INNER CIRCLE
From beaded diamond Perlée bracelets to monochromatic Alhambra sautoirs, Van Cleef & Arpels is giving its classic collections a modern refresh, writes Panna Munyal
In a natural extension of its decade-old Perlée collection, French jewellery house Van Cleef & Arpels has created six diamond bracelets that pay homage to that simple but most effective of embellishments: beads.
Van Cleef ’s association with the precious pellets goes back to the 1920s, when the maison began edging stones and motifs with gilded beads, and later pairing them with rubies, diamonds and pearls. By the 1940s, beads broke out of their borders and began to form the very structure of necklaces, rings and bracelets, as in the Couscous necklace of 1948, while in the 1960s, they were employed to define the fluidity of the Twist and Alhambra collections.
The latest Perlée range comprises three beaded bracelets topped on either end with diamonds and colourful cabochons of malachite, turquoise or carnelian, plus a complementary trio made up of a row of round diamonds flanked by two rows of gold beads. In keeping with the young and joyous theme of the collection as a whole, the idea is to wear the bracelets in twos or threes, or pair them with other Perlée pieces: the bold Between the Finger rings, the colourful variation jewels from the Couleurs collection or the delicately pearled circlets engraved with roundhand letters from the Signature range. Each set is realised in white, yellow and pink gold, so that wearing them stacked reveals a harmonious play of bright, sunny and warm tints.
Savoir faire is a phrase regularly employed by Van Cleef & Arpels to describe its jewellery-making thought process and prowess. From sketches that capture the exact depth, dimensions, shades and facets of the stones – down to the way light will reflect off them – to the hand-reworked settings and hinges, the jeweller prides itself on both its painstaking techniques and flawless selection of materials.
The beads that make up the body of the Perlée bracelets are individually set by hand and then polished to bring out their characteristic gleam. The discreet clasps of the bracelets come in a choice of sizes for all wrist sizes, while the inner surface benefits from the maison’s famed mirror polishing technique. The diamonds are chosen in line with the strictest gemmological criteria – D, E or F for colour, and IF, VVS1 or VVS2 for clarity – while the hard stones are hand-polished to enhance their deep green, opaque blue and red-orange tones.
In jewellery, the circle represents love, trust and fidelity – that which is infinite because it has no
beginning and no end; and the beaded Perlée bracelets represent the very best of that everlasting concept.
The flower is another favoured Van Cleef motif, as encapsulated in its Cosmos, Fleurette, Lotus and Frivole collections, as well as the bespoke pieces created for high-profile clients – from Greek soprano Maria Callas’s four-petal brooch to Princess Grace of Monaco’s daisy-shaped one. An update to the Frivole range was rolled out last year, with nine new pieces being announced. The latest of these is an eight-flower ring, a charming bouquet of yellow gold and pavé diamond heart-shaped blooms.
A third endearing motif is the four-leaf clover, as encapsulated in the Alhambra collection. The instantly recognisable icon is usually rendered in shades of yellow gold, coral, lapis lazuli, tiger’s eye, turquoise and malachite. However, to mark the line’s 50th anniversary this year, Van Cleef created a series of monochromatic pieces – sautoirs, bracelets and earrings – striking in white gold, diamonds and Brazilian onyx, which is known for its deep-set inky hue and mirror-like gleam. A launch party, held in Marrakech in June, celebrated Alhambra in all its past and present glory, for which Van Cleef enlisted French photographer Valérie Belin, Franco-Turkish directing duo Burcu & Geoffrey, animator and illustrator Julie Joseph, and British author Nicholas Foulkes.
Van Cleef & Arpels: Alhambra, a coffee-table book authored by Foulkes and published by Editions Xavier Barral, released last month. The 212-page hardcover tells the story of Alhambra jewellery, from its original iteration to the creation of the modern silhouette. The clover first appeared in the 1920s Touch Wood collection – in keeping with its goodluck-charm status – before it was reinterpreted as the Alhambra range in 1968. Over the decades, the motif has appeared on chains, chokers, earring, pendants, bracelets and brooches, and been spotted on the likes of Princess Grace of Monaco, Romy Schneider and, more recently, Sharon Stone, Reese Witherspoon, Princess Charlene of Monaco and Blake Lively. The book features documents and images from the Van Cleef archives, including cinematographic sequences created by major photographers.
As with the Perlée range and, indeed, most Van Cleef creations, Alhambra, too, lends itself to being worn stacked in colourful and monochromatic rows to match multiple moods. www.vancleefarpels.com