Adornis, the Irish-based, multimillion pound Irish jewellery site that has stated its intentions are to woo well-heeled consumers abroad rather than within the dinky Irish market, has put its money where its mouth is.

This month, the cyber-jeweller forked out for a full-page glossy advertisement well up in the front of that monthly bible of the high-income digerati, Wired Magazine.

Hanging off an iceberg of parmesan cheese are two diamond-studded bracelets (a snip at $1,500 [€1,523] each) and nearby, two matching rings (only $995).

"Mouse dilemma," states the ad caption.

Laugh sceptically all you want, but luxury goods - with their high margins - may well mean luxury profits online, according to technology analysts. Top luxury retailer, Ashford.com, had $20.1 million in fourth-quarter sales, up from $2.1 million in the same period in 1998.

Whether jewellers can turn online sales into online profits, though, remains to be seen.