ICONS, Refreshed

Some things never go out of style. In an homage to creative evolution, Harper’s Bazaar looks back at some of the seminal pieces in fashion history and how they’ve been updated for modern day.

- Patty Huntington.

THE TUTTI FRUTTI JEWELLERY

When Jacques Cartier returned from Paris after his visits to India, he brought with him rich, precious stones and the memory of even richer colours that were unlike the pale shades under the European sun.

And so, he and brother Louis Cartier, who were both fascinated by Indian culture, set to the task to recreate the magnificence of India’s sparkle. So emerged the vivid pieces made with “pierres de couleur” or coloured stones, in the 1920s and ’30s, which began to be called Tutti Frutti in the ’70s. Former Editor of Harper’s Bazaar Paris, Heiress Daisy Fellowes, popularised the design when, in 1936, she commissioned a colourful necklace with sapphires (which were considered unlucky in India). The Cartier ‘Collier Hindou’ as it was known, created a stir back then, and in 1991, it came up for auction at Sotheby’s in Geneva where it sold for over ₹21 crore.

THE CHIFFON SARI

The glamorous Maharani Gayatri Devi of Jaipur is credited with making the delicate chiffon sari into a fashion statement, but the style was originally introduced by her mother, Maharani Indira Devi of Cooch Behar [18921968]. The trailblazing Indira Devi first saw the fabric during a visit to Lyon, France—which was made in pure silk at the time—and decided to turn it into the traditional drape with a border. Later, her daughter continued the trend and became synonymous with the elegance of draping it around the shoulders. The style continues till date, especially within the royal circles of India.

THE PR ADA TOTE