Intricate Enamel Pieces From a Storied Indian Jewelry Family

Since its founding successful 1852, the Jaipur, India, jewelry emporium the Gem Palace has been known for its dazzling diamonds, rubies and sapphires. But Siddharth Kasliwal, a spouse astatine the Gem Palace and the originative manager of Munnu the Gem Palace — the New York City atelier started by his precocious father, Munnu — has a secret. “Buying and mounting stones is precise easy,” helium says. “It’s enameling that’s difficult. Enamel enactment made our household what it is, and it’s wherever existent craftsmanship lies.” Now, astir 7 years aft designing his past collection, helium is unveiling a caller radical of enamel pieces that observe this overlooked and, helium says, underappreciated art.

One of the astir past forms of aboveground decoration, enameling was brought to India by the Persians successful the 17th century. At Kasliwal’s Jaipur workshop, artisans statesman the process by etching golden with ultrafine tools earlier applying paste-like pigment made from powdered solid and firing it each successful a kiln. “The etching and coating instrumentality an highly dependable hand,” Kasliwal says, adding that “the enamel tin shatter if it’s fired incorrectly.” Kasliwal employs astir 8 enamelers but, helium says, “perhaps lone 3 are maestro enamelers. Because the enactment is truthful tedious, enamelers thin to discontinue early, adjacent earlier they crook 50.”

Kasliwal’s forefathers were adept enamel craftsmen based successful Agra erstwhile Jaipur was founded successful the aboriginal 1700s. “The maharajah was truthful impressed by their enactment that helium invited them to determination to the metropolis successful the 1780s,” says Kasliwal. Infamous devotees of opulence, the maharajahs enameled “everything,” helium says, including “dagger handles, sword cases, chess sets, snuff boxes and, of course, jewelry.” A gem-encrusted necklace would typically diagnostic an elaborately enameled back, which not lone prevents snags connected covering but besides embodies the conception of the wearer’s pleasance — the thought of unseen backstage beauty. “In India, a connoisseur tin measure the worth of a diamond necklace by looking astatine the prime of the enameling connected the reverse,” Kasliwal says.

Among the pieces successful his caller postulation are emerald-accented earrings featuring an ingenious double-sided design, arsenic good arsenic whimsical parrot rings with microthin ribbons of colour astir the birds’ throats. One parrot’s beak is specified a deep, glossy reddish that it resembles the ruby dangling from its tip. Not each enamel, Kasliwal says, is produced truthful painstakingly, with specified high-quality materials. “Enamel tin beryllium this reddish lone due to the fact that we bash it connected 22.5-karat gold,” helium says. “You tin bash enamel the mode the French bash — they usage 18 karat — but the effect isn’t the same.”

For Kasliwal, a ninth-generation jeweler, these latest creations are much than conscionable gems: They’re portion of his ngo to support a dying trade alive. “I made these pieces to support our artisans working,” helium says, noting that he’s already seen excessively galore of them crook to different sectors — “they find jobs successful I.T.!” — arsenic accepted creation forms slice from favor. “The golden volition ever beryllium here, and the stones volition beryllium here,” helium says, “but the method whitethorn not.” — Catherine Hong

Photo assistant: Ben Berkes. Set assistant: Steven Ruggiero

A New Paris Hotel Full of Daring Design Choices

Parisian hotels tin inactive skew toward the blimpish — but not Le Grand Mazarin, opening this outpouring successful the Marais. A operation of 3 buildings, parts of which day backmost to the 14th century, the 61-room spot is the archetypal edifice task successful the French superior designed by Martin Brudnizki, the Swedish interiors prima champion known for his rococo translation of the London nightclub Annabel’s. The bedrooms are painted successful agleam shades of greenish and coral, hung with tapestries and furnished with marble-topped minibars and ruffle-trimmed, leopard-print slipper chairs. An all-day restaurant, Boubalé, serves modern takes connected Jewish favorites similar gefilte fish, challah and kreplach, and determination are 2 bars, 1 of them a speakeasy-style lounge with marbleized wallpaper and Murano solid ceiling lights. “It’s immersive,” says Brudnizki. “I wanted to make the ambiance of arriving successful someone’s location and having the astir whimsical time.” Rates from astir $742, meal included, legrandmazarin.com. — Ellie Pithers

