A guide to the top luxury jewellery brands

Van Cleef & Arpels

In 1895 Estelle Arpels, the daughter of a dealer in precious stones, married Alfred Van Cleef, the son of a diamond cutter. 11 years later, Alfred and his brother-in law Charles Arpels established the first Van Cleef & Arpels boutique at 22 Place Vendôme, where the jewellery house remains today. One of the maison’s earliest innovations came in 1933 with its patented ‘Mystery Set’ technique, where the mounting of the stones is hidden behind the calibré-cut surface of the jewel, so no prongs are visible.

Later in the decade, Van Cleef & Arpels debuted its ‘Passe-Partout’ necklace, which could convert into a choker, bracelet or two brooches. Subsequent decades saw the release of the ‘Ballerina’ brooch (1940), the ‘Zip’ necklace (1951) and the four-leaf clover ‘Alhambra’ motif (1968), inspired by Moorish architecture.

Cartier

While Cartier was founded in Paris in 1847 by Louis-François Cartier, it was his son Alfred’s children — Louis, Pierre and Jacques — who’d put the house on the international map. Amongst the house’s most desirable creations are its 1920s and 1930s Art Deco designs, especially those inspired by Asia. In 1911 Jacques Cartier visited India, where he acquired rubies, sapphires and emeralds that would form Cartier’s vibrant ‘Tutti Frutti’ jewels.

In 1924, Cartier debuted its three-ring, tri-colour ‘Trinity’ design, conceived by Jean Cocteau, Louis Cartier’s close friend, while Cartier’s promotion of Jeanne Toussaint as director of high jewellery in 1933 saw the proliferation of the ‘Panthère’ and other ‘Great Cat’ designs. After joining Cartier in 1969, Aldo Cipullo conceived two of the most iconic Cartier designs: the ‘Love’ and ‘Juste un Clou’ bracelets, which have since expanded into other forms of jewellery.

Bulgari

Bulgari — or BVLGARI (the ‘V’ references the classical Latin alphabet) — was founded by Sotirio Bulgari, who was born in 1857 in Greece and came from a family of silversmiths. In 1884 he opened his first shop in Rome. Upon his death in 1932, his sons Giorgio and Costantino took over the business, where they established the house’s bold-gold signature style, inspired by Greek and Roman classicism.

In the 1930s Bulgari introduced the gem-centric ‘Trombino’ ring, while in the 1940s, the solder-free coiled ‘Tubogas’ design paved the way for the first ‘Serpenti’ bracelet-watch in 1948. The articulated snake designs as well as the ‘Monete’ coin-set creations of the 1980s comprise some of Bulgari’s most popular pieces. The house is also known for their use of coloured gemstones, as illustrated by the ‘Giardinetto’ brooches, which appeared during the early 1960s.

Tiffany & Co.

Founded by school friends Charles Lewis Tiffany and John Barnett Young in 1837 in New York, Tiffany & Co. is the world’s oldest major jewellery brand. Beginning as Tiffany and Young, the store originally sold small luxury goods, however in 1848, Tiffany acquired a selection of fine gemstones from European aristocrats and brought them back to America. In 1853, he bought out his partner and renamed the company Tiffany & Co., while retaining its hallmark ‘robin’s egg’ colour, established in 1845, when the company published its first collection catalogue. In 1886, the firm introduced its Tiffany setting, a six-prong setting that allows the diamond to float above the band.

While Charles Lewis Tiffany’s son, Louis Comfort Tiffany, is best known for his lighting and decorative creations, he also designed jewellery inspired by the natural world for Tiffany & Co. during the early 20th century. Later decades saw a wave of key designers for the house: in 1956 the Parisian jewellery designer Jean Schlumberger (the ‘Bird on a Rock’ and other flora-and-fauna-inspired designs); in 1974 Elsa Peretti (the ‘Bean’, ‘Open Heart’, ‘Cross’, ‘Zodiac’, ‘Bone Cuff’); and in 1980 Paloma Picasso (‘Loving Heart’, ‘Olive Leaf’ and ‘Paloma’s Graffiti’). Locks and keys, as well as the ‘T’ collection are more contemporary iconic designs.

JAR

Born in New York City in 1943, Joel Arthur Rosenthal graduated in art history from Harvard in 1966, worked in the film industry and later opened a needlepoint shop in Paris, where his clients included Hermès and Valentino. After working with Bulgari in New York, he returned to Paris and opened a shop in the Place Vendôme in 1977. His initials, JAR, were the only source of identification on the façade. Over the last half a century, Rosenthal has established himself as ‘the Fabergé of our time’, and was the first living ‘artist of gems’ to be honoured with a retrospective at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Working with his partner Pierre Jeannet, he produces only 70-80 jewels annually, combining both precious and non-traditional materials, such as coloured titanium, which he began working with during the late 1980s. Perhaps inspired by his needlepoint shop, JAR’s celebrated ‘Thread’ designs feature complex strands of refined pavé work that often serve as a mount for a single stone. Additionally JAR often employs striking asymmetric designs.

