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For many, the historical drama
television series Downton Abbey by Julian Fellowes, was
truly masterful. The show was set in circa 1912 to 1926 and
depicts the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and
their domestic servants in the post Edwardian era. Their
lives revolved around major world events as in the sinking
of the Titanic and the First World War.
Among the numerous accolades,
including a Golden Globe Award, the series, was in my eyes a
fabulous view into historical clothing and jewelry. Watching
the styles change season to season was very informative.
The actors were taught everything
from dancing and table manners to the mannerisms of the day.
Of course, the jewelry was very intriguing. The one piece
that stood out the most to me was the Cartier-inspired
tassel sautoir. Andrew Prince, a designer with an
encyclopedic knowledge of jewelry history, was hired to
create the tiaras and jewelry. His sense of style and
accuracy is truly amazing. Mary Crawley wore the necklace in
two ways, in the front and also in the back for a formal
occasion. Stunning.
The Downton
Tassel is inspired by the
work of Andrew Prince and the beautiful jewelry that he
created for the show. Pearls in the 1920’s were all the
rage, so I created a long, beautiful pearl chain (called a
sautoir) ending with a bezeled cushion cut CZ and a fabulous
swinging tassel. Let’s get our flapper on!
The chain
is 30” long plus 4 ½” for the CZ and the tassel
embellishment.
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