Chopard's Red Carpet: Collection 77 Fairy Tales
Hair comb in ethical 18 karat white and yellow gold and titanium, set with topaz briolettes, a topaz cabochon, brilliant-cut rubellites, a marquise-cut mandarine garnet and fancy-cut diamonds. © Chopard
Renowned for its creativity, state-of-the-art technology and the virtuosity of its artisans, Chopard has become one of the leading names in the luxury Swiss watch and jewellery industry. Labelled as “the artisan of intense emotions” the jewellery house is the official partner for the Cannes Film Festival for which Chopard’s High Jewellery artisans have been crafting objects of art since 1998.
Chopard’s Haute Joaillerie workshops creates all the awards presented at the close of the festival, including the most prestigious of them all: the Palme d’Or. Furthermore, the jewellery house presents the Trophée Chopard to a young actor and actress all designed under the watchful eye of Chopard’s Co-President and Artistic Director Caroline Scheufele.
Every year, for the globally prestigious event, Chopard showcase the full extent of their creativity and expertise with a newly designed Red Carpet Collection, which adorn the stars of cinema as they dazzle during the ‘Montée des Marches’, the official opening of the event where participants gather to be scrutinised upon the legendary 24 red steps.
This year, for the 77th edition of Cannes Film Festival, the collection contains 77 creations brought to life by the world of Fairy Tales ‘Contes de Fées’. Inspired by childhood reminiscences like enchanted forests, faraway kingdoms, talking animals, and fantastic creatures with magical powers, Scheufele has created a brilliant and highly personal interpretation combining fantasy and imagination with the wonders of nature.
“Around the world, in every culture and at every stage in life, fairy tales are part of our collective imagination. These fabulous stories, often based on popular folklore, invite us to daydream and fling open the doors of our imagination,” the jewellery house states. Described as an array of moving and tender, amusing and quirky, consistently precious creations that exude supreme elegance in a world of dreamy wonderment, the 77 pieces of the ‘Contes de Fées’ collection embody a subtle blend of realism and fantasy.
The making of the Fairy Tiara part of the Red Carpet Collection. © Chopard
THE GRAND PRIZE
The Palme d’Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was redesigned by Scheufele in 1998 and since 2014, it has been crafted from ethically sourced gold representing Chopard’s love of cinema and commitment to sustainable luxury. Whilst the individual pieces shine in their brilliance on the red carpet, the making of the Palme d’Or is another integral part of Chopard’s partnership with the festival, it is a process that the jewellery house compares to the making of an award-winning movie.
The Palme d’Or takes up to 70 hours to make. It is entrusted to a single jeweller who, like an orchestra conductor, ensures consistency throughout this process involving six artisans. This collective endeavour begins with 118 grams of Fairmined-certified ethical gold, a label guaranteeing that it has been mined in compliance with the highest standards of social and environmental ethics. In the deft hands of Chopard’s artisans, these 118 grams of gold are transformed into the film industry’s most coveted award. From the crucial preparation of the mould using a “lostwax casting” technique, when molten metal is poured into a mould that has been created by a wax model, the metal is then fused in a 900-degree furnace at the heart of the foundry. After that it passes through the various stages of trimming, cleaning, polishing and assembly. The result is a perfect symbiosis of form and substance: an object of art that epitomises the magic of cinema that it rewards.
THE MAJESTY OF THE MIGHTY OAK TREE
One of the standout pieces from this glittering collection is the Oak necklace a sculptural necklace inspired by a majestic oak tree symbolising strength and power. Featuring intricately crafted rose gold and titanium, the necklace combines delicate leaves set with green gems, flowers with yellow sapphires, and acorns made of tinted titanium. A fairy tale in a single object, this impressive piece was entirely executed by hand and took six months of work by four jewellers and gem-setters. Accompanying this are a pair of oak leaf and acorn motif earrings, made from titanium with emeralds, tsavorites and cognac diamonds. The fairy perched on each acorn transforms the wearer straight into the pages of a captivating narrative.
[L-R] The making of the Fairy Tiara part of the Red Carpet Collection. e making of the Oak Necklace, part of the Red Carpet Collection. © Chopard
A SPARKLING LILY IN ITS GLORY
A brooch formed in the shape of a sprig of lily of the valley also shines in sparkling glory. Its diamond-encrusted bell-shaped flowers and tiny yellow ethical gold pistils are set on titanium. Rarely used in traditional jewellery, Scheufele chose this metal for its extreme lightness meaning it can be used to design pieces that would be impossible to make in gold because of their size and weight. In addition, its ability to be tinted in a multitude of colours by anodisation means it can stand alone or take on the colour of the stones it surrounds.
PRECIOUS GEMS BLOOM INTO MAGICAL FLOWERS
Another eye-catching piece is the Flower Sautoir necklace, which comes with a pendant comprising of rubies, green gems, and diamonds, surrounded by handcrafted titanium flowers. Each flower is carefully set with tiny pearls to give them a lifelike appearance.
THE ENCHANTED DESIGNS OF THE BUTTERFLY AND MUSHROOM
The stunning blue butterfly earrings in ethical white gold, set with two pear-shaped aquamarines, symbolise a light, carefree spirit and the enchanting mushroom-shaped ring in 18-karat ethical rose gold has a delicate ribbed cap set with brilliant-cut diamonds in shades of white, orange-brown, and cognac. Each piece conjures up marvellous tales of curiosity combining the luxury of high jewellery with the playfulness of childhood.
ON THE WINGS OF THE FAIRY, WE SOAR
The central character to the tales is the fairy herself, who is inseparable from the world of ’Contes de Fées’. The Fairy Tiara crafted in 18-karat white gold, set with 17.06 karats of brilliant-cut diamonds and 15.16 karats of pear-shaped diamonds, has a detachable fairy made with mother-of-pearl wings that also serves as a brooch. It is if the fairy can wave her magic wand and transform herself into different forms as she flutters around in a shower of stars.