5 Tweed de Chanel High Jewellery Pieces That You Need To See In Person
These one-of-a-kind creations demonstrate the mastery of the house's artisans in mimicking the suppleness and texture of tweed fabric.
By Imran Jalal,
There is Chanel's Fantasy tweed – the house's amped-up signature fabric that is known for using several yarns or colours in its design. Then there is the Tweed de Chanel, the first high jewellery collection that reimagines the woollen fabric from Scotland in a completely inventive and challenging way: by crafting it in gold, diamonds and precious stones.
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First launched last year, the one-of-a-kind creations in the collection are currently in Singapore as part of a travelling collection. The 32 pieces are available for free public viewing at the Chanel Watches & Fine Jewellery boutique at Takashimaya Shopping Centre from now till March 17.
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Get an up-close view of how the artisans from the high jewellery workshop translated the suppleness and movement of tweed (it's said that Coco Chanel preferred wool that was less washed to preserve its softness) to jewellery designs by creating unique articulation techniques that allow the pieces to sway.
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Do also take a closer look at each piece in order to admire the delicate and artful interlacing of precious materials like gold, pearls, diamonds, sapphires and tsavorites, not unlike the highly textured weft of tweed.
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Ahead we spotlight some of the major designs that are now in town, though nothing beats seeing them in the flesh.
This platinum bracelet will remind you of having fringed tweed on your wrist while its articulated design means the fringes sway beautifully when worn. Peek closely and you will notice 'yarns' made of baguette-cut sapphires, pearls, and spinels woven with wefts of pink gold chains (a nod to the metal chain that is sewn into the hem of Chanel tweed jackets to give the garment its structure). The crowning glory of the piece is a 6.72-carat oval cut spinel.
A literal interpretation of a collar necklace, this graphic design takes cues from the round neckline seen on tweed jackets. The rich textural quality of the necklace comes from the interlacing of perforated yellow gold with diamond-studded platinum. To give the piece more sparkle, cultured pearls dot the piece, while a 20.40-carat imperial topaz serves as the "button" of the collar necklace.
Priced at more than $1.8 million, this white gold piece is the priciest ring in the entire collection. The bold architectural design is an ode to two well-loved house codes: monochromatic colours and tweed. Set with black onyx and diamonds, the ring is topped off with a whopper 6.07-carat cushion-cut diamond.
Meet the piece de resistance of the collection, an almost $2.7 million white, and yellow gold sautoir necklace. Strands of gold and round- and square-cut diamonds converge into a tweed-like weave on the left side of the necklace and topped off with a 7.10-carat cushion-cut yellow diamond. Chanel also pays homage to the Mademoiselle's love for seafaring by making the gold strands in the style of nautical ropes.
This piece features an abstract interpretation of tweed fabric on the pendant. Irregular-shaped "yarns" of diamond-studded white gold evoke the imperfectly raw beauty of a tweed weave that Gabrielle Chanel cherished. Meanwhile, dainty camellias are interspersed on the pendant as a homage to her favourite flower.