Much like a Haute Couture collection from CHANEL, a CHANEL High Jewelry collection is a celebration of the famed Maison’s staggering craftsmanship, creativity, and history. The CHANEL “1932” High Jewelry Collection was unveiled this year and it is the pinnacle of these pillars. The collection marks 90 years since Gabrielle Chanel created not only the first CHANEL High Jewelry Collection but the first High Jewelry collection in history.
But first a little history lesson.
“Nothing could be better for forgetting the crisis than feasting one’s eyes on beautiful new things, which the skills of our craftsmen and women never cease to unveil.” Gabrielle Chanel
The year was 1932 and the world was coming back from the Great Depression. In November of that year, the London Diamond Corporation wanted to restore the diamond market to its former glory. Following the past few years of a severe economic crash that resulted in mass unemployment, a collapsed consumer demand, and a serious economic slump paired with soaring inflation, the luxury industry was just starting to recover. Sensing this shift, the London Diamond Corporation turned to one of the most innovative designers of the times, Gabrielle Chanel, and asked her to create a collection of diamond fine jewelry. Gabrielle Chanel harnessed the possibility of dreams and beauty with her breakthrough High Jewelry collection, the first of its kind, “Bijoux de Diamants.” Within days, shares of the Diamond Corporation’s had increased and the industry was positively ablaze over this groundbreaking collection. Deeply inspired by the allure of the sky, the glittering stars and shooting comets found at night and the blazing radiance of the sun, Mademoiselle brought the beauty of the heavens to earth. The pieces were groundbreaking not just in their conception but also in their execution. There were no visible settings which allowed the purity of the diamonds to truly shine, and to complement not just the beauty of the wearer, but also the garments she wore. “Bijoux de Diamants” was a collection for women designed by a woman. The press and public were instantly captivated. However, the old guard of the rather staid world of fine jewelry was deeply unsettled. Demands flew from Place Vendome, the epicentre of the fine jewelry world, to dismantle the collection and break up the pieces. Ultimately, even after a highly successful showing, the collection was dismantled. Fortunately, a few pieces had been sold ahead of the preview resulting in the preservation of this incredible collection’s memory.
“I wanted to return to the essence of 1932 and to harmonize the message around three symbols: the comet, the moon, and the sun. Each heavenly body shines with its own light.” -Patrice Leguéreau
Director of the CHANEL Fine Jewelry Creation Studio
And so, 90 years later, the CHANEL Fine Jewelry Creation Studio is able to reference the surviving press materials, photographs, and archival pieces to create the spectacular “1932” High Jewelry Collection. The groundbreaking freedom of movement and personalization that the original “Bijoux de Diamants” allowed its wearers is found and expanded upon with the “1932” collection. Of the 77 pieces that make up the collection, 13 are transformable. Diamonds of the highest quality, inky blue sapphires, vibrant rubies, scintillating opals, spinels and tanzanites form glittering constellations and celestial bodies that allow the wearer to bring the beauty of the stars, sun, moon and sky to earth. The signature piece of the collection is the absolutely spectacular “Allure Céleste” necklace. A true work of art, it features a jaw dropping 55.55 carat oval sapphire of the most stunning and intense deep blue shade. The piece also features expertly cut and highly faceted round-cut diamonds as well as a Type Ila DFL 8.05 carat pear-shaped diamond of exceptional brilliance. The halos of this wondrous piece detach and can be worn as broaches while the central row of diamonds become a bracelet allowing the necklace to transform into a shorter version of itself.
For a Maison known for collections imbued with the history, legacy, and codes of its legendary existence, CHANEL has outdone itself with the 1932 High Jewelry collection. The use of symbolic carat weights, both the 55.55 carat sapphire in the “Allure Céleste” necklace and the 19.32 carat weight of the two white and yellow oval-shaped diamonds in the “Cométe Volute” plastron and bracelet, reference deeply meaningful dates in the CHANEL universe and endow further deep meaning to this incredibly special collection. Like the “Bijoux de Diamants” collection of the 20th century, the “1932” High Jewelry is a visual feast for the eyes and a testament to the staggering creativity and technical skill of the CHANEL Fine Jewelry Creation Studio.
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LA COMETE
“ I wanted to cover women with constellations. With stars! Stars of all sizes” – Gabrielle Chanel
“Featured on 34 pieces, either singly or in constellations, this heavenly body is like a lucky charm with its light and aura, watching over the destiny of the woman who wears it.”
LA LUNE
” I love everything that is above us: the heavens, the moon, I believe in the stars” – Gabrielle Chanel
“18 pieces pay homage to the most mysterious heavenly body in the solar system, the only one that doesn’t emit light but reflects it.”
LE SOLEIL
“I am a bee, it is part of my sign, the lion, the sun” – Gabrielle Chanel
“Always in motion, always surprising, sometimes low in the sky, sometimes at its zenith: 24 exceptional pieces reproduce the brilliance of the heavenly body for which Mademoiselle had such a passion.”
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