Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Tear Drop Earrings
View Similar Items
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Tear Drop Earrings
About the Item
- Creator:
- Metal:
- Weight:9.3 g
- Dimensions:Height: 1.13 in (28.71 mm)
- Style:
- Place of Origin:United States
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Circa 1980s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Litchfield, CT
- Reference Number:Seller: 215611stDibs: LU2307980882
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
In an era of social upheaval, venerable Tiffany & Co. designer Elsa Peretti reimagined diamonds as jewelry that working women bought for themselves rather than receiving it from a suitor.
By the time the Italian-born Peretti (1940–2021) arrived in New York City, she’d already studied design in Rome, worked for a Milanese architect and taught Italian, French and skiing in Switzerland. She settled on interior design as her potential career path but then chose an altogether different route: modeling. Peretti modeled in Barcelona, Spain, and on the advice of Wilhelmina Cooper — a former model who’d by then founded Wilhelmina Modeling Agency — moved to Manhattan in 1968. When she relocated, Peretti was inspired to pick up jewelry design.
After modeling for designer Halston, the undisputed fashion king of Studio 54, Peretti became his close friend and collaborator, eventually creating jewelry and teardrop-shaped perfume bottles for him. By way of her association with Halston, Peretti took to the disco scene, flourishing in a social circle that included artist Andy Warhol and fashion designer Giorgio di Sant’Angelo.
It wasn’t long before models on di Sant’Angelo’s runway were donning two-inch sterling-silver vases, complete with a rose stem, suspended on leather thongs around their necks. The accessory was Peretti’s inaugural piece of jewelry — she designed it in 1969 after finding a flower vase at a flea market. It was hardly the only time that Peretti found motifs in nature and in organic forms. In the years that followed, her Bean pendant necklace, Starfish earrings and other sensuous accessories would draw on human emotion as well as the natural world around her. Each evocative and wholly versatile design is universally adored decades later, and each was made for a storied American jewelry house with which Peretti would be associated for nearly 50 years.
It was Halston who introduced Peretti to Tiffany & Co. She had her own boutique at Bloomingdale’s by 1972, and her partnership with the firm, which signed the venturesome and unorthodox designer to an exclusive contract in 1974, would cement her place in the lofty annals of jewelry legend. Peretti’s simple but sophisticated designs — the Teardrop collection, her minimalist Diamonds by the Yard necklace and Open Heart ring, to name a few — elevated sterling silver, previously considered unsuitable for fine jewelry, and created an enthusiastic young audience for Tiffany’s offerings. In 1977, Peretti’s designs earned the jewelry house more than $6 million. (In some years, her work has accounted for 10 percent of the company’s sales.)
In 2012, Peretti signed a 20-year, $47.3 million contract with Tiffany & Co., but she passed away in 2021, at age 80. Today, her designs are in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the British Museum.
Find an exquisite collection of Elsa Peretti jewelry today on 1stDibs.
