Cartier Brand Fan

In 1900, Cartier Switched From Being a Retailer to a Design House & Broke With Traditional, Favoring Neo Classic Themes Rather than Art Nouveau

What was it about 1900?

From 1847 to 1900, Cartier functioned more as a retailer than anything else. According to Cartier 1900-1939 by Judy Rudoe, their merchandise was provided by other manufacturers and suppliers and was mostly comprised of two French faves: bijouterie - gold, enamel and semi-precious stone jewelry; and joaillerie - "high" jewelry crafted with diamonds and precious stones.

Then, in 1899, Cartier moved to Rue de la Paix, and everything changed. They set up an in-house design studio, and from 1906 on, photographs began to exist of their designs. Except for some religious medallions which Alfred Cartier brought in that were made by medallist Frederic de Vernon and produced by Felix Duval, and a Louis Aucoc peacock pendant, Cartier pretty much avoided the Art Nouveau style so popular at the time. Cartier's Neo-Classical designs were unlike those of almost any other house, favoring architectural details taken from Parisian buildings and Versailles - especially the garlands - and inspired by jewelry from the late 18th century.

Cartier's innovative use of platinum also made this design house stand alone - it's flexible, yet strong, properties meant that diamond-encrusted bling no longer had to be like "armour" according to Louis Cartier, and more like "embroidery."

Legendary Actress Merle Oberon Received from Her Fiance Alexander Korda (a Film Director) 3 Exquisite Cartier Diamond & Gold Rose Clips - one with Diamond Pistils set "En Tremblant" - on Her Wedding Day in 1939

When movie director Alexander Korda wed legendary beauty Merle Oberon, on their wedding day in 1939, he presented her with three exquisite diamond and gold brooches from Cartier. According to Famous Jewelry Collectors by Stefano Papi & Alexandra Rhodes, each brooch was of a rose - two were a pair, and the third and largest rose had en tremblant diamond-covered pistils. She was shot in them by Horst (picture on right from www.corbis.com) for Vogue.

When Queen Elizabeth married Prince Philip, the Nizam of Hyderabad and Berar sent her a tiara containing two Cartier diamond clips - identical to Oberon's.

Cartier Panther: First Used in an Invitation Cartier Commissioned from Illustrator Georges Barbier & then in Abstract Art Deco Watch Design by Cartier's Principal Designer Charles Jacqueau in 1915

In 1914, Cartier first commissioned Georges Barbier of Gazette du bon ton fame to illustrate an invitation card showing a woman with a panther.*  His watchmaker and principal designer, Charles Jacqueau, then produced a timepiece in 1915 of an abstract panther design, using onyx and diamonds to depict the cat's coat - the first use of the panther motif in Cartier jewelry.

The panther, now so synonymous with Cartier, was a prominent icon of the Art Deco period. According to an article in ProfessionalJeweler.com magazine, unlike the "leisurely Edwardian era" the big cat "symbolized the human nature as untamed and unpredictable, covered by a thin veneer of civilized culture."  The Jazz Age era of flappers, Prohibition, gangsters, and fast livin' was well served by an image of a sleekly beautiful, but incredibly dangerous animal.

* For more on this, check out Made by Cartier: 150 Years of Tradition & Innovation by Franco Cologni and Ettore Mocchetti.

In "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" Marilyn Sang about Cartier

In Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Marilyn Monroe famously sang Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend. And guess who was named amongst the jeweler Hall 'O Fame?

Some of the lyrics from Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend:

The French were bred to die for love; they delight in fighting duels. But I prefer a man who lives and gives expensive jewels. A kiss on the hand may be quite continental but diamonds are a girl's best friend. A kiss may grand but it won't pay the rental on your humble flat, or help you at the automat. Men grow cold as girls grow old and we lose our charms in the end. But square-cut or pear-shaped these rocks don't lose their shape. Diamonds are a girl's best friend...Tiffany's...Cartier..Talk to me, Harry Winston, tell me all about it!" etc.

