Under the loupe: our latest watch and jewellery finds
Sophie Bille Brahe
16 January
Dover Street Market’s seasonal changeover is an awaited moment on the fashion calendar, for it ushers in the retailer’s newest avant-garde installations, pop-ups and latest roster of designers. Sophie Bille Brahe’s latest ‘L’Ocean Ensemble’ collection, newly installed at Dover Street Market in London, has bought a twinkling element to proceedings. It features the largest diamonds which the Copenhagen-based jeweller has used to date, and includes this ‘Escargot Ensemble’ ring, with diamonds which snail to a central point around the finger. Like the structure of Brahe’s signature ‘Croissant de Lune’ earring, the stones gradually increase in size, bringing an alluring asymmetry to the design.
Writer: Laura Hawkins
Marla Aaron
8 January
We’re latching on to NYC jeweller Marla Aaron. Her collections of sleekly-engineered hardware for the body take cues from industrial inspiration including bridge architecture and zipline harnesses. The tactile Phyllis lock is a carabiner-like clip in 18-ct yellow gold, with a spinning closure inlaid with kaleidoscopic tiles of chalcedony, opal and malachite. It hooks on to the winding All Inlay chain, itself punctuated with bright, matching links. ‘The idea began to simply do the closure as entirely inlaid and then we kept going a little further and realised we could inlay entire pieces and retain their functionality. It is always about taking an idea and extending it in as many directions as possible, and our Inlay series is the highest expression of this,’ says Aaron.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald
GFG Jewellery
7 January
London-based GFG Jewellery has gone full circle. Boldly-hued, responsibly-sourced stones form the focal point of founder Nilafur Kizilkaya’s Project 20/20 earrings, as two neat golden hoops loop around emeralds from Gemfields’ Zambian mines. A tilting, pear-cut emerald appears propped up by a round white diamond, while the hoop itself is part-lined with tiny gems. The collection marks 20 years since Kizilkaya arrived in the UK capital from Istanbul - so the emeralds, traditionally gifted on a 20th anniversary, are a fitting celebration.
Writer: Caitlin McDonald