Word: cleef
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Alanoud explains that in Dubai, women dress their hands. "The jewelry is amazing. Van Cleef is huge, Cartier, Chopard, Harry Winston," she says. Like her friends, Alanoud buys precious jewelry as a seasonal accessory, although in her case, it is necklaces?a Van Cleef gold-and-diamond clover and a vintage Cartier tiger necklace. The opulent triple circle of pavé diamonds on her finger is an heirloom gift from her mother...
MENTION PARISIAN JEWELER VAN CLEEF & ARPELS to an expert, and he or she will rhapsodize about the company's enhancement of stones with the minimum use of metal, and its famous clientele, including such style icons as Marlene Dietrich, Princess Grace of Monaco and the Duchess of Windsor. But the real gem of Van Cleef is the craftsmanship?the seemingly invisible settings, and the sway and movement in the designs. Today the pieces are created as intricately as they were when the house, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, opened. All the high jewelry pieces are still made...
Among its competitors, Van Cleef is considered the couture house, and Thierry Gautier is the gatekeeper of sales. Gautier thinks of himself as the clients' best advocate and has the patience to deal with the demands of the megarich. He once canceled his New Year's Eve party because of a sudden request from St. Bart's. Then there are the unusual orders: the Parisian who wanted a diamond necklace for her cat and the husband who asked that a bracelet be sealed in a chocolate Easter...
...client ordered a Mysterious Settings ruby brooch composed of rows of small rectangular stones in invisible settings (a technique invented by Van Cleef in 1933). Although the client wanted it "for next month," Gautier explained why it would require a year by taking her to the atelier and demonstrating how three teeny rubies might need an entire day to be cut. "After seeing the process, she understood," he says...
...FLORAL JEWELRY When it comes to precious stones, everything's coming up flowers, from Dior's blossom-shaped kunzite earrings and Kwiat's brooch bouquet blooming with pink tourmaline petals and garnet pistils to a Vera Wang 18-karat white gold brooch boutonniere and a Van Cleef & Arpels clip budding with yellow gold and pink sapphires...