Unveil a new side to your style persona through asymmetrical jewellery pieces or ensembles that are bound to make an impression.
Cartier
One of the limited-edition showpieces from Cartier’s Clash [Un]Limited collection is this unconventional and audacious Baignoire mitten watch – a watch inserted into a supple gold and diamond mitten. Developed over two years at the innovation unit of the Maison des Métiers d’Art in collaboration with a master glove-maker, the gold-mesh mitten is made using 3D printing and fits like second skin. It is set with a constellation of nearly 1,600 diamonds surrounding a Baignoire Allongée watch featuring a diamond-paved dial hemmed with studs. This unique asymmetrical jewellery piece alone took almost 227 hours of work to complete.
Boucheron
Turn heads with a single, dramatic ear cuff such as this Opalescence pendant earring from Boucheron’s Carte Blanche, Holographique high jewellery collection, which is centred around the theme of light and reflection. This jewel takes an extremely lifelike form of a betta or Siamese fighting fish, whose body is a single piece of carved opal. Fanning out from the stone are sweeping pink gold fins and a tail embellished with diamonds and translucent enamel thanks to the plique-à-jour technique. It is also transformable into a brooch.
Hermès
Contemporary and free-spirited, this Hermès Lignes Sensibles À l’écoute hand jewellery is designed to wear like second skin. Connecting a double ring and a bracelet with an articulated, diamond- studded chain, the piece slips on like an invisible glove yet turns the back of the hand into a canvas that shows off the soft glow of rose gold and dreamy coloured gems. There are altogether 4.46 carats of white diamonds, 0.96 carats of brown diamonds, a 4.6-carat black jade cabochon, a 2.33-carat blue-grey tourmaline cabochon, a 2.68-carat green-yellow tourmaline cabochon and a 1.05-carat cushion-cut yellow-orange citrine.
Harry Winston
Inspired by the design of the grand Fifth Avenue entryway of New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is this Diamond Crossover necklace from the Fifth Avenue by Harry Winston collection. A modern and spectacular creation that pays tribute to the jeweller’s home city, the platinum necklace flaunts a total of 212 diamonds weighing 77.38 carats set in a medley of geometric shapes and angular forms. On one side are carefully calibrated baguette diamonds, while on the other a strand of graduated round brilliant diamonds, and another strand of graduated marquise-cut diamonds.
Van Cleef & Arpels
This pair of Van Cleef & Arpels Sous les Étoiles Orion earrings comes from a transformable white gold set that can be worn multiple ways. It includes a chain necklace with a diamond pendant and a pair of cascading diamond earrings – both of which can be embellished, interchangeably, with two additional bejewelled adornments. One is a mesmerising 2.88-carat pear-shaped Madagascan mauve sapphire pendant, while the other is a dangling waterfall pendant graced by two pear-shaped Madagascan mauve and pink sapphires totalling 2.66 carats, brilliant-cut diamonds and more pink sapphires. They are seen here clipped onto the earrings, creating a a visually arresting sight.
Graff
The result of a joint effort between Graff’s watchmaking division in Geneva and the house’s design team, jewellery workshop and technology department in London, is this Abstract jewellery watch. The jeweller’s speciality has always been in exceptional diamonds and their artful composition – as demonstrated here flawlessly. An asymmetric cluster of pear-shaped and marquise-cut diamonds totalling more than 13 carats are set at different heights and gently overlap in places, creating a delicately voluminous cascade of scintillation around one side of a pavé diamond dial.
Tiffany & Co.
One of nature’s beauties beloved by Tiffany & Co. is the butterfly. This iteration – the Sky butterfly brooch from the Colors of Nature collection – is as remarkable as it gets. Made of yellow gold and perfectly symmetrical, it however contrasts over 8 carats of custom-cut purple sapphires on one side, with more than 11 carats of custom-cut and cracked-ice diamonds on the other. A hinge allows the wings to be set in four different positions, evoking the motion of flight. While the brooch would typically be worn on a lapel or the chest, how about the shoulder, sleeve or hair – for a change?
Piaget
Conceptualised to be worn over both the decolletage and the back, this Piaget Extraordinary Lights necklace is also transformable to be worn up to nine different ways. On the “day” side are an 8.88-carat cushion-cut fancy vivid yellow diamond and a pear-shaped Tanzanian red spinel of 3.61 carats. On the “night” side is a 5.34-carat Sri Lankan blue sapphire. Other gems featured include pearls, white and yellow diamonds, red spinels, spessartites and blue sapphires. A unique asymmetrical jewellery piece that took craftsmen over 450 hours of work, it is fully articulated and comfortable to wear – allowing its owner to fully appreciate and show off its magnificence.
(Art Direction: Lee Kuan Leng)
This story first appeared in the January 2022 issue of Prestige Singapore.