Innehållsförteckning för Spring 2025 från Something About Rocks

Our Spring issue is centred around creators. The visionaries who established the jewellery business as we know it were creating some of their most iconic pieces in the late 19th century to 20th century. The designs of esteemed names such as Jeanne Toussaint at Cartier or Jean Schlumberger at Tiffany & Co. are still some of the best-selling creations of their respective houses. In her story for this issue, our Jewellery Director Vivienne Becker explores this thrilling period which produced some of the greatest designer-jewellers who ever lived. Elsewhere in the issue, our Deputy Editor Kim Parker meets the contemporary jewellers of the moment, including The Drays, Foundrae and Castro Smith as well as Cartier's visionary high jewellery designer Jacqueline Karachi. Our Spring cover features the dashing star of SAS…

At the start of the 20th century, the idea of the individual artist-jeweller or designer-jeweller was very new. Fuelled by an emerging cult of personality, the named and celebrated designer-jeweller was a 20th century phenomenon that gave birth to a roll call of talented, singular creators, each with a strong point of view and a vision that transformed the jewel into the most powerful expression of personal style. It began with Carlo Giuliano (1831-1895), the Italian-born, London-based, self-styled 'art jeweller' whose refined jewels in the revival style appealed to an aesthetically inclined clientele. Then, at the Paris Exposition Universelle in 1900, the dramatic, cinematic and dangerously decadent art jewels dreamt up by the great poet-goldsmith, René Lalique (1860-1945) took the world by storm. They marked the high point of the…

Gwilym Lee is a seasoned veteran when it comes to the world of entertainment, with his career on stage and screen recently ticking into its 28th year. In that time, the 41-year-old British actor has evolved from appearing in Midsomer Murders to embodying Brian May in the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody to, more recently, a starring role in Hulu's Emmy-nominated The Great. In-between all that, he's been writing screenplays, voice acting for the Final Fantasy video game franchise, and nurturing his friendship with fellow Bohemian Rhapsody co-star Rami Malek. “Everyone from the Bohemian Rhapsody film actually became best friends,” says Lee. “We see each other all the time. That's the joy of our job. We go from one company of actors to the next and they become everything to you…

Hair SOPHIE SUGARMAN Hair assistant ALLIE HARKNETT Makeup JAMES O'REILY Makeup assistant FERNANDA PAZ First photo assistant OSCAR ECKEL Styling assistants LIONEL NDIKITA and OLLY COOK Digital CHESTER LEWIS Model AINE O'LEARY and HE ZHI Production manager MALCOLM MAFARA…

The family-run jewellery house Buccellati traces its roots back to the early 20th century when Mario Buccellati founded the company in Milan, Italy. His designs quickly garnered global recognition for their textural quality and exceptional craftsmanship, attracting a discerning clientele that included royalty, celebrities, and dignitaries. Today, tradition remains key to the Buccellati style. Each one of the house's jewels is handcrafted, using techniques that date back to the Renaissance, including Rigato, an engraving method that involves etching fine parallel lines onto gold to create a sheen. These storied techniques are showcased on the house's one-of-a-kind pieces, as well as its fine jewellery offering, which spans cuffs, butterfly earrings and precious, collar-grazing necklaces. JH…

It was back in 1932 that Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel introduced her first and only jewellery collection, Bijoux de Diamants, in the form of starry-themed pieces which harked back to her childhood spent in an abbey in Aubazine in central France. Since then, the maison's offering has grown to encompass a seemingly endless variety of necklaces, bracelets, rings, earrings, timepieces and more, depicting Chanel's most iconic symbols and motifs in precious metals. These styles range from the everyday, like the quilted, gold Coco Crush collection, a tribute to the founder's love of equestrianism, to the remarkable Plume high jewellery line, which reinvents the delicate feather in twinkling stones and subtle, pastel tones. JH…

Recognisable for its creative approach to jewellery, for 45 years, American industry titan David Yurman has focused on crafting tactile, refined but also bold and daring jewellery that incorporates unconventional materials like black titanium and forged carbon. Its iconic Cable, a sculpted twist motif created in 1982, is among its signature creations and has been continuously reimagined in new ways, from luxurious diamond-covered bangles to large-scale necklaces. Other David Yurman classics include the Chevron collection, a reference to an ancient motif with an inverted “v” shape, and Silver Ice - first unveiled in 1997 as the first time a major designer set diamonds in sterling silver. JH…

