Galleria J. Antonio

I put this picture in my window this week with 2 rainbow flags and it has been the subject of lots of cell phone photos - and emails.   I wanted to blog and share it with the Internet cause It has been a ton of fun . I love to watch people try and figure out the meaning of her majesty 's photo in the middle of the rainbow flags. ??????????? In our community when we call each other a queen , a quick response is : I am a princess , not a queen , my mother is still alive. Well, my mom, sister, and grandmother are all dead sooooooooo I want to be adopted by her majesty -and --I'm playing like a child that Queen Elizabeth is the Queen Mother and I am the Queen Sistah !!!!! Its gay pride 2014 and I have a sense of gratitude to all people in this country that have understood how important it has been to stand up to radicals/ religious leaders- that preach hate. As recently as 2013 Jesus , Joe Serna , Paula Barrett and myself were denied our rooms at a Tuscon...

New York City---------  is a special place to live because any moment you can become a part of something even bigger than you are.   Last week I was informed that some trailers would be parked on Ave A -all day in front  of the Gallery.   I can't afford a car so this parking memo did not mean anything to me. I looked out my big windows ---around 4pm and------- wham  .   Look who was sitiing outside in his robe??? He waved , he was pleasant , while he talked to some people outside who wanted to take selfies with him .  Forgetting that he put in a full day on the streets of the east village -somewhere? Thanks Donny.  I guess we are on first name basis now .  Ha-ha I love my life in the east village   I must watch  " BLUE BLOODS"  EVERYONE LOVES THAT SHOW............

Our neighborhood is on fast forward. New York has always been the city of "USE TO BE"  !!!!!!!! This use to be a restaurant , I loved This was where I use to live and now its an office bldg. This is where the first store I ever bought my first something was, now, it's a parking lot. ect ect ect IF YOU CALL IT ---- The Lower East Side / Alphabet City / East Village, or LES  its on fast forward.    It's changin so fast I can't keep up with it.  I thought I saw a seven eleven the other day.  I got off the bus , and bam, it was on Ave A and 12th street.  It felt very New Jersey  , no offense to Jersey. I have great Jersey customers but I always get those slurpies in New Jersey, not ave A Egg creams and Katz's Delicatessen, www.katzsdelicatessen.com  , are part of this neighborhood. I don't know how this happened but, Galleria J Antonio 47 ave A between east 3rd and east 4th street is the last place you can actually walk in...

I'm on my way--------------------------------- back to Seattle Washington - March 2014  See ya at THE PIKE MARKET !!!!! Joe Serna -Larry Hart and Jesse Gee are being reunited for yet another retail event. I am so grateful to have made so many friends in the 7 years I lived in Seattle. I hope to see everyone come through the shop. Joe Serna and I are having a big SALE   !!!!!!!!!!!!! visit :  DE LA SERNA   Key Tower  700 Fifth Avenue  Seattle Washington 98104 206 941-4418  10pm till closing Im going to bring some great jewelry and Hot -Glass from New York Please stop by the week of: March 18th to the 31st 2014   10 to 6 pm I want to visit  the hot glass galleries and see who? is new and who? is who ? . The Hot Glass center of the USA is in Seattle. / Portland 6"x4" bowl TWO PEOPLE ON THE EDGE -----BY JIM LOEWER GLASS PHILA.PA. One of the things I brought back to New York was my love for HOT GLASS. I will...

I can really remember a time in my life when I use to watch Marlo Thomas on THAT GIRL and dream what it would be like to have a life -like the one she had in her small ,N.Y. apartment.. All the funnie things that happened to her in New York , her apartment , with Donald and on her trips back to Brewster New York That show made me dream that one day I could leave Detroit and have my own New York experience.  Of course in those days I had a girlfriend named Charlotte Swieczkowski and had no gay ,awareness that I toooooooooooo wanted my own dreamy -Donald. !!!!!!! It's 2013 and Marlo is still working hard to make people live their dreams .  She is still working hard for the kids at St Jude's Hospital and is still a force in the theather and film. Jesus said: " Marlo , I use to see you Dubed in Spanish and your show was call  " Esta Chica "  she loved that someone from another continent knew her work. Jesus and I are both a very proud to represent small ...

Over the last 30 years I have had the pleasure of selling things to lots of celebrities .   Lucille Ball ,  Cher , and  KEN RUSSELL- were some of my favorites.   Ect ect........ Ken loved OVER SIZED faux jewels.  The bigger , the better.!!!!!!     The day he was here at  Galleria J Antonio he was sitting in our big window and we placed what he called THE MAHARAJAH necklace around his neck.   He had a twinkle in his eye that beamed with joy when he put something on that sparkled.  A man walked in and said " I don't want to bother you Mr. Russell but I went into film, because of your work " Of course Ken just smiled and kept looking at the Hugh crystal at the BOTTOM of endless chains and looked over to this man ,   with approval.  I was informed by my dear friend -Lisi Tribble(-Mrs Ken Russell)- NYC- that he was laid to rest ( cremated )- in ENGLAND- with a  Galleria J Antonio necklace that was one o...

I 'm in the middle of a new collection here at GALLERIA J ANTONIO  . I get a wave of nostalga as I bring out my new collection  of Walrus Tusk Jewelry to the floor. I remember the days on Madison Ave when all the jewelers sold the big - Ivory cuffs from RAJA INC . Of course fashion and animal murder were merged and I was one of the first to stop selling Ivory at 816 Madison Ave and switched to Cow Bone, Walrus Tusk , and Boars Tusk --as well as plastics that had the look of Ivory .  Diane Vreeland lived in her Ivory cuffs . The bigger the better .   In the 70's ,Vogue had spread after spread every summer with Ivory Accessories , dripping next to Linen outfits. I ran into Diana Vreeland upstairs near the Mike Todd room one summer night at Studio 54 .  I went over to her and knew her entourage would stop me so  I yelled out " Mrs Vreeland  !!!!  I am Jesse , I worked for Bob Gindi for years !!!    Bob's name got her to ...