Buying, Selling and trading Jewelry, Watches and Diamonds

Breaking the Mold:  Cartier, Chanel & Stephen Webster

Chanel: 2011 Paris-Byzance Metiers d’Art Show Beauty/ Photo credit: Vincent Lappartient

Jewelry trends are appearing in creative clusters of world culture and artisan craftsmanship in recently exhibited collections, foreshadowing a shift in jewelry design for 2012.  Jewelry designers around the globe are finding innovative methods of implementing global, planetary and metaphysical elements into their pieces.

Karl Lagerfeld, Creative Director and Designer for Chanel, brought Chanel’s cultural exposure to new found heights with the 2011/2012 Cruise Collection and the accompanying Short Film, ‘The Tale of a Fairy’. Lagerfeld’s jewelry designs continue to bring a broader sense of global influence to his pieces, as seen at the Chanel Parisian Metiers d’Art show.

A dazzling necklace was on display, with delicate filigree and decadent pearls, reminiscent of Roman and Oriental jewelry design influences. The daring Chanel piece was explained by Lagerfeld as a tribute to the fifth-century Byzantine empress, Theodora, with dense ornaments and intricate metal weaving.

Photo Courtesy of: Chanel

Cartier shows a glimmering appreciation for their relationship with the maharajahs of India, which propelled success for the jeweler through exceptionally colored jewels in the early 20th century. Cartier released a one-kilogram gold coin, bearing a spectacular image of Taj Mahal last month. The extraordinary coins were placed in customized luxury cases for the French mint La Monnaie de Paris.

Pete Doherty, a popular American musician, will be releasing a jewelry design in Europe in collaboration with British jeweler, Hannah Martin. In the designs of the first collection are fluent attributions to history and evolution. With an obvious adoration of elephants and antiques, the line which will be exclusively sold in Brittain exhibits innovative use of matter rarely found in jewelry designs, such as fossilized mammoth bones. 

Photo Courtesy of: Pete Doherty

The unique designs of London-based jewelry designer, Stephen Webster are available in the U.S. for the first time, with the opening of his first American store on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, CA. The London jeweler has been a favorite on the Red Carpet and among celebrities, with bold designs that are striking, sexual and controversial, including symbolic re-creations that embody ‘The Seven Deadly Sins’.

Photograph Courtesy of: Stephen Webster Designs

With a whole wide world out there, it’s inspiring to see that jewelry designers have found a way to bring culture into couture. Be on the look-out for these global tributes and metaphysical mentions in jewelry trends this summer, and the jewelry design evolution as we enter 2012.

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