DESIGN

Cartier Grain de Café: From Bean to Beauty

by Alfonso Pereira
03 Jul 2023

Cartier reintroduces Grain de Café, a jewellery range that features an unexpected coffee bean motif that was first introduced in 1938.

In 1938, Cartier’s legendary creative director Jeanne Toussaint introduced the coffee bean motif, resulting in jewellery pieces that satisfied two cherished elements important to the maison: Flora created in yellow gold and the ordinary made precious by the jeweller’s eye. 

The Grain de Café collection found great success, particularly in the 1950s and 1960s, as it brought together glamour and an unexpected playfulness; a wink to those who would catch a glimpse of the pieces as they subtly shimmer and move when worn. Comprised of necklaces, bracelets, and earrings, the range found its biggest fan in Princess Grace of Monaco and ended up in her personal collection of beloved Cartier pieces.

Today, the Grain de Café collection resurfaces, where the connection between ordinary and precious comes to life through cascading clusters of gold beans found on a necklace, rings, bracelet, earrings, and even a brooch.

The pieces are come to life through chains in two shades of gold, topped with a single or double crown of beans, and finished with diamonds of different sizes for an unmistakable glimmer. In addition, there is also an ultra-chic version in rose gold that features a ring and necklace where obsidian is alternated with gold and dotted with diamonds. On the wearer, the coffee beans move to the rhythm of playful elegance. When you listen closely, they produce a subtle yet satisfying rattle with every move.

Summing up what the collection is all about, Marie-Laure Cérède, Cartier’s Jewellery and Watchmaking Creative Director, shares, “Grain de Café is Cartier’s new figurative collection; it’s the freedom to surpass literal creative execution and develop a multi-sensory architecture… [it] introduces a new preciousness by elevating a single material, gold, and playing with light, finishes and volume to create an acoustic collection brimming with soul.”


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