Shining Stars: Royal Asscher’s Stars of Africa

Royal Asscher's Stars of Africa pendant

When Canadian jewelry designer Reena Ahluwalia envisioned new pieces for Royal Asscher’s Stars of Africa collection, her goal was to create diamond jewelry with “universal” appeal. “To represent this core idea visually, the pieces consist of diamond-filled globes that are encircled by orbit-like elements,” she explains. “The full-globes spin to symbolize the earth’s rotation, while the free-floating diamonds inside represent the shining spirit of people.” The orbits, she adds, signify education, health-care and empowerment—fundamental goals of the Star of Africa initiative, which was established by Royal Asscher in 2008 to raise funds for African healthcare, education, and self-sufficiency programs. Royal Asscher donates $150 from every sale the charitable fund. The project is named for the largest diamond ever found—the 3,105-carat Star of Africa, which the Asscher family cut in 1908.

Carol Brodie

What gets you excited in jewelry today?

I see two distinct trends: One is the use of unusual colorful gems that aren’t the typical sapphires, emeralds and rubies. Women are now more open to jewels like Paraiba tourmaline, morganite and rubellite. These gorgeous gemstones have a magnetic appeal—you are not sure why you fall in love with them, but you do. The other thing is rarity, especially anything that is an antique and has a story to tell, which all antiques do. I love antique jewelry, and it inspires me. I spend a majority of my time looking to remake fabulous older pieces. If it is too expensive to reconstruct, I work with my designers to create it in a more affordable version. I’m working on a collection of poison rings, but mine will be “love” rings filled with potent tokens of affection.

Maximilian Büsser

What makes a watch a machine?

A mechanical watch is the ultimate machine! It is 100 percent made of metal, with tens or hundreds of moving parts, and the energy is also given (and stored) through mechanical processes. We call our timepieces machines because their primary focus (contrary to 100 percent of all other watches) is not to give time. The primary focus is to create a three-dimensional mechanical work of art, which by the way give time—but as a paradox, chronometry is, on the other hand, important for us. At MB&F we deconstruct the most beautiful traditional watch movements to reconstruct them as 3D machines. In fact the whole process of why we do this, and how we do it, makes up for at least half the interest of our creations.

Stage Presence: CastaDiva Debuts On Lake Como

CastaDiva Resort, Lake Como, Italy

Last summer, CastaDiva Resort made a dramatic entrance onto the Lake Como stage as the first five-star hotel to open on the lago in a century. Located in Blevio, just outside Como, the property is the former home of 19th-century opera diva Giuditta Pasta. Pasta modeled her lakefront home, the extravagant neo-Baroque Villa Roda, on Milan’s legendary La Scala opera house, where she debuted in Norma, which Vincenzo Bellini composed for her. The production features a challenging aria titled Casta Diva (chaste diva) intended to show off the soprano’s remarkable vocal range. A gathering spot for early-19th-century glitterati—including Bellini, Gioachino Rossini, and the French writer Stendhal—Pasta’s home has been painstakingly restored and rechristened Villa Roccabrunna, which now houses 10 of CastaDiva’s 75 expansive suites. In addition to the main villa, eight historic and new villas—all with stunning views—are sited throughout the terraced 6.4-acre property with towering trees, some of which are said to date back to the singer’s era.

Alpine Renewal: Gstaad’s Grand Hotel Park Makes A Comeback

Grand Hotel Park Gstaad, Switzerland

Gstaad’s Grand Hotel Park has been a landmark for 100 years. Recently, it underwent a thoroughly 21st-century renovation, opening last December after nine months of reconstruction. Dona Bertarelli, sister of the Italian-Swiss billionaire and entrepreneur Ernesto Bertarelli, acquired the property in 2003. She marked the hotel’s centenary with a dramatic makeover by architect Herbert Gnagi and Geneva-based interior designer Federica Palacios, who is known for her residential work in Gstaad.

Literary Gems: Van Cleef & Arpels’ Les Voyages Extraordinaires

Science fiction and jewelry watches are unlikely partners; yet, this odd pairing did not daunt the designers at Van Cleef & Arpels. Following its Jules-Verne-inspired Les Voyages Extraordinaires high-jewelry collection, which debuted in fall 2010, the Paris house has unveiled a prolific series of exquisite art watches based on Verne’s books: Five Weeks in a Balloon, Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, A Journey to the Center of the Earth and From the Earth to the Moon. With such fertile raw materials to draw upon, Van Cleef & Arpels has produced an array of timepieces that are as fantastical as Verne’s 19th-century visions of travel to both earthly and other-worldly destinations. “In drawing on the novels of Jules Verne for inspiration we wished to open our workshops to a view of a wider universe,” says Nicolas Bos, vice president and director of creation. “This enables us to explore creative sources that are different from those that come from the world of high jewelry, while still retaining total freedom of expression.”

Sleek & Chic: Ultra-Thin Watches For A New Age

Piaget Emperador Coussin Tourbillon Automatic

Even before the economic crisis, old-guard watch houses were referencing their archives for inspiration, perhaps looking for an antidote to the design excess of the mid-aughts. Amid a sea of behemoth Darth Vader watches, retro styles were aesthetic palate cleansers that oozed elegance and good taste. The financial crisis only reinforced this trend as brands espoused the lasting value of classic design. Another boost came from the burgeoning Chinese market, where classic, round watches from status marques continue to be in high demand. The retro resurgence has swept in a new generation of ultra-thin watches modeled on the svelte timepieces of the 1950s and 1960s. This year, brand after brand offers its own take on thin—most still referencing the past. But Richard Mille and Piaget have been proving that thin doesn’t have to mean traditional anymore.

Renaissance Redux: Il Salviatino’s Florentine Facelift

Il Salviatino, Fiesole, Italy

A serene retreat perched on a Fiesole hillside overlooking Florence’s Duomo, Il Salviatino has reclaimed its Renaissance-era glory days when the Salviati family’s 15th-century villa became a social hub for the local cognoscenti.