Crown worn by Ariana Grande for ‘Dangerous Woman’ publicity to be auctioned by private collector
Ariana Grande’s One Love Manchester benefit concert was an all-out charitable effort, but the private collector who has put the crown that she wore to promote her “Dangerous Woman” album up for auction has taken another route.
A spokesman for Nate D. Sanders Auctions said the item was consigned before the Manchester attack and the proceeds will not be donated to charity. The bidding is set to start Thursday at $5,000. Mary Collins of Vauje jewelry, who designed the headpiece with handset rhinestones near its spikes said she sold it last year. That private collector has since consigned it to the auction house, the spokesman said.
Collins did not respond immediately Monday to a request for comment.
Last month 22 people were killed and 119 were injured after a terrorist bomb exploded in Manchester Arena immediately after Grande’s “Dangerous Women” concert tour. After initially postponing the U.K. leg of her tour, the 23-year-old musician helped organize the One Love Manchester concert and returned to Manchester a few weeks later. Held in the city’s Old Trafford cricket ground, the concert featured Justin Bieber, Coldplay and Katy Perry. The event helped raise more than $12.7 million for the victims and their families, according to a published report.
The Manchester City Council made Grande an honorary citizen for pulling together the One Love benefit concerned. At the end of the European leg of her tour, Grande thanked fans via Instagram Monday, “I just wanted to thank you properly for the overwhelming love and support you’ve shown me, my crew and each other during this challenging time. Spending this time with you this month has been so very healing and special! Thank you for being here.”
The two-time Grammy nominee wore the crown for publicity and social media photographs for her third album “Dangerous Woman.” For a mugshot effect, the brunette was photographed in black and white holding lineup-type placards with the names of various tracks spelled out. The Los Angeles-based Collins said had been trying to connect with one of Grande’s stylists Brigitte Pilla before she came into her Melrose Avenue showroom, La Maison de Fashions. “I make a lot of crowns for celebrities. I built a reputation with one of her stylists.” She said. “I’ve made crowns for Kevin Hart, Jason Derulo and Paris Hilton’s dog. I’ve made some for Blue Ivy but I never got pictures of them because Beyoncé is really private. I made some crowns for the Obama daughters because Beyoncé gave them a party, one was graduating and one was having a birthday. I never got pictures from those because that was private.”
Collins did provide laminated photos and a notarized LOA to the crown’s owner. “I had no idea she was going to try to sell it. I wasn’t really trying to get rich off of it. I think I sold it to her for $675. That’s what they retail for on my site,” Collins said. “They’ve been trying to auction it for $10,000. Then I guess it didn’t sell so it went down to $6,000 or $5,000.”
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