Tag: Tiffany

Be Ringed: Jewelled symbols of eternal love

Precious stones of every hue adorn engagement rings as symbols of eternal love.

Bequeathing engagement rings to your beloved as a symbol of your undying love is really nothing new, but the custom actually originates from a much less romantic practice. Indeed, during ancient Roman times, wives wore rings as a marker of their husbands’ ownership.

Be Ringed Jewelled symbols of eternal love gafencu magazine jewellery

Thankfully, this rather unsentimental convention has given way to more tender leanings in 1477, when Austria’s ruling Archduke Maximillian commissioned the very first recorded diamond ring for his betrothed, Mary of Burgundy, sparking a long-lasting love affair with these bejewelled creations amongst Europe’s elite. 

(Chaumet Joséphine Splendeur Impériale ring / Qeelin Wulu solitaire ring / Harr Winston Golconda diamond ring)

Fast forward 470 years, and diamond merchant De Beers launched its now-iconic slogan “A Diamond is Forever” in a successful marketing campaign that saw sales surge, making diamond rings the go-to engagement gift across every corner of the globe. 

(Yeol Deil diamonds ring / Piaget Treasures Collection ring / Chopard Red Carpet Collection 2020 ring / Cartier Destinée Ring)

In recent decades, however, a new trend has emerged, one that sees precious stones of every imaginable hue adorn these sought-after pieces. One particularly memorable example of this was the ring gifted to Kate Middleton by Prince William, which starred a gargantuan 12-carat oval blue sapphire surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds.

(Piaget Treasures Collection ruby ring / Tiffany & Co. True engagement rings / Stenzhorn Candy Collection ring) 

But whether topped with sapphires, rubies, emeralds or more traditional diamonds, engagement rings remain the most coveted symbol of potential wedded bliss.

Go Wild: Unleashing your inner animal spirit

 

High-end jewellery brands have long veered towards animal-motif jewellery to showcase a dazzlingly wild appeal. We highlight several standouts that will ensure all eyes are on you. 

 

Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Anna Hu – Blue Magpie Brooch

This jewellery house draws from the exotic allure of Eastern arts in its designs. A case in point is this poetic adornment that showcases a combination of Chinese culture and Western colours. The Blue Magpie brooch set with circular-cut sapphires, brilliant-cut diamonds and onyx signed by Anna Hu is designed with a pair of blue magpies that share a kiss atop a branch adorned with circular-cut Paraíba-type tourmalines and brilliant-cut diamonds where a delicately threaded golden nest sits with a precious conch pearl egg. The brooch weighs 18 carats in pink and yellow gold mounted on titanium.

Boucheron Serpent Bohème ring Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Boucheron – Serpent Boheme Ring

The Serpent Bohème ring,  which commemorates love between founder Frédéric Boucheron and his wife Gabrielle, reflects deep affection for the beloved. In the likeness of the snake necklace gifted to his wife in 1888, this particular animal motif symbolises protection while the crossover of the dual serpent heads represents eternal bind between two lovers. The ring radiates with 32-round cut pavé diamonds and features magnificent white gold scaling which showcases superb detailing and precision. 

Cartier Panthère de Cartier Bracelet Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Cartier – Panthère de Cartier Bracelet

This global brand debuted its panther motif in 1914, marking the first fashion house to craft such a masterful pattern. Now the iconic design prances from one jewellery collection to the next with a play on different feline personalities from predatory to languid. The Panthère de Cartier bracelet in particular glimmers elegantly in 10.81-carat diamonds set in 18K white gold and onyx spots and nose, and fashions a pair of mesmerising emerald gem set eyes.

Chanel Bague Lion Rugissant Onyx ring

Chanel – Bague Lion Rugissant Onyx Ring

The lion represents designer Gabrielle Chanel in her triumph over heartache in 1920, Venice. The design continues to provide inspiration in Chanel’s jewellery collections such as the Sous le Signe du Lion collection which includes the roaring 764-brilliant cut diamond-encrusted Bague Lion Rugissant onyx. The rugissant 18-carat white gold and 26.4 carats sculpted onyx is a magnificent symbolism of strength and independence.

Chopard Red Carpet Collection 2020 ring1 Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Chopard – Swan Ring

Highlighting Chopard’s latest Red Carpet Collection is the 18-carat white gold magnificent Swan Ring set with a 9.1-carat white opal cabochon, and ceramic with brilliant-cut diamonds and sapphires. Crafted from Fairmined ethical white gold, this attention-grabbing ornament stands out from Chopard’s 73-piece nature-themed jewellery collection.

 

Graff dragonfly brooch Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Graff – Dragonfly Brooch

Graff’s legacy for stunning symbolic-designed brooches continues to draw from the natural beauty of flora and fauna with this illuminating 70.60 carats yellow and white mixed diamond Dragonfly Brooch. Portraying grace and elegance with an exuberant display of vibrancy that equates to the natural life that enlivens nature. 

