The New York jeweller Tiffany & Co has long had a knack for partnering with the pioneering artists of the day – and running with the revolutions they ignite. In the 1970s, the tactile, organic designs of Halston muse Elsa Peretti – who created the now iconic Bone cuff for the house – propelled silver to a luxury material. A decade later, Paloma Picasso ushered in more bold and graphic, statement making designs that personified 1980s power dressing.

Enter 2025 and baton is now being passed to the ultra in-demand Pharrell Williams – the multidisciplinary recording artist, producer and creative director of Louis Vuitton menswear – and who may be Tiffany’s biggest coup yet.

Despite having worked with the likes of Jacob & Co and Lorraine Schwartz to create bespoke, iced out jewels – think bedecked astronaut and skateboard pendants, even a set of bejewelled dice (yes, really) – his Tiffany Titan is the first jewellery collection that Williams has professionally and commercially produced. “Having the opportunity to create an entire collection with Tiffany & Co. is an honour,” he tells Something About Rocks. “Working closely with the design team and seeing their beautiful craftsmanship first-hand just solidifies why it is such an iconic brand rich in history.” 

The Tiffany Titan collection debuted last year in yellow gold and diamonds – and the punk-style, trident-themed design won’t be lost on Pharrell die-hards. The line takes its cue from the coastal city of Virginia Beach where Williams grew up, namely the Atlantis apartments that he called home. “That’s where it all started,” says Williams. “That’s where my imagination began.” Titan notably draws on Poseidon, ruler of the sea, while also recalling its Roman counterpart Neptune – the same name Williams gave the famed hip-hop and R&B recording company that he set up with his childhood friend and band camp classmate, Chad Hugo, when the pair were just teenagers.

After introducing freshwater pearls in its second drop, Tiffany Titan now welcomes rose gold paired with sumptuous Tahitian pearls, set in five designs: a pendant, earrings, necklace, bracelet and ring. With an earthy grey colour and overtones ranging from sea green to deep purple, the Tahitian pearls are sourced from French Polynesia and cultivated for at least 18 months.

They also are notably large in size, coming in at least 11mm each. “It’s very rare,” says Williams. “Typically, pearls are only about half that size and I wanted to play with scale to really make these pieces stand out.” For a designer who previously added black titanium to his freshwater pearl designs, Williams continues to embrace the inherent sense of duality that has become his signature. The two pearls “work hand in hand – like day and night, yin and yang,” he adds. “The freshwater pearls balance perfectly with the depth of colour in the Tahitian pearls.” 

In addition to the new designs, Tiffany & Co. also debuted a brand new jewellery setting. The Titan Setting notably features the Floeting platform, a patented creation from a New Zealand jeweller that has micro-engineered a round brilliant diamond and its accompanying mounting to be set without prongs or bezels, creating the illusion of a hovering diamond. To the naked eye the stone looks like your regular round brilliant, but without prongs creates a kind of floating look. “The diamond appears to sort of defy gravity,” says Floeting co-inventor Chris Benham, speaking from the company’s base in Wellington. 

Featuring 89 facets, around 50 per cent more than your average round brilliant diamond, and with ultra-precise micro grooves to connect the setting, the Floeting platform took the company 17 years to perfect. It is micro engineered in the same facilities used to make medical and aerospace components, and also comes with a unique serial number for full traceability. 

It’s easy to see why Williams was drawn to the idea. “Magic is just such a beautiful thing,” he says. “The idea that things move and perform beyond explanation is fascinating. So naturally to be able to illustrate that through jewellery and do that with the stone and setting is the whole point. For one to look and question “Wait a minute, how is that stone there?” It’s floating – and that floating was engineered.”

The construction of the Floeting platform will also resonate with today’s jewellery customer. Floeting’s co-inventor Ian Douglas says that thanks to social media and the internet, consumers are more informed and knowledgeable than ever when they walk into a store. “When people are making a purchasing decision they want to know all about the jewellery – not just how it looks. They want to understand how it was crafted, what is the supply chain, what is the sustainability behind it,” he explains. Innovation is also a draw, especially for something as time honoured and classic as a round brilliant diamond. “It’s a really exciting development to take something so traditional and give it a whole new life,” says Douglas. “There is an opportunity to present it in lots of different ways visually.” 

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With Williams’ star power, the Tiffany Titan collection is set to be a hit. The new designs launched at a star-studded event during Paris Couture Week in January, when friends of the house came out in full support of Williams, including Dua Lipa, Ashley Graham, Valentina Ferrer and Tiffany Home artistic director, Lauren Santo Domingo. Taylor Russell rocked up in a dark Titan necklace in titanium, while Anya Taylor-Joy opted for all full suite in natural pearls – earrings, necklace, ring and all – which she soon may be mixing up with the latest pieces. “I saw the Tahitian pearls today and they were beautiful – inky and sensuous,” she said.  

And over at Paris’s Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche (the collection initially launched in select boutiques for a limited time), Tiffany Titan was proving to speak to both genders. Cue the couple who purchased two jewels: a necklace for the man, while his female partner chose the earrings – both great choices that are sure to be chicly mixed and matched, shared and loved.

Like this? Taken from the summer issue of Something About Rocks – buy here or subscribe