RAPAPORT... Renamed Vicenzaoro Winter, the eight-day international fair held this January 14 to 21, ushered in the new year’s new jewelry trends. Attracting over 1,600 exhibitors, the fair played host to over 23,000 buyers from over 110 countries.
After the creation of the B-One hall, the Vicenza Fair is about to upgrade “Hollywood” hall. The fair’s Secretary General Corrado Facco announced the next renovation and the enlargement of the whole fair area.
The three world organizations for diamond promotion and treatment — The Diamond Trading Company (DTC), Israeli Diamond Institute (IDI) and Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC), formerly the Diamond High Council (HRD) were in the limelight at “Diamond Avenue.” Italy is the first market in Europe and third in the world for diamond purchase and use. In Italy in 2005, more than 3 millions pieces of jewelry made of gold or platinum and embellished by a diamond have been sold, and in 2006 previews are positive.
Along with exhibitions and seminars focusing on trends, business and information, the fair previewed the winning jewels of the fourth Tahitian Pearl Trophy International, along with the launch of the 2007 national competition. Vicenzaoro Winter included Oromacchine, which occupied Leonardo hall and hosted Italian and foreign exhibitors. New items were presented in laser techniques and fine jewelry textures.
TRENDS AND IDEASAs far as trends are concerned, the floral style is very fashionable, in different shapes and colors. Among the different floral designs were Enrico Capra rings with cabochon cut or faceted colored quartz, in three gold colors, with little branches covered in diamonds placed on the stones. Another natural motif is fruit, such as an apple pendant necklace, created by Zydo in white gold, diamonds and multicolored precious stones. Leo Pizzo’s long earrings feature a floral pattern with diamonds in different carat weights and cuts. La Nouvelle Bague created a pendant with enameled patterns full of diamonds. Vegetable garden fruit also showed up, as in the necklace with a group of chilies in white gold, enamel and diamonds designed by Pippo Perez. Al Coro presented a pair of pendant earrings in white and pink gold, with oval topaz, drop-shaped cut and a triangular element with line-set diamonds.
“Animalier” and nature have become trendy, too. Several styles used the shapes of cute little animals as pendants, among them, the bunny that Donna Oro created in gold, in two colors, with a brilliant used for the eye. Butterflies abounded. Gerardo Sacco created a brooch for his Arberesche collection, in yellow and white gold with pearls, precious stones and diamonds. A lot of lizards and snakes were seen at Dada Arrigoni in the Malafemmina collection. A snake in pink gold, diamonds and navette cut rubies coils itself around a smoky quartz apple.
Stars, seemingly fallen from the sky, settled on different types of jewels and several hearts were used for different compositions, with stylized shapes, such as those of the rigid bracelet in the Heart in Motion collection by Maurice M, new brand of The Almond Group, in white gold and diamonds with a pink gold detail.
Nature inspired Stefan Hafner’s spider-web collection, realized with invisible gold and sparkling diamonds. Harmony and endless forthiness stirred the Diamond Mousse collection of charming jewels belonging to the sea. They express the continuous becoming of the existence — eternal like diamonds, white like purity, tender like dancing. All the diamonds are suspended in the air, floating and shining. Pearls are the focus in the Pearly collection. They reflect their warmth and beauty by taking the light from a stream of diamonds.
A popular trend at this fair was “tissues and laces.” The new Roberto Coin jewelry collection with a “lace” effect was created with ancient techniques and embellished with marquise cut diamonds.
Carlo Palmiero was also influenced by this theme. Drape is a white gold ring in the shape of a creased drape, covered by white diamonds, and black diamonds are used for the Damasco Heart, a white gold heart-shaped ring. Gold, brightened up by touches of enamel, multicolor stones and lit by set brilliants is still very trendy.
The use of a black choker has become fashionable once again, which represents a real innovation for some jewels. It was used in the Victorian Age of the nineteenth century for memory jewels.
Flex’it is the up-to-date new product by Fope; this flexible bracelet is comprised of three types of gold — white, red and yellow — with different clasps, in gold, gold and diamonds, gold and semiprecious stones (amethyst, topaz, citrines).
Always remaining in the atmosphere of ancient centuries, Antonini’s Antarctica line features cushion-and octagonal-cut stones, joined by diamond-embellished white and yellow gold motifs in rings and chandelier earrings of considerable size, all with significant diamonds.
Lots of diamond pavés are used in the Petali collection by Ponte Vecchio. Another must is the Famosi collection, a tribute to the splendor of the most famous gems of history the Koh-I Noor, the Regent and the magnificent Cullinan, the largest diamond ever found, clasped in the warm embrace of pink gold, amethyst, citrine, smoky quartz and diamonds. At least one photo advertising the collection by Damiani is dedicated to Italian actress Sophia Loren. It shows elegant and smooth pieces, including earrings, bracelets, pendants and brooches, in pink rose gold, enriched with 1,352 diamonds, totaling 18 carats.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - February 2007. To subscribe click here.