Tiffany Paper Flowers firefly rings Anna Hu Blue Magpie brooch gafencu magazine jewellery animal motif

Tiffany & Co. – Paper Firefly Rings

Adorned as part of the Tiffany Paper flower collection are the Paper Firefly rings. Refined in an ultra-feminine design that encompasses modernity, the Paper Firefly rings are set with round brilliant white diamonds and oval coloured gemstones that sits on a platinum ring. The variety of gemstones in the collection includes rubellite, tanzanite, aquamarine and rare yellow gems. 

Crowning glory: Hair accessories for best-dressed tresses

Both on runways and in real life, hair accessories have made an undeniable comeback. Be it bows, barrettes or brooches, both haute joaillerie maisons and haute couture houses have left no shape, size or statement unexplored in the matter of tress adornments.

Hair accessories
Tiffany Blue Book High Jewellery Collection 2019 hair clips

Yet, it’s hardly a new trend. Indeed, hair pins, dating as far back as circa 1070 BC, are proudly displayed at both London’s famed Victoria and Albert Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, implying that the humble bobby pin has been holding hair in place for quite a few millennia now. In fact, according to historian M.E. Pilou Miller, the hair pin is considered among the most ancient of human accessories, crafted from handy materials ranging from bone and wood to precious metals.

hair accessories
Les Ciels de Chaumet Etoiles head ornament

However, their functionality isn’t the sole reason why hair accessories have withstood the test of time and trends. Be it Afro hair jewellery like beads and gold cuffs, Thai dance headdresses, Indian bridal hair accoutrements or Western tiaras, almost every culture has its own take on the ornaments that grace our crowns. Indeed, in times Victorian, when displaying long, loose tresses was considered immoral, the humble hair clip became almost a gatekeeper of morality, holding in place not only a woman’s curls, but also her character.

Hair accessories
Cartier Tradition tiara

Now though, such prudent pieces have given way to maximalist hair jewellery. Flaunting crystals, diamonds and other precious and semi-precious stones, they not only add a sheen of glamour to our coiffures, but also bestow the modern woman with extra confidence, as she sets out to conquer the world with her head held high.

Text: Suchetana Mukhopadhyay

All Time Highs: Clock these evergreen classic timepieces…

1. Happy Sport watch in 18K rose gold with diamonds by Chopard
2. Lady Jour des Fleurs watch in white gold with pavéd diamonds, spinels, tsavorites and sapphires by Van Cleef & Arpels 
3. Charms Romance Parisienne Rencontre watch in rose gold with diamonds, spessartites, mother-of-pearl and sapphires by Van Cleef & Arpels
4. Baignoire Allongée watch with 18K pink gold case by Cartier
Four-piece porcelain tray set by Hermès
Round porcelain dish; metallic vide poche in porcelain; silver vide poche with hand-painted finishing, all by Tiffany & Co. 
All lipsticks by Gucci

1. Emperador Coussin XL 700P watch with diamond-set 18K pink gold case by Piaget
2. Patrimony Retrograde Day-Date watch with 18K 5N pink gold case by Vacheron Constantin
3. Seamaster Diver 300M watch in 18K Sedna™ gold with ceramic bezel by Omega
Dalian chess board game in bullcalf leather; lacquered small box with wood cover, both by Hermès 
Johnnie Walker Blue Label blended Scotch whisky

1. Arceau 78 watch with stainless steel case by Hermès
2. Portofino Chronograph watch with 18K 5N gold case by IWC
3. Oyster Perpetual GMT-Master II watch in Oystersteel by Rolex
Lacquered wood tray with leather handle; Celebes lacquered small bowl with wood cover, both by Hermès 
Johnnie Walker Blue Label blended Scotch whisky

1. Hortensia Bolero watch with diamond-set 18K yellow gold case by Chaumet
2. Possession watch in 18K white gold with pavéd diamonds by Piaget
3. Montblanc Bohème Automatic Date watch
4. J12 watch in white ceramic and steel by Chanel
Bear and Block three-piece China set; Everyday Objects crystal glass apple box with sterling silver lid; Tiffany x Steiff Return to Tiffany Lover teddy bear in mohair; all by Tiffany & Co. 
Beauty products by Chanel

1. De Ville Trésor watch with 18K Moonshine™ gold case by Omega
2. Overseas Self-Winding watch with diamond-set stainless steel case by Vacheron Constantin
3. Oyster Perpetual Day-Date 36 watch in 18K yellow gold with diamonds by Rolex
4. Portofino Automatic 34 watch with diamond-set 18K 5N gold case by IWC 
Tartan Dye cashmere; Fenetres Sur Ciel boxes in hand-painted lacquer, all by Hermès
Round porcelain dish; metallic vide poche in porcelain; Bear and Block frame in sterling silver, all by Tiffany & Co.

