So this is the year where everything was supposed to get back to normal. And yet, life still seems pretty strange.
The CEO of Twitter letting a poll choose his fate? Weird. An ex-president hawking NFTs? Super weird.
The jewelry industry didn’t escape this weirdness. Like last year, JCK has selected 10 of the oddest stories we could find from the year gone by. These stories are amusing, strange, perplexing, and sometimes gross. (Consider that a warning.)
Remember: Pandemics peter out, but weirdness endures.
Turning Poop Into Lab-Grown Diamonds
However people feel about lab-grown diamonds, there’s probably a general consensus they shouldn’t be made out of poop. And yet, Christoph Büchel—described by ArtNet as an “artist-provocateur”—has done some artful provoking by creating lab-grown diamonds using DNA taken from his own feces. The story includes an explanation of the process, which you probably don’t want to read.
Consumers are clearly wary of blood diamonds, but I can’t imagine poop diamonds being any more popular.
Making COVID-19 Tests Into Jewelry
During this three years of pandemic, COVID-19 tests have become a favorite for everyone who enjoys a foreign object shoved up their nostrils. But can they be jewelry too? When Robert Cavalli, founder of fashion brand Triple RRR, posted a picture of a woman wearing antigen test earrings on Instagram, it went viral. Now, this silly idea has become quite serious. He later told The Hindustan Times: “Instead of throwing your negative plastic antigen tests in the bin, if these can be recycled to create a fashion accessory, then why not!” We’ll get back to you on that.
Disneyland Employee Ruins Engagement
She said yes, but a park employee said no. Disneyland Paris wasn’t exactly the happiest place on Earth when a mouse-eared stickler for the rules interrupted a proposal in progress by grabbing the diamond ring. Disneyland has apologized for the goofy incident.
Rats Steal Gold Jewelry From Dump
Big cities are currently fighting higher-than-usual levels of rats and crime. But what about rats who commit crimes? A woman in Mumbai, India, was carrying a bag full of gold jewelry and gave two children vada pav, an Indian street food. She accidentally gave them jewelry too—which they promptly threw away. It was taken to a local dump where it attracted the attention of some friendly neighborhood rats. “Police later recovered the gold jewelry after checking the CCTV footage, which showed a few rats taking the bag of gold from the garbage dump to a gutter,” a police inspector told NDTV. No word if they plan to press charges.
Man Loses Nose Ring, Finds It In His Lung
The New York Post says that, about five years ago, an Ohio man with 12 piercings woke up one morning without his nose ring. When he couldn’t find it, he bought a new one. It was presumed lost until he woke up in the middle of the night with a nasty cough. After he rushed to the hospital, X-rays determined that his missing nose ring had somehow lodged itself in the upper lobe of his left lung. “I was like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’ ” he said. “I’ve been looking for that.”
Mother-in-Law Steals Bride-to-Be’s Heirloom Jewelry
Awkward! According to a Reddit post, a 28-year-old bride-to-be had just inherited some 4 carat earrings and was excited to wear them at her wedding. But they disappeared on the big day, and the woman determined that the culprit was her soon-to-be mother-in-law. She called the police, who found them in the mom’s bag, but now the burgled newlywed is torn about whether to press charges. The crowd on Reddit was all for it, especially after hearing the mother-in-law has been sending her “hateful texts.” “Oh my God,” wrote one. “Is this woman a Disney villain?”
Poker Player Accused of Using Ruby Ring to Cheat
After newbie Robbi Jade Lew stunned the poker world by winning $269,000 in her first-ever tournament, opponent Garrett Adelstein immediately charged her with cheating. An investigation was launched, and while no conclusion has been reached as of yet, social media sleuths have largely rallied around one theory: The 7 ct. ruby ring Lew wore on her finger either vibrated or held a small camera. “Eagle-eyed fans believe they’ve spotted a key clue in the game footage,” wrote the Daily Mail, “when Lew appears to fiddle with a ring and remove or rotate it under the table after the hand.” Lew scoffed at the allegation, saying she’s a “fidgety person” and hadn’t taken her ADHD meds.
Goat Breaks Into A Jewelry Store’s Toilet
A goat on the loose in a Cartagena, Spain, broke into a jewelry store and ran into its toilet, according to a report in Murica Today. The police locked the animal inside and speedily subdued it. “We almost didn’t even see it enter, because it came in very quickly,” said the store’s manager. “It hit a glass window very hard and knocked it over.” Police are still determining whose goat it was, how it broke loose, and why it had to go so bad.
Woman Finds Out Her Diamond Is Fake, Storms Out Of Game
When a Portland Blazers fan got her ring tested at a game in Atlanta by the team’s mascot, she found out it was fake. She quickly stormed out of the stadium, after tossing both the ring and a dirty look at the guy who gave it to her. “Oh man,” said the game’s announcer. “That’s gonna be a rough flight home.”
https://twitter.com/matteojones/status/1503526225326841859?
Woman Sells “Not Cursed” Engagement Ring
When a divorced woman in Casper, Wyo., decided to sell her old engagement ring on Facebook, she couldn’t resist venting a bit. The ring, she said, came from “her first failed marriage,” but it is “totally not cursed.” She added she’d like to use the money “for something fun like therapy.” The unusual sales pitch apparently worked; according to K2 radio, the ring sold, lack of curse and all.
Photo: Getty Images
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