The flower: Floral designs in modern jewellery

May 15, 2019

By Katerina Perez

13 min read

A flower is the brightest manifestation of the force of life, an image of its joy. There is a symbolism in flowers which emphasises their connection with the cycle of life and death, resulting in several meanings at once: from life’s transience and the brevity of existence to beauty, perfection, innocence and youth. Some aspects of their depiction relate to their aroma, others to their shape and colour, especially when it comes to flowers in jewellery…

Flora never ceases to inspire jewellers to create masterpieces, whether it be entire collections of high jewellery dedicated to flowers (1.5′ by Chanel, ‘Hortensia’ by Chaumet, ‘Dior à Versailles Côté Jardins’ by Dior) or unique limited-edition pieces, the development and realisation of which takes months of work. In addition, almost every jewellery maison has its own flower: Dior and Piaget have the rose, Chanel – the camellia, Chaumet – the hydrangea, Van Cleef&Arpels – a quatrefoil, and Tiffany & Co. abstract paper flowers from the namesake collection.

Carnet brooch with an unheated oval blue sapphire cabochon, pink, purple and blue sapphires, emeralds and diamonds set in titanum and 18K white gold

Carnet brooch with an unheated oval blue sapphire cabochon, pink, purple and blue sapphires, emeralds and diamonds set in titanum and 18K white gold

It is interesting how, over time, designers have changed their opinions on the shape and colour of jewellery flowers. Even if most floral designs represented real flowers to a literal degree until the mid-20th century, they then started taking on abstract and fantasy forms. Instead of traditional roses, violets, chrysanthemums, carnations or daisies, designers began to introduce various versions of orchids, lilies, hibiscus flowers and other more exotic plants, even those that do not exactly exist in nature.

Palmiero flower cocktail rings

Palmiero flower cocktail rings

Flowers can charm anyone with their rich range of colours and smooth transitions from one shade to another. Yet jewellery brands back in the day were quite economical in their use of colour, decorating their flowers with either stones of the same colour, most often diamonds, or two or three shades in one piece, and would almost never go beyond that. Nowadays, jewellery renditions of flowers are becoming more common with a whole riot of colours, such as in the Alessio Boschi ‘Rose de France’ set dedicated to Marie Antoinette. The Italian designer has mixed blue, pink, orange, purple and raspberry spinels with Paraiba tourmalines and diamonds to create his vibrant precious jewel.

Feng J 'Amour Code' ring with an oval star ruby, rubies and diamonds

Feng J 'Amour Code' ring with an oval star ruby, rubies and diamonds

A new metal in jewellery – titanium – has allowed designers to create large voluminous pieces which are light enough to wear. Jewellers such as the legendary JAR, Cindy Chao, Michelle Ong, Glenn Spiro, Margherita Burgener and other private art jewellers have taken advantage of this. They either encrust titanium with precious stones, or enrich it in with some striking colour or leave it without gem embellishment, only giving shape to the petals.

Stenzhorn high jewellery flower necklace with invisible set rubies and diamonds

Stenzhorn high jewellery flower necklace with invisible set rubies and diamonds

Another metal that I do not wish to ignore is aluminium: it, like titanium, can also be painted in desired shades and at the same time, is more malleable and therefore easier to fashion. Aluminum is truly appreciated by the Hemmerle family, who put together a whole completely unique collection: ‘The [Al Project]’, including a brooch and about seven different aluminium earrings embellished with precious gemstones.

Caratell flower ring with an oval sapphire, tsavorires and diamonds

Caratell flower ring with an oval sapphire, tsavorires and diamonds

Those who regularly read my articles probably recall the latest invention of Boucheron: an innovative technique of placing natural flower petals on metal to achieve a realistic effect. It was co-invented by florist Claire Boucl to create 9 rings for the ‘Nature Triomphante’ high-end jewellery collection. Together with the brand’s jewellers, the florist scanned and stabilised the delicate buds of anemones, violets, hydrangeas and peonies without using pigments or chemical components to preserve the natural shades created by nature. Then the petals were carefully placed on the titanium so as not to damage their delicate texture. 

As you see, jewellery art does not stand still. It constantly opens up new opportunities for jewellers, thanks to which they continue to amaze us with real masterpieces of precious flora. 

Diana Zhang

Diana Zhang

'Orchid King' necklace with emerald, diamond, tsavorite and enamel

David Michael

David Michael

Ring with central antique pink diamond, blue, green, pink and colourless diamonds

Gold Design

Gold Design

Bracelet in coral, carnelian, pearl, and diamond in 18k yellow gold

Bina Goenka

Bina Goenka

‘Hibiscus’ necklace for Sotheby's 'In Bloom' exhibition with Mozambique ruby, colourless and yellow diamond, and Zambian emerald

Chopard

Chopard

'Orchid' earrings from the 'Red Carpet 2019' collection with opal, tsavorite, pink sapphire, and diamond in ceramic and titanium

Chantecler

Chantecler

'Flowers on Coral' ring with emerald, ruby, diamond and coral in 18k yellow gold

Calleija

Calleija

Necklace with Argyle pink diamond and colourless diamond in 18k yellow and white gold

Cartier

Cartier

'Cactus de Cartier' cuff with chrysoprase, emerald, diamond and carnelian in 18k yellow gold

Buccellati

Buccellati

'Two Vases of Flowers' pendant necklace with diamond in 18k yellow and white gold

Alessio Boschi

Alessio Boschi

'Rose de France' transformable necklace with blue, pink, orange, purple and raspberry spinel, Paraiba tourmaline, diamond and enamel

Breguet

Breguet

'Crazy Flower' ring with 12.54 ct diamonds in white gold

Boucheron

Boucheron

'Anémone Meron Bordeaux' ring from the 'Eternal Flowers' collection with 5.99ct violet sapphire, yellow and blue sapphire in 18k yellow gold

Ilgiz F.

Ilgiz F.

Necklace with vitreous enamel

Ciga Long

Ciga Long

Ring with ruby and diamond in 18k white and yellow gold

CINDY CHAO

CINDY CHAO

The Art Jewel 2019 Black Label Masterpiece II 'Marguerite' brooch with emerald, yellow and colourless diamond

SICIS

SICIS

'Purple Carpet' necklace with micromosaic, purple sapphire and diamond in 18k white gold

Margherita Burgener

Margherita Burgener

'Blooming' brooch with diamond in titanium

Boucheron

Boucheron

‘Nuage de Fleurs’ necklace with 42.96 carat cushion cut pink tourmaline, mother of pearl and diamond in 18k rose gold

Hemmerle

Hemmerle

'The [Al] Project' earrings with demantoid garnet in aluminium, bronze and gold

Hemmerle

Hemmerle

'The [Al] Project' earrings with diamond in aluminium and gold

Shirley Zhang

Shirley Zhang

'Eternal Flower' necklace with diamond, pearl and enamel in 18k yellow gold

Leyla Abdollahi

Leyla Abdollahi

'Passion' ring with sapphire, ruby and diamond

Dior

Dior

Haute Joaillerie brooch from the 'Dior à Versailles Cote de Jardins' collection with emerald, sapphire, diamond and peridot

Tatiana Verstraeten

Tatiana Verstraeten

'Vienne' necklace with diamond, moonstone and enamel in 18k yellow gold

SICIS

SICIS

'Printemps Mon Amour' ring with micromosaic, pink and purple sapphire in enamel and 18k yellow gold

Fabio Salini

Fabio Salini

Earrings with opal in carbon fibre and gold

Chanel

Chanel

'Rouge Incandescent' bracelet from the '1.5' collection with ruby and diamond in 18k white gold

Stenzhorn

Stenzhorn

'Belle' pendant with colourless diamond and pink sapphire in 18k white gold

Van Cleef & Arpels

Van Cleef & Arpels

'Azalee d’Orient' ring from the 'Treasure of Rubies' collection with ruby, sapphire, tourmaline, emerald and diamond in18k pink gold

Tiffany&Co.

Tiffany&Co.

'Paper Flowers' necklace with diamond and tanzanite in platinum

Chanel

Chanel

'Rouge Incandescent' earrings from the '1.5' collection with ruby and diamond in 18k white gold

Glenn Spiro

Glenn Spiro

Earrings crafted in titanium, diamonds and spinels

Bvlgari

Bvlgari

‘Pop Flowers’ bracelet from Bulgari Wild Pop high jewellery collection 2018 in white gold with mother of pearl, 28 rubellites and pink tourmalines, 12 amethysts and 16 citrines and diamond pavé

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