Boucheron

Frédéric Boucheron opened his first shop in the arcades of the Palais Royal in Paris in 1858, and in 1893 he became the first jeweller to open a boutique on the Place Vendôme. A true gemmologist, Boucheron travelled the world in search of the very best stones. One of the maison’s most important designs is the ‘Point d’interrogation’ necklace (French for ‘question mark’), which created in 1883 in homage to a peacock’s feather, has since led to countless asymmetric designs.

In the following decades, Boucheron exemplified the best in Art Nouveau and Art Deco jewellery, combining enamel with coloured stones and diamonds. Boucheron’s post-war period was marked by further experimentation. In 1968, the maison released its legendary ‘Bohème Serpent’ collection, and in 2004, Boucheron launched another signature line, the graphic ‘Quatre’ collection, inspired by Parisian cobblestone streets.

Harry Winston

Known as ‘The King of Diamonds’, Harry Winston was born in New York in 1896, where he was exposed to the workings of his father’s jewellery shop from a young age. Winston opened The Premier Diamond Company in 1920 before establishing Harry Winston Inc in 1932. As early as 1935, Winston was dressing celebrities, and he’d become known as the first jeweller to dress a celebrity for the Academy Awards in 1944 when he loaned diamond jewellery to Jennifer Jones, who had been nominated for her role in The Song of Bernadette.

A few notable stones Winston acquired include a 726-carat diamond called the Jonker in 1935, as well as the famous Hope Diamond in 1949, which he donated in 1958 to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. Winston is also known for its signature ‘cluster’ or ‘clustering’ technique, conceived in the 1940s, which entails setting pear-shaped and marquise-cut diamonds with minimal metal and at varying angles. One of the most sought-after ‘cluster’ designs is the ‘Wreath’ necklace, inspired by a holly wreath.

David Webb

Born in 1925 in Asheville, North Carolina, David Webb was another quintessential American jeweller. After apprenticing for his uncle who worked in jewellery manufacturing, Webb, moved to New York, where he met socialite and patron Antoinette Quilleret. The two opened a store together in 1945, but three years later after a wave of success, Webb bought her out and established his namesake company.

Webb’s use of textured gold and scroll motifs reflects his interest in ancient art and architecture, while his animal jewels illustrate his fascination with the nature world. In 1957 Webb created his first animal bracelet, and today, zebras, frogs, snapes and monkeys and represent just a few designs in the vibrant menagerie. While bold use of colour and texture, as illustrated in the ‘Totem’ collection, classic Webb, black enamel and rock crystal are also brand signatures. Despite Webb’s tragic passing in 1975, the company lives on, producing pieces from the designer’s archive of over 40,000 drawings and models.

Belperron

Born in Eastern France in 1900, Suzanne Belperron studied drawing and jewelry at the École des Beaux-Arts in Besançon, beginning her career in 1919 as a model-maker and designer at the celebrated Maison René Boivin in Paris, eventually becoming co-directress with Jeanne Boivin. In 1932 the prominent Parisian stone dealer Bernard Herz hired her to design exclusively under his company name, B. Herz. During the 1930s in German-occupied Paris, Belperron re-registered the company under her own name to protect it from confiscation, though after Herz was tragically executed, Belperron formed a new partnership, Herz-Belperron, with Herz’s son Jean.

Becoming arguably the most important female jeweller of the 20th century, Belperron was above all regarded for her avant-garde eye. Asked once why she never signed her work, Belperron replied, ‘My style is my signature.’ Belperron’s designs are distinctly sculptural, often with undulating silhouettes, such as the circa 1948 ‘Tube’ bracelet. Having long admired her designs, Ward Landrigan, owner of Verdura, acquired the Belperron name and archive in 1999. Ward and his son, Nico Landrigan, President of Verdura and Belperron, continue today to share Belperron’s vision with collectors.

Taffin

Nephew of famed fashion designer Hubert de Givenchy, James Taffin de Givenchy was born in northern France in 1963 and moved to New York during the 1980s to study fine art. Through an early career at leading global auction houses and jewellery firms, including Verdura, Givenchy established his high-jewellery salon on Manhattan’s Madison Avenue in 1996.

Focused on the use of unique and unexpected materials, such as steel, wood and ceramic, the houses’ designs are crafted to highlight the individuality of each stone, letting the material dictate the jewel’s eventual form.  ‘I look for the magical, the right proportions, and I don’t find perfection attractive’, Givenchy said. ‘In personalities, I’m not attracted to flawless either. I look for charm.’