5 per cent of all sales from the DPink Collection to Al Jalila Foundation, the non-profit organisation of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
Boutique Le Chocolat
If dark, milk and white are the only terms in your chocolate lexicon, expand your knowledge by signing up for the Bespoke Chocolate Experience at Boutique Le Chocolat at City Walk, Dubai. First, choose a blend that appeals, from among semi-sweet Alunga milk chocolate, creamy Lactée Barry with biscuit notes, hazelnut Papouasie with a hint of caramel or Peruvian Alto El Sol dark chocolate, among others. Next, watch as your selection is tempered and moulded by master chocolatiers from Amsterdam, San Francisco, Switzerland, Tokyo, and even a former Buckingham Palace chef. They will also provide an insight into chocolate production, from in-store creations to the artisanal bean-to-bar process. Seal the deal with delectable toppings in chocolate, strawberry or salted caramel flavours from the Belgian Crispearls brand. The 45-minute session costs Dh350 and take-homes include the four bars you have created, as well as a personalised wrapper. If 20 minutes is all you can spare, sign up for the shorter Classic Chocolate Experience for Dh250.
Glassing
Founded in 2010 by Italian designers Alessandro Forte and Stefano Ottone, Glassing recently unveiled its second pop-up kiosk in Dubai, at City Walk 2. The brand has also just launched its new Base collection, which combines vividly saturated lenses with a minimalist construct, and is entirely in line with the brand's cool-kid, globetrotting vibe. Glassing was first launched on the Spanish island of Ibiza – fitting, given that these are sunglasses perfectly suited to vacationers, beach hoppers and life-of-the-party personas. It already has a high-profile client list that include the likes of Anna Dello Russo, Justin Bieber and Chris Brown. Frames in the Base collection are crafted from black, silver and raw steel, and the eyewear features voguish flat-mirrored lenses, which are wide-set, with eye-catching pigments. The Ayahuascha model appears almost rimless, save for a steel frame hovering above the colourful, reflective lenses; the Divinorum style offers a play on a classic round-shaped lens, punctuated with a subtle cat's-eye point; and the Peyote shades are loosely inspired by rectangular aviators. Each design is offered up in fiery red-orange, cool blue and pale peach-hued lenses, and is priced at Dh1,699.
Hermès
Those gazing upon the new Slim d'Hermès Quantième Perpétuel watch could be mistaken for thinking it is a thing of simplicity. But while the clean design gives an air of understatement, beneath this cool exterior beats a fiery heart. The numerals on the dial, for example, were first created by Paris-based graphic artist Philippe Apeloig, for the original Slim in 2015. The face, depicted in a deep blue, is airy and uncluttered, despite accommodating four complications, a moonphase at three o'clock, a second time zone, a day/night indication and the fiendishly technical perpetual calendar. Requiring a mechanical memory capable of dealing with the different lengths of months and leap years, this has the ability to self-adjust. Powered by the Swiss-made ultra-thin H1950 movement, itself a mere 2.6 millimetres thick, the Hermès timepiece is only 5mm thick, making it an ideal dress watch, sitting, as it does, so neatly under a shirt cuff. Additional details include hand-bevelled bridges, 29 jewels and a 42-hour reserve. Those who revel in details will savour the mother-of-pearl moonphase floating in a sparkly glass sky. The finishing touch is a rich blue alligator strap.
Read this and more stories in Luxury magazine, out with The National on Thursday, February 2.
sdenman@thenational.ae
Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest
Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.
Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.
Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.
Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.
Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.
Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia
'Unrivaled: Why America Will Remain the World’s Sole Superpower'
Michael Beckley, Cornell Press
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kinetic 7
Started: 2018
Founder: Rick Parish
Based: Abu Dhabi, UAE
Industry: Clean cooking
Funding: $10 million
Investors: Self-funded
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
The biog
Age: 19
Profession: medical student at UAE university
Favourite book: The Ocean at The End of The Lane by Neil Gaiman
Role model: Parents, followed by Fazza (Shiekh Hamdan bin Mohammed)
Favourite poet: Edger Allen Poe
EMIRATES'S REVISED A350 DEPLOYMENT SCHEDULE
Edinburgh: November 4 (unchanged)
Bahrain: November 15 (from September 15); second daily service from January 1
Kuwait: November 15 (from September 16)
Mumbai: January 1 (from October 27)
Ahmedabad: January 1 (from October 27)
Colombo: January 2 (from January 1)
Muscat: March 1 (from December 1)
Lyon: March 1 (from December 1)
Bologna: March 1 (from December 1)
Source: Emirates
Results
5pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m; Winner: Faiza, Sandro Paiva (jockey), Ali Rashid Al Raihe (trainer).
5.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh90,000 1,400m; Winner: Greeley, Connor Beasley, Helal Al Alawi.
6pm: Emirates Fillies Classic Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 1,600m; Winner: Marzaga, Jim Crowley, Ana Mendez.
6.30pm: Emirates Colts Classic Prestige (PA) Dh100,000 1,600m; Winner: Jawaal, Jim Crowley, Majed Al Jahouri.
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m; Winner: AF Ashras, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m; Winner: Somoud, Richard Mullen, Ahmed Al Mehairbi.
The Emperor and the Elephant
Author: Sam Ottewill-Soulsby
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Pages: 392
Available: July 11
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
Most polluted cities in the Middle East
1. Baghdad, Iraq
2. Manama, Bahrain
3. Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
4. Kuwait City, Kuwait
5. Ras Al Khaimah, UAE
6. Ash Shihaniyah, Qatar
7. Abu Dhabi, UAE
8. Cairo, Egypt
9. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
10. Dubai, UAE
Source: 2022 World Air Quality Report
MOST POLLUTED COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD
1. Chad
2. Iraq
3. Pakistan
4. Bahrain
5. Bangladesh
6. Burkina Faso
7. Kuwait
8. India
9. Egypt
10. Tajikistan
Source: 2022 World Air Quality Report
ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Haltia.ai
Started: 2023
Co-founders: Arto Bendiken and Talal Thabet
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: AI
Number of employees: 41
Funding: About $1.7 million
Investors: Self, family and friends
Founders: Abdulmajeed Alsukhan, Turki Bin Zarah and Abdulmohsen Albabtain.
Based: Riyadh
Offices: UAE, Vietnam and Germany
Founded: September, 2020
Number of employees: 70
Sector: FinTech, online payment solutions
Funding to date: $116m in two funding rounds
Investors: Checkout.com, Impact46, Vision Ventures, Wealth Well, Seedra, Khwarizmi, Hala Ventures, Nama Ventures and family offices
Company profile
Name: Purpl
Co-founders: Karl Naim, Wissam Ghorra, Jean-Marie Khoueir
Based: Hub71 in Abu Dhabi and Beirut
Started: 2021
Number of employees: 12
Sector: FinTech
Funding: $2 million
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
Company profile
Name: Infinite8
Based: Dubai
Launch year: 2017
Number of employees: 90
Sector: Online gaming industry
Funding: $1.2m from a UAE angel investor