Established a little over a century ago in Florence, Gucci has become synonymous with sumptuous IItalian design, not least because of its elegant, and often extremely opulent, accessories. Silver jewellery was introduced to the house in the 1970s, alongside the introduction of Swiss-made watches, followed by fine jewellery collections in 1999. Gucci's renowned horsebit design emerged in the 1950s as a motif on a pair of loafers, created as a tribute to founder Guccio Gucci, who was a lifelong fan of equestrian sports. To mark its 20th anniversary as a jewellery emblem at the house, Gucci's horsebit was relaunched in 2024 as an elevated fine jewellery collection in yellow or rose gold and diamonds. Gucci's latest high jewellery collection, now under the creative direction of Sabato De Sarno, is entitled…

From the launch of its first trunks in the 1850s to its ready-to-wear debut in the 1990s, Louis Vuitton has remained a leading symbol of luxury for over 170 years. The company's first complete jewellery collection - the Emprise collection - came in 2004, designed by Marc Jacobs, and in 2008, Louis Vuitton made its first foray into high jewellery with the release of the Les Ardentes collection. Now helmed by Francesca Amfitheatrof, the house's artistic director for watches and jewellery, the brand's current offering includes fantastical high jewellery, released annually, and luxury unisex collections, spanning LV Volt - an abstracted take on the L and the V of the house's logo - to the new Le Damier, a 12-piece gold and diamond jewellery line. JH…

The quintessential American jeweller got its start as a 'fancy goods store' in New York, established by Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1837. Its first mail catalogue, the Blue Book Collection, was published six years later, bringing its fine jewellery directly into clients' homes (the name is now given to the company's high jewellery collections). Since then, a pioneering and inventive spirit has permeated the house's glittering designs, brought to life by trailblazing creatives such as Jean Schlumberger, Elsa Peretti and Paloma Picasso, who all lent their talents to Tiffany & Co.'s repertoire. Colourful gemstones are also a company trademark, from the renowned 128.54-carat fancy yellow Tiffany diamond to the introduction of kunzite, morganite, tanzanite and tsavorite to the market. Meanwhile, the six-prong Tiffany setting for solitaire rings, introduced in 1886,…

ANNOUSHKA annoushka.com AZZI & OSTA azziandosta.com BELPERRON belperron.com BOODLES boodles.com BOUCHERON boucheron.com BUCCELLATI buccellati.com BVLGARI bulgari.com CARTIER cartier.com CASADEI casadei.com CASTRO SMITH castrosmith.com CELINE celine.com CHANEL chanel.com CHAUMET chaumet.com CHET LO chetlo.com CHOPARD chopard.com DAVID YURMAN davidyurman.com DEAD LOTUS deadlotuscouture.com DE BEERS debeers.co.uk DE LA PAIX shopdelapaix.com DIOR dior.com DKNY dkny.com EDWARD SEXTON edwardsexton.co.uk FERRAGAMO ferragamo.com FOUNDRAE foundrae.com GIORGIO ARMANI armani.com GIRARD-PERREGAUX girard-perregaux.com GOOSSENS goossens-paris.com GRIMA grimajewellery.com GUCCI gucci.com HARRY WINSTON harrywinston.com HERMÈS hermes.com LALIQUE lalique.com LANVIN lanvin.com LITO litefinejewelry.com LOUIS VUITTON louisvuitton.com LUCA FALONI lucafaloni.com MANOLO BLAHNIK manoloblahnik.com OMEGA omegawatches.com PANTHERELLA pantherella.com PATEK PHILIPPE patek.com PIAGET piaget.com POMELLATO pomellato.com PRADA prada.com RACHEL BOSTON rachelboston.co.uk REPOSSI repossi.com SKYDIAMOND skydiamond.com SUNSPEL sunspel.com SWAROVSKI swarovski.com TAG HEUER tagheuer.com TASAKI tasaki.co.uk THE COSTUME STUDIO costumestudio.co.uk THE DRAYS the-drays.com TIFFANY & CO. tiffany.co.uk VACHERON…

