In today’s day and age, holding the fort as creative director at a fashion house for 20 years sounds like an eternity. But Victoire de Castellane, the forever chic French jewellery designer has held on to the reins of Dior‘s fine jewellery department as its creative director of for a solid two decades. Exuberant organic designs that are bursting with colours have become a shorthand for jewellery a la de Castellane. Given how French jewellery maisons are fierce guardians of elegant chic designs, her works are a rare gem.
So what better way to fete that milestone than to let the maestro unleash her creative streak with a new collection? Meet the Rose Dior Pop ring collection which launches this month at Dior. Festive, romantic and boisterous, the collection of gold cocktail rings spans both tiers of medium jewellery and high jewellery and checks all the boxes for a de Castellane outing.
The Medium Jewellery Pieces
The central theme of the collection is the rose – a symbol so cherished by Monsieur Dior that it has become a motif de Castellane reimagines over and over again. That floral influence is expressed vividly in the flourish of the five large petals and the stem-like shank of the Rose Dior Pop collection.
If these pieces seem to strike a chord with fans of Dior’s fine jewellery, there’s a reason why. The collection melds three existing Dior fine jewellery lines to create a hybrid look. The shank and setting take after the rose stem design of the Bois de Rose family. The voluminous petals are inspired by the shape of the rose motif of the Bagatelle collection. Lastly, the intense colour palette – hand-lacquered onto the petals – is a nod to the vibrant hues of the Pre Catelan series.
The High Jewellery Pieces
While the high jewellery pieces are naturally given a higher level of precious finishes like paved diamonds on the shank and edges of the petals, the medium jewellery designs do not pale in comparison in terms of their appearance. The latter feature dazzling centre stones made of diamond and colourful stones like emeralds, sapphires and spinels to mimic pistils. Talk about doing a celebratory bouquet right.
