Apparently when you cross some line in the continuum of weird-looking(Karl Lagerfeld), you get to become art...
(source)
Ordinarily I might think that was over the top, but this is a man willing to be seen in public AND photographed wearing bling of himself, made by Nous Sommes.
and a closeup to prove it's him
(source)
A
Not usually known for their jewelry, the house of Louis Vuitton made quite a splash last year with a collection designed by Lorenz Bäumer (previously referenced). They have recently released another collection, Les Ardentes, in white diamond and white gold on his excellent designs. The signature elements of this collection are diamonds cut in the shape of the famous LV emblem, a cut which they have, for some reason, patented and then openwork of the same logo elements set with smaller stones.
First a selection of rings
Next a pair of bracelets
Several different pairs of earrings were included
Including my favorite piece from the collection, the long "shoulder-duster" earrings
Finally a pair of the necklaces in the collection
(source)
A
Le Bon Marche is a department store with their flagship store on the Left Bank in Paris. Their jewelry department has recently commissioned several exclusive pieces including an interesting pair of abacus earrings by Axel Juret Jumahong, a Chinese designer who works under the name Junion.
Another piece in the collection is by Philippe Tournaire (previously mentioned), a ring with a tiny model of famous buildings of the Left Bank.
(source)
A
Ludovic Ballouard was, for seven years, one of the top watchmakers at F. P. Journe. He then decided to go out on his own and his first model under his own name, the Upside-Down, has started to trickle out into the world. His original concept was this
(source)
Based on a Perseux 7001 caliber, this watch has a most unusual way of telling the time
(photo from Horamundi)
The 12 Maltese-cross wheels around the rim animate the hour "disks", which rest in the upside-down position. Only the current hour has the correct orientation, and the minutes are indicated in the usual way. Thus the following picture was taken at 2:18 or so.
(picture from Horamundi)
A
Time for a new banner, and another sourced from the excellent resource ArtDico. These are from a 19th Century French maritime dictionary, the Dictionnaire Pittoresque de marine published in 1835 by Jules Lecomte. "A" was for Armament and "M" was for Master of chicken, apparently an important person on a boat.
Piaget has come out with some interesting pieces of late, focusing on combining black with white diamonds. First some pieces from their Jazz collection, starting with jewelry. The necklace in the form of a piano keyboard, with matching earrings, is done with black spinel and white diamonds, set in white gold
There are also two watches with a similar design, both with the dial hidden until it is revealed.
The Limelight watch uses the same elements and materials as the necklace.
The other piano-themed watch uses the smooth black of onyx paired with a pavee of diamonds.
To conclude the Jazz collection we have the Piaget Polo Tourbillon Relaitf (yes that is the real name). The tourbillon relatif is a movement unique to Piaget, with the rotating cage mounted at the end of the minute hand and the hours indicated by a small disk under that massive minute hand. For the Jazz model they have emphasized the distribution of music on the dial, with music notes and a stylized record.
and the performance of music with the cloisonne enamel work on the sides of the case
(All preceeding pictures from Paris Joaillerie)
To conclude with something truly unique, a black and white diamond "Quick Response" code necklace. A trend that has not escaped Japan, the QR code is a way to mark things (items, places, business cards, etc) and link them to content on the internet. You scan the QR code with something, probably a smartphone, and a small amount of digital data can be retrieved, such as a URL. Piaget has built one in white gold, set with 1042 white diamonds and 520 black spinels. If you scan it, it'll take you to a website they have built to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Possession collection.
(source)
A
