Resplendent Ribbons: Mikimoto Presents ‘The Bows’ High Jewellery Collection

At one point in recent history, pearls were associated with diminutive, strait-laced characters who preferred to follow convention rather than break the rules. Thank goodness Mikimoto has cast this reputation aside in favour of bold and bountiful high jewels that demand to be seen from every angle. Its latest collection, The Bows, transforms its legacy ribbon motif into grandiose designs that appear to have stepped from behind the gilded gold of a contemporary Versailles. Let’s inspect these high jewellery masterpieces guided by one of the brand’s senior designers…

If you have ever been surrounded by high jewellery at the likes of Paris Haute Couture Week, you will know that it has the power to create an atmosphere. At Mikimoto’s presentation earlier this summer, Senior Designer Yu Suzuki told us that a key source of inspiration for ‘The Bows’ was the Rococo or Late Baroque movement, dated to the mid-18th century, which is best known for its opulence, ornamental and dramatic style. Knowing this, it wasn’t difficult to find references to this grandiosity in Mikimoto’s creations, including dramatic floral blooms, gossamer green fabrics and, of course, the chandeliers and gilded ceilings of Hôtel d’Évreux, where its high jewellery showcase took place. However, this collection isn’t simply a rehashing of the past; ‘The Bows’ takes us on a journey that passes through many stops, including couture fashion, the House’s legacy ‘ribbon’ motif, contemporary body jewellery, dynamic proportions and statement minerals, all of which factor into this memorable offering.

For a Japanese high jeweller, the use of large gemstones in this collection is slightly more surprising. It is not something the House has homed in on before, and it doesn’t necessarily align with the natural proportions of the Japanese high jewellery customer, who is typically petite and therefore favours smaller stones. Clearly, the Mikimoto design team was empowered to push boundaries for the collection and thank goodness they did because the results are enough to warrant a second, third and fourth look! Before we explore some of the highlights, we have some general observations.

Alongside the vibrant pops of sea green, deep blue and rich pink minerals, there are intriguing body jewels that drape around the shoulders, across the entire chest and around the waist in the form of pearl belts. These aren’t armour… they’re far too feminine to feel like a shield to the world. Instead, ‘The Bows’ is presented as its own form of couture clothing, which is not dissimilar to the approach Boucheron has taken this year too. Should the wearer not wish to feel quite so encased in finery, many of these new Mikimoto masterpieces are transformable – necklaces becoming brooches, for example – allowing for versatility and more unisex appeal.

So, without further ado, let’s consider some of the unnamed masterpieces in ‘The Bows’, starting with a striking bow-shaped necklace that’s dripping in pearls. It takes the form of an almost unbroken scarf of Akoya cultured pearls, descending the neck and across the decolletage until it forms a perfect bowtie, accented with a 53.17-carat sea-green tourmaline. Among all these creamy white pearls are lashings of round brilliant-cut diamonds, some bezel-set and other prong-set, which gather more intensely around the tourmaline and burst into fancy-cut shapes, like pear, marquise and oval. Many of these pearls are layered and folded onto each other beautifully, which must have been incredibly challenging to achieve for the brand’s craftspeople.

Next, there’s a necklace and a matching pair of earrings that really embrace the ostentatious styling of the Rococo movement but in a contemporary way. The former relies upon an interesting clash of shapes, textures and colours at its heart via Akoya cultured pearls, pear-shaped morganites (the largest of which is 30.52 carats), a green tourmaline, pink spinel, oval-shaped pink sapphires, and pear-shaped aquamarines, all set into openwork 18k white gold. These minerals envelop the neck in a repeating pattern, set with round brilliant-cut diamonds and marquise-cut diamond accents. Again, it’s the sense of movement that makes this so impressive… each bow shape is different from the next and lifted above the skin as if caught in a slight breeze.

According to Yu Suzuki, the big challenge with this 18k white gold necklace was developing the precise joins between each element so that a level of flexibility could be achieved without sacrificing the structure. He described it as a “balance of flexibility and stability”, which has undoubtedly been mastered, alongside an impressive level of three-dimensionality. The matching earrings with white South Sea cultured pearls, sapphires and diamonds in 18k white gold climb subtly up the ear, before dropping into a lustrous round pearl and a quartet of pear-shaped diamond drops.

A third necklace pushes the boundaries of wearability, for sure, but does so in a way that evokes images of Marie Antoinette strutting through the golden corridors of Versailles! It’s absolutely a cross between a haute couture dress and a jewel, incorporating hundreds of Akoya cultured pearls on strands that cascade in great swags down the shoulder and across the chest. On either side of the neck, there’s a three-dimensional bow in 18k white gold, with multiple loops of diamonds set on curved surfaces which only adds to its technical complexity. As in previous pieces, diamonds are both bezel-set and prong-set, which is a clever choice as it adds an edge of contemporaneity to the design without being too obvious. Yu Suzuki describes these elements as being akin to the brilliance of water foundations, with small droplets of water catching the light and flowing around the body.

The next set consists of a necklace and a pair of earrings, this time more form-fitting but no less shapely. Both showcase interwoven pearls and diamonds in a way that evokes the appearance of lace when placed on the skin. In terms of materials, it is the lack of colour here – the sleek combination of Akoya cultured pearls, diamonds and 18k white gold – that accentuates this lace-like finish, which follows through into the earrings with their pear-shaped diamond droplets. At the heart of the necklace is a pear-shaped diamond, set with its point facing southwards, surrounded by a halo of round brilliant cuts and diamond briolettes that add a vintage flair.

Mikimoto also presented a fifth masterpiece necklace, this time blending six strands of Akoya cultured pearls punctuated with diamond and blue sapphire-set rondelles that lead the eye towards a fantastic 3D ribbon brooch with a 38.72-carat oval-shaped tanzanite cabochon. This brooch element is wrapped in diamonds and draped in rose-cut diamonds and pear-shaped blue sapphires that dance as the wearer moves. What’s notable here is the depth of colour of the tanzanite cabochon, which is an incredible inky blue without the gem’s typical purple hue. Again, we can see round brilliant-cut and fancy-cut diamonds set on curved surfaces, as well as bead and claw-set stones that create textural contrasts in an airy, openwork setting. Finally, I must mention a sixth necklace with Akoya pearls, white South Sea cultured pearls, and two portrait-cut tanzanites totalling 33.91 carats, set alongside 27.51 carats of sapphires and 42.98 carats of diamonds.

‘The Bows’ is a new modern kind of opulence for Mikimoto that uses pearls – its key ingredient – as an anchor for large, coloured gemstones that grab your attention. The blend of structure, flexibility and femininity is what makes this collection so special, without it becoming twee. However, it’s the Akoya pearl necklace with the large sea-green tourmaline that has our collective hearts here at KaterinaPerez.com. What about you?