06 mai 2008
Herve van der Straeten: ribbon bracelet
Some is for her, and some is for the house. Herve van der Straeten has blurred the lines between fashion accessories and furniture. Pictured here is a ribbon bracelet designed by van der Straeten and produced in hammered brass and gold. (source www.ith.com)
04 mai 2008
Delfina Delettrez Fendi, une joaillère plein d'humour
Delfina Delettrez Fendi is creating one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces in a gothic-romantic and slightly disturbing vein. Delettrez Fendi, remembers the first time her father saw her skull rings. "When he saw the skulls he asked me,'What did we do to you when you were a child!'" (photo Gianluca Daversa)
A provocative bracelet created by the 20-year-old jeweler that has "eyes" of Murano glass. (photo Gianluca Daversa)
A chunky choker constructed of pieces of meteorite and silver dragon charms. (photo Gianluca Daversa)
The first collection by the nascent jeweler was filled with gothic muses but her more recent works have been tempered by the arrival of her baby daughter. "The pregnancy gave me a softness that I didn't have before. When I started designing there were a lot of skulls but when I found out I was pregnant, I started to make pieces with little animals like pigs and frogs," says Delettrez Fendi. (photo Gianluca Daversa)
Delettrez Fendi recently opened her first freestanding jewelry store on Via del Governo Vecchio in Rome, just minutes away from the Piazza Navona. Delettrez Fendi wanted the tiny store, with its absinthe-green display cases, 19th century pharmacy furnishing and a multitude of miniature drawers that house her handcrafted creations, to have the feel of a witch's house. (photo Roberto Fiorina )
Delettrez Fendi has just completed a capsule line of gloves with the French glove maker Causse. The supple black leather pieces are adorned with the jeweler's fetish skulls, frogs and insects. (photo Courtesy of Causse)
A sneak peak at her next collection shows that her home city of Rome has found its way into the line with a series of rings outfitted with crowns. "Living in Rome it is hard not to be influenced by religion," declares Delettrez Fendi. (photo Gianluca Daversa)
A necklace by Delfina Delettrez-Fendi (photo Gianluca Daversa)
Lire l'article "Delfina Delettrez Fendi makes jewelry for women with a sense of humor" de Jessica Michault http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/05/02/arts/rcajfend.php
Hommage à Fulco di Verdura
Katharine Hepburn as a feisty Philadelphia socialite wore Verdura jewelry in the 1940 film version of "The Philadelphia Story"; Joan Crawford and Marlene Dietrich were both Verdura devotees, while a curb-link bracelet watch that he made for Greta Garbo became one of her lifelong treasures, often featured in portraits of the actress. (Greta Garbo wearing the Verdura's curb-link watch and bracelet in 18K gold - originally created for her by Verdura) (photo Verdura)
For Kirsten Everts, Bonhams European jewelry specialist, the seductiveness of Verdura's designs is enhanced by their exclusivity. "The great thing about Verdura is that there simply is less of it, which should, officially, make it more valuable," she said. "Owning a piece of Verdura is a little like having an elite club membership: Once bitten, forever smitten." (Verdura's curb-link watch and bracelet, originally created for Greta Garbo) (photo Bonhams)
At a Bonhams fine jewelry sale in late April in London, one of the rarer lots was an amethyst and aquamarine parure, including a ring, bracelet, pendant earrings and a necklace set with 880 carats of amethysts. Made in 1969 for the American art collector and socialite Bernice Wintersteen, it was not by Cartier, Boucheron, or any of the usual names, but by Fulco Santostefano della Cerda, Duke of Verdura. (photo Bonhams)
The public face of Hollywood has bestowed an almost mythical status on a select handful of jewelry houses. But off screen, Hollywood's stars, together with high society hostesses and jewelry aficionados, have long revered Verdura as a figure holding a special place in the rarefied world of bespoke jewelry, a reference for both opulence and creative individuality. (Amethyst and aquamarine parure, designed by Verdura) (photo Bonhams)
A protégé of Coco Chanel, with a list of admirers that ranged from leading actresses, like Greta Garbo and Katherine Hepburn, to aristocrats and royalty, including the Duchess of Windsor and Countess Mona Von Bismarck, Fulco di Verdura was as much a style icon as were his clients. (Detail from amethyst parure) (photo Bonhams)
