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The sinuous and curved shapes of Arts & Crafts and Art Nouveau jewels were replaced by sharp, simpler, geometric, graphic and stylised designs. The Edwardian flowing and nature inspired designs were substituted by simpler, contrasted, stylised, straight and geometric designs … Continue reading
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The popular patterns were : fan, chevron, seashell, scrolls, stylised face, stylised animals, fountain, lyre, phoenix, Greek key, peacock, bows, flowers, leaves, sunrise, half moon, palmette, fruit baskets… There were also patterns from foreign countries : Japanese and Chinese patterns … Continue reading
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Art Deco was an artistic, decorative and architectural movement born in the 1910s, which knew its height in the 1920s and slumped in the 1930s. Generally speaking, it is the inter-war period (1918-1939). Besides, “Les années folles” was a part … Continue reading
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Byzantine inspired brooch and earrings by Gripoix Paris. Mosaic from the Basilica of San Clemente dated of 1130s (Byzantine Empire), in Roma, Italy (1130s)
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Byzantine cross by Chanel (vintage). If you like Byzantine jewelry, you should like Chanel jewels, Diego Percossi Papi, Ben Amun, Sylvia Toledano, Gripoix, Ilias Lalaounis and Julie Vos. The background is a detail of a 6th century Byzantine mosaic in … Continue reading
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Brushed gold refers to a texturing technique used on metal surface. The brushed gold is matt. Tiny parallel lines are scratched onto the surface thanks to a wire brush or a polishing tool. Among jewelry designers using brushed gold, there is Marco Bicego … Continue reading
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Pomellato is an Italian jewelry house. It was founded by Pino Rabolini in 1967, in Milano. The Pomellato jewels are caracterised by the use of gold and colorful gemstones. The jewels are made by hand by 100 artisans in Milano. … Continue reading
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Judy Geib is an American jewelry designer who launched her own line in 2002. She creates exquisite handcrafted jewels with the finest precious metals and gemstones. Inspired by calligraphy and geometry, Judy Geib designs unique pieces of jewelry. Besides, through … Continue reading
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Inspired by his Venetian roots, the Italian jewelry designer Marco Bicego creates wonderful 18 karat gold jewels decorated with colored gemstones. Each piece of jewelry is unique since the manufacture is handcrafted. The Italian craftmanship is highlighted through Marco Bicego’s … Continue reading
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Ila Collection was founded by the Indian brother and sister Vikas and Ila Sodhani in 2007. They draw their inspiration from Indian culture, designs, architecture, ornaments and craftmanship. For 8 years, Ila had been designed high-end diamond jewelry with her … Continue reading
Founded in 2003 by designer Irene Neuwirth and business partner Tracy Stoll, the brand is an independent fine jewelry company based in Los Angeles. Irene Neuwirth creates unique, modern and sophisticated jewels decorated with stunning gemstones. Her style is immediately recognizable : superb colorful gemstones, geometric shapes, mix of different forms and colours, use of gold, large jewels…
Recognized as a leading jewelry label in the United States, her jewels are regularly in fashion magazines like Vogue, Elle and Harper’s Bazaar. Celebrities such as Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry, and Reese Witherspoon are become admirers of the brand. Recognized by her peers, Irene Neuwirth won the Town & Country Couture Design Editors’ Choice Award (2006) and was finalist for the coveted CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund (2008). Besides, she joined in 2009, the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) as member.
The London-based jewelry designer Pippa Small creates beautiful “organic, ethnic and ethical” jewels. The shapes are unregular because she works on the original shape of the stones. Respecting the organic nature of the stones characterizes her work. Very careful to the details, each stone is personally chosen by Pippa Small. Each piece of jewelry is unique. Committed jewelry designer, Pippa Small undertakes ethical projects : she works with communities, indigenous, tribal and traditional crafts persons to develop jewelry lines.
