Supermodels Elle Macpherson and Naomi Campbell were among the celebrities present as a pair of diamond encrusted sandals went under the gavel on Thursday evening at a glitzy charity auction at Sir Elton John’s Windsor home. The annual White Tie and Tiara ball, a fundraiser for the flamboyant singer’s AIDS foundation, saw the likes of Titanic star Kate Winslet and Posh Spice Victoria Beckham mingling with the 480 other guests and admiring the Salvatore Ferragamo footwear.
The sandals, which feature two detachable Chopard-designed diamond horseshoe brooches and nearly 500 round diamonds – totalling five carats – were snapped up for £13,000 by singer Ronan Keating as a present for his wife.
One guest dining at the £1,000-a-plate gala had no intention of bidding, however: “I’d be hopeless with them anyway, I ruin shoes,” said “It” girl Lady Victoria Hervey. “Dancing on tables is no good for them.”
Other items up for grabs were a David Linley table, an original Mini Cooper car, and a Chopard diamond watch. The evening raised a total of £1 million.