Fashion Jewellery

‘Fashion Jewellery’ lies in between Fine and commercial Costume Jewellery, in its own distinct camp. It is the haute couture of jewellery, typically one-of-a-kind pieces carefully crafted with great attention to detail. Unlike fine jewellery, fashion jewels are not exclusively made from precious stones and metals. Instead, fashion jewellery tends to have a dramatic flare and sculptural quality. Designers of fashion jewellery embrace non-precious materials, from plastics, wood, enamel, to base or industrial metals such as titanium, paste or synthetic gemstones and glass.

Fashion jewellery was born in 1930s Paris, with the major fashion houses beginning to produce non-precious jewellery. The most famous being Coco Chanel’s iconic ‘by-the-yard’ cultured pearl necklaces and Elsa Schiaparelli’s fantastic, surrealist buttons and brooches. These two innovative women pioneered and established a new approach to dressing for modern women, and fashion jewellery was a vital component. Fashion jewellery continued to evolve in the post war period with Christian Dior, Cristobal Balenciaga and Hubert Givenchy producing a golden age of signature fashion house jewellery.

Fashion jewellery is fundamentally intended to complement and accompany haute couture and high fashion clothes, but pieces also stand alone as highly collectable and continually popular accessories.

CHANEL JEWELLERY

History of the Company

Coco Chanel is a name synonymous with style. She built a fashion house that revolutionised the way women dressed and continues to define Parisienne chic.

Chanel had an unorthodox approach to jewellery that broke tradition. She had no qualms about freely mixing precious with semi-precious materials to create statement pieces. Chanel proclaimed that “Costume jewellery isn’t made to provoke desire, just astonishment at most. It must remain an amusement”.

Chanel’s jewellery was created for the modern woman, and she was its best model. Her pieces could be worn from morning to night, and were not fixed to one dress or occasion. The simple creamy lustre of pearls, both real and faux, became her signature, layered in long ropes ‘by-the-yard’ upon her chest or about her wrists. She has inspired generations of women to play with jewellery and be unafraid to mix precious jewels with costume to create a bold visual whole.

Since the 1930s, her eponymous Maison has created iconic piece after iconic piece, of both Fine and Fashion jewellery that beguile the eye, remain timelessly chic and continue to be highly collectable.

Style/Major Collections

In 1929, Chanel made her first successful foray into jewellery design after a trip to Italy with her friend Duke Fulco di Verdura, who went on to found his own jewellery firm in New York after the success of their collaboration. The cuffs they created were inspired by the byzantine mosaics they visited in Ravenna. Each cuff was set with a large Maltese cross studded with a hop-scotch ‘mosaic’ of colourful gems of all shapes and sizes. These stones were a mix of precious and semi precious stones, from emeralds to amethysts and citrines, gifted to Chanel by her many rich admirers. The cuffs were revolutionary, and marked a move away from the linear, crisp geometry of the Art Deco period. Importantly the cuffs were made from yellow gold, a metal that had been out of fashion for the last two decades. Chanel used the warmth of yellow gold, either real or plated to brighten her clothes.

In contrast to her chic, minimalist and simple clothes, Chanel’s jewellery tended to be big, bold and theatrical. Unlike her typically monochrome black and white fabric palette, in her jewellery she embraced a kaleidoscope of coloured gems. Her jewellery brought accents of colour to her clothes, finishing and enhancing her outfits.

Today her iconic monogram, two intertwined ‘C’ is immortalised in the Maison’s line of jewellery. Maison Desrues has been producing and supplying Chanel fashion jewellery since 1965, when the Maison first produced Mademoiselle Chanel’s signature monogrammed buttons.

DIOR

History of the Company

The name Dior is not immediately linked to jewellery. In 1947 Christian Dior revolutionised Parisian Haute Couture Fashion with his “New Look”. His debut Spring/Summer collection celebrated a more feminine silhouette with full skirts, structured tops and nipped in waists. On the back of his success Dior opened “Dior Costume Jewellery” in 1948 in Germany to supply complimentary jewellery for his clothes designs.

Dior recognised the importance of jewellery within haute couture. Jewels, whether real or faux, could be the vital final touch necessary to complete an outfit. In Christian Dior’s own words: “A piece of jewellery is a delightful addition that accentuates your outfit and personalize your look”.

In 1998, Dior launched “Dior Joaillerie”, the Maison’s official Fine Jewellery division. Victoire Castellane was appointed Creator Director. A position she has held for over 20 years, and in which she has developed her unique style. With Castellane’s guidance, Dior has revolutionised the definition of contemporary fine and fashion ‘Joaillerie’. The Maison’s jewellery blurs the line between fine, costume and fashion.

Style/Major Collections

As Creative Director, Victoire Castellane has created a series of contemporary fine and fashion costume jewellery collections inspired by nature, French history and decorative traditions. Continuing the legacy of the Maison’s founder, Castellane favours a feminine flourish in her designs. Vivid colours from coloured gemstones both precious and semi-precious as well as enamels are paired by Castellane with expressive forms and playful motifs. Castellane’s designs frequently draw on both popular culture and French history: From Mini Mouse to Medieval Romantic tales. Collections such as ‘Boise de Rose’, ‘Le Bal’ and ‘Rose des Vents’ are inspired by nature, with Roses being the central motifs as well as the splendid luxury of 17th century France, and particularly the fabulous décor of Versailles reinvented in gold, diamond, mother of pearl, baroque pearls and vividly veined malachite.

Text is also a key motif within Dior jewellery, both fine and fashion. Lettering is used inventively by Dior, particularly the play on the French word ‘J’adore’ misspelt as ‘J’adior’ to incorporate the brands name, is now an iconic design used in earrings, necklaces and charm bracelets. Christian Dior’s initials have also been immortalised in both 18k gold, with the ‘C’ and ‘D’ back to back to create a striking symmetric emblem that is instantly recognisable. The recent ‘Oui’ collection celebrates the simple affirmative ‘yes’ in gold and accented with diamonds for added sparkle.