Baccarat’s Dark Side

Baccarat is old school, like 1764, circa Louis XV. Although I typically think of them in this sort of clear crystal variety, they’ve been producing small quantities of black crystal for years. Lately there’s been a black splash; you’ve probably spotted a black chandelier or two, but with the recent enlistment of Philippe Starck who’s reinvented pieces in the modern context, black is back. (Or as the Dallas store’s manager said, “Black is way in.”) The stems shown are not Philippe’s; they are the handy work of design student Stephanie Balini of the Ecole Nationale Superieures des Arts Decoratif. Using black and clear crystal, Stephanie created two stemware collections, “day” and “night.” I prefer the night glasses, but you won’t know what’s floating in your glass. Four custom decorated glasses, $2,500.