On their way to the new emporium at 259 Broadway, fashionable ladies in silks, satins, and beribboned bonnets faced a gauntlet of narrow streets teeming with horses and carriages and the hurly-burly of city life. At Tiffany & Co. they discovered a newly emerging “American style” that departed from the European design aesthetic, which was rooted in religious and ceremonial patterns and the Victorian era’s mannered opulence. The young entrepreneurs were inspired by the natural world, which they interpreted in exquisite patterns of simplicity, harmony and clarity. These became the hallmarks of Tiffany design, first in silver hollowware and flatware, and later in jewelry. Tiffany first achieved international recognition at the Paris Exposition Universelle in 1867. The company was awarded the grand prize for silver craftsmanship, the first time that an American design house had been so honored by a foreign jury. Tiffany was the first American company to employ the 925/1000 standard of silver purity. Largely through the efforts of Charles Lewis Tiffany, this ratio was adopted by the United States Congress as the American sterling silver standard.

The silver studio of Tiffany & Co. was the first American school of design and, as one observer remarked, “a teacher of art progress.” Apprentices were encouraged to observe and sketch nature, and to explore the vast collections of sketches and artwork assembled by Edward C. Moore, the head of the studio. By 1870 Tiffany & Co. had become America’s premier purveyor of jewels and timepieces as well as luxury table, personal, and household accessories. At the turn of the 20th century the company had more than one thousand employees and branches in London, Paris, and Geneva.

In 1878 Tiffany acquired one of the world’s largest and finest fancy yellow diamonds from the Kimberley diamond mines in South Africa. Under the guidance of Tiffany’s eminent gemologist, Dr. George Frederick Kunz, the diamond was cut from 287.42 carats to 128.54 carats with 82 facets (most brilliant-cut diamonds have only 58), which gave the stone its legendary fire and brilliance. Designated the Tiffany Diamond, the stone became an exemplar of Tiffany craftsmanship.

In 1886 Tiffany introduced the engagement ring as we know it today—the Tiffany® Setting— an innovation that lifts the diamond above the band with six platinum prongs, allowing a more complete return of light from the stone and maximizing its brilliance. Today the Tiffany Setting continues as one of the most popular engagement ring styles and shining symbol of the jeweler’s diamond authority.

During New York’s Gilded Age, Tiffany was prospering as never before. At the same time, the world had embarked on the Age of Expositions, the era of show-stopping extravaganzas that took place in the last decades of the 19th century and into the 20th in Paris, Chicago, Buffalo and St. Louis. At every venue, Tiffany won the highest honors and recognition as the undisputed leader in the world of jewels. The company’s exhibit at the 1889 Paris fair was heralded as “the most extraordinary collection of jewels ever produced by an American jewelry house.” Tiffany produced an equally praiseworthy collection for the 1900 Paris fair, along with magnificent silver pieces based on Native American pottery and basket designs. The unprecedented commendation and number of awards bestowed on the jeweler led to Tiffany’s appointment as Imperial Jeweler and Royal Jeweler to the crowned heads of Europe, as well as the Ottoman Emperor and the Czar and Czarina of Russia.

With the death of Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1902, Louis Comfort Tiffany, the founder’s son, became Tiffany’s first Director of Design. An entire floor of Tiffany & Co. was devoted to merchandise crafted in the Tiffany Studios, Louis Comfort Tiffany’s atelier. His position as America’s leading designer was well established by 1882, when President Chester Arthur invited him to redecorate the White House. By 1900 the younger Tiffany was a world leader in the Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts movements. The famed artist created a remarkable range of designs, from technically brilliant leaded glass to colorful Tiffany favrile glass, and enameled and painterly jewels based on American plants and flowers.

Throughout the jeweler’s history, the most prominent members of American society were frequent Tiffany customers. Vanderbilts, Astors, Whitneys and Havemeyers, as well as J.P. Morgan, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Paul Mellon, commissioned Tiffany to produce gold and silver services. Admirers of Lillian Russell ordered a sterling silver bicycle. President Lincoln purchased a seed pearl necklace for his wife, Mary Todd Lincoln. And a young Franklin Roosevelt purchased a Tiffany engagement ring in 1904.

As the twentieth century progressed, Tiffany designs captured the spirit of the times, from the extravagance of the 1920s to the modernism of the 1930s and the aerodynamic age of the 1940s and 1950s. Tiffany china set the stage for White House dinners and Tiffany jewels accented the elegant clothes of the world’s most glamorous women, including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Babe Paley and Diana Vreeland. Very often world-renowned jeweler Jean Schlumberger created their jewelry. Hired in 1956 by then Tiffany chairman Walter Hoving, Schlumberger’s lavish, nature-inspired jewels remain the pride of Tiffany & Co.