1 HERMÈS In the hands of Hermès' creative director of jewellery, and one-time dancer, Pierre Hardy, jewels take on a fluidity and a life of their own. The sensuous curves and floral bud-like gemstones of the Météores ring, for example, have an organic, freshly-plucked appeal that seems to have sprung from the ground, not an atelier. 2 TASAKI X EYEVAN To mark its 70th anniversary this year, Tasaki has collaborated with other leading Japanese makers and adorned some of their most iconic creations with its signature Akoya pearls. For Eyevan, Japan's first fashion eyewear company established in the 1970s, eight sunglasses styles have all been embellished with Tasaki's 'Balance' and 'Danger' pearl motifs, transforming their pragmatic designs into something far more precious. 3 GIRARD-PERREGAUX With its space age vibes, Girard-Perregaux's unusual Casquette wristwatch…

What's the best way to celebrate a historic milestone? For Vacheron Constantin, the oldest extant watchmaker in the world, it's a reissue of its beloved 222 timepiece to commemorate the 270th birthday of the maison. The brainchild of watch design giant Jörg Hysek, the 222 made its debut in 1977 to mark Vacheron Constantin's 222nd anniversary. An immediate departure from the sports watch conventions of the time, the debut model featured a functional construction with a flat table, topped by a prominent fluted bezel and stamped with a Maltese cross at 5 o'clock. Nicknamed the 'Jumbo', the first-ever 222 also came with an integrated bracelet and a blue dial framed by a 37mm steel case – design features that today inform a new Historiques 222 edition. “Since the turn of…

There aren't many dynamic young jewellers who, at the apparent height of their creative power, have the nerve to shutter their nascent brand and walk away. But Elise Dray, a Parisian designer who established her first eponymous brand in 2009 whilst in her early 20s, after studying fine jewellery design and goldsmithing the city's prestigious BJOP School in Rue du Louvre, has always danced to her own beat. “It had got to the point where I would go and install my latest collection at the boutique in Hotel Costes and then come back a little while later and see everyone walking around in central Paris wearing knockoffs of my designs. It was super flattering, but still frustrating,” says Dray. “As a designer, you put your heart and soul into everything…

An independent British jeweller since 1798, Boodles as we know it was formed by a young watchmaker called Henry Wainwright, who bought into the business a century later. Joined by his sons Herbert and Harold, and boosted by the rapid expansion of the middle classes in the late 19th century, Wainwright's company expanded into precious jewellery, objets d'art, special timepieces and gold pocket watches. Today, six generations later, Boodles is still owned and managed by the Wainwright family and continues to proudly promote contemporary British design. Design signatures include its stackable Be You fine jewellery collection, its cheery Raindance collection (which has just celebrated its 20th anniversary), its work with fancy pink diamonds (a key brand colour) and its exclusive Ashoka-cut diamond pieces, which are created in partnership with the…

From the legendary jewelled Serpenti to the fan-shaped Diva motif through cabochon-cut gems and the B.zero1 collection inspired by Rome's Colosseum, few jewellers boast the legacy and visionary innovation of Bvlgari. Established in 1884 by Greek silversmith Sotirio Bulgari, the Italian design house quickly established a reputation for its bold and colourful designs, often featuring vibrant gemstones in innovative combinations. Attracting a prestigious clientele, including A-list figures like Sophia Loren and Elizabeth Taylor, today, the magic and allure of Bvlgari remains just as potent, as the house continues to unveil new opulent high jewellery and the popularity of its collections, including the Serpenti snake design, continues to soar. JH…

Making headlines last year as the high jewellery maison behind the Paris 2024 Olympic medals for gold, silver and bronze, French jeweller Chaumet has served as a cornerstone of refined French haute joaillerie for nearly two and a half centuries. Founded in 1780 by Marie-Étienne Nitot, who honed his craft apprenticing with the royal jeweller of King Louis XIV, the Parisian house would go on to establish a close association with Emperor Napoléon and his first Empress Joséphine, becoming the official jeweller of the Emperor in 1802. Today, the royal couple remain an enduring source of inspiration for the French jewellery maison. Launched in 2010, the brand's Joséphine collection is a direct homage to the jewellery-loving empress, while its much-loved Bee My Love line nods to the bumblebee, Napoléon's imperial…

