Designed as flexible ribbons of gold embellished with diamonds and gemstones, Van Cleef & Arpels’ new Ludo collection nods to the house’s iconic 1930s original. Read all about it below.
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Back in 1934, the Parisian house of Van Cleef & Arpels debuted its iconic Ludo design, a gold bracelet that hugged the wrists like a strip of flexible ribbon.
Inspired by the design of a belt and named after the childhood moniker of Louis Arpels, the brother of Van Cleef & Arpels’ co-founders, Charles and Julien Arpels, it reimagined a piece of couture fashion as an emblematic accessory – one that has gone on to inspire other designs at the house over the decades, including a successful line of secret watches.
Famously, it was Louis Arpels’ glamorous wife, the Schiaparelli model and Parisienne style icon Hélène Ostrowska, who helped to popularise the Ludo. The Monte Carlo-born model was a constant fixture on best dressed lists throughout the 1940s and 1950s, and was admired for her bold and innovative styling choices, like wearing bracelets over her opera-length gloves, or embellishing her shoes with diamond brooches – making her the perfect jewellery house muse.
Indeed, Ostrowska’s is widely known for her catch phrase “diamonds go with everything”, so it’s not surprising that Louis Arpels, who joined his brothers in the family business, was known to cast new jewellery designs under her discerning eye before launching them to the public.
Now, almost a century after they first launched, the Maison is reviving its signature silhouette, iconic buckle-shaped clasp and all, in a new line of bejewelled bracelets. The collection includes three creations – in yellow, white or rose gold – of briquette mesh, giving them a fluid articulation. A gem-set chevron tip and buckle clasp help to reinforce the impression of fabric or ribbon, while a clever hidden mechanism allows the bracelets to be adjusted up to three sizes for the perfect fit.
Additionally, there are also two bracelets which pay homage to the original piece’s honeycomb-shaped mesh links. Now available in either white or yellow gold, these jewels showcase star-set gemstones within each honeycomb link, plus buckle-shaped clasps set with a sliver of ornamental stone, for the perfect coloured accent.
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