Pénélope Blanckaert joined the Artcurial team in January to head the newly set up vintage and fashion arts department. On July 4, the auction house will be presenting two important private collections during its Haute Couture auction — the haute couture jewelry sale comprises over 100 pieces from luxury brands such as Chanel, Balenciaga, and Dior while the sale of items from the archives of Elisabeth de Senneville, a legendary stylist who epitomized the 1980s, has 130 pieces. B Following these sales, Blanckaert will head to the French Riviera, where Artcurial holds a Summer Sale at the Hermitage Hotel, offering a mix of fine jewelry, collector’s watches, and the Hermès Summer Collection. Blouin Lifestyle talks to the auctioneer about the auction market for costume jewelry: When did fashion designers start creating fashion jewelry lines to complement their collections? (Coco) Chanel launched her first fashion jewelry department in 1924. She was the pioneer, imposing the fashion jewel in an environment that was dominated by jewelry’s craft. From the second half of the 1930s, haute couture jewels had the sole function of beautification and surprise, in a different way from traditional diamond or pearl necklaces. Although they were very successful, those jewels were destined to be on the margins, as they were linked to the rise and decline of their respective haute couture houses. And the golden age of those haute couture jewelry designers ended in the late 1970s. How did the relationship between the couturier and the fashion jewelry designer work? The jewelry makers and couturiers had a very tight relationship. The couturier would brief the jewelry maker about the spirit of the collection a short time before the show and based on this, jewelers such as Roger Jean-Pierre, Robert Goossens, and others would design and manufactures their pieces. These were proposed to Monsieur Dior, Balenciaga, and Givenchy, who would each make their choices just before the show. So the (fashion) designers were not creating the jewels themselves. In our catalogue; we even have original sketches which go along with some pieces. When was the golden age of fashion jewelry and what brands are most collectable? The 1950s‒1970s can be considered as the golden age for fashion jewelry. After World War II, emphasis in the jewelry industry was on the brightness of the stones, strass, and pearls, which enlightened the low-cut necklines of the period. It’s around that period that the names of the fashion jewelry makers started to get mentioned in the press, alongside the designers’ names The most collectable brands are Maison Gripoix, Robert Goossens, Roger Jean-Pierre, Roger Scemama, and Cissy Zoltowska, all of whom worked for the main couture houses such as Christian Dior, Balenciaga, Chanel, Givenchy, etc. How would you characterize the work of each fashion jewelry designer? Gripoix and Goossens are the main fashion jewelry makers who have contributed in building the Chanel jewelry style. A Chanel jewel is recognizable by its own style and singularity, and not by a logo. Several aesthetic codes are representative of Chanel jewels such as pearly white colors, crosses, flowers, enamel, rope necklaces, cuffs … During the Christian Dior period, all the main fashion jewels makers supplied the house for their shows and ever since the “New Look” show, accessories have held a very important place in collections. At Dior, fashion jewels are created in abundance with day and night silhouettes. Dog collars and pearls were the favorite of Monsieur Dior, for example though we also find a lot of strass, bows, flowers, and the honeybee. Cristobal Balenciaga wanted the jewel to integrate with the cloth, without distracting attention from the beauty of the cut. That being said most of the jewels created for a show remain unique because they were not marketed. Some loyal clients could order them but most often, it was a less than the original, just like with dresses. Of the upcoming July 4 sale, which are the most interesting pieces?- Replica jewelry outlet We’ll have about 130 pieces and many of them are very interesting, firstly because they are very rare, not to mention unique, and then they are also quite emblematic of each jewelry designer or couture house — such as a pendant with pearl, diamante and glass paste chain by Gripoix for Chanel or a red diamante and pearl necklace by Roger Jean-Pierre, c. 1960, for Balenciaga.- Van Cleef & Arpels Jewelry