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Full transparency: I was a jewellery moron before I started this job. I could barely tell white gold from silver, nor a bezel from a cabochon. Over the course of the past few years, I’ve begun to grapple with the vocabulary of fine jewellery, although the gemstones still confuse: is that a garnet or a ruby? Is that a diamond or just a lump of quartz?
The language of watchmaking is even more bewildering – I hope and pray that no one ever needs me to explain a tourbillon. Nick Foulkes, HTSI’s long-time expert, has tried patiently to talk me through. But I’m grateful also to Ben Schott, the master of the modern miscellany, who has created an idiot’s guide to all things watch-related for this issue that takes some of the mystery away.
The arcane language of watches and jewellery contributes to the exclusive realm in which it lives. Hard luxury, as such things are known, can be an intimidating place into which to dip one’s fingers. But, having braved the waters, I find it a dangerously seductive world. I used to own almost no jewellery; now I have aspirations to own a suite. Few things have the talismanic properties of an heirloom. And there is something equally exciting about buying a new piece for oneself.
Self-purchase is not a sexy descriptor but it’s increasingly a habit among modern clients who aren’t expecting to be presented with such items by a partner or devoted spouse. And as this independent client base is growing, so too are the brands led by female founders who have a better instinct for what people (and especially independent women) want to buy. These include Lucy Delius, Annoushka Ducas, Jessica McCormack and Sophie Bille Brahe, as well as a swell of emerging designers, six of whom we profile this week.
Ilaria Icardi, a designer who has worked at some of the world’s best-known fashion brands, also runs a jewellery label built on the business founded by her father more than 50 years ago. Her pieces combine bold retro motifs with chunky details in small, desirable collections that have inflicted horrendous damage to my bank balance in recent years. This week’s Aesthete, Icardi embodies a timeless cool; I’m thrilled (though slightly nervous) to discover that she is launching a line of eyewear in the coming months.
Julian Ganio and James Harvey-Kelly have teamed up to shoot some of this season’s most significant wristwear, as showcased on a cast of individuals who represent a range of styles. Wearing a watch these days is about so much more than knowing the time: it’s a statement, it’s an emotional connection and, yes, it’s a cult status symbol – just see the stampede for the Audemars Piguet x Swatch earlier this year. I’m currently wearing a steel Rolex Datejust that dates from my birth year (a depressingly long time ago). I hadn’t worn it for a few years, but I’m feeling the call of silver tones again. Or do I mean platinum? Or white gold? I’m still not quite sure what’s what. Let’s just say I’m in my grey era. Isn’t that so apt?
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