Boucheron breaks the codes of jewelry with its new More is More collection

Coco Chanel is credited with the quote “less is more”. At Boucheron , they have decided to take the opposite approach to this other legendary French house with the More is More collection . These daring “jewels” (pouch, hair clip, etc.) redefine what contemporary jewelry can offer.

More is More: daring Boucheron jewelry born in the anguish of confinement

Claire Choisne , creative director of Boucheron jewelry since 2011, said she decided to break all the rules with the house's new 30-piece collection of high jewelry. Called More is More, its presentation takes place by appointment during the first week of July at the jewelry house's mansion headquarters on Place Vendôme in Paris .

• The Power of Couture by Boucheron

“ We started working on it in 2020, during the second lockdown, ” Choisne recently said in an email interview with the NY Times. “ The anxiety was everywhere, so I felt the need to completely free ourselves from any creative constraints. ”

She said she wanted to " give happiness by creating a feeling of joy and comfort " through simple volumes, high contrasts, oversize and optical illusions inspired by the world of comics and cartoons .

She decided not to create traditional high-jewelry sets. That is, the usual sets of necklaces, luxury bracelets, earrings, rings and other matching pieces. This approach gave her the opportunity to completely rethink her design process. “ We came up with new designs that would never have occurred to us in normal times, ” she said.

Boucheron's More is More creations

Among the creations in Boucheron's More is More collection , we find:

• Pull Me : a hooded set with citrine accents
• This is Not a Ring and This is Not a Scrunchie: 6 Rings That Can Be Worn 2 Ways
• In the Pocket : a functional pouch made of onyx and brilliant-cut diamond bands with mother-of-pearl and gray lacquer accents. This jeweled pouch can be attached to clothing with magnets
• An Apple A Day : Boucheron bracelet with a spherical Pop Art- inspired design in tsavorite, black lacquer, titanium and white gold. It can be worn as is or separated into a cuff and two rings
• Solve Me : a necklace inspired by the blocks that children play with

Explaining her idea for the trompe l’oeil concept to the artisans at Boucheron’s Paris workshop proved more complicated than she had anticipated. “ I told them it’s 2D, ” she wrote. “ But it has to give the illusion of being in 3D even though it’s 2D, ” said Claire Choisne.

In the pocket: a luxury jewel pouch

Designing a fine jewelry clutch was very different from designing a necklace, she said. The jewelry clutch had to be able to attach securely to clothing. But it also had to be able to support the weight of a phone, and the jolts of our movements.

Ms. Choisne and her team found the solution. The trick? Combining Lycra , the sports textile known for its elasticity, with titanium , lighter than gold. The pouch may seem rigid, but it is actually articulated. This was possible thanks to its plates made with a 3D printer and held together by titanium screws.

Do Not Iron: Ultra-modern Boucheron brooches

This 2D style is particularly visible in Do Not Iron , six creations that look more like iron-on patches than the centimeter-thick pins they are. Among the motifs on these Boucheron pins are:

• A thought
• A cicada
• A wave
• The house's jack motif, inspired by the audio connection plugs introduced to the Boucheron style by Claire Choisne in 2019

Boucheron More is More “jewels” undoubtedly represent an unbridled vision of fine jewelry.