As Light As a Feather
15th January 2020
It’s time to fly high with incredible creations that reinterpret birds with gemstones and feathers. Calling at modernity and innovation, the designers play with various feathers to translate vitality and preciosity.
From well-established brands to smaller jewelers, the use of feathers requires an additional crafts skill and knowledge to protect and integrate it in the setting. In fact, it is common that feather specialists and artists are collaborating with jewelry brands for a unique creation. Let’s discover some sparkling pieces from Harry Winston, Chaumet, Chopard, Messika and Isabelle Langlois.
Harry Winston – Ultimate Adornment
The American diamonds’ master demonstrates audacity and originality with this Ultimate Adornment piece. In 2013, Harry Winston unveiled this spectacular versatile jewel made of duck and peacock feathers as well as 60 diamonds. Worn as a brooch or earcuff, this creation impresses by its lightness, deep colors and volume. The 14 blue and green feathers are creating a fan around the diamonds cluster. This Harry Winston iconic setting is composed of marquise and brilliant cut diamonds that reach a total of 62 carats. The fairy-like jewel recalls the delicate wing of an exotic bird in its flight, it is a beautiful balance of femininity, elegance and modernity.
This jewel is linked to a timepiece pendant, itself made of various cut diamonds, with a black opal dial.
Ultimate Adornment, by Harry Winston, 2013.
Chaumet - Hummingbirds
This poetic serie of three aigrette brooches / hairjewels is created by Joseph Chaumet, in charge of the French Maison from the 1880s’. These hummingbirds embody joy and exoticism with their colorful body and dancing feathers. Appeared around 1885-1890, these pieces are composed of diamonds, rubies, dark or white feathers, silver and gold. The third one seems to have a brilliant plumage of peridots and garnets (assumption). This integration of real feathers in jewelry brings lightness and vitality as well as a majestic extent. The dark feather hummingbird was displayed in Beijing at the occasion of the Imperial Splendours exhibition in 2017.
More recently, Chaumet also used gracious feathers for its Aigrette Diadem presented at the Biennale des Antiquaires in Paris, click here to read more about this headpiece.
Hummingbirds Brooches, by Chaumet, 1885-1890.
Isabelle Langlois - Panache
This French designer expresses her joie de vivre through her Panache jewelry collection. Isabelle Langlois launched in 2017 this serie of jewels composed of light and intriguing feathers, together with a cluster of colored fine and precious stones. Selected for their colors and patterns, the feathers come from various birds such as peacock, cockerel and pheasant. Their colors and hues are perfectly associated with tourmalines, peridots, tsavorites, garnets, colored sapphires, amethysts and many more stones.
Panache Rings & Earrings, by Isabelle Langlois, 2017.
Messika - Dream Catcher
Messika’s freshness is well represented in these one-of-a-kind jewels. Launched in 2019, the Dream Catcher collection is composed of chockers and earrings that take their roots in the spiritual world, banishing bad dreams from the wearer. Each one of these pieces is considered to be a talisman. Powerful, it protects and magnifies.
The necklaces are created with a farandole of marquise and pear cut diamonds, joining the colorful cockerel feather at the center. The diamond cluster earrings are contemporary by their asymmetry, revealing a unique feather on one side.
Dream Catcher Earrings & Necklaces, by Messika, 2019.
Chopard - Feather Necklace
Renowned for its colorful and extravagant creations, Chopard surprised once again with this unique necklace. Unveiled during the Red Carpet 2018, the Swiss jeweler proves its innovative creativity by using abundant dark feathers of different birds: heron, ostrich, pheasant and rooster. This selection creates volume, colors’ relief and a textures’ variety that intrigues. The central piece is a gold cameo, surrounded by apatites, red jasper and violet garnets, which take its inspiration from the Mongolian culture.
This original necklace is the fruit of a collaboration with the feather artist, Nelly Saunier, who already worked with several jewellery houses including Harry Winston and Van Cleef & Arpels.
Feather Necklace, by Chopard, 2018.