Wallis Simpson Gets King Edward VIII to Abdicate & Marries in Cartier

Many agree that while she may not have been much in the looks department, the twice divorced socialite Wallis Simpson had what it took - whatever that was.... - to make a king abdicate. For her wedding to the Duke of Windsor, the former King Edward VIII, she chose, what else, Cartier wedding bands.  According to PreciousPlatinum.com, this brash American - who was a fine jewelry collector with mega-taste - declared platinum to be only choice, thankyou, for evening.

"Collection Art de Cartier" in Milan curated by International Architect Ettore Sottsass Showcased Divine Art Deco Cartier Pieces

At the "Collection Art de Cartier" exhibit in Milan's Palazzo Reale, curated by international architect and designer Ettore Sottsass - VogueGoiello.net covered the highlights of the 209 pieces covering 150 years of the design house. He selected jewelry, watches, time pieces, lipstick holders, diamond and coral compacts, and other accessories.

It's difficult to separate Cartier from its galaxy of glittery owners, like Daisy Fellowes, the Singer sewing machine heiress, to throne interloper (but at least she had divine taste in jewelry) Wallis Simpson.

From Cartier's trademark garland style to classic Art Deco - such as this platinum, gold, diamond and enamel belt buckle from Paris, 1930 - this show covered most of the important design motifs of the last century, all executed with that special Cartier flair:

• oriental
• floral
• animal

First up, one of my personal faves, the Daisy Fellowes's Tutti Frutti necklace from 1936 - which she had made for her as a pick-me-up when she was forced to sell her oceangoing yacht during the height of the Great Depression.

• A gold, cabochon amethyst and citrine Menottes bracelet, Paris, 1939
• A stunning platinum, peridot and diamond necklace and bracelet from London, 1936
• Platinum, aquamarine and diamond tiara, London, 1937

After he was invited to curate the exhibit, Sottsass was so visually overwhelmed when confronted with a table overflowing with glittery Cartier objets, he likened it to being overtaken by a hoard of butterflies, and wanting to flee. To avoid any feeling of clutter, he had the items displayed so viewers could really focus on each object.

A King With an Eye for Bling - the Cartier Patiala Necklace Commissioned by Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh in the 1920s Contained Rare Burmese Rubies & Almost 1000 carats of Diamonds, Including the 7th Largest Stone Ever from DeBeers

Maybe I won't come back as a wealthy, jewelry-obsessed heiress, but an uber-weathy, jewelry-obsessed Maharaja. Like the Maharaja of Patiala.

The Patiala necklace, created by Cartier in 1928 for Maharaja Sir Bhupinder Singh of Patiala, was some of the priciest jewelry ever commissioned. From the Maharaja to Amarinder Singh, today's chief minister of Punjab, this is a royal family who knows how to look the part.

In an article in SiliconIndia.com, they point out the following about the Patiala necklace:

• It contained five rows of Art Deco style platinum chains...all completely covered in 1000 carats of ice - 2930 diamonds
• The showpiece was the world's 7th largest diamond - a 234 carat DeBeers rock
• It took Cartier three years to make
• In 1948, it mysteriously disappeared from the royal family's treasury & was only recovered 50 years later, in 1998, by Cartier's Eric Nussbaum, with just the chains and some of the original stones remaining. Missing were the rare Burmese rubies and the massive DeBeers diamond.

After buying it, Cartier restored the piece to its original state using synthetic replacement stones until appropriate natural replacements can be found. Says the ever-hopeful Nussbaum in a Robb Report Luxury Portal.com article: "I'm very confident that one day it will be exactly as it was in 1928. This is my aim."

Art Deco - So Closely Associated with Cartier. It Wasn't A Single Style - but three - & Spanned A 30 Year Period

Art Deco is so closely associated with Cartier, yet the style is somewhat misunderstood because it's actually not a single style, but three that roughly spanned the years 1910 to 1940. According to a kickass piece by Tony Fusco for The Journal of Antiques and Collectibles,  (www.journalofantiques.com),  people don't realize that Art Deco didn't actually begin with the 1925 Parisian Expositional Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes (whence the moniker Art Deco originated), but had been underway for years.

