Cartier Jewellery Dreams: Exquisite Miniatures for Life’s Most Precious Moments

Known as "cocktails", these creations perpetuate the tradition of evening watches from the 1920s. For these watches, refinement becomes an art and the boundaries between watchmaking and jewellery are blurred.

Wipe the slate clean, from the shape onwards: this was the creative approach that inspired the Maison's designers when they came up with a series of small shaped watches. What links them? Their small size, their paved stones and the incredible sensuality with which they slip onto the wrist.

The first, a variation on the rectangle theme, is a tribute to shaped watches. With its entirely paved case, this watch is distinguished by its bracelet, which combines baguette-cut and brilliant-cut diamonds in an unprecedented composition.

The second elegantly reveals a multitude of details with Art Deco accents. First, there's the octagonal case which holds a square dial, then there's the sunray-effect silvered dial background, which emphasises the piece’s modern style. The bracelet, as supple as a ribbon, features a line of geometric motifs. A true jewellery feat, the gem-setting dazzles in its virtuosity, whether through the triangular grain setting or the cut-down setting. The light is reflected infinitely, multiplied by the combination of links in various shapes.

For these two watches, more than 30 hours were devoted to jewellery work and gem-setting.

Taking its creative exploration even further, Cartier chose to combine this delicate shape with black and green, a chromatic duo emblematic of the Maison, through the emerald and onyx. Combined with diamonds, this combination has been an integral part of the Maison's vocabulary since the beginning of the 20th century. Alluding to the Art Deco movement, craftsmen use it to bring relief, depth and a touch of modern sophistication. On this watch, Cartier's craftsmen have adjusted and faceted the onyx in order to dress the bezel. The dark yet luminous intensity of this material reinforces the contrast with the silvered finish of the dial and its radiating effect.

For all these models, the dial is protected by a sapphire crystal facetted like a gem, a reminder of the watch's jewellery-like character. To preserve the finesse of the design and avoid any interruption to the lines, the winding crown has disappeared and been replaced by an invisible mechanism that is adjusted using a special tool.