Throughout Tiffany’s history, the United States and foreign governments have called upon the company to create special commissions. Among them are the Congressional Medal of Honor, the United States’ highest military award; and the 1885 redesign of the Great Seal of the United States, which can be seen on official government documents as well as on the one-dollar bill.

Business and professional organizations have also called on Tiffany design expertise through Tiffany Business Sales. The most famous of these commissions is the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the National Football League Super Bowl Championship. Tiffany has had the distinction of creating this original and well-known design since the first Super Bowl in 1967.

The legendary style of Tiffany design is perhaps best represented by the annual Blue Book Collection, featuring Tiffany’s and the world’s most spectacular and glamorous jewels. Initially published in 1845, the Tiffany Blue Book was the first such catalogue to be distributed in the U.S. Today’s version showcases the elite of diamonds and colored gemstones in custom-designed settings, crafted with time-honored jewelry techniques and inspired by jewels in the Tiffany & Co. Archives.

Over the past two centuries, Tiffany has built an international reputation as a premier jeweler and the ultimate source of gifts for life’s most cherished occasions. Whether it’s a milestone in the life of a company or a family, or an individual’s crowning achievement, Tiffany gifts wrapped in the signature Tiffany Blue Box® symbolize the rich heritage and unparalleled reputation Tiffany & Co. has enjoyed as one of America’s great institutions.

The Company’s retail division is a premier diamond jeweler and luxury timepiece retailer with salons in key locations, including New York, Paris, London, Beijing, Tokyo, and Beverly Hills.

The Company focuses on the two most profitable segments of the diamond industry, mining and retail, in which its expertise creates shareholder value. This unique business model provides key competitive advantages; rough diamond sales and polished diamond purchases provide market intelligence that enhances the Company’s overall performance.

]]> http://www.diamondne.ws/directory/harry-winston-diamond-corporation/feed/ 1 http://www.diamondne.ws/directory/ivanka-trump-collection/ http://www.diamondne.ws/directory/ivanka-trump-collection/#comments Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:53:34 +0000 admin http://www.diamondne.ws/directory/?p=1320 Reflecting Ivanka Trump’s personal standards of style and elegance, our designs take inspiration from the poise and glamour of fashion’s most celebrated eras.

The Highest Quality Diamonds

It is estimated that less than 3% of the round diamonds sold in the US today would qualify as “Ideal” under AGS grading standards. James Allen offers a selection of “Ideal” stones, as well as all other grades. All of our stones come with grading reports from either the Gemological Institute of America or the American Gemological Society Laboratory. Our database of diamonds includes thousands of choices, allowing you to determine the exact characteristics of your diamond including cut, clarity, color, carat weight (size) and price range. Each of the diamonds you choose will be the best possible diamond within the parameters you set. By using James Allen’s innovative ‘virtual loupe’, you will be able to view your exact diamond as though you were in a jewelry store. We offer each customer the opportunity to get exactly what he or she is looking for.

The Most Refined Craftsmanship

Each of our engagement rings and wedding rings is beautifully crafted by some of the world’s finest jewelry designers. Meticulous care is given to each piece, ensuring that the item you receive is of the highest quality. The settings for each of James Allen’s diamond rings is carefully designed and manufactured for the ultimate in both beauty and function. Our innovative 3D movies allow the customer to see our rings in stunning, moving detail, and from every angle. James Allen offers unparalleled quality in each of our rings.

The Best Possible Value

Almost everyone checks prices on the internet before making any large purchase. If people do this for real estate, cars, airline tickets, and vacations, it seems only logical that they put in the same amount of research into diamond jewelry. James Allen was one of the first companies to recognize this change in the retail paradigm and quickly gained notoriety for offering diamonds to consumers at never-before seen discounts. By using previously-untapped resources, James Allen consistently offers finely cut diamonds and beautifully-crafted rings for hundreds to thousands of dollars less than traditional retail sources.

Personal Advice & Expert Education

We pride ourselves on a database of over 55,000 loose laboratory graded diamonds and hundreds of quality rings. Even more important is helping each customer find their perfect diamond and ring. Our comprehensive “Education” section features tips and tools to help decide which diamond is right for you. If the answer you need can’t be found on the James Allen website, our expert staff is waiting to answer any question you might have. We strive to go above and beyond for each customer. Feel free to contact us at 877-826-9866.

It is this dedication to quality, value, and customer service that has helped create the James Allen legacy.