1. Midnight Landscapes White Creek watch in white gold with mother-ofpearl by Van Cleef & Arpels
2. L.U.C XP watch with stainless steel case by Chopard
3. Panthères et Colibri watch in 18K rhodium-finished white gold with diamonds by Cartier
Celebes lacquered small, medium boxes and centrepiece, all topped with wood covers, all by Hermès                    

 

          

Photos: Jack Law
Art Direction & Styling: San Wong

Light Fantastic: Tiff Bidding for Tiffany’s Dragonfly Floor Lamp

Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848-1933) wasn’t just any old member of the family that spawned Tiffany & Co., the New York-headquartered jewellery giant, he was also a successful artist and designer in his own right. His life-long passion for stained glass, blown glass, ceramics and, of course, jewellery, ultimately led the innovative entrepreneur to branch out in 1878 to launch Tiffany Studios, his own bespoke glass-making business. It proved to be an inspired move, with his company’s creative and multifaceted use of his chosen medium eventually seeing his products known the world over simply as Tiffany Glass.

Dragonfly Floor Lamp

Recently, one of the most elegant works ever to be created in his workshops featured as a headline lot at Sotheby’s The Geyer Collection: Masterworks of Tiffany and Pre-war Design Auction. Created around 1910, the piece – the Important Dragonfly Floor Lamp – was fashioned in vibrant red and orange cabochons and hemmed with stained Tiffany Glass dragonflies, with its lamp shade perched atop an unusual opalescent glass ball-accented stand. Given its rarity, beauty and provenance, it was perhaps unsurprising that the bidding finally peaked at US$675,000.

Go Green, Stay Glam: The Best Luxury Sustainable Products on the Market Right Now

After the usual heated debate, Collins dictionary has announced its word of the year and it is “single-use”. The term beat ‘gammon’ ‘gaslight’ and ‘MeToo’ to the top of the lexical podium after a four-fold increase in single-use plastics over the last five years.

An estimated 5.2 million plastic bottles are thrown away everyday in Hong Kong alone. The city’s dependence on single-use plastics is causing public health concerns as landfills fill up and marine life is increasingly threatened. Many fashion-conscious denizens cite the unfashionable nature of more sustainable products as a reason not to use them. But the green market is swapping its associations with burlap and sackcloth for high-tech, more sartorially sustainable options.

Gafencu looks at some high-end alternatives to single-use plastics, showing that there’s no need to sacrifice style in an effort to go green. 

Aquasana Stainless Steel Insulated Clean Water Bottle

Luxury sustainable

Fitted with a state-of-the-art changeable filter, this sleek water bottle allows you to immediately drink water straight from the tap. Double-walled insulation keeps the liquid inside as cool or warm as you like for up to 24 hours. Available in four different colours.

Available at www.aquasana.com

Matt and Nat LEXI – ALLURE shopping bag

Luxury sustainable

Approved vegan leather with 100% recycled nylon interior. Conveniently roomy and eternally stylish, this is a far more sartorially savvy alternative to a stash of plastic bags under the sink. Includes a removable inside pouch. Available in blue and pink. 

Available at mattandnat.com

 

Bodum Vacuum Travel Press in Stainless Steel

Luxury sustainable

Takeaway coffee is certainly convenient but nothing tastes as good as home brewed. Skip the coffee shop queues and waste no time with this mug-meets-French press which can hold a single serving of coffee or tea. Vacuum insulation means your coffee stays hot and your mug remains cool to the touch. Available in three colours.

Available at www.bodum.com/

Tiffany Gold Vermeil Crazy Straw

Luxury sustainable

Sterling silver with gold vermeil and iconic Tiffany blue accent. Far more elegant than plastic and proof that Tiffany artisans can transform even the most mundane of objects into works of art. Available in white, yellow and rose gold. Eco-friendly has never looked so good.

Available at www.tiffany.com

Text by: Alice Duncan

Natural Beauty: Gafencu’s top 8 picks of brooches inspired by Mother Nature

Despite technology cocooning all aspects of modern life, Mother Nature is an inevitable presence. Time and again, art has borrowed from nature, with artists singing paeans of praise to all aspects of nature through diverse art forms. Jewellery too has come a long way, from actual elements of nature adorning the human body (think seashell jewellery by Neanderthals) to jewellery designers mimicking natural elements in their designs. 

Here, we’ve put the spotlight on eight such high joaillerie brooches that have captured some of the most striking feats of nature. Elaborate, intricate and exquisitely beautiful, these brooches are only second to nature’s originals. 

Tiffany hosts an evening engagement to celebrate anniversary

Tiffany, the world’s most celebrated jewellery brand, kicked off its 130th anniversary in true style with a collection of its finest wares on display, most notably the world’s most captivating item of jewellery – an 8.88 carat diamond engagement ring. The milestone exhibition took place at the suitably salubrious Landmark Atrium in Central.

Click here to watch the event