Chanel looks to materials or motifs woven throughout its history for chic and often playful high jewellery. Last year, the ubiquitous Scottish tweed was knitted in diamonds; the year before, the intricately embellished Coromandel screens which inspired Gabrielle Chanel were rethought in precious gems.
This year, it is one of Gabrielle Chanel’s favourite destinations, Venice, which becomes the focus of the Escale à Venise collection. Composed of 70 pieces and divided into four sets, it reinterprets the city’s most famous features. In the La Sérénissime set, the architecture is reflected in a diamond framework, the facades of the palace and marble floors of the churches becoming rich patterns of diamonds interlaced with a bold hue of gems.
In Gran Canale, the nautical world of the gondolas is drawn in lapis lazuli; in a play on colour, the diagonal stripes of the red and white mooring poles are drawn in red spinels and diamonds. The bold colours carry through to the Isole Della Laguna set, which looks to Gabrielle Chanel’s favourite flower for its inspiration. The camellia, its asymmetrical outline reproduced in carnelians and fire opals, makes a vivid foil for a rock crystal and yellow gold ring.
The spiritual head of the city, the lion, takes centre stage in Spirito di Venezia. It is a theme we have seen before – nodding to Gabrielle Chanel’s star sign, the lion was the focus of 2013’s high jewellery collection. Here, it is cast in profile and set with pear and shuttle-cut diamonds, grandly presiding over a necklace and bracelet
INFORMATION
-
How We Host: Interior designer Heide Hendricks shows us how to throw the ultimate farmhouse fêteThe designer, one half of the American design firm Hendricks Churchill, delves into the art of entertaining – from pasta to playlists
-
Arbour House is a north London home that lies low but punches highArbour House by Andrei Saltykov is a low-lying Crouch End home with a striking roof structure that sets it apart
-
25 of the best beauty launches of 2025, from transformative skincare to offbeat scentsWallpaper* beauty editor Mary Cleary selects her beauty highlights of the year, spanning skincare, fragrance, hair and body care, make-up and wellness
-
Art takes London: Tiffany & Co, Damien Hirst and artists take over Selfridges' windowsFour British contemporary artists celebrate Tiffany & Co's pioneering history with a series of storied window displays
-
All smiles: How a grillz jewellery making class in London became an international hitWhat started as a passion project quickly exploded in popularity. We get the story behind the grillz-making workshop at Cockpit London
-
Emerging jewellery designers to get to knowThese independent, new and emerging jewellery designers and brands from New York to Paris are firmly on our radar
-
Playing it cool: pearls are having a momentWe've been deep-diving into boutiques around the world to find the very best calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form. It seems jewellers have been busy rethinking pearls, with contemporary (and often affordable) results
-
Eternity rings for the modern coupleEternity rings, whether sleekly minimalist or sprinkled in diamonds, can be a chic and contemporary love token
-
CryptoPunks come to life on Tiffany & Co pendantsTiffany & Co has partnered with blockchain infrastructure company Chain to create custom pendants and NFTiffs
-
Order of the day: Pomellato’s high jewellery takes us from dawn to duskPomellato’s new high jewellery collection, La Gioia, tells the story of a day in precious stones
-
Anklets welded onto the body make romantic and enduring jewellery tokensAtelier VM’s ‘L’Essenziale’ jewellery collection now includes slender gold anklets
