Beauty, meet the beast.
This season's creepiest fashion accessory is a live, bejeweled cockroach worn as jewelry - and what better place for roach couture than New York?
"This really reinforces my theory that society is imploding," cracked Pete Donelan of Princeton, whose meal at a tony wine bar was interrupted by the sight of our live cockroach - Kafka - scurrying up its wearer's arm.
The giant Madagascar hissing cockroach, which is about three inches long and actually does hiss, is partially covered in brightly colored Swarovski crystals, which are glued to its hard outer shell.
It also sports a small clasp that attaches to a silver chain, the other end of which is a cameo pin - reminiscent of the bizarre Victorian-era trend of wearing live insects as jewelry.
Like an especially teeny Paris Hilton pet, the crawly critter is then free to roam around its owner's shoulder.
The bug brooch is the brainchild of Salt Lake City-based fashion designer Jared Gold.
Now Gold's roach brooch is available for purchase online at blackchandelier.com for $80, as well as in his Salt Lake City store. But when we sent away for a test roach, the trend lost some of its glitter.
First, we were shocked to receive our roach in a regular cardboard overnight-mail box.
Then, we had some trouble attaching the clasp to struggling Kafka's back; and, frankly, began to feel downright sorry for the little guy, who seemed much less sleazy than his New York counterparts. But in a walking tour of Midtown, Franz was undeniably a head-turner.
"I never saw one gussied up like that before!" said Lisa Patrizio of Brooklyn, enjoying the sun at Rockefeller Center.
"I don't think I could do it," Barbara Makowicz of Long Island, sitting nearby, said with a shudder. "Gross!"
Unsurprisingly, the roach brooch has not gone over well with animal-rights advocates.
"For a person who doesn't mind a small animal excreting on them throughout the day and doesn't have an ounce of compassion for these small, defenseless animals, this could be just the gift," PETA spokesman Michael McGraw said sarcastically.
http://www.nypost.com/news/nationalnews/62378.htm
:yech:yech:lol
[Edited on 3/5/06 by Dark Rose Siren]
:LOL
The Librarian ~ Keeper of Elfin Facts 
I'm sick of my subconscious...it's like it's got a mind of its own... 