Elite Traveler Summer 2023

elite traveler SUMMER 2023 75

Incredibles Yellow Diamond Necklace set with colorless diamonds and a 40.81-carat fancy yellow diamond

This image and below Creating the Spectacular Diamond Legacy Necklace from Harry Winston’s high jewelry collection

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Winston Pink Diamond Legacy ring with an 18.96-carat fancy vivid pink diamond

Winston Blue Diamond ring with a

13.22-carat fl awless fancy vivid blue pear-cut diamond

HARRY WINSTON When Marilyn Monroe sang Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend inthe1953 fi lm Gentlemen Prefer Blondes , she pointedly said: “Talk to me Harry Winston, tell me all about it!” That is, of course, because this legendary man — and his eponymous brand — was a purveyor of some of the most magni fi cent diamonds and gemstones, and a creator of some of the dreamiest diamond jewelry. Born in New York City in 1896 to emigrant parents from the Russian Empire, a young Winston and his family moved to Los Angeles, where his father opened a jewelry store. Winston grew up around jewels and had an uncanny knack for spotting stones. In fact, when he was 12, he saw a tray of junk jewelry in the window of a pawn shop, with a sign reading “Take Your Pick — 25 Cents.” He was sure he saw a real emerald in a ring and bought it. That quarter yielded him a two-carat emerald that he sold two days later for $800. It may have been the stone that set him on a journey to becoming the King of Diamonds. In his teens, Winston returned to New York and started his own diamond company in 1920 at the age of 24. He would buy estate jewelry on the a ff ordable side, remove the stones and resell them to jewelers. One day, he opted to start doing this for himself and o ff ered his services to the wealthy for acquiring their estate jewelry. In 1932, after having been involved in millions of dollars’ worth of transactions, he

openedhis fi rst Harry Winston store in New York City. He would go on to purchase such important diamonds — including colored diamonds, which he referred to as the “ultimate gift of nature.” Among his most famous purchases: the 45.52-carat Hope Diamond that he acquired in 1949; it is onsidered one of the most valuable diamonds in the world. Winston donated it to the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in 1958. He also owned The Star of Independence diamond, a 75.52-carat D Flawless diamond that he cut from a 204-carat rough diamond in 1976. It is said that he carried the diamond in his pocket for a while. Winston was not just a buyer of stones but also a premier jeweler. Often referred to as the ‘ultimate jeweler,’ Harry Winston’s pieces are famed for their fl uidity, grace and dramatic appeal. The list of stones he bought, of the socialites and celebrities that wore Harry Winston jewels, and of the masterfully elegant works of wearable art he created goes on and on. While Winston died in 1978, the company continued and is owned and operated today by the Swiss luxury

conglomerate, Swatch Group. Under the vigilant eye of Nayla Hayek, the brand continues to create magical diamond and gemstone jewelry and watches worthy of their namesake. Within its high jewelry collection this year are several fantastic pieces, including the Spectacular Diamond Legacy Necklace crafted in platinum and set with diamonds with arcs of diamonds that hang like lace from the main strand and culminate in the center with a 10.72-carat marquise-cut diamond. Working similar magic with colored diamonds, the brand presents the Incredibles Yellow Diamond Necklace set with colorless diamonds all around except for the center pendant drop: a 40.81-carat fancy yellow diamond. With pink and blue diamonds even harder to fi nd in large sizes, the house of Harry Winston naturally wanders in that direction. This year it introduces the Winston Pink Diamond Legacy Ring with an 18.96-carat fancy vivid pink diamond in the center and the Winston Blue Diamond Ring with a 13.22-carat fl awless fancy vivid blue pear-cut diamond taking center stage. harrywinston.com