Like the most devoted paramour, true design resists time itself. Amid the flashiest viral must-haves or the wildest overhyped obsessions to make headlines, few collections have defined eras quite like Cartier’s LOVE Bracelet.
Since 1969, the minimalistic adornment has graced the wrists of Hollywood royalty and literal royalty alike…and by its own design. Upon its unveiling, Cartier famously gifted it to power couples of the era, making it less an accessory and more of an initiation into love’s most exclusive club. Old Hollywood icons, famed for their on-screen chemistry and off-screen passion, were bejeweled in shining emeralds and glistening LOVE. The heartbreak heroines and original it-girls of the 1970s wore theirs alongside silver screen legends, while Europe’s most glamorous duos collected matching sets as tokens of devotion. From the red carpet to Riviera yachts, the bracelet became shorthand for romance’s most glamorous expression.
Like all good love stories, its allure never waned. By the 1990s and early 2000s, the bracelet’s golden grip only tightened. From boundary-breaking actors adding philanthropic credits to their names, to visionary female filmmakers manufacturing an entirely new cinematic aesthetic, its wearers evolved with the times yet remained bound by the same golden symbol. Modern muses continued the tradition, stepping from stages and screens into Cartier’s orbit to declare that “Love is All”. Eye-catching? Yes. Overexposed? Never. Though decades apart, each star was an equal proof that passion speaks loudest in gold.
In a decade fueled by free spirits and fearless desire, it was no surprise the world fell hard for a bracelet that dared to make commitment chic. The illustrious brainchild of the High Jewelry house with Old World roots, the LOVE Bracelet was conceived in the late ’60s with a wink and a nod to New York’s free love revolution. Visible screws. A bold clasp. An elegant black-and-white debut of two hands locking together, promising devotion in a single image.
The bracelet design was decidedly simple, and yet the defining reason it stood out amongst its maximalist bangle and flashy cocktail ring contemporaries: two parts, united by a matching screwdriver, designed to be worn, well, forever. It’s just like they say: “till death do us part.” Or, you know, until it’s time to remix your bracelet stack.
Over five decades later, the Maison continues to expand its LOVE legacy. Cartier revisits the emblematic motif with LOVE Unlimited, a new collection of flexible bands and ridged rings in rose, yellow, and white gold. Now designed to bend and shift with the wearer, the bracelets are crafted with 200 miniature components, featuring a new clasp that allows it to be worn in unlimited variations, be it as a bracelet or necklace.
For Cartier, LOVE is a beautifully designed loop: no beginning, no end, and most evidently now, staying firmly put. After all, perhaps love (in all its forms) is still the greatest luxury of all. That being said, I’ll take mine in gold.
Discover the latest treasures from Cartier here.
