About Van Cleef & Arpels brand
Van Cleef & Arpels, a prestigious French luxury jewelry and watchmaking Maison, opened their first boutique in 1906. Ever since, the brand's jewelry has been worn and beloved by celebrities and royalty.
Founded by a daughter of a precious stone dealer and a son of a stone cutter, Estelle Arpels and Alfred Van Cleef, the brand was meant to be big the jewelry world. Press used to call the power couple union “The Maison based on love.”
Before Art Deco was pronounced as a style, VCA brand was known for their skillfully made, bold geometric pieces. Later, during the century, the maker mastered this design approach to the top-notch jewelry level. The experimental spirit, fearless usage of the exotic materials and truly unique gemstone combinations brought Van Cleef & Arpels to the top three of the jewelry worlds.
One of the most distinctive aspects of Van Cleef & Arpels’ philosophy is applying storytelling and thematic elements to their design. Many of the VCA collections draw inspiration from fairy tales and exotic locales, infusing each piece with a narrative. The brand's Alhambra collection, for instance, features the iconic quatrefoil motif inspired by the four-leaf clover, symbolizing luck, health, fortune, and love. This mix of artistic expression and meaningful storytelling adds a unique depth to their designs, making Van Cleef & Arpels’ creations wearable works of art that resonate on an emotional level.
In order to make this prestigious jewelry affordable not only for a prestige clientele, Nadine Krakov Collection offers a wide selection of estate Van Cleef & Arpels jewelry without the high markups.
Shop for our Van Cleef & Arpels ring collection, Van Cleef & Arpels necklace and VCA earrings.
About snake jewelry
Snake jewelry has been around since ancient times. Snake is one of the most diverse mythological symbols. Depending on the culture, snake jewelry meaning varies from a symbol of rebirth and transformation to immortality, healing, and fertility.
Serpent jewelry was extremely popular during Art Nouveau period. Being a part of the nature, snake motif was just right for jewelry design of that time. Many of the diamond or colored gemstone eyed snake rings, wrapped around gold snake bracelets and Art Nouveau necklaces came from that era.
For the next fifty years snake as an element for jewelry making was gradually losing its popularity. It started thriving again in 1960s, when such designers as Cartier, Bulgari and Boucheron started to implement the reptile shape in their collections.
Those collections were approved by many celebrities and jewelry aficionados. Since then, snake jewelry has never gone out of style. Today wearing a snake piece means to wear something cool, powerful, and edgy.