Elite Traveler March-April 2017

elite traveler MAR/APR 2017 93

Sutra HOUSTON, 2008

The husband-and-wife team behind Sutra used their family backgrounds in the jewelry business to create a modern jewelry brand using show-stopping stones and feminine designs. Each piece is handcrafted in Mumbai, and designer Arpita Navlakha personally inspects each piece before it is deemed finished. Her feminine styles have recurring themes like feathers, tassels and fans, including the pictured ring, and signature design elements include the use of bold colors and rose-cut and cabochon stones. As a woman, she considers wearability, comfort and how each piece looks from every angle, ensuring that the back of an earring is just as beautiful as the front. The pictured collar necklace features d-mine pear-cut stones. ol

Nirav Modi MUMBAI, 2008

Having grown up in Antwerp in a family of diamantaires, Nirav Modi has always been surrounded by diamonds. It wasn’t until 2008, when he designed a pair of earrings for a close family friend, that he started his second career and found his true passion: jewelry design. Modi finds inspiration in nature, history and real life (a signature piece, the Embrace bracelet, was inspired by his daughter’s toy bangle) and never stops innovating, which is something that his family’s diamond business allows. Modi has pioneered several patented diamond cuts that allow him to use as little metal as possible in the designs, such as the Mughal cut seen here, where diamonds are cut to fit into a petal design. The Mughal collection celebrates India’s rich history in a modern, elegant way, with diamonds and Modi’s signature lightness.

Lydia Courteille PARIS, 1987

In her Paris atelier and “cabinet of curiosities,” gemologist and antique-jewelry collector Lydia Courteille has created a fantasy universe to showcase incredible stones and craftsmanship, where earrings shaped like lobsters made from orange sapphires and fire opals sit alongside surrealist skeleton jewelry rendered in white and brown diamonds. The only limit seems to be her imagination, which thankfully appears to know no boundaries. In her latest high-jewelry collection, Courteille visits the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, Turkey. Taking inspiration from its well-preserved faience tiles, decorated with black Halfeti roses and red

tulips, and its history and myths, the 20-piece collection begs a closer look to admire the intricate design work and the mesmerizing opals.

1. Sutra Collar necklace in 18K white gold with 19 carats emeralds and 51 carats diamonds, $1.2m 2. Sutra Abstract Sapphire Fan Ring in 18K white gold with 11 carats sapphires and 2.5 carats diamonds, $45,000; available at Precious Jewels Salon at Neiman Marcus North Park in Dallas, contact Sara Faherty, sara_faherty@neimanmarcus.com, +1 214 891 1250, sutrajewels.com 3. Nirav Modi Mughal Kada cuff in 18K white gold with 32.64 carats diamonds 4. Nirav Modi Garden earrings in 18k white gold with 5.18 carats diamonds; both price on request, available at Nirav Modi in New York, +1 212 603 0000, niravmodi.com 5. Lydia Courteille Ring in 18K gold with two white opals, diamonds, 2.90 carats sapphires, 1.49 carats rubies and .67 carats tsavorites 6. Lydia Courteille Earrings in 18K black rhodium gold with white opals, aquamarines, tsavorites, 12.45 carats rubies, 10.58 carats sapphires and 6.76 carats light sapphires; both price on request, available at Lydia Courteille in Paris, +33 1 42 61 11 71, lydiacourteille.com