Schlumberger joined the house in 1956, bringing with him an unprecedented imagination and a fascination with the natural world. “I try to make everything look as if it were growing, uneven, at random, organic, in motion,” he said of his design aesthetic, which earned him the devotion of clients such as Greta Garbo, Audrey Hepburn and Elizabeth Taylor. A 20th-century jewellery trailblazer, his figurative, three-dimensional jewels remain instantly recognisable today.
Tiffany Céleste is the second Blue Book created by Nathalie Verdeille, Tiffany’s new Chief Artistic Officer. Representing a change of direction from the spring and summer chapters, which paid homage to the celestial realms, things get a little more surreal in the final four autumn chapters, with two mythological creatures featured prominently alongside an unexpected parliament of owls. “Each chapter began with an intensive study of the subjects or themes that inspired it,” says Verdeille of the latest fall launches. “Referencing archival masterpieces, each new design is an ode to Jean Schlumberger’s boundless creativity.”
Working from a private workshop and salon at Tiffany’s flagship store in New York until his retirement in the late 1970s, Schlumberger is one of only four designers who was permitted to sign their own creations. During his tenure, he created some of Tiffany’s best-known designs, including Bird on a Rock in 1965. Classic Schlumberger, this legendary creation continues to drive customers to Tiffany decades later, with the just-released Blue Book chapter ‘Owl on a Rock’ representing an evolution of an icon.
Owl on a Rock features a series of brooches that replace Schlumberger’s signature cockatoo with the nocturnal owl. Tying—loosely—with the celestial theme for Blue Book 2024, the owls are perched on what Tiffany describes as “moon rocks”. So, a wise, old owl with a black South Sea pearl body sits atop a magnificent Sri Lankan star sapphire of more than 57 carats, while an inquisitive owl with cabochon sapphire wings stands alert on a 22-carat black opal, swivelling its head to reveal yellow diamond eyes. My favourite, also perched on a black opal, is so cleverly animated that its eyes alone—pear-shaped sapphires framed by engraved discs of yellow gold that recreate the characteristic circles of feathers on an owl’s face—are full of personality.
The Unicorn chapter breathes new life into a masterpiece from the Tiffany & Co. archives and shines a light on a lesser-known Schlumberger design: Crazy Twist. Inspired by the spiralled horn of this mythical beast, several Unicorn pieces take its signature swirls and transport them into abstract territory, wrapping ribbons of diamonds around vivid pink and purple sapphires.
The chapter’s standout jewel is a brooch that is more restrained in terms of colour and all the stronger for it. Captured between an entirely diamond-set head and mane, accented with a twisted yellow gold horn, is an unusual cushion-cut bicolour tourmaline of over 25 carats. Unlike a traditional watermelon tourmaline, with its clear delineation of pink and green tones, this bicolour stone is predominantly blush pink and edged in mint green—the prettiest of stones for this most magical of creatures.
More flights of fancy follow in the Phoenix chapter. A mythical bird that burst into flames and rose from the ashes, the phoenix is a classic Schlumberger motif, with antique brooches from the 1960s and 70s regularly appearing at auction. Reimagined in 2024, Tiffany’s new phoenixes appear in a dramatic pair of brooches, clutching two very special stones, a 29-carat fire opal and a 28-carat black opal, and spread their wings around an extraordinary collection of rubellites.
Star Burst, the final chapter, returns to more solid celestial ground—the galaxies with the highest starburst activity, to be precise. Interpreting the intense luminosity of these faraway galaxies filled with lots of baby stars, neon colours swirl within semi-transparent cabochon crystal opals framed by irregular bursts of diamonds. Nothing about the remarkable Star Burst high jewellery necklace is symmetrical, from the off-centre setting of the opals to the jagged outlines of the diamonds. With it, Verdeille has succeeded in finding harmony in discord, just like her predecessor Schlumberger.
The launch of the third and final chapter of Blue Book 2024: Céleste was celebrated at the jeweller’s new Serrano store in Madrid. The trove of jewels featured above was joined by fancy intense yellow diamond Arrow jewels, inspired by a Schlumberger clip discovered in Tiffany’s archives, and a Shooting Star necklace with a removable 18-carat emerald-cut diamond pendant that can also be worn as a ring.
What I admire most about the collection is the number of brooches, not long ago a jewellery curiosity, now a celebrity favourite. Best known for his whimsical brooch designs, it is only fitting that the New York house has honoured one of its most beloved designers in this way. With awards season just a few months away, I have a strong suspicion that we will soon be seeing some of these designs on the red carpet. I would love to see Lady Gaga arriving at the Golden Globes wearing Tiffany’s Unicorn brooch. Or Jeff Goldblum, who recently expressed an interest in hosting the Oscars, sporting a trio of Schlumberger-inspired designs on his lapel, just like he did at the Met Gala earlier this year.