Born in Sicily in 1898, he was brought up in his grandmother's country house outside Palermo and the jeweler's early life in the Sicilian sunlight, as described in his 1976 autobiography, "The Happy Summer Days," had an important impact on his work. (Verdura's Scallop Shell brooch with Diamond and Sapphire. Verdura was often refered to as the "Shell jeweler.") (photo Verdura)
Large, unsubtle, gemstones, a preference for gold, bright colors and a taste for natural objects found their way first into watercolors, and later into his jewelry. All went directly against the style of the time, which leant towards a delicate white-on-white vogue for platinum and diamonds. (Verdura's Criss Cross Cuffs in White Gold and Yellow Gold - Originally created when Fulco noticed the woven interior of a friend's car.) (photo Verdura)
It was this non-conformism that first struck Chanel, who was introduced to Verdura at a party in Venice in 1925 by his friends Cole and Linda Porter, whom he had met in Sicily - which had become, in the 1920s, a fashionable destination for the American and European glitterati. (Verdura's Night and Day Cufflinks which were created for Cole Porter, his friend and backer, in tribute to Porter's hit song of the same name) (photo Verdura)
Chanel commissioned Verdura to help her create her boutique jewelry collection, as well as to rework much of her own personal jewelry. In 1934 Verdura left Paris for New York, and created, in the following year, one of his most iconic works for Chanel: A cuff bracelet, crafted around a Maltese Cross given to her by Grand Duke Dmitri of Russia. (Verdura's Maltese Cross Cuff, originally created for Coco Chanel. Shown in black jade with ruby, diamond, pearl and sapphire.) (photo Verdura)
Verdura's place in the elite social circles of 1930s and '40s America led to a series of commissions and collaborations with the great and the good of the era. The set of amethyst and aquamarine jewelry offered at Bonhams was created for Wintersteen, a Philadelphia heiress with an art collection that included works by Picasso, Degas and Matisse, using stones that she had discovered and brought back from Brazil with her brother. (Bernice Wintersteen) (photo Bonhams)
In the 1910s and '20s, the hugely popular actress Mary Pickford, known as "America's sweetheart," had captured the spirit of an age that favored the classic elegance of Cartier. But by the 1940s, Americans were looking for something more daring. The ambitious socialite Babe Paley, famed for her unconventional style, was one of Verdura's most ardent admirers - and went on to become his confidante and muse, accompanying him on trips around the world. (Babe Paley and Duke Fulco di Verdura on holiday in Venice, 1963. From the exhibition "All around Fulco di Verdura: The photographs of Milton Gendel") (photo Milton Gendel/Courtesy of Verdura)
Caroline Herrera and Verdura crossed paths when Verdura was living in London and became friends, with Herrera using Verdura jewelry to accessorize her Spring 2007 catwalk show. (Reinaldo & Carolina Herrera on the beach of the Villa Mercedes at Formentor, Majorca, 1976, from the exhibition "All around Fulco di Verdura: The photographs of Milton Gendel" showing May 1 through May 30th at the Verdura Salon) (photo Milton Gendel/Courtesy of Verdura)
Lire "Fulco di Verdura: The elegant beguiler of stars" de Tara Mulholland http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/05/02/arts/rcajverd.php
02 mai 2008
AN ATTRACTIVE PAIR OF ANTIQUE NATURAL PEARL AND DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS
AN ATTRACTIVE PAIR OF ANTIQUE NATURAL PEARL AND DIAMOND EAR PENDANTS
Each designed as a button-shaped pearl measuring 11.83 by 10.94 mm and weighing 40.92 grains (10.23 carats) and 11.75 by 10.92 mm and weighing 39.96 grains (9.99 carats) within an old-cut diamond surround suspending a drop-shaped pearl each measuring 21.10 mm by 14.30 mm and weighing 107.44 grains (26.86 carat) and 13.45 by 21.18 mm and weighing 91.28 grains (22.82 carats), 5.2 cm long, circa 1880. Price Realized: $217,000
Accompanied by report No. 0127953 dated 26 February 2008 from the Gem Testing Laboratory of Great Britain (Gem-A) stating that the pearls are natural
Christie's. JEWELLERY AND WATCHES. JUMEIRAH EMIRATES TOWERS HOTEL 29 APRIL 2008
AN ATTRACTIVE NATURAL BLACK PEARL RING
AN ATTRACTIVE NATURAL BLACK PEARL RING
The black pearl measuring 13.7 mm diameter and weighing 23.36 grains (5.84 carats) to the single-cut diamond shoulders. Price Realized: $43,000
Accompanied by report No. 0127905 dated 18 February 2008 from the Gem Testing Laboratory of Great Britain (Gem-A) stating that pearl is natural, no evidence of treatment.