The three phases of Art Deco:

1. French Art Deco - initial phase of Art Deco, a deluxe style that culminated with the 1925 expo. Characterized by Jean Dunand's delicate eggshell laquer, Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann sharkskin-covered furniture and Lalique glass sculpture.
2. Modern - second phase; Geometric & German-influenced.
3. Streamline - third & final phase in the late 30s, it reflected the influence of industrial design, machines, transportation and household appliances. Characterized by sleek, "bullet-nosed" designs & the increasingly exaggerated Hollywood style "razzmatazz" and "Screen Deco".

Fusco points out that it was the first international design style, and affected by regional differences. "The Art Deco pastel paradise of Miami Beach architecture owes more to the German Bauhaus and the design of ocean liners than it does to anything French. Flamingoes may be Miami's Art Deco bird, but in Australia it is usually a black swan one sees depicted." Part of the reason was travel: throughout the 20s and 30s, leisure travel was on the rise. Until 1939, luxury travel was the bomb, as witnessed by the luxury Ocean Liner floating hotels of the period.

Art Deco influences came from a wide variety of places:

• Design Movements: Art Nouveau, Arts & Crafts, Vienna Secession, Glasgow School in Scotland, Cubism, Holland's De Stijl movement, Italian Futurism
• The ancient cultures of Egypt, Japan, sub-saharan Africa, Mayan & Aztec empires, Meso-America, East Asia
• The Classical world
• The Exotic: Diaghilev's Les Ballets Russes created a design explosion when they performed in Paris in 1909. Josephine Baker also shocked and delighted.
• Mother Nature - tropical flora and fauna; stylized fruit and flowers and gazelles

Some of the best Cartier accessories of the period include the droolworthy cigarette cases and cigarette lighters. (photo from the McClung Museum)

Platinum - An Amazing Metal Pioneered for Use in Jewelry Back in 1896 by An Equally Amazing Louis Francois Cartier

The Frank H. McClung Museum at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville (www.mcclungmuseum.utk.edu) had a special exhibition a few years back. Devoted to all things fab & Cartier, they had on display many rare objets that displayed the innovative genius of Louis Francois Cartier - such as his being a pioneer in using platinum starting in 1896, about which he had this to say in 1927: "The thick settings of gold, silver and heavy woven strands that had been known since time immemorial were like the armor of jewelry. The use of platininum, which became its embroidery, an innovation introduced by us, produced the reformation..." The "Garland Style" upped the yowsa factor of his diamond settings; England's King Edward VII dubbed him the "jeweler of kings" and "king of jewelers" & Maharajas - like the Maharaja of Patiala - commissioned him to create special turban bling.

The great thing about platinum is how strong, yet lightweight, it is. As a result, you can create intricate and delicate pieces, without sacrificing strength.

Photo of platinum jewelry supplies from Cookson Precious Metals.

The Cartier Hope Diamond Owned by Heiress Evalyn Walsh McLean: Was it Actually the Famed "French Blue" Diamond of King Louis XIV & Was the So-Called Curse Actually Fabricated by Pierre Cartier?

In my next life, I want to come back as a fabulous, spoiled heiress from another era - preferably with a vast inherited fortune and a taste for fine (read: expensive) jewelry.

Like Evalyn Walsh McLean, with whom the spectacular Hope Diamond is most closely associated. A 45.52 carat wonder, a fancy dark grayish-blue color, class IIb with a VS1 clarity impacted by a whitish graining not uncommon in blue diamonds, and an amazing red phosphorescence (which lasts for a short period of time after you expose it to ultra-violet light). Why blue? Because it contains trace levels of the mineral boron.

According to a really in-depth piece on Smithsonian website (www.si.edu) - where they have all the important stats & facts about the diamond - the stone was originally a crudely cut, triangular shaped 112 & 3/16 carat monster from India's Kollur mine in Golconda. Its purchaser, a traveling French merchant named Jean Baptiste Tavernier described the color as a 'beautiful violet.'