With the sleek sophistication of a recently pressed suit, these 3 watches with raven dials and golden accents supply the cleanable matching accessory to immoderate black-tie outfit. The Tag Heuer Carrera Chronograph adds a brightness and refinement to its sporty design, with 2 lustrous yellow-gold subdials acceptable into its sable, prima ray-brushed face. For a much retro look, the Glashütte Original Sixties Panorama Date pays homage to that epoch successful its play with signifier and proportion: a constrictive lawsuit successful roseate golden surrounds the wide, domed dial and mildly curved hands, and is complemented by a strap successful alligator leather. This Rolex Oyster Perpetual Yacht-Master 42 is simply a bold caller iteration of the brand’s postulation of waterproof timepieces dedicated to seafaring and sailing, though the glamour imparted by its black-and-gold colour strategy mightiness marque it adjacent much appealing connected land. And cardinal to immoderate ceremonial occasion, the luminescent hands and hr markers marque it casual to rapidly cheque if it’s clip to leave.

The Thing: A Cartier Necklace With the Elegance and Palette of Its Signature Panther

Edwardian jewelry astatine the crook of the 20th period was a monochrome of delicate platinum bows and diamond lavalieres successful the guirlande style, but Cartier, 1 of the pioneers of that trend, was besides innovating beyond it. In 1914, Louis Cartier, the grandson of the Paris-based maison’s founder, was inspired by his muse, Jeanne Toussaint, who was yet appointed the company’s originative director, to incorporated a sensational operation of emerald and onyx successful what would go the brand’s iconic emblem: the green-eyed, black-spotted panther. The palette came to specify Art Deco accessories and interiors (and, much than 100 years later, the carnal remains 1 of Cartier’s astir enduring symbols). This geometric collar, with its cardinal trio of octagonal Colombian emeralds — each a somewhat antithetic signifier and size — acceptable amid diamonds and dashes of onyx, is simply a play of airy and shadiness arsenic timeless arsenic it is bold. Cartier Beautés du Monde necklace, terms connected request, (800) 227-8437. — Nancy Hass

Photo assistant: Valentin Le Marc’h. Set plan assistant: Lara Martina

Despite its caramel-like flavor, the day has historically been a pugnacious merchantability to American eaters. Now, though, a fewer entrepreneurial farmers and chefs are giving the effect — which contains much potassium than bananas and much fibre than broccoli — an representation upgrade. “It’s a superfood that tastes similar candy” is however Joan Smith, 54, describes the medjools she grows successful California’s Coachella Valley and has been selling successful beribboned, retro-cool brownish packages nether the statement Rancho Meladuco for astir six years. In 2018, her chap Coachella Valley husbandman David Kohl, 53, co-founded Joolies, his marque of medjools, which are packed successful turquoise boxes adorned with cheery rainbows. Both farmers handpick their integrated dates astatine highest ripeness and merchantability them fresh, not dried, delivering a sweeter, softer effect than what’s typically recovered successful the bulk bins. In Los Angeles, Michelle Valdez-Wilton, 42, and Grace Chon, 40, began making chocolate-covered medjool dates astatine location during the pandemic; their brand, Date Better Snacks, which they launched past year, offers acheronian chocolate-dipped dates stuffed with combinations similar peanut food and cacao nibs and cashew-lime crunch. And successful Seattle, the Somali-born cook and writer Ifrah F. Ahmed, 31, who grew up eating dates during Ramadan to interruption the fast, uses the effect often astatine Milk & Myrrh, the traveling Somali pop-up edifice she started successful 2019, adding them to crockery dressing and filling them with goat food and oodkac — jerked beef cooked successful ghee — arsenic an appetizer. “When you person a truly good, sticky, caller date,” she says, “it’s similar a revelation.” — Ella Riley-Adams

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