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their customers in sumptuous sa- lons. This concentration of pres- tigious, historical addresses isunri- valledanywhere in theworld.We can marvel at the jewels on New Bond Street in London, near La Scala in Milan, on Fifth Avenue in New York, at Plaza 66 inShanghai, or on Omotesando Avenue inTokyo. But nothing compares to the expertise and atmosphere foundon thePlace Vendôme. “Paris is anartistic capital that has always been a bastion for jewellery. The biggest houses are French but leading foreign houses alsomake their jewellery here,” says Laure-Isabelle Mellerio, the presi- dent and artistic director of Melle- rio, the oldest independent family- owned jewellery house in theworld, founded in1613. “Webenefit froma rich heritage of expertise, designs, ornamentation. Parishas a longhis- tory with the various techniques, a dynamiccommunityofartisans,and an abundance of creativity.” UNEQUALED CRAFTMANSHIP Amajor asset of the Parisian jewel- lers is the excellence of the work- shops behind the scenes. “We have unparalleled craftsmanship in our lapidaries and setters and anexper- tise that is always pushing the limits of the possible,” attests Alexandre Corrot, the founder andar- tistic director of Djula. Each stage of produc- tion is carriedoutwith enormous precision, fromgouache sketches to setting, all the way up to delivery to the client. “A complexnecklace or pendant can require 400 to 600 hours of work,” confirms the head of a workshop implementing unique techniques for prestigious houses: wax casting, crimping, and state- of-the-art technologies like 3-D printing. “We still create wax models sometimes, in order to create organic shapes, for exam- ple,” says themanager. Paris’ mastery also attracts for- eign jewellers. Nourah Al Faisal, the Saudi founder of Nuun Jewels, chose to settle inParis tobenefit

Dans l'un des salons de la boutique Chanel, installée place Vendôme depuis 1990, trône un portrait de la célèbre créatrice de mode. A portrait of the famous designer reigns over a salon of the Chanel boutique established on Place Vendôme in 1990.

A fairy tale, a travelogue, an ode to fauna and flora.Every January and July, the great jewelleryhouses of thePlace Vendôme flaunt their latest fine jewellery collections in imaginative and sumptu- ous presentations on the sidelines of the Paris fashion shows. These bi-annual meetings are a must for a coterie of international journalists who delight in revealing the newest in exceptional jewellery to the pub- lic. Aficionados marvel at the me- ticulous craftsmanship inbracelets, necklaces, brooches, and earrings by the likes of Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Chaumet, Boucheron, andChanel. It's no coincidence that theFrench capital sets the stage for “jewellery week,” when the City of Light occupies a special place in the world of fine jewellery. LEGENDARY PLACE VENDÔME Paris’ global reputation dates to Louis XIV’s creation of the Place Vendôme, whose reputation for chic attracted a wealthy interna- tional clientele. Charles Frederick Worth, a founder of haute couture, established his legendary fashion boutique there in 1858, followed by Frédéric Boucheron, the first jew-

eller to start a jewellery house there in 1893. The end of the 19th cen- tury marked a turning point in the world of luxury with the opening of the Ritz Hotel and jewellers like Cartier, Chaumet, and Van Cleef & Arpels, who chose this strategic spot between the Opéra Garnier and the Tuileries Gardens to host

BagueKaa, LeSerpent,enor blanc, rubellite etdiamants, parBoucheron. The Kaa ring Le Serpent, by Boucheron with white gold, rubellite, and diamonds.

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101 - PARIS WORLDWIDE NOVEMBRE / DÉCEMBRE NOVEMBER / DECEMBER

2019