- Platinum Diamonds by the Yard Sprinkle Necklace by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & CoBy Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.Located in Litchfield, CTCirca 1980s, Platinum, by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. New York. This Diamonds by the Yard necklace is a fine example of Poretti's iconic Tiffany design. Uncommon in platinum, it is set with 3.0 carats of F-G colored, VS clarity diamonds (12 stones). Worn long, doubled, or as part of a multiples look, it stands out as exceptional fashion Tiffany style. Excellent condition. Quote: “I wanted to make diamonds a little more casual. -Elsa Peretti" Remark: “Only Tiffany can...Category
Vintage 1980s American Link Necklaces
MaterialsDiamond, Platinum
$18,300Free Shipping - Tiffany & Co. Diamond-set HoopsBy Tiffany & Co.Located in Litchfield, CTCirca 2005, 18k, by Tiffany & Co., New York. These chic diamond hoops by Tiffany & Co. are all about the diamonds! Set with 2.79 carats of brilliant white diamonds (G color VS clari...Category
Early 2000s American Hoop Earrings
MaterialsDiamond, White Gold, 18k Gold
- Elsa Peretti Diamonds by the YardBy Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.Located in Litchfield, CTCirca 2000s, 18k, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., New York. Diamonds by the Yard is one of Elsa Peretti's most iconic designs for Tiffany. Infinitely wearable at sixteen and a half inches long and set with 1.25 carats of fine white diamonds (5 Stones, F color VS clarity), this eighteen-karat yellow gold necklace is gorgeous. Well-made to Tiffany's high standards, it is in excellent condition. Remark: “Only Tiffany can...Category
2010s American Chain Necklaces
MaterialsDiamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
- Tiffany & Co. Stunning Seventies EarringsBy Tiffany & Co.Located in Litchfield, CTCirca 1970s, 18k, by Tiffany & Co. Spectacularly modern and fantastically seventies, these earrings are all about style, all about look, all about life in a Slim Aarons photograph! T...Category
Vintage 1970s American Drop Earrings
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Tiffany & Co. Larger Yellow Gold Vannerie EarringsBy Tiffany & Co.Located in Litchfield, CTCirca 1980s, 18k, by Tiffany & Co. When you look up "well dressed" in the dictionary, THESE are the earrings in the picture! The Vannerie collection is smart, well-tailored jewelry fashion at its Tiffany & Co. wearable best. As with all Tiffany jewelry, they are beautifully made. Comes with authentic Tiffany box...Category
Vintage 1980s American Clip-on Earrings
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Charles Perry for Tiffany & Co. Sculptural PendantLocated in Litchfield, CTCirca 1979, 18k, by Charles O. Perry for Tiffany & Co, New York. In the late seventies, Tiffany produced wearable 18k yellow gold miniatures of renowned artist Charles Perry's sculpt...Category
Vintage 1970s American Pendant Necklaces
Materials18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Tiffany & Co. Elsa Peretti Gold EarringsBy Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.Located in New York, NYPair of 18k gold indented design earrings, by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Earrings are 23mm in diameter. Marked: Tiffany & Co, Elsa Peretti, Spain, 750. Weight - 17 grams.Category
20th Century Spanish More Earrings
MaterialsGold
- Tiffany & Co. Elsa Peretti Diamond Drop EarringsBy Tiffany & Co.Located in Bishop's Stortford, HertfordshireThese Earrings by Tiffany & Co are from their Elsa Peretti Collection. They feature pear and round brilliant cut diamonds. Accompanied by a Tiffany & Co Box. ITEM CONDITION Excellen...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Contemporary Drop Earrings
MaterialsDiamond, White Gold
- Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Ear Cuffs or EarringsBy Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.Located in Philadelphia, PAA fine pair of ear cuffs. By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. In sterling silver. Together with theri original pouch. Simply a wonderful pair of earrings! Date: 20th Century Over...Category
20th Century Modern Hoop Earrings
MaterialsSterling Silver
- Tiffany & Co. 18 Karat Gold Elsa Peretti “Bean” EarringsBy Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.Located in Palm Desert, CATiffany & Co. 18k Yellow Gold Elsa Peretti “Bean” Earrings. Elsa Peretti's sensual, organic shapes delight the eye. Peretti explores nature ...Category
1990s French Contemporary Clip-on Earrings
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
- Tiffany & Co. Elsa Peretti Diamond 18k Yellow Gold Hoop EarringsBy Tiffany & Co.Located in Dubai, Al Qouz 2Discover elegance with Tiffany & Co.'s Elsa Peretti hoop earrings. Crafted from 18k yellow gold, these hoops exude timeless beauty. Each earring features delicate diamonds, adding a ...Category
2010s Italian Hoop Earrings
MaterialsDiamond, Yellow Gold
- Exquisite Elsa Peretti Large Hoop Earrings - Tiffany & Co. 18K White GoldBy Elsa PerettiLocated in New York, NYStep into the world of luxury with these stunning Elsa Peretti-designed Large Hoop Earrings from the iconic Tiffany & Co. collection. Each earring is meticulously crafted from lustro...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Hoop Earrings
MaterialsGold, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold