1920s Diamond Cocktail Watches

Ohh can I just share my latest obsession with you guys?!  Diamond set cocktail watches from the 1920s…

I am in love with these two 1920s cocktail watches from Moira...

These two beauties came into the shop recently and belong to Moira Fine Jewellery, and the owner told me that it is quite rare to find watches that are also set with rubies or emeralds – usually they “only” feature diamonds.  Ahh the craftsmanship here is just exquisite, look at the flow of the gemstones, how evenly set they are without any interfering metal in between.

That is actually another thing I wanted to talk to you about; I speak to a lot of lovely people who are looking for engagement rings, and I know that many come into the shop for inspiration and then order their things online or have them made elsewhere.  That is totally fine, but the sad part is when they then bring in the jewellery a few months later and ask us to help repair them, because the stone is rattling in the mount or diamonds have fallen out… There is a reason why some pieces are cheaper online and you have to ask yourself if you want a ring that you can wear for the rest of your life, knowing that it is of the best quality – or if you want to cut corners now and then deal with the problems as they arise.  A handmade ring mount designed for your diamond is a million times better than a mass-produced cast mount, where any old diamond has been set… just something to keep in mind!

All of these beautiful antique pieces were handmade and these watches are perfect examples of what the end product would look like:

Two stunning cocktail watches from Moira Fine Jewellery – the left one set with rubies and the right one set with emeralds.  Very unusual design, as mostly they are only diamond set 

They obviously would only be worn at special occasions – another thing for us to remember with antique jewellery; ladies of the time wouldn’t do a lot of housework and gardening, so the jewellery wouldn’t have been made with that kind of work in mind.  That is why one has to be extra vigilant with older jewellery and make sure to have them checked over by a jewellery once a year so that the claws are intact and holding the diamonds the way they are supposed to!

Now if only I had the perfect party to wear one of these to…

Diamond Jewellery from Moira Fine Jewellery

So I must say that my favourite part about working in an antique jewellery shop is trying on the pieces, as well as getting exciting previews of new items that come into the shop!

A previous of a diamond riviere necklace from Moira Fine Jewellery 

The other day we were putting a few items up on Moira’s Instagram page for all the lovely brides-to-be, so I was wearing this stunning diamond riviere necklace (and never wanted to take it off, but I had to in the end)….  It is Moira’s own design, a classic necklace set with 18.32 carats of round brilliant cut diamonds in 18 carat white gold – how stunning it would look when worn by a bride on her wedding day!

Moira Fine Jewellery, Diamond Drop Earrings

I also tried on these diamond cluster drop earrings with two beautiful old cut centre diamonds, and a total approximate weight of 8.44cts..!  There is something very special about bridal diamond drop earrings; I loved the ones that the Swedish Princess Madeleine wore on her wedding day, but I wonder if I might prefer the ones above, by Moira, since they are of a more delicate design, and would pair up beautifully with any other diamond or pearl jewellery that you might choose to wear on the day.  We swoon!

Your Secret Jewellery Collection – the Pearl and Perfume chapter

Jewellery collection Chanel perfume and pearls

I thought we would round off the week with this beautiful and inspirational jewellery collection from one of your readers in Stockholm.  It is the updated version of a previous post: Your Secret Jewellery Collection – the Before and After-chapter!

I love the idea of using a tray to keep all the jewellery in, as you can see how it reflects all the pieces and creates another dimension to the collection.  This gold plated tray is from the charity shop Stockholms Stadsmission, where the proceeds go to the homeless, so get out there and scavenge through the charity shops in your area, as we love shopping with a good conscience.  They always have the most unusual things in charity shops, so you might even get some great, unexpected inspiration!  The drawer is teak and was found in an old house in the Swedish countryside – clearly it found a very loving new home!

Keeping your perfumes and jewellery together is so fabulously Old Hollywood and we recognise the Iittala Mariskooli from the previous post, as one of our favourite jewellery holders.  (As I was linking it to this post I noticed that it is on sale at Skandium in various colours, woop..!)

So happy weekend sweetheart and I will see you again next week!

The Wallace Collection in London

Hello dearest, I hope that your summer has been just wonderful so far!  I thought that I would share with you today my trip to The Wallace Collection, as it was just such a wonderful experience!  I went there with a friend of mine and we took a whole afternoon to wander through the different rooms and we also had afternoon tea in their glorious courtyard restaurant.  The collection is the perfect sneak peek inte the life of London’s high society some hundred years ago, so come along, let’s check it out:

One of my favourite rooms at the Wallace Collection – I just love the combination of the wallpaper and the gold frames and gold furniture

You will find the Wallace Collection just behind Selfridges, and as you enter the building you leave all modern day things behind and become surrounded by furniture, armour, porcelain, objects d’art and paintings from the 15th to the 19th century.  There is a great emphasis on French 18th century furniture, with over five hundred pieces, so it almost feels like stepping into the private home of Marie Antoinette!

One of the beautiful rooms at the Wallace Collection

The Wallace Collection is the result of five generations collecting souvenirs from around the world for over a century, and it includes pieces like Rembrandt’s Good Samaritan; six paintings by Canaletto, who was considered one of the finest landscape painter of his time; and a gold dagger believed to have belonged to Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor famous for having erected the Taj Mahal.

The collection was built by the First, Second, Third and Fourth Marquesses of Hertford and when the Fourth Marquess’s illegitimate son Richard Wallace inherited the collection in 1870, he bought Hertford House.  When he then died in 1890, he left everything to his wife Julie-Amélie-Charlotte Castelnau, who in turn left the Wallace Collection to the nation.  It opened as a museum in 1900.  

A painting of Madame de Pompadour by François Boucher in 1759

The Souvenir by Jean-Honoré Fragonard at The Wallace Collection. Rousseau’s heroine, Julie carves the initial of her lover on the bark of a tree, while observed by her pet spaniel, the symbol of her fidelity.

There are spectacular paintings on display and so much to learn!  For example, I found out that a dog in a paintings is a symbol of fidelity, so when the high society ladies had their portraits painted – almost like a modern day contact ad – they would often incorporate a dog in the picture to show that they possessed this trait.  I personally would have loved to see more jewellery from the family, but I suppose that has gone somewhere else – there are however a few pieces on display well worth looking at: adorned with rubies, sapphires and other beautiful gemstones.

More of the paintings, again, with a glorious wallpaper as the backdrop

Oh how much I loved this room!  I know that one cannot decorate a regular home like this, but I might still try…!!!

Oriental and European Arms and Armour at the Wallace Collection

There is also something for the tough guys here, as you will find European and Oriental arms and armour collections with almost 2500 pieces on display.  The horse outfit above I can assure you is rather intimidating when viewed from close, as it is massive!

And when you visit, do make sure that you have lunch or afternoon tea in the stunning courtyard: it is covered by a tall glass roof, so you get all the sunlight, yet you can still eat outside even if it pours down with rain – not to mention what it would be like to sit there, under the stars, on a Friday or Saturday evening and enjoy their famous French cuisine.

The Wallace Collection

And please do share your experience with us here, as we would love to hear all about it!