van cleef arpels

Founded 1906. The Van Cleef & Arpels brand instantly conjures up the concept of diamonds, rare rubies, sapphires and emeralds. The high-jewelry house consistently strives to improve methods of cutting stones, mounting, and crafting pieces that are treasured through generations. Faithful to the spirit of their founders, each piece of Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry is designed to enhance the beauty of exceptional stones. Although Van Cleef & Arpels has purchased exceptional specimens, it has also brought rare but less valuable stones, such as aquamarines, mandarin garnets and rubellites, to light. Van Cleef & Arpels sometimes chose to highlight the poetry of more unexpected materials, such as mother-of-pearl, snake-wood and lacquer.   In 1896, Esther Arpels, the daughter of Salomon Arpels, a dealer in precious stones, married Alfred Van Cleef, the son of a diamond cutter from Amsterdam. In 1906, Alfred Van Cleef and his two brothers-in laws, Charles Arpels and Julien Arpels registered the “Van Cleef & Arpels” trademark and opened their first boutique at 22 Place Vendôme, Paris. Their mission was to render exceptional stones sublime, the transformation of jewels into finished pieces being the ultimate act of creativity. They were soon joined by Esther’s brothers, Salomon, Jules and Louis Arpels. From 1909 to 1939, Van Cleef & Arpels prospered and opened boutiques in holiday resorts such as Deauville, Le Touquet, Nice and Monte-Carlo. Alfred Van Cleef died in 1938, leaving his daughter, Renée Rachel Puissant, behind him.   Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry replica sought to appeal to a sophisticated, cosmopolitan clientele. Legend has it that Charles Arpels witnessed the dancer and socialite Florence Jay Gould slipping her lipstick into a plain white tin and balked at the idea of glamorous women having no suitable containers to hold their essential belongings. In 1930 Van Cleef & Arpels introduced the Minaudiére, a sleek [Read more...]