Tim Phin spends 72 hours in Scotland with Van Cleef & Arpels to discover the new fine jewellery collections
Ahead of a beach-hopping European summer, I found myself in Ayrshire, Scotland—a place known less for jewellery and more for Robert Burns and golf—touring flower gardens, drinking single malt whisky, and talking about diamonds with some of the most meticulous craftspeople in the world. It was, of course, a Van Cleef & Arpels trip. A chance to explore the maison’s latest fine jewellery collections, Fleurs d’Hawaï and Flowerlace, in a setting just as romantic as the pieces themselves.
Van Cleef & Arpels has long had a thing for flowers. Their archive includes everything from Art Deco daisies to transformable ruby-studded peonies from the '30s. But these two new collections bring a slightly different energy—one joyful and sun-drenched (Fleurs d’Hawaï), the other elegant and architectural (Flowerlace). And instead of launching them with a flashy runway or big-city gala, the maison flew a small group of us to Dumfries House, part of The King’s Foundation estate, where nature and craftsmanship meet in a very un-Instagram, very real way.
We stayed at Marine Troon, a coastal hotel with vast windows and a misty view of the Firth of Clyde. Think sea breeze, cashmere throws, gumboots in the suitcase, and the kind of slow mornings where you lose track of time. From there, the days were a mix of hands-on demonstrations (lapidary techniques, stone matching, setting), guided garden walks, and whisky tastings.
The point of it all was connection. Between Van Cleef & Arpels and the King’s Foundation, whose ongoing collaboration dates back to 2008. Between the jewellery and the natural world. And—ideally—between us and the spirit of the collections themselves.
The Flowerlace pieces, shown to us in a gallery near the Van Cleef & Arpels Rose Garden, are a study in balance. Lightweight yellow gold structures, inspired by 1930s silhouette clips, have been hollowed out and hand-polished to create openwork flowers that seem to float. ‘We wanted them to feel like ribbon,’ Catherine Rénier, the maison’s CEO, told me, ‘like something light and fluid, but with substance.’ There’s a Between the Finger ring where a small flower kisses a diamond in mid-air, and a pendant with perfectly curved petals that catch the light as you move. They’re deceptively simple—wearable, but the result of serious technical precision. Catherine explained that every curve, every angle of the pistil, is mapped and measured so it falls just-so on the body. As Catherine tells me: ‘Jewellery has to move with you.’
By contrast, Fleurs d’Hawaï is more vocal—in the best way. The pieces come in a mix of aquamarines, rhodolites, citrines, amethysts and peridots, all clustered together in vibrant colourways that feel like garden parties in Capri. They’re joyful without being juvenile. The stones are carefully colour-matched into soft gradient petals, elevated with diamonds and gold, and arranged to evoke lush tropical blooms. The process to pair them is intense. Each petal’s stone is pear-cut, polished, and assessed for tone, depth, and luminosity before being slotted in beside its neighbour. Then comes the setting: all done using lost-wax casting and hand-beading techniques that echo the maison’s high jewellery roots.
It was during a visit to Culzean Castle, walking through a wild postcard of rhododendrons and ferns, that it clicked. Van Cleef & Arpels’ fascination with flora isn’t about florals in the decorative sense. It’s about observing how nature builds—imperfectly, asymmetrically, and with a certain generosity of form. Back at Dumfries House, the jewellery was shown in shadowboxes nestled among actual blooms, and the effect was subtle but surreal. The shadows cast by the gold petals looked hand-drawn, their delicacy more emotional than decorative. Catherine said it was the most moving part of the trip for her. ‘It felt like a conversation between our world and theirs.’ The partnership with the King’s Foundation—spanning everything from rose garden restorations to supporting drawing schools—runs deeper than a one-off activation. It’s about values, Catherine told me: ‘Education, transmission, and craftsmanship.’ You get the sense that, for Van Cleef & Arpels, launching a collection isn’t just about the product. It’s about preserving the ideas behind it.
And, for a handful of us over a few days in Scotland, that idea came into full bloom.
Photography ESTELLE HANANIA
Art Direction GASPARD YURKEVICH & GUIDO VOSS
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