From the start, Valérie Messika’s designs were edgy and unexpected. Soon after founding her namesake fine jewelry house in 2005, the artistic innovator introduced her hit Move bracelet, featuring three brilliant-cut diamonds that glide up and down gleaming tracks.
She followed that with hip pieces like Glam’Azone Double ring and Gatsby multi-hoop earrings and collaborated on capsules with Gigi Hadid. Her downtown diamond aesthetic resonated with tastemakers across the globe.
Messika added High Jewelry in 2013 and quickly became an A-list mainstay. The brand’s first collaboration with Kate Moss was unveiled in 2020 and stars including Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Emma Stone, Selena Gomez, Kerry Washington, Olivia Munn and Serena Williams have all rocked the brand’s bold creations on red carpets.
Beyoncé attended the 2020 and 2022 Super Bowls wearing diamond-frosted High Jewelry. In 2023, Rihanna performed at halftime wearing a High Jewelry ear party: the Illusionnistes earring that splits into three parts, the Equilibristes diamond clip, the Magnetic Love earring, the Diamond Illusionnistes clip and part of the Diamond Equalizer earring.
Four years ago, Messika held its first High Jewelry runway show in the gardens of the Ritz hotel in Paris. The event celebrated the maison’s ongoing collaboration with Moss and highlighted diamond, malachite, turquoise and mother-of-pearl creations, from headpieces and fringed necklaces to supersized earrings.
The glittering event is now annual. Last September, Valérie welcomed Cardi B, Natalia Vodianova, Isabelle Adjani, Future, Nina Dobrev, Cole Sprouse, Heidi Klum and the new face of her collection, Lucien Laviscount, to her star-studded front row.
“This show goes beyond jewelry; it embodies the essence of our Maison,” says Messika. “It is an exceptional moment powered by music and fashion. It reflects our energy and singularity, which drive us to continuously create our High Jewelry pieces as true fashion statements.”
She sent out 125 dazzling Midnight Sun Opus II creations, from bib necklaces and cocktail rings to the most modern of accents: lip jewelry, body belts for men and women, headpieces and nail jewels. Most spectacular of all were the Supernature and Fragments of Time diamond rivière necklaces, holding stones measuring up to over 36 carats.
This High Jewelry is low-key cool.