Christie's. JEWELLERY AND WATCHES. JUMEIRAH EMIRATES TOWERS HOTEL 29 APRIL 2008
AN EXCEPTIONAL BELLE EPOQUE NATURAL GREY/BROWN PEARL PENDENT NECKLACE
AN EXCEPTIONAL BELLE EPOQUE NATURAL GREY/BROWN PEARL PENDENT NECKLACE
The grey and brown drop-shaped pearl measuring 26.45 by 18.68-17.14 mm and weighing 227.24 grains (56.81 carats) to the diamond-set cap and spectacle-set chain, 78.0 cm long, circa 1900. Price realized: $769,000
Accompanied by report No. 0701147 dated 31 January 2007 from the Gübelin Gem Lab stating that the drop-shaped natural pearl is of grey and brown colour, no indications of colour enhancement
Notes: Symphony in Grey
This remarkable grey/brown drop pearl is undoubtedly one of the largest and finest pearls in the world. It is the fourteenth largest pearl so far recorded, the seventh largest drop-shaped pearl and the largest drop-shaped coloured pearl. Of those drop-shaped pearls that are larger only one is known to be a more attractive pearl and that is La Regenti that once formed part of the French Crown Jewels and weighs 302 grains. The remaining six pearls that are larger and heavier are either baroque or show some signs of distress owing to drying out lines or staining.
The two largest pearls, the Gogibus pearl weighing 504 grains and Shah Sofi's pearl of 500 grains may have been lost in time as there whereabouts are currently unknown, it is also quite possible that these could be the same pearl known under different names, as they were both found in the first half of the seventeenth century. The Gogibus pearl was described in The Book of the Pearl, page 461 as the largest pearl in Europe, while Shah Sofi's pearl was described by Tavernier as the largest and most perfect pearl ever discovered. The possibility that two pearls of virtually identical weight and shape of such enormous size could have been found more or less at the same time seems very unlikely. Also, after the Gogibus pearl was sold to King Philip IV of Spain he wore it as a button in his hat as no match could be found (The Book of the Pearl, page 461). If these pearls were indeed the same it would make this grey brown pearl the sixth largest recorded drop, the largest coloured drop-shaped pearl and the second most beautiful drop pearl after La Regente.
With the information so far attained on large pearls one can state that the pearl being sold in this sale is one of the most important in the world, undoubtedly, there will be others that have not yet been recorded that may challenge these statistics and that will hopefully come to light one day.
Christie's. JEWELLERY AND WATCHES. JUMEIRAH EMIRATES TOWERS HOTEL 29 APRIL 2008
A NATURAL PEARL AND DIAMOND PENDANT
A NATURAL PEARL AND DIAMOND PENDANT
The baroque-shaped hollow pearl measuring 39.3 by 28.2 by 23.0 mm and weighing 436.62 grains (109.18 carats) to the diamond-set textured gold suround and similar surmount, 6.0 cm long. - Price Realized: $37,000
Accompanied by report No. 0127817 dated 12 January 2008 from the Gem Testing Laborotary of Great Britain (Gem-A) stating that the the pearl is a natural hollow pearl
Christie's. JEWELLERY AND WATCHES. JUMEIRAH EMIRATES TOWERS HOTEL 29 APRIL 2008
29 avril 2008
Rare BROCHE couronne de feuillages sertis de diamants taillés en rose. Années 1900.
Rare BROCHE couronne de feuillages sertis de diamants taillés en rose. Années 1900.
Elle est ornée de perles fines de couleur grise une de forme bouton au centre et deux de forme poire en pampille. Monture en or et argent. Poids de la perle bouton_90.48 grains Poids des perles poire_63.04 et 90.16 grains Perles fines de couleur naturelle. Certificat CCIP en date du 29 janvier 2008. Estimation : 30 000 - 50 000 €
Pierre Bergé & Associés. Bijoux. Mardi 13 mai à 14h00. Genève - Hôtel de la Paix. EMail : contact@pba-auctions.com - Tél. : 01 49 49 90 00
A GEM-SET AND DIAMOND BRACELET, BY MICHAEL YOUSSOUFIAN
A GEM-SET AND DIAMOND BRACELET, BY MICHAEL YOUSSOUFIAN
The flexible broad band set with variously shaped pink and green tourmalines interspaced with pavé-set ruby panels to the brilliant-cut diamond detail, 17.5 cm long, in maker's case. With makers mark for Michael Youssoufian. Price Realized: $25,000
A RARE PARAIBA TOURMALINE AND DIAMOND RING, BY MICHAEL YOUSSOUFIAN
A RARE PARAIBA TOURMALINE AND DIAMOND RING, BY MICHAEL YOUSSOUFIAN
The rectangular-shaped tourmaline weighing 11.06 carats within a pavé-set rose-cut diamond bombé surround with brilliant-cut pink diamond detail, ring size J 1/2, in maker's case. With maker's mark for Michael Youssoufian Price Realized: $79,000
Note: Accompanied by report No. 0801186 dated 04 February 2008 from the Gübelin Gem Lab stating that the tourmaline weighing 11.06 carats is of Paraiba variety
