Singapore Tatler Jewels & Time
LA DOLCE VITA
Bulgari’s latest Festa high jewellery collection is the sweetest of them all
Bulgari goes into festival mode for its new haute joaillerie collection
What do ice cream, olive branches, princesses, and honey bees have in common? For one thing, they’re all the subjects of the Bulgari Festa high jewellery collection. While the idea of mixing princesses and bees doesn’t seem quite appealing, we assure you that this is one of the most marvellous jewellery collections in a while.
The Festa high jewellery collection is based on Italian festivals and celebrations. The name itself means ‘party’ or ‘feast’ in Italian. For Bulgari, there are three different types of parties that it (and indeed most Italians) holds most dear to its Limoncello-loving heart—traditional festivals, the glamourous soirées hosted by royal princesses and children’s celebrations. To celebrate each of these, it created smaller sub-collections named Festa Italiana, Festa della Principessa, and Festa dell’infanzia, each with its own elements of inspiration.
Festa Italiana pays tribute to traditional festivals. In an ode to the olive harvest, Bulgari has recreated the ripe olives in jewel form—bright amethysts and tourmalines dangling off diamond-encrusted branches. There is also the Tarantella, a dance festival popular throughout Southern Italy. The dance itself was originally invented to cure people from the bite of the tarantula spider, but today, it’s just an excuse to dance till dawn. Then, there is the Tamburelli collection, modeled after the tambourines ubiquitous in southern Italian dance festivals. The tiny gold discs at the edge of each cabochon can freely move and rotate, much like on a real tambourine.
The luxury giant can’t resist paying homage to the Roman Princesses, whose lives centered on Bulgari’s own hometown. Festa della Principessa draws inspiration from the lives of ancient royals such as Cornelia Constanza Barberini from one of the most prominent Roman families of the 18th century. Her family’s crest was the bee, which Bulgari immortalised in sapphire and yellow diamonds—the bees come complete with fully-articulated wings. Another royal that inspires Bulgari is Margherita di Savoia, the most famous of Italy’s three queens. Her family’s symbol was the bow, a motif she loved to incorporate into her jewellery— hence pieces with giant bejewelled bows as the centrepiece.
Food also makes an interesting appearance in the Festa collection. Think rings shaped like double-tiered cakes, gold and diamond lollipops, and ice cream made of turquoise and chrysoprases—all part of the Festa dell’infanzia collection themed after everything about childhood. Of course, it won’t be a proper children’s party without balloons and choo-choo trains. This is the most playful of the three collections and enormously popular with Bulgari’s fans. We heard that the Torta cake rings were so beloved that they were snapped up the first day the collection was released. But fear not, Bulgari will be releasing more of the rings in time. Each one will have a unique design unlike any other ring in the collection.
Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it?