Happy 120th Swarovski!!

What could possibly bring the President of Austria and FKA Twigs together? Swarovski, and only Swarovski. The brand celebrated it’s 120th anniversary in Wattens, just outside of Innsbruck, this week, inviting fashion designers, celebrities, and press to their small Austrian village to celebrate five generations of the family owned business—and see more crystals in 36 hours than most people see in a lifetime.

To mark the occasion, Swarovski’s expanded and revamped Kristallwelten, expansive gardens filled with a giant topiary (literally, it’s a giant) a crystal-covered metal cloud installation by Andy Cao and Xavier Perrot, and a museum filled with various artists’ interpretation of the cut glass that earns the company over $3 billion in revenue each year. When I arrived in Innsbruck, I knew that I loved sparkly things, nothing sparkled quite like Swarovski, and that, under the guidance of Nadja Swarovski, the brand had lent unmatched support to emerging designers over the past decade or so. When I left, I knew a hell of a lot more. Here, six things to know about the company that will make you want to move to a tiny town at the base of the Tyrolean Alps.

It was Isabella Blow who turned Swarovski onto emerging designers.
Rodarte, Tim Coppens, Misha Nonoo, and Wes Gordon are all members of the Swarovski Design Collective, but the first little known creative to benefit from the brand’s support was named Alexander McQueen. His longtime muse Isabella Blow asked Nadja to play benefactor (she wore McQueen to Tuesday night’s gala), and she’s been supporting up and coming talent like Christopher Kane, Prabal Gurung, and Giles Deacon ever since. Whomever she touches turns to gold crystal.

The glittering paint marking traffic lanes in Europe? That’s Swarovski.
It turns out, everything that shines is Swarovski—and I do mean everything. From Michael Jackson’s famous glove to the Titanic’s Heart of the Ocean to Rihanna’s unforgettable Swarvoski covered dress, sparkle=Swarovski. But also, the reflective paint marking lanes and crosswalks across Europe.

Swarovski is building water schools around the world.
How exactly Swarovski makes their crystals is a closely guarded secret—seriously, no one is allowed in the factory—but we do know that water is a very important part of the process, which is why Daniel Swarovski chose to base his company at the foot of the Alps. It’s also why the company’s investing in water schools all over the world to “teach children about preservation and sanitation,” says Nadja.

The first ever Swarovski crystals are allegedly inside Daniel Swarovski’s walking stick.
In the brand’s archive, there are thousands of crystals and hundreds of embellished dresses and accessories, but there’s just one walking stick. It belonged to the founder, Daniel, and when you turn it on its head it doubles as a rattle. Company legend has it full of the first crystals he ever cut.

There is a Swarovski company band. 
As guests entered the gala, the stage was full of men and women in traditional Austrian dirndls and lederhosen. They’re called the Swarovski Musik Wattens, and have been playing as the company band since 1900.

Costume designer Sandy Powell flew to Wattens five times to make sure Cinderella’s glass slipper was perfect. 
The designers in Austria for the celebration mentioned that part of the appeal of working with Swarovski—a large part—isn’t just the long list of iconic designers who’ve done so before them, but the access to innovation. They’ve cut new crystal shapes for designers like Martin Margiela, and when Oscar winning costume designer Sandy Powell needed a truly glass slipper for the newest version of Cinderella, she called Swarovski. It took her multiple trips to Wattens to get it right, but the finished product now proudly sits in the brand’s museum.