Pantone has predicted that lapis blue will be a top color for spring; here are 25 versions of the gem-inspired shade as interpreted by fine jewelry’s top designers.
Jamie Joseph’s 22-karat yellow gold ring with lapis and white diamond ($3,730)
New York--When Pantone predicts seasonal color trends, it occasionally delivers jewelers a softball with a hue plucked straight from the gemstone world.
For designers, this can provide a great marketing angle in coming months, though lapis lazuli has long been a beloved material.
“It has such a regal and ancient feel to it,” said designer Pamela Love. “Recently, our customers have really seemed to gravitate toward the pieces with lapis we have produced."
"Something about lapis is exotic and regal, the color is just so rich,” agreed designer Jacquie Aiche. “It’s a stone of wisdom, so I think people are drawn to that as well."
Many designers noted the historic import of the gemstone, which counts an appearance on Tutankhamun’s funeral mask, adorning the young pharaoh’s eyes and eyebrows, as one of its most iconic moments.
“There are so many historical associations with lapis,” said emerging fine jeweler Liz Phillips.
“You see it used so much in ancient art, particularly Egyptian jewelry and decorative arts, and also in beautiful ‘pietra dure’ inlay work from the Italian Renaissance and also Mughal India.”
Lapis’ vivid hue, which is oftentimes included with specks of other minerals, is the primary reason the stone figures in so many designers’ oeuvres, they said.
Andrea Fohrman explained, “I am obsessed with all gemstones that are blue and lapis has such an incredible deep color with flecks of gold; it pairs well with almost anything. My use of lapis with turquoise and opal is my favorite way to combine this stone.”
Jamie Joseph added, “I prefer lapis with intense blue color. These are the ones I love using most, and especially the pieces that include the pyrite splatter.”
“We decided to work in lapis because we wanted to incorporate stones and color into our line,” said Smith + Mara designers Sara Smith and Mara Rothbart. “We love the deep, dark blue with flecks of gold--it helps bring out the gold in the jewelry and adds a beautiful accent to the design.”
For London-based designer Pippa Small, lapis has taken on an important role in her life. Small works with Turquoise Mountain, an organization that aims to revive traditional Afghani crafts.
is the greatest source of lapis, and the stone is prominently featured in the jewelry that Small helps Afghani artisans design and produce through Turquoise Mountain.
“Lapis lazuli is the national stone of a troubled country that has come to mean so much to me,” said Small, who has worked with Turquoise Mountain for nine years and travels to Kabul regularly.
Small continued, “(Lapis was) once traded across the world on ancient silk routes, and now is being used to help the struggling jewelry industry in war-torn Afghanistan.”
Below, find a sampling of the stone’s many visual possibilities.
Aimée.Aimer’s 18-karat yellow gold necklace with lapis, pearl, amazonite and diamond ($1,300)
Andrea Fohrman’s 18-karat yellow gold earrings with rhodium plating, lapis, emeralds and mosaic opal ($6,550)
Catherine Weitzman’s gold-fill earrings with lapis ($80)
Delfina Delettrez’s 18-karat white gold ring with lapis, pink sapphire and freshwater pearl ($822)
Dezso by Sara Beltran’s 18-karat rose gold earrings with lapis and aqua topaz ($1,820)
Fernando Jorge’s 18-karat rose gold ring with lapis ($7,510)
Ginnette NY’s 18-karat rose gold ring with lapis ($515)
Halleh’s 18-karat yellow gold earrings with lapis ($2,650)
Irene Neuwirth’s 18-karat yellow gold charm with lapis and diamonds ($3,410)
Jacquie Aiche’s 14-karat yellow gold necklace with lapis and diamonds ($5,750)
Jamie Joseph’s 22-karat yellow gold ring with lapis and white diamond ($3,730)
Jennifer Alfano’s 18-karat gold vermeil earrings with lapis and turquoise ($795)
Jennifer Meyer’s 18-karat yellow gold necklace with lapis and diamonds ($3,125)
Karma El Khalil’s 18-karat rose gold ring with lapis ($2,400)
Liz Phillips’ 14-karat yellow gold ring with lapis and diamond ($1,800)
Marie-Hélène de Taillac’s 22-karat yellow gold ring with lapis lazuli ($3,935)
Mateo New York’s 14-karat yellow gold ring with lapis and diamonds ($1,375)
Pamela Love’s 14-karat yellow gold plated sterling silver ring with lapis and white topaz ($210)
Pippa Small Turquoise Mountain’s gold vermeil earrings with lapis ($645)
Smith + Mara’s 18-karat yellow gold earrings with lapis and diamonds ($1,850 each)
Sydney Evan’s 14-karat yellow gold necklace with lapis and diamonds ($595)
Sylva & Cie’s 18-karat yellow gold pendant with lapis and diamonds ($20,250)
Unhada’s 18-karat yellow gold earrings with lapis, purple sapphires, iolite, amethyst and diamonds ($4,950)
Venyx’s 18-karat yellow gold chain and pendant with lapis and diamonds ($11,611 per current exchange rates)
Yossi Harari’s 24-karat yellow gold and lapis necklace ($8,495)
Ashley Davisis the senior editor, fashion at National Jeweler, covering all things related to design, style and trends.
