Since the ancient times, jewelry has been a prerogative of very rich and very noble people. However, the development of technology, including the technology of mining and processing of precious and semiprecious stones, as well as competition among jewelers, became the key to success. Although today jewelry is yet not a product of mass demand, it is still available to almost everyone.
However, this does not concern world-famous brands, masterpieces of jewelry art manufactured in limited series or even in a single copy.
Among jewelry brands, whose creations delight both cinema and show business superstars and people with above-average income, the Japanese brand Mikimoto is the one that stands out the most. Kōkichi Mikimoto started his family business in 1896 with the cultivation of pearls. The unique technology helped him to obtain perfect pearls that met all the criteria of jewelry art and at the same time grew in conditions close to natural ones. Of course, this brand still specializes in products with pearls.
The brand was created in 1960 by Lawrence Graff. Originally, it was a small workshop where they created expensive and exclusive custom jewelry. Today it is a small jewelry fashion house, which employs the best jewelers and decorators.
The center of almost any piece of Graff’s jewelry art is a large diamond hand-cut by one of its master jewelers. This is understandable, since the brand owner, Lawrence Graff, has special feelings towards diamonds.
Created in Milan (Italy) in 1919, the Buccellati brand was initially directed at an extremely narrow segment of market. The metals they use in their work are the gold and the platinum, while the stones are the purest diamonds, emeralds and sapphires. The master, who selects each stone with great care, does even the cutting.
Each decoration is unique, created in a single copy and based on exclusive sketch.
Today, the jewelry from Buccellati is very popular among people known for their presence in the Forbes list. Indeed, Buccellati is a guaranteed exclusive.
Harry Winston brand, created in 1890 as a family business, originally specialized in creating elite wristwatches. However, pretty much right after it, they began to create jewelry as well. The main feature of the house is the exceptional elegance, and even sometimes extravagance.
Masterpieces of jewelry art from this brand are easily recognizable at the annual Academy Awards ceremony.
One of the most extravagant brands – Pandora Jewelry – was created not so long ago – in 1982, in Copenhagen (Denmark). The very first jewelry, presented in a small shop at the jeweler’s workshop, became a sensation. The reason is their original, and even more than an extravagant approach. Namely, all the decorations presented by the brand are created on the principle of modular assembly: multiple elements are randomly tied up on the basis made of natural leather or precious metals (gold, platinum). The result is an exclusive piece of jewelry art that can be modified exactly how the owner wishes.
The first jewelry from Van Cleef & Arpels Company appeared in 1896. Today, it is one the most famous brands in the industry known for its wildlife-themed decorations. However, the brand’s production is not limited only to jewelry, even if produced in limited series. Their miniature sculptural images of ballerinas made of platinum and white gold, inlaid with precious stones also made a splash at the jewelry exhibitions. The series found the development in the brooches.
It was Van Cleef & Arpels that first began to use jewelry-transformers. For example, after a little manipulation their necklace or earrings can easily turn into a brooch.
Over a century and a half of Chopard’s existence (which originally specialized in making wristwatches made of precious metals and stones), their creations have won the recognition of such movie stars as Penelope Cruz, Keith Winslet, and Charlize Theron.
The brand’s worth is estimated at 1-1.5 billion US dollars.
As if by magic, a small haberdashery, created in 1837, turned into a jewelry shop, and later – into the largest jewelry brand recognized throughout the world. The first decorations from Tiffany were packed in turquoise boxes, which are still one of the most recognizable elements of the brand. Laconic and stylish, the jewelry from Tiffany – from wedding rings to luxurious necklaces – is something which the richest and most famous people around the world are proud to wear.
Experts estimate the brand’s worth at 3.23 billion US dollars.
The first jewelry collection from the fashion house Prada was introduced to the public quite recently – in 2011. However, it made the unexpected splash with its special, recognizable style of the brand, which was embodied in the jewelry. To date, the jewelry department has already received a special status within the brand’s corporate structure.
According to various estimates, the brand’s worth ranges from 6 to 6.4 billion US dollars. Prada jewelry brand shops of have already appeared in the USA.
In 1847, the jeweler named Cartier offered his elegant and luxurious decorations to the Parisian aristocracy. As we all know, the French are very selective about such status items as jewelry, but in that case, their hearts were conquered. Today, the degree of recognition is difficult to imagine, but at the end of the XIX century, almost all noble ladies and gentlemen wore decorations from Cartier, and in 1902 the jewelry house was ordered to make the crown (for the coronation of Edward VII). By that time, the brand was already the official supplier of precious stones and products made of them to the royal family.
Today the brand’s worth is estimated at $ 7.61 billion.