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A lady with a love for literature and shiny things discusses books & bling.

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Merry and bright: Gabriel and Co gold for the holidays.

The holiday season calls to mind certain visuals: frosted windowpanes, bright white snowmen, crystalline icicles dripping picturesquely from pine trees. Bright whiteness gleaming all around.

Beautiful, yes, but cold cold cold. Brrrr.

While I usually let the frosty glint of the season’s temperature inspire my holiday accessorizing (think big, mostly fake white crystal bling), I’m feeling something different for this year. I want to go chic, sleek, and warm. 

A sleek, minimal diamond and yellow gold choker necklace from Gabriel and Co.

As soon as I saw these pieces from Gabriel and Co’s fall collection, I knew that they were the kind of rocks I wanted to rock for this year’s winter holidays.

Just look at the choker above. Can’t you imagine its delicate, dynamic form gracing your decolletage as you sip a glass of champagne with candied ginger by a fire? It would catch the light and glimmer brightly, a flash of warmth against the cold starkness outside.

 

Two fantastic pairs of yellow gold and diamond ear climbres from Gabriel and Co.

These ear climbers – obviously from the same Gabriel and Co collection – feature the same warm brightness. Slashes of gold dashed with diamonds, waiting to elevate any outfit your heart desires.

A sexy yellow gold and diamond necklace from Gabriel and Co.

My favorite holiday jewelry is jewelry you can wear all year round (although I’d be lying if I told you I’d never bought snowman earrings at Claire’s). These perfect, precise arcs of diamond-strewn yellow gold would transition perfectly to any season.

A chic, geometric yellow gold and diamond cuff bracelet from Gabriel and Co.

I love the gently curved geometry of this open cuff. You could wear it with any of the other pieces featured here, or pretty much anything else on earth.

A fantastic pair of yellow gold and diamond earring and ear jacket combo from Gabriel and Co.

Speaking of perfect for every season: how amazing are  is this earring/ear jacket set? Simultaneously lush and subtle; and so versatile.

 

For more Gabriel and Co, please see their online selection here. The lower price points are in triple digits; we’re talking achievable luxury here.

In related news: can you tell I don’t like the cold? More hot toddies, please.

Glorious gold and diamond pieces from a Gabriel and Co collection perfect for the holidays. Two yellow gold and diamond ear climbers from Gabriel and Co. Yellow gold and diamond ear climbers from Gabriel and Co. A chic, sexy yellow gold and diamond necklace from Gabriel and Co.

Egyptian Revival portrait locket with a zaftig beauty.

I have a particular weakness for a good portrait locket. They’re each like a hidden story you get to preview but never hear in full: who is the person in the portrait? Who was it painted for? Why did the artist paint the person in that particular outfit? Did the subject really post like that, or is it imagination? Was it even a real person?

I was browsing Etsy the other day and this magnificent specimen of a portrait locket jumped out at me.

Antique French Egyptian Revival locket with amazing portrait featuring real diamonds. Victorian era, circa 1800.

It’s a Victorian Egyptian Revival piece, circa 1800. Made in France.

First things first: luscious textured gold, beautifully scalloped frame around the pristine enamel, wonderful monogram on the back, fantastically colorful palette.

But let’s be real abut what’s blowing our minds here. This badass AF lady rocking it on the cover.

An antique French Egyptian Revival locket with amazing portrait featuring real diamonds. Victorian era, circa 1800.

Seriously. LOOK at her. Enormous pearl and coral earrings, matching the coral and pearl brooch in her decolletage and the diadem around her huge green and golden headcloth. As if that weren’t enough bling, she’s also rocking the hell out of a huge and Georgian-looking diamond necklace set with real rose cut diamonds.

Then: the woman herself. She’s impeccably detailed and notably charismatic. Note the curls of hair in front of her ears, the hint of valleys of soft skin at her underarm and cleavage. The artist even lovingly rendered the pale pink slope of her gentle double chin. She’s incredible.

Here’s a better look at the monogram on the back.

Back detail - an antique French Egyptian Revival locket with amazing portrait featuring real diamonds. Victorian era, circa 1800.

What do you think the letters say? I’m terrible at deciphering these things. There’s definitely a “B” – my favorite letter – but what else?

I think this is obvious by now, but if anyone’s looking to get me a Christmas or Hanukkah present….I choose her.

This beautiful piece is currently for sale by Shop CJ on Etsy. All images and info are thanks to Shop CJ.

A wonderful antique French Egyptian Revival locket with amazing portrait featuring real diamonds. Victorian era, circa 1800.

Three plique-a-jour enamel beauties from Lang Antiques.

Are you familiar with plique-a-jour enamel, my dears? It’s a beautiful technique – light and ethereal, reminiscent of stained glass. It was especially popular in the Art Nouveau period, because of how well it fit that era’s delicate, nature-inspired themes.

Our trio of beauties today are all Belle Epoque, from the early 20th century. They exhibit a combination of early Edwardian and Art Nouveau aesthetics that I find irresistible: delicate, colorful, and absolutely beautiful. I couldn’t choose between them, so you get to see all three.

A colorful antique Belle Epoque plique-a-jour enamel pendant brooch with diamonds.Kicking things off with the first of the three plique-a-jour pieces to catch my eye: how gorgeous is this thing? I think it looks like a rose window from a European cathedral.

This piece dates to the year 1900 and features translucent plique-a-jour enamel in shades of blue, green, yellow and pin/red accents with sweeps of diamonds and gorgeous openwork. It’s a pendant, but also features a pin fitting for wear as a brooch. In white gold.

An ntique Belle Epoque plique-a-jour enamel brooch with pearls and diamonds.Plique-a-jour piece #2 shares some of the first piece’s mandala/rose window feeling, with with a more abstract center design. You see the same butterfly-wing delicate use of plique-a-jour, shaded delicately with color, combined with classic Edwardian design aesthetic.

This one looks to me like someone took watercolor paints to an Edwardian brooch. I’m really into it.

An unusual Belle Epoque plique-a-jour enamel and diamond pendant with a Star of David.#3 is the most unusual, and therefore the most fascinating (even though both of the first two are exceptionally beautiful).

First things first: the center element of this design is a Star of David, which I think is awesome. I see so much cross jewelry that it’s delightful to happen upon a beautiful antique with the symbol of the religion I was raised in. Way to go, mystery Edwardian Jew.

The workmanship on the star is beautiful: if you follow the lines, you’ll see that the lines of diamonds that make up the star weave in and out of each other like ribbons. It’s then surrounded by what I’m calling an echo of diamonds in star shape, creating a very glamorous and almost Art Deco feeling geometric center.

Outside of that are sprays of pearls, each centered by a bezel-set diamond.

An unusual antique Belle Epoque plique-a-jour enamel and diamond pendant with a Star of David.

Finally, the plique-a-jour elements in this piece. Let’s be real: these are cannabis leaves, aren’t they? Lang Antiques calls it in their description, and I have to agree.

Is there anything else they could be? Have you ever seen a piece like this before? It’s crazy!! And awesome .

These plique-a-jour enamel beauties are all currently for sale at Lang Antiques. All images and info are thanks to Lang Antiques.

Three antique plique-a-jour enamel beauties from Lang Antiques.

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