Stepwell Collection - Inspiration
"The recurring element of the collection, the patented diamond setting collet, is inspired by the Indian architecture of the stepwells. Most common in the arid areas such as Rajasthan the stepwells - in local language Baoli - are wells in which the water will be reached by sets of steps descending to the water level. It was the work of women climbing down several stories deep into the earth to bring up the essential water to their families. The recurring work made stepwells a quintessential female meeting place, despite the physical exhaustion of the climb and heavy load, a retreat from the blazing heat outside into the cool depth of earth. This collection recounts the age old story for women of today in a fresh and essential form language, connecting the past with the future.
The patented setting consists of four baguette cut diamonds, a step-cut befitting the inspiration theme, which are set in an unusual innovative manner around a centre brilliant cut diamond. Each baguette diamond is set at a slant, revolving around the centre. The high technical challenge is to ensure a consistent levelling and perfect placement of the inclined stones as well as balancing out typical inaccuracies of the baguette cut, inclined towards trapeze, to match the perfect geometry of the outer square. Another challenge for the setter is the inaccessibility of the inside areas for precise shaping of the prongs after hammering. We overcame the challenges by casting the diamonds in metal directly. The smart use of this mass manufacturing technique was enabled by using a high grade of diamond quality to ensure the diamonds could take the furnace heat. An ‘Azure cut’ window of the setting area behind the stones ensured that polishing tools could reach to smooth the casting surface and bring out the full lustre of the diamonds. The entire collection comprises earrings, neckwear, wrist wear and rings, either set in white gold to underline the freshness and water, or in rose gold resembling the earthy colour of the stones carved to construct the stepwells. "
Stepwell Collection - Construction
Salient features & nuances in manufacturing:
- Use of rectangular shaped diamonds (baguettes) & round brilliant cut diamond to mimic the shape of ancient Indian structure “The Step well”.
- Four baguette diamonds are set in a square shaped formation in an inclined plane to each other to mimic the effect of stairs, while round brilliant cut diamond, set in the center of the square, mimics the water in the well.
- The walls holding the baguette diamonds in place are flattened on top with a step in between them to replicate the stairs, while the center round diamond is also held in place with flattened triangular shaped metal elements, replicating the pool of water.
