Left: The Butterfly collection ring, featuring a 10.17-carat oval-cut diamond. Right: The Paradise Bird brooch, inspired by Jean Schlumberger. @ tiffany.com
Each year, these collections showcase unique masterpieces inspired by the genius of designer Jean Schlumberger. In 1956, the French jeweler joined Tiffany & Co. as vice president, marking a new era for the house. His philosophy was to draw inspiration from nature (birds, flowers, insects, sea creatures) and then render them in such a vivid way that it appeared almost fairytale-like. He used rare gemstones as well as unusual combinations of materials.
It began as an album of rare imports from around the world. But it gradually transformed into a visual journey through his most imaginative creations. This year, the collection titled Blue Book 2026: Hidden Garden revives some of the designer's most beloved motifs. Blooming flowers, radiant butterflies, and graceful birds. Under the artistic direction of Nathalie Verdeille, the house's High Jewelry Artistic Director. The jewelry returns to the opulent world Schlumberger cherished. Gardens in full bloom, with daisies, tulips, and insects transformed into gemstone adornments.
The birth of an iconic jewel
The Love Birds originate from the timeless Bird on a Rock motif, perhaps the most emblematic example of Schlumberger's ability to transform a moment into an eternal object of beauty. Adorned with diamonds, with realistic feathers and ruby eyes, the diamond creature rests on a gemstone as if preparing to fly.
«When I first saw Jean Schlumberger's »Bird on a Rock,« I was struck by its vitality,» Verdeille said in a press conference. "Perched on the rock, it looked ready to take flight." Many variations followed over the years. Among them was a version on lapis lazuli, made for Schlumberger's close friend, Bunny Mellon, daughter of Mr. Gillette and a socialite who shared his love for flowers and creatures of nature. The Love Birds capture the harmony that blossoms between people made of the same intangible material, like that of the artist and muse. Always worn as a pair, they utilize complementary combinations of precious stones. With such detail, from beak to tail, they appear to flutter and chirp.
A garden inspired by another world
«I wanted to continue this action, to further encourage it, opening new creative horizons,» explains Verdeille. «So, looking for a way to accompany this movement, I remembered a Christmas card that Andy Warhol had made for Tiffany in the 1960s: a flock of vibrant birds dancing around a star in a joyful, almost musical ballet.».
In the new collection, the Bird on a Rock «migrates» to meadows of chrysoprase beads and aquamarine gemstones. In the Butterfly chapter, wings unfurl in streams of diamonds that extend across necklaces and bracelets alike. In the Bee chapter, diamond pollinators create structures on golden honeycombs. A reimagined version of the Schlumberger ring takes on new dimensions, with a flawless diamond of over 10 carats set between two motif bees paying homage to the original.
The ecosystem of collection thrives within a habitat of innovation inspired by both floral and foliar elements. As rich plants come to life within undulating bands of platinum and 18-karat gold. Schlumberger had a habit of weaving precious metals with the spirit of untamed grandeur observed in gnarled vines.
The crowning glory of the collection is the reappearance of the Paradise Bird. Unlike the Bird on a Rock, which has lived many lives on different stones, the Paradise Bird is rarer. It was designed by Schlumberger in 1962, with a head of yellow diamonds and plumage of amethysts, as well as cabochon-cut emeralds, sapphires, and aquamarines. It reappeared in the 2008 album and this year four new pieces «land» not on a rock, but on diamond stones or spessartite garnets, adorned with turquoise, sapphires, emeralds, and tsavorites, easily recognizable in the «wild» of display cases.
Source: .newmoney.gr
