Cartier Love Bracelet: The history and our rendition!
January 19, 2022
FRANCIS JEWELLERS' RENDITION OF THE FAMOUS CARTIER "LOVE BRACELET"
How is our version different from the original Cartier? We have kept all of the classic design but have eliminated the problems by innovating the clasp to make it more user friendly. Our illusion screw clasp is a fancy box clasp with the look of a screw closure. This allows you to more easily take the bracelet on and off - no more inconvenient problems at airport security or fumbling to find the special screw driver, just take off your bracelet.
Now, lets talk price. Not only is our hand crafted version more user friendly, the cost is a lot less, and who doesn't like to save money! This version of the bracelet, featured above, contains 0.14ctw of VS clarity, F colour Diamonds and can be yours for $6,950.00 which is comparable to the Cartier version which would cost you $13,530.00.
Come on in to try on this spectacular piece!
We have included below a great article written by Jacquelyn Greenfield & Vienna Vernose about the history of the Cartier Love bracelet.
HISTORY OF THE CARTIER LOVE BRACELET
As one of the most recognizable luxury jewelry items, the Cartier Love Bracelet's notable bangle design oft stacked up the wrists jingling on our favorite celebrities is what has made it a luxury staple over the past few years. But before a teenaged Kylie Jenner casually sported "the price of a college education on her arm" in $40,000 worth of Cartier Love bracelets, the bracelet has been apart of the Cartier DNA as one of the brand's heritage designs for around four decades.
In 1969, Italian jewelry designer Aldo Cipullo created the Cartier Love bracelet in the New York workshops of the French luxury jewelry house. The bracelet was controversially modeled after medieval chastity belts. It quickly became one of the must-have items as a way to show the world that the one who wore it was "locked into love."
"What modern people want are love symbols that look semi-permanent—or, at least, require a trick to remove. After all, love symbols should suggest an everlasting quality," Cipullo said.
In terms of design, the oval-shape of the bracelet is meant adhere closely to the body and can only be removed with the assistance of a special screwdriver that comes with the bracelet. The screws that act as a defining detail to the bracelet are taken from similar screws on the bezel of Cartier's Santos watch. Allegedly, at first the bracelets could only be purchased as a gift additionally having to surrender the screwdriver to one another. It has often been referred to as "modern love handcuffs," for that reason alone. Legend has it that New York City hospitals actually had to keep one of the special screwdrivers on hand for when patients needed it removed.
Source: Cartier
Following the release, the demand sparked a collaboration between Cipullo and Charles Revson, founder of Revlon Cosmetics. The limited-edition Love bracelet had a screw on only one side rather than both and was plated in precious metals to make it more widely available.
Since the bracelet is quite hard to get off, Cipullo's design has been often recognized for changing the way people interact with jewelry. During a time when women and men would often put on jewelry to compliment their outfits or the occasion, the bracelet was meant to be worn at all times, moving high-end jewelry into an everyday staple piece.
At the time of the original release, Cartier gifted bracelets to a curated list of some of the defining it-couples of the century to publicize the romantic symbolism. The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and Ali McGraw and Steve McQueen all locked themselves into love with the little bangle. They also had a policy that Love bracelets couldn't be purchased for oneself, and could only be purchased as gifts for a special someone.
While the Love bracelet was Cipullo's first design, he went on to design renditions of the Love bracelet releasing the equally popularizedJuste un Clou("just a nail") bracelet that encircles the wrist in a thick nailhead.
Source: Cartier
Though the original retail price was around $250, the classic bracelet starts at $1,600 and can range upwards of $50,000 depending on the precious metal and stones. The high price tag and simple design of the Love bracelet led to a large counterfeit market for the jewelry piece. It became so bad that Cartier had to prescribe each bracelet with a hallmark reading the unique serial number to each bracelet that is additionally stored at Cartier HQ for proof of authenticity. In 2006, Cartier launched a version of the bracelet with a silk cord called the Love Charity bracelet in which $150 from every sale was donated to various charities. In 2015, the bangles became a complication for airport security being called "the biggest problem item" due to the difficulty removing the bracelets going through the body scanners.
Today, the bracelet is offered in Cartier's complete Love collection including earrings, pendants, cufflinks, and more. The design has become an integral part of Cartier as the ultimate collector's piece with the most social cache, whether it's just one, or stacked from wrist to elbow.