The Greek jewelry designer Ilias Lalaounis creates exquisite gold and antique inspired jewels. He is the fourth generation of a family of goldsmiths and watchmakers from Delphi in Greece. The gold is magnificent and luminous. Passionate by art and history, … Continue reading
Alice Cicolini is a British jewelry designer inspired by Indian designs and using the Meenakari traditions. She had been Director Arts & Culture for the British Council in India. She used the sacred architecture and patterns of the Silk Route as an inpiration for her jewelry. All the jewels are handmade in India ; the studio of Kamal Kumar Meenakar uses the meenakari enameling traditions. The jewels are real pieces of art : patterns are engraved into 23.5 carat gold to the reverse of the jewels and colored with enamel. The jewels are decorated with gemstones.
Alice Cicolini’s work pays a tribute to the Meenakari jewelry. “Enameling or Meenakari is the art of colorings or decorating a metal surface by attaching or fusing pieces of different mineral substances, over it.” “Enamel is a combination of ground, pigmented glass and metal, heat fired into the recesses created by the engraving and then polished with agate stone.” “More commonly, enamel is applied to the reverse of jewels, where the precious stones such as diamonds, sapphires, rubies and emeralds are privileged at the forefront.”
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Fascinated with the Antique jewelry of the Etruscans, Greeks and Romans, Elizabeth Locke creates neo-classical hand-made 19k gold jewelry. Each stone and design are made by herself. Her gold jewels are decorated with gemstones or Venetian glass intaglios. The centuries … Continue reading
Jamie Wolf is an American fine jewelry designer based in New York City. Her jewels in 18kt gold are decorated with precious and semi precious stones (white topaze, tourmaline, amethyst, quartz…). Her jewelry’s shapes are feminine, elegant and inspired. I love particulary the “Aladdin” and “Scallop Pavé” collections. All the pieces are made in New York. She realizes also engagement rings by request. The website : http://jamiewolf.com/
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This jewelry house was found in 1986 by Temple St. Clair Carr in Florence, Italy. Collaborating with the finest goldsmiths, she creates gold jewels decorated with colored gemstones (blue moonstones, sapphires, tourmalines, colombian emeralds, rubies…). Her jewelry is also characterised … Continue reading
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The Turkish jewelry designer Gurhan Orhan studied the craft of the ancient goldsmiths and namely the use of pure gold. In refining these techniques, he creates marvellous pure 24 karat gold jewels. His touch comes from the fingerprints in the … Continue reading
Coral is organic like amber ; it is formed by living organisms (corals). “When the coral polyps die, the hardened skeleton remains, and this material is what is used as a gemstone”. The coral has several colours: white (mostly), orange , red, grey and black. Coral is found in “Red Sea, the Midway Islands, the Canary Islands, the Taiwan and Malaysian Coast, the coast of Australia, Italy and Hawaii”.
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Emerald is a precious stone belonging to the beryl group of minerals. Emeralds are green with different shades (medium green, darker green, blue-green or yellowish-green). “Emerald” comes from the old French word “esmeralde” deriving from the Greek word “smaragdos” meaning … Continue reading
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Amethyst belongs to the macrocrystalline branch of the quartz group of minerals. The amethyst’s colour varries from purple and violet to pale red-violet. Its colour comes from the iron and aluminium impurities. Furthermore, this fine gemstone is found mainly in Brazil … Continue reading
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Tourmaline is an important group of complex gem-quality boron silicate minerals. This fine stone can be found in a multitude of colours : “from black to bluish-black, dark brown, yellow, medium brown, blue to neon blue, lime to dark forest … Continue reading
Bakelite is a castable, fire resistant plastic invented by Leo Baekeland in 1909 for industrial purposes. However, jewelry makers used it to create jewels ; it was very popular in the 1930’s and 1940’s.
The jewelry designer Mark Davis uses bakelite for his designs :
Lazurite is a feldspathoid silicate and belongs to sodalite group of minerals. It is a blue stone which can vary from “greenish blue to violetish, from medium to dark and from low to highly saturated”.