As the world's leading diamond miner, De Beers has a long history of sourcing, cutting and polishing many of the world's most famous stones. As a result, its luxury jewellery house, De Beers Jewellers, established in London just 24 years ago, provides clients with unparalleled access to a selection of rare and natural diamonds, which have been transformed into recognisable and distinctive designs through the years. These span the Enchanted Lotus collection, which references the elegant lotus flowers that bloom upon sunrise in Botswana, to the brand's latest Forces of Nature high jewellery that hones in on the animal kingdom, evoking the wildlife of the African Savannah. JH…

Born in 1896 in New York, Harry Winston demonstrated a passion for gemstones at a precociously early age, buying his first emerald (mistaken for a piece of glass by its previous owner) for 25 cents at just 12 years old. After forming his eponymous jewellery company, a slew of high-profile diamond purchases including the Jonker Diamond, the infamous Hope Diamond and the Star of the East - led to Winston being dubbed 'the King of Diamonds' by the American press in 1947. Just prior to this, Winston had also become the first fine jeweller to lend pieces for Hollywood actresses to wear on the Oscars red carpet. Rare and important stones remain a distinguishing feature of the brand's glamorous creations to this day (which still adorn A-listers like Jennifer Lopez…

The story of Piaget opens in 1874, when GeorgesÉdouard Piaget first set up his workshop on his family farm in the village of La Côte-aux-Fées, Switzerland. Piaget quickly garnered a reputation for his fine, high-precision movements for clocks, and by 1910, under the guidance of Timothée Piaget (Georges-Édouard's son), the company was transformed into a full-fledged manufacturer of luxury wrist and pocket watches. The addition of jewellery to the company didn't arrive until 1959, leading to the opening of Piaget's first boutique, “Salon Piaget”, in Geneva – a city which also became the company's home for its ateliers specialising in goldsmithing and gem-setting. Since developing its jewellery business, Piaget has launched successful lines like Possession, which highlights its unique Décor Palace gold finish, and established a bold, flamboyant and extremely…

Collected by everyone from royals to social media stars, whimsical and bejewelled flights of fancy have been a house signature of Van Cleef & Arpels ever since its foundation in 1906 by Parisian Alfred Van Cleef and his brother-in-law, Charles Arpels. From a golden model of the majestic Varuna yacht for an American heiress (one of its very first commissions, which came complete with a sea of carved jasper and an electric call bell for a butler), to its signature Mystery Set gemstones (a technique patented by the maison in 1933) via its annual high jewellery collections, which are often inspired by the natural world, and its iconic Alhambra quatre-foil motifs framed by beads of 'perlé' gold, the maison is renowned for an astonishing breadth of creativity as well as…

Unveiled in Vienna last summer, the latest chapter of Cartier's high jewellery collection, Nature Sauvage, offered a fresh take on the maison's celebrated menagerie. Its iconic panther, which first appeared in the Cartier repertoire in 1914 as a pattern of onyx and diamond spots on a graphic wristwatch, was reworked as a playful hand jewel - the lithe sapphire and diamond beast ferociously stalking a Zambian emerald of over eight carats. An elegant flamingo, initially made famous as a colourful brooch crafted for the Duchess of Windsor in 1940, appeared this time with diamond plumage, amidst a reed bed of baguette-cut emeralds. As ever, these were pieces that blurred the boundaries between the figurative and the abstract. For one necklace, called 'Koaga', the proud head and neck of a zebra…

An office located on the side of a roundabout in Stroud, Gloucestershire seems like an odd location for Britain's biggest eco-company. But this small provincial English market town is not only home to Ecotricity, founded by eco-entrepreneur Dale Vince in 1995, but also its sister companies - Ecojet, The Devil's Kitchen (a plant-based burger company) and, now, Skydiamond, Vince's sky-mining company which converts atmospheric carbon into lab-made diamonds. Vince, the eccentric owner, is an ex new-age traveller: his hair is cut in a directional mohawk, he has lightning-bolt ear piercings, wears ripped jeans and a Philipp Plein jacket complete with a 'Fuck You' logo and pirate insignia. “WHETHER IT'S BURGERS, CARS, OR FOOTBALL, THERE'S ANOTHER WAY” The offices also bear more than a passing resemblance to those of Wernham Hogg,…

