Jay-Z Makes It a Very Merry (and Chic) Christmas for Beyoncé

Wonderwall, Sunday, December 26, 2010, 3:19pm (PST)

By Kat Giantis

Disappointed by Santa this year? Hanukkah haul not what you expected? Then you might want to skip this next item about what Beyoncé apparently found under the tree, or you might be hit with a bad case of holiday jealousy.

The New York Post says Jay-Z made a Christmas Eve pilgrimage to the swanky Hermes boutique on Madison Avenue, where he proceeded to load up on expensive accoutrements for his missus and, presumably, the other important ladies in his life.

"Jay was in a private room of Hermes doing last-minute shopping," relays an insider. "He had a guard standing watch outside. He spent $350,000 on Birkin bags, among other things."

The accessory-laden spending spree lasted so long that the music mogul wasn't able to make his lunch reservation at hot spot Nello, so the restaurant packed up the chow and delivered it to the store.

(Anyone else suddenly want to rewatch this scene from "Pretty Woman," in which tycoon Richard Gere informs a suck-up sales clerk that he and working-girl-with-a-heart-of-gold Julia Roberts would be dropping an "obscene amount of money.")

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No word on whether Jay-Z gets a discount at the store, although considering how much free publicity he's given Hermes over the years, it wouldn't be outside the realm of possibility.

Recall, if you will, the lyrics from "'03 Bonnie and Clyde": "And no, I ain't perfect/Nobody walkin' this earth's surface is/But girlfriend, work with the kid/I keep you workin' that Hermes Birkin bag, Manolo Blahnik, Timbs, aviator lens, 600 drops, Mercedes Benz."

Or "30 Something": "Your chick shop in the mall/My chick burnin' down Bergdorfs/Comin' back with Birkin bags/Your chick was like, 'What type of purse is that?'"

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And let's not forget Beyoncé's "Déjà Vu," in which Jay-Z romantically raps, "I used to bag girls like Birkin bags/Now I bag B ..."

Hova has plenty of cash to burn. He's reportedly pocketing $1 million for a New Year's Eve performance at the lavish grand opening celebration of the Cosmopolitan hotel and casino in Las Vegas.

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