This fine stone is found mainly in Afghanistan but is also found in Angola, Argentina, Canada, Chile (North of Santiago), India, Italy, Myanmar (Burma), Pakistan, Russia and the United States (California and Colorado).
Besides, the name “lapis lazuli” comes from the Latin word “lapis” meaning “stone” and from the Arabic and the Persian word “lazaward” (Persian name for lapis stone and the name of the mining location).
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Topaz is an aluminium silicate containing fluorine and hydroxyl. Purely, it is colourless (white) ; it is the impurities which cause the variations of colour. “Topaz ranges from colourless to yellow, orange, red-brown, light to dark-blue, pink to red, violet … Continue reading
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Peridot is a transparent variety of Olivine and belongs to the forsterite-fayalite mineral series. It is an idiochromatic gem (single colour gem) : peridot is only found in green. But there are shades of green depending of the amount of iron … Continue reading
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Tanzanite is a variety of Zoisite (calcium aluminum silicate ) and has a colour varying from blue to violet. This stone is Heat treatments enhance the Tanzanite’s colours. This gemstone is named “Tanzanite” because a deposit was found in 1967 … Continue reading
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Turquoise is a hydrated copper and aluminium phosphate. The colour varies from blue to blue-green. Turquoise is often mottled with cream or brown veins. Furthermore, the name “turquoise” comes from a confusion : when Venitian merchants brought this stone in … Continue reading
The Amazonite (also named Microcline) is a variety of potassium feldspar (like moonstone). The name “Amazonite” comes from the Amazon River in Brazil. The colour varies from green to blue-green. This fine gemstone can be confused with Turquoise and Jade. Amazonite is found mainly in Colorado, Brazil, India, Kenya, Madagascar, Namibie, Russia and Zimbabwe.
Jacquie Aiche’s charm
The French designer Sylvia Toledano launched her eponym brand in 2007 to sell jewelry and minaudieres. Her jewels are gold and decorated with gemstones (Labradorites, Lapis Lazuli, Carnelian, Tigereye, quartz…). Through her creations, the founder bring us in a bright and colorful universe. I love the Byzantine style, the use of colored gemstones and gold.
The website : http://www.sylviatoledano.com/
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Moonstone is a fine gemstone belonging to the silicate group and the feldspar family of minerals. Jean Claude Delamétherie discovered this stone in 1801. The moonstone is characterized by the adularescence : an optical phenomenum constiting in “a milky, bluish … Continue reading
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Apatite is a calcium phosphate mineral. It is the most widespread phosphate in the nature. The name Apatite derives from Greek “apatein” meaning “misleading” because this gemstone was confused with other minerals like tourmaline, peridot, emerald or aquamarine. Surprisingly, Apatite … Continue reading
The Moroccan designer Hassan Bounkit launched his eponym’s jewelry collection in 2006. The jewels are designed and manufactured in New York City. Inspired by his Mediterranean background and the traditional Moroccan design, Bounkit creates luminous, colorful and unique jewels. I love the mix of colours, the use of big gemstones and the oriental touch.
The website : http://bounkit.com/
Andrea Fohrman is inspired by celestial objects such as moons and stars. The sky is reinterpretred by this talented designer. It is a lovely independant jewelry brand based in Los Angeles. I love the feminity and the cuteness of her jewels. There are also ravishing rainbows pendants.
The website : http://www.andreafohrman.com/
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These gold patterns are present in the Klimt painting named “Water serpents”. Water serpents by Gustav Klimt, 1904 Source : labyrintheque.files.wordpress.com
Caspita is a Swiss luxury jewelry brand created by Arlène Bonnant. The jewelry are real pieces of art with geometric shapes which remind me Moorish patterns. I love the Caspita jewelry’s geometry and colours. The shapes are very inspired and original. If you like Oriental and Indian geometrical patterns you would like Caspita. Besides, “Caspita” is a lovely and great name. It is an italian word which means in french “ma parole!” and in english “good heavens!”.
The official website : http://www.caspita.ch/accueil