One of Paris' most esteemed houses, Boucheron was established by Frédéric Boucheron in 1858 under the arcades of the Palais Royale. The scion of a family dynasty that specialised in fabrics, Boucheron applied an innovative, fashion-forward approach to jewellery and his groundbreaking designs, such as his Question Mark necklace (which a woman could put on unaided), secured him a gold medal at the Paris World Fair in 1867. The house's current creative director, Claire Choisne, continues in Boucheron's pioneering and inventive path, conceiving pieces that combine unexpected materials – titanium, raffia and shells, volcanic glass, compacted sand and carved rock crystal – with precious gemstones such as diamonds. The result are jewels that defy expectation, feel as fluid as fabric and, while still rooted in the house's history, continue to…

Famously referred to as “the jeweller of kings and the king of jewellers” by King Edward VII, Cartier created some of the 20th century's most recognisable jewels, from Art Deco treasures and royal tiaras wrought in diamonds, and a menagerie of gem-set animals like the panther and the flamingo (many devised by the visionary creative director, Jeanne Toussaint), to the Aldo Cipullo-designed Clou and Love bangles of the 1960s and 70s, not to mention some of the most collectible watch models to date. Founded in 1847 by Louis-François Cartier, the company rose to international attention under his enterprising grandsons, Louis, Jacques and Pierre, who spearheaded the company's global expansion and attracted distinguished clients such as the Duchess of Windsor, the Maharaja of Patiala and the American Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton.…

Fantasy and story-telling are at the heart of Chopard jewellery. Founded by Louis-Ulysse Chopard in 1860 as a manufacturer of pocket watches and chronometers, the Swiss brand was purchased by the German-born goldsmith and watchmaker Karl Scheufele in 1963 and, at the initiative of his daughter Caroline Scheufele, Chopard's current artistic director and co-president, presented its very first jewellery collection, Happy Diamonds, in 1985. Today, Chopard offers enchanting haute joaillerie via its Red Carpet collection, unveiled each year at the Cannes Film Festival, as well as fine jewellery that includes the stackable, gold Ice Cube range, crafted with rows of square facets that mimic reflections off ice, and Happy Heart, which combines the jeweller's hard-stone heart motif with dancing diamonds. JH…

As a rule, I would use jewellery generously to get the most out of it,” wrote Christian Dior in The Little Dictionary of Fashion in 1954. Accessories, for Monsieur Dior, were not merely a finishing accent but an intricate part of any look. Over 70 years later, his eponymous house has remained true to his maxim, with statement-making fashion, fine jewellery and high jewellery collections that draw upon iconic house codes (Dior's lucky star, his favorite rose, the cannage weave of the chairs from Dior's first catwalk show, a fabric ribbon from his atelier). Recruited over 25 years ago to instigate Dior's high jewellery offering, creative director of joaillerie Victoire de Castellane imagines fantastical, couture-inspired jewels in kaleidoscopic shades for the maison every year. The current chapters, Diorama and Diorigami,…

Though more widely recognised as a fashion house that began its life as a maker of luxury carriage harnesses and saddles, Hermès' refined and sophisticated aesthetic also extends to its jewellery and watch collections, which were first introduced in the 1920s under the auspices of Émile Hermès, the grandson of founder Thierry Hermès – years before its celebrated silk scarves debuted in boutiques. Like many of Hermès' other designs, its early jewels nodded to the brand's equestrian heritage, with silhouettes shaped like horse bits, followed by accessories inspired by dog collars and anchor chains. The now-famous enamelled cuff bracelets, which are still hugely popular, launched in the mid-1970s. Designed by Pierre Hardy, Hermès' biennial high jewellery collections arrived in 2010 and are replete with couture-like techniques and dazzling coloured gemstones…

Recognised for its work with lustrous Akoya pearls, the Japanese fine jeweller Tasaki celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2024 with several showstopping collaborations with other leading Japanese makers such as the eyewear specialist EYEVAN and the sportwear firm Asics, plus a white t-shirt entirely crafted from almost 20,000 pearls envisaged by the designer Melanie Georgacopulos (who is also responsible for the company's sculptural Sliced Sphere and Shell collections). Alongside Georgacopulos' work, the sleek and linear creations devised for Tasaki by Thai designer Thakoon Panichgul - including its bestselling Balance collection and the tantalisingly spiky Danger collection - have played a key part in the gemstone's recent revival as a desirable and thoroughly modern gemstone. KP…