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DESIGN FOR BEAUTY
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melee,
on a carat basis, jumped approximately 350 per cent over the prewar
price, whereas the increase in price for the larger stones was only
between 15 and 25 pes cent. So the new pieces show one or two or three
fairly large stones set against a background of attractively designed
platinum or gold or other metal.
The
art of the designer and manufacturer is to detect not only changes in
style but also economic or physical factors that affect the appearance
of jewelry. Thus in this case, realizing the scarcity of small
diamonds, he turned to greater ornamentation in the metal settings.
The,
art of designing and manufacturing is an old one. As we have considered
the miner, the trader, the cutter, the importer, and the dealer, it is
appropriate to give attention to the designer and manufacturer before
we move to the final link in the diamond chain—the retailer. If fashion
is touched upon but lightly here, even though it would seem to be
closely related to design, it is because the glamorous history of
diamond fashions deserves a special chapter of its own.
Manufacturers
and designers of diamond jewelry are scat-teredthroughout the United
States, although the latter are largely concentrated in New York City,
The majority of jewelers purchase diamond settings from the
manufacturers, but an outstanding few of the larger houses have their
own designers and their own manufacturing plants. Their craft is an
ancient one, going back beyond the Renaissance period when they were
known as jewelers to the kings and potentates of the earth. The
jeweler to the king always set the diamond jewelry styles. Karl
Faberge, called the greatest of court jewelers, established a distinct
style of work by setting diamonds with gold in exquisite blue enamel.
He labored for the Czars Alexander III and Nicholas II of
(143)
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