In 1932, Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel imagined and designed the Bijoux de Diamants collection, a fine jewelry series that captured the essence of the Great Depression-mired time period with exquisite designs and a unique perspective – that of looking upward. With pieces that focused on the beauty of the sky, think stars and suns, Bijoux de Diamants was unlike anything that had ever been presented at the time. “I want the jewelry to be like a ribbon on a woman’s fingers,” Mademoiselle Chanel told the French daily l’Intransigeant of her inspired collection. At the time the diamond jewels were displayed on wax mannequins in a mirrored room on the rue Faubourg St Honoré guarded by a strong security contingency that drew gasps from the crowds who came to view them.
Bijoux de Diamants was the first high end jewelry collection for Chanel and in celebration of its 80th anniversary, the couture house is reinventing the storied series with “1932,” a new variation on the classic jewels originally designed by Mademoiselle Chanel. The collection exists out of 80 pieces, one for every year, and is stunning in both design and quality. Every item in the collection is unique and will be on exhibit in New York City this month and in Tokyo in November.
A lot of famous celebrities attended the Chanel Fine Jewelry 80th Anniversary of the ‘Bijoux de Diamants’ Collection bash in New York City this past week to celebrate this moment and to honor Gabrielle Chanel. Stars like Blake Lively, Alexa Chung, Diane Kruger and Elle Fanning made an appearance.