NouvelleBox Fall Jewelry Book Round-up

1. THE AGE OF GRANDEUR

When a new tome by David Bennett and Daniela Mascetti arrives for me to review, I don’t wait. I immediately open it and am completely drawn in by the breadth and depth of their knowledge and the awe-inspiring jewelry featured within their works. Such is the case with their new book The Age of Grandeur (ACC Artbooks, October 2025), which is indeed a grand celebration of 19th-century jewelry. Bennett and Mascetti follow the transformations in style throughout this time period: Napoleonic classicism, Victorian sentimentality, memorial jewelry and its archaeological revival period, as well as the revival of Gothic and Renaissance styles, and the naturalist and rebellious forms of the Art Nouveau movement.

Over 250 stunning new photographs are featured throughout the book. This definitive work comes from the authors of Understanding Jewellery, one of the most widely read, referenced, and reprinted jewelry books in this genre. The Age of Grandeur zooms in exclusively on the 19th century, offering a standalone volume that relates back to and complements the earlier book. What I found most appealing was that it provided broader insights and new visuals. This is a must-have for the duo’s returning readers and newcomers to their work.

David Bennett is the former Worldwide Chairman of Sotheby’s Jewellery Division. He presided over legendary, record-breaking auctions during his 42-year career, such as The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor (1987), The Princely Collections of Thurn und Taxis (1992), and Royal Jewels from the Bourbon-Parma Family (2018). Daniela Mascetti joined Sotheby’s in 1980 and later became Jewellery Chairman of Europe, contributing to the research and curation of landmark sales such as The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor and the collections of Maria Callas and Gina Lollobrigida.

Photo: Gold, enamel, and diamond bracelet, French, 1870s. (© ACC Artbooks)

2. JOURNEY OF A JEWELER

Brazilian-born Silvia Furmanovich, who works between São Paulo and New York City, has continually delighted and surprised jewelry press, retailers, and collectors with age-old crafts and techniques from around the globe, mixed with precious gemstones for an inventively artistic approach to modern design in earrings, rings, brooches, and necklaces.

In Journey of a Jeweler (Rizzoli, September 2024), by Silvia Furmanovich and Melanie Grant, with a foreword by Town & Country Editor-in-Chief Stellene Volandes, the story unfolds through striking photographs, Furmanovich’s memories, and her ability to translate unconventional materials and techniques into timeless, one-of-a-kind pieces that are both breathtaking and