What's New, Pussycat?

In an exclusive interview, Boucheron creative director Claire Choisne tells us how she immortalised Wladimir, the beloved Boucheron family pet, in the house’s latest novelties collection, and how her own cat served as a model during the design process

- Hillary Kang

Big cats are perennial icons in the world of fine jewellery – think leopards, tigers, lions. But for French jewellery brand Boucheron’s latest novelties collection, they’re drawing inspiration from a feline a little closer to home: Namely, from the humble housecat.

Wladimir Novelties is the Maison’s latest collection of jewellery. The eponymous collection pays tribute to the Boucheron family’s pet cat Wladimir; the diamond-loving Persian cat was said to be a mainstay at Boucheron’s historic boutique at 26 Place Vendôme, welcoming customers and bringing a comforting sense of domesticity and warmth to the boutique.

So it’s serendipitous that Boucheron’s current Creative Director, Claire Choisne, is a big animal lover. She owns two cats. One of them, a tomcat named Grichka, is the same breed as Wladimir himself; in fact, his furry countenance served as a valuable reference point for Boucheron’s designers.