Pierre Cartier, son of founder Louis-Francois, is probably the one most responsible for the story of the stone's legendary curse:

In 1910, he pays a visit to McLean on one of her visits with husband Ned to Paris. Knowing his prey, he wraps the Hope Diamond in a "curious little package" sealed with wax, telling her, "I have brought with me a little something you may remember, Madam. For when we last met, you told me of a great blue stone you had seen at the throat of the sultan's favorite in a harem in Turkey. N'est pas?" (Check out the PBS website www.pbs.org for the full tale.) She doesn't like the setting, but knowing he's piqued her interest, he soon begins spinning tales about the rock, telling her it comes with a curse!

After Cartier lets her "keep" it for a few days, just to see how she likes it - she can't resist, especially the part about the curse. According to Washington Post columnist Sarah Booth Conroy, McLean "thought things that were unlucky for everybody else would be lucky for her, because she was an exception."

From that day one, she was always seen in the Hope Diamond, throwing lavish parties, dominating the social scene and gossip columns, and leading a high profile existence. She received daily letters warning her about the evil contained in the stone, but that probably only added to its allure for her. In her autobiography, she notes that "My preference, generally, is for show. It's only when the thing I buy creates a show for those around me that I get my money's worth." Jeffrey Post, a Smithsonian curator notes, "She lived a flamboyant lifestyle, She liked being in the spotlight, and the Hope Diamond was one way of keeping her in the spotlight."

But you be the judge of whether the diamond was cursed:

• Her son Vinson was killed in a car accident at the age of nine.
• Husband Ned, a hardcore alcoholic, left her for another woman and squanders their fortune. He later dies in a sanatorium.
• The family newspaper The Washington Post went bankrupt - She constantly had to pawn the diamond to raise cash, as she was always running out of money.
• Her daughter Evalyn Reynolds overdoses on sleeping pills at the age of twenty-five.
• The lady herself dies slowly and painfully after breaking her hip in a fall, and contracting a nasty illness in the hospital.

When Harry Winston acquired the Hope Diamond, they pooh-pooh'ed the curse, stating that by putting it on display, the public could share whatever hex was supposed to exist. Cutting edge new computer technology - check out this cool piece in Wired.com - has verified a French connection for the Hope Diamond, linking it directly to the famed French Blue stone owned by King Louis XIV of France - and stolen during the French Revolution. Here is the Hope Diamond cheat sheet:

• 1668: Tavernier sold it to Louis XIV of France, where his court jeweler, Sieru Pitau re-cut it down to 67 1/8 carats, set it in gold on a neck ribbon for the King to wear on ceremonial occasions. It became known as the Blue Diamond of the Crown or French Blue.
• 1749: Louis XV had his court jeweler Andre Jacquemin reset it for the Toison D'Or (Order of the Golden Fleece).
• 1791: After Louis XVI & Marie Anoinette attempted to flee France, it was siezed by the government, and later stolen in 1792 when crowds looted the crown jewels.
• 1812: Shows up in London, owned by Daniel Eliason, a diamond merchant. It had been re-cut to 177 grains or 44.25 carats. Then acquired by King George IV.
• 1830: King George IV dies, leaving a legacy of debts, debts, and more debts. The diamond disappears into private hands again.
• 1839: Shows up in the collection of its namesake, Henry Philip Hope. No one exactly sure how it got there. His nephew's grandson Francis later hocks it in 1901 to pay off debts.
• 1909: Pierre Cartier, one of the sons of Cartier founder Louis-Francois, acquires it from Selim Habib.
• 1911: Pierre Cartier sells it to Evalyn Walsh McLean for $180,000 as a headpiece in a setting of white diamonds. Later, it is changed into a pendant.
• 1947: McLean dies and her jewelry is purchased by Harry Winston, including the 15 carat Star of the South diamond, 31 carat McLean Diamond, and the 94.8 carat Star of the East rock.
• 1958: Winston donates the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian.