ALL THAT GLITTERS
JEWELRY AND WATCH DESIGNERS PAINT WITH A PALETTE THAT RANGES FROM BARELYTHERE CRYSTAL TO INTENSE RED TO CREATE THIS SEASON’S WISH LIST OF VIBRANT TREASURES. BY LAURIE KAHLE
Abundantly CLEAR
From rock crystal to sapphire crystal to crystal glass, see-through elements infuse jewelry and watches with an ethereal modern sensibility. A member of the quartz family, rock crystal, in its purest form, can be carved and shaped to look like glass but is far stronger. At Chopard, diamonds freely float between plates of sapphire crystal, the extremely hard transparent material commonly used for fine watches. Add in a few translucent moonstones, and the futuristic direction of jewelry becomes clear.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT:
DAVID YURMAN Silver Ice Mosaic Cuff with white agate, moonstone, blue sapphire, moon quartz, and diamonds in 18-karat gold, $3,950, davidyurman.com
BACCARAT Facettes sterling silver and crystal bracelet, $580, necklace, $900, 18-karat gold and crystal ring, $2,150, and sterling silver and crystal ring, $650, baccarat.com
JAQUET DROZ La Date Astrale watch, $37,000, www.jaquet-droz.com
IVANKA TRUMP COLLECTION mixed-cut diamond and rock crystal earrings, $53,000, ivankatrumpcollection.com
VERDURA 18-karat gold and frosted rock crystal Rattan cufflinks, $1,595, verdura.com
CHOPARD Happy Diamonds pendant with nine floating snowflakes, $30,300, chopard.com
MISH New York Urchin Bubble Bracelet with moonstone cabochons and diamonds, price upon request, mishnewyork.com
LONGMIRE 18-karat white gold and rock crystal cufflinks, approximately $1,600, longmire.co.uk
GOLD Standard
Warm gold is making a comeback as fashion designers channel both the 1940s and the 1980s on the runways this season. In addition to classic yellow shades, rose gold has been revived, particularly in timepieces. The pinkish hue results from upping the amount of copper in the metal alloy -- the more copper used, the deeper the reddish tone achieved. With gold prices recently hitting record levels, genuine gold offers intrinsic value in addition to imparting a sunny glow onto the skin.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
AARON BASHA Couture Collection Serpentine necklace, $1,800, aaronbasha.com
IVANKA TRUMP COLLECTION 18-karat gold cuff with rock crystal, black spinels, and diamonds, $18,000, ivankatrumpcollection.com
DE GRISOGONO’s yellow gold and white diamond drop earrings, $7,200, degrisogono.com
PARMIGIANI Kalparisma Ouranos 18-karat rose gold watch with white mother-of-pearl dial and diamonds, $40,600, parmigiani.com
DANIELA SWAEBE 18-karat yellow gold and orange sapphire Gypchic ring, $3,200, and earrings, $4,600, danielaswaebe.com
MARCO BICEGO 18-karat yellow gold Confetti Isola necklace with pavé diamonds, $10,730, www.marcobicego.com
JACOB & CO. yellow gold plated Hourglass diamond cufflinks with a half-carat of floating diamonds, $14,000, jacobandco.com
AUDEMARS PIGUET Royal Oak pink gold self-winding chronograph with date display and small seconds, $39,900, audemarspiguet.com
Kind of BLUE
The color blue may be associated with melancholy, but jewelry and watches appointed with icy aquamarines, luminous opals, and deep sapphires are sure to lift your mood. The sea has long been a favorite source of inspiration for designers, including those at Paris jewelry house Mathon, which often uses opals, such as the 8.63-carat gem in its Fée des Mers ring, part of a collection dedicated to novelist Jules Verne. Meanwhile, the Jellyfish collection from Nubeo, a newcomer to the watch scene, evokes its namesake ethereal sea creatures. Soothing shades of blue have never looked so exciting.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
TIFFANY & CO. five-strand aquamarine and diamond necklace set in platinum, $60,000, tiffany.com
MATHON PARIS Ring Fée des Mers opal ring, $44,172, mathon-paris.com
JAN LESLIE Blue Shells cufflinks in enamel-painted sterling silver, $325, janleslie.com
LONGMIRE sapphire double-stirrup cufflinks, approximately $6,400, www.longmire.co.uk
STEFANO RICCI silver cufflinks with alligator skin, price upon request, stefanoricci.com
PIAGET Limelight Paradise earrings set with diamonds, aquamarines, and tourmalines, price upon request, piaget.com
Time for BLUE
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
NUBEO Jellyfish 43 watch with diamonds and blue topaz, $48,900, nubeo.com
PIAGET yachting-inspired Polo Limelight Paradise Tourbillon Relatif, price upon request, piaget.com
JACOB & CO. Royal Sapphire watch with 163 sapphires totaling 39.13 carats, $700,000, jacobandco.com
RED Hot
Taking a cue from Dorothy’s powerful ruby slippers, jewelers and watchmakers are seeing red from Bulgari’s extravagant ruby and diamond necklace to Dior’s Christal watch set with bright red sapphire crystal inserts to classic garnet and diamond cufflinks from Stefano Ricci. Amid the deluge of somber gray and black fashions this winter, nothing gets noticed more than an eye-popping hit of fiery scarlet.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT:
BULGARI Ruby and Diamond High Jewelry Necklace with nearly 185 carats of cabochon ruby beads and drops, and nine pear-shaped, rose-cut diamond drops, totaling more than 22 carats, price upon request, bulgari.com
PICCHIOTTI Unique Diamond ring set with calibrated buff-top rubies and a unique six-plus-carat cushion-cut diamond, $297,000, www.picchiotti.it
STEFANO RICCI 18-karat white gold cufflinks with rhodolite garnets and diamonds, price upon request, stefanoricci.com
RICHARD MILLE RM 004-V2 Felipe Massa watch, $230,000, available through Westime, westime.com
DE GRISOGONO’s mismatched ruby and diamond briolette earrings, $195,000, degrisogono.com
ROBERTO COIN Fantasia Flower Circle Pendant in 18-karat white gold with pink sapphires and diamonds, $12,800, robertocoin.com
DIOR Christal quartz watch with red sapphire crystal inserts and diamonds, $4,950, www.diorhorlogerie.com
NIGHT and DAY
Designers are pairing black and white with all the drama of a classic Hollywood movie. These high-contrast pieces employ onyx, jet, enamel, rubber, and diamonds for a stark graphic effect that feels both modern and retro at the same time. Cartier’s Hypnose collection entrances with spirals of diamonds and blackened white gold, while Sotheby’s Diamonds irreverently pairs precious white diamonds with casual black rubber. For those who prefer to keep it simple, it’s all here in black and white.
COUNTER-CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:
VALENTE MILANO white gold necklace with black and white diamonds, pearls, and jet, $34,584, operajewels.com
VAN CLEEF & ARPELS A Day In Paris enameled watch with mother-of-pearl inlay on a 24-hour rotating dial, $56,000, vancleef-arpels.com
TIFFANY & CO. black enamel and diamond Victorian bracelet set in 18-karat yellow gold and platinum, $90,000, tiffany.com
HERMÈS 18-karat white gold Arceau Pocket Moon Phases watch, $40,300, hermes.com
SOTHEBY’S DIAMONDS diamond and rubber bracelet, $105,000, sothebysdiamonds.com
AUDEMARS PIGUET Royal Oak Tuxedo cufflinks in 18-karat white gold, onyx, and diamonds, $8,040, audemarspiguet.com
DAVID YURMAN black titanium ring with black diamonds, price upon request, davidyurman.com
CARTIER Hypnose ring in white gold with a blackened finish and diamonds, $42,300, cartier.com