Written by Julie de Los Rios - Thursday, September 26, 2024
An ode to nature, architectural lines, couture inspirations, and majestic gems… Presented during Paris Couture Week, high jewellery collections offer unique immersive experiences. Let’s take a twirl through the latest creations…
What better setting than Paris, the City of Light? Twice a year, the jewellery brands of Place Vendôme take advantage of Couture Week to unveil their high jewellery collections.
This year, the event was slightly moved up due to the Olympics, but Couture Week delivered on all fronts. Just weeks before the Paris 2024 Olympics, jewellers did what they do best: amaze us.
Between the beauty of the designs, the brilliance of the stones, and technical innovations, eyes sparkled in a singular sensory journey through the most prestigious brands of Place Vendôme.
Let’s begin with
In this momentum, the Design Studio remains true to Gabrielle Chanel’s athletic look. The Chevron pattern evokes speed, flashes of colour energise the figure, while symbols dear to Mademoiselle Chanel – lion, star, or logo – are reimagined in a sporting context.
A very graphic and modernist collection in white and yellow gold, diamonds, yellow diamonds, sapphires, and onyx. An emerald-cut yellow diamond takes centre stage, but our favourite are the star-shaped pins that inspire dreams of medals.
A selective array of gems can also be found at Hermès, with its new high jewellery collection. Designed by Pierre Hardy and named Les Formes de la Couleur ("The Shapes of Colour"), the collection explores volumes and materials through a multifaceted lens.
In this exploration of light perception, the creative director celebrates a sensory phenomenon – the stimulation of receptors in the retina, showing how colours come to life in the eye.
When the "Portraits of Colour" chapter highlights the resonance between colours and geometric shapes – red rubies as squares, yellow beryls as triangles, or blue sapphires as circles – the "Fresh Paint" chapter draws lovely colourful arabesques. This effect of movement adds depth and texture to the jewellery thanks to meticulous gemstone setting.
Another highlight? The flowing, wavy forms of the "Arc en Couleurs" chapter, which follow the curves of the body. Nearly 1,400 stones were carefully selected for the gradient necklace, perfectly embracing the body’s contours – a showstopper! The multicoloured "Color Flash" and "Color Trip" sets also exude optimism through ultra-modern lines.
This same optimism is shared by
Sparkling heart motifs, key-shaped pendants with diamonds and rubies, chokers made with ethical yellow gold and fabulous yellow diamonds, or a ring adorned with two small titanium and emerald frogs wearing crowns made of ethical yellow gold set with rubellites and diamonds – all these pieces invite us to reconnect with our inner child.
For its 150th anniversary, Piaget went all out with the "Extraleganza" collection, a fusion of extravagance and elegance that celebrates Piaget’s spirit while showcasing the creative, avant-garde soul of the brand that has adorned the world’s most beautiful women over the decades, particularly those of the Piaget Society.
We love the yellow gold modernist lines adorned with hard stones like turquoise, malachite, or lapis lazuli, or the dazzling necklaces set with splendid precious and semi-precious stones: sublime emeralds, sapphires, aquamarine, opals, or tanzanites.
Other sources of inspiration? The architecture of major cities. This is reflected in the latest set from the
Returning to Paris, we visit the Japanese jewellery brand
We remain in the capital with Louis Vuitton, which takes us back to bustling 19th century Paris. Under the artistic direction of Francesca Amfitheatrof, the Séduction set celebrates the art of weaving, while the Gravité pieces reinterpret the iconic Monogram diamond.
Nature, a theme dear to Cartier, once again serves as inspiration.
The Nature Sauvage collection presents a parade of precious animals. In a radical or abstract figurative style, the collection fascinates us.
A ring inspired by crocodile scales, a snake split into two to become a necklace, a skyscraper-like motif detached from the silhouette of a scarab, or a zebra with graphic fur alternating onyx stripes and openwork lines paved with diamonds.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary, the Italian brand
Tiffany & Co invites us to look towards the sky with its Blue Book 2024. Designed by the brand’s Artistic Director for Jewellery and High Jewellery, the Tiffany Céleste collection reinvents iconic visions of the sun, moon, stars, and distant galaxies, as designed by jeweller Jean Schlumberger for the New York house.
At Pasquale Bruni, the "Heart to Earth" collection is a precious bouquet. The floral motif flourishes, enhanced by hearts made of rubies, sapphires, and emeralds… Rings are stacked to form a bouquet of diamonds on your hand, in perfect Italian style.
Our favourite? A white gold necklace with natural diamonds and a central emerald pendant.
Let’s now explore a different universe – that of night owls who dance until dawn. For these party girls, Valérie Messika introduces the second opus of Messika’s Midnight Sun collection.
Inspired by nights of celebration, the collection plays with contrasts, exploring light and dark through two versions of gold – white and yellow – which contrast and complement each other with cascades of natural diamonds.
Among the highlights, the oversized So Move Max set alternates pavé and baguette-cut diamonds along interlinking chains, while the White Midnight Sun set embraces the neo-punk 80s trend.
Graff continues to dazzle with its high jewellery sets, crafted from precious stones and diamonds that are both classic and unique. This year, the designs are even lighter, allowing the stones to take centre stage and enhance the beauty of the wearer.
From a ruby and diamond choker to extraordinary yellow diamonds, majestic emeralds, and sublime blue sapphires, the collection is a celebration of nature's finest gems.
In the Galaxia collection, a richly adorned set plays with graphic lines, perfect for adding a modern touch to an evening gown.
Celebrations are in order at Serendipity Paris as the high jewellery brand marks its 10th anniversary by presenting its new collections for the first time at its Place Vendôme showroom.
Muzo emeralds, Santa Maria aquamarines, Paraíba tourmalines... These exceptional stones are showcased in 43 exquisite pieces designed by founder and gemmologist Christine Chen.
The Art Deco collection captures the spirit of a creative era, with a necklace and earring set richly adorned with vivid, rare Colombian emeralds.
In the Belle Époque collection, bows and flowers take centre stage, featuring a transformable necklace that can be split to become both a brooch and a necklace at the snap of a clasp.
A favourite among fashionable women? The Double Me collection, where rings reveal a central bow housing a precious stone. Thanks to an ingenious mechanism, each face of the bow can be reversed. Once turned, the other side reveals a complex pattern adorned with diamonds, with rock crystal's transparency enhanced by diamond pavé. Sublime!
In 2024, more than ever, high jewellery collections inspire dreams. In the studio, innovation never stops, meeting the expectations of modern women by reinventing how jewellery is worn, reinterpreting classic motifs, and selecting the most exquisite gems. Exploring these exceptional showcases is a unique and dazzling experience! But wearing them… well, that’s another story.
What about you? Tell us what caught your eye and what you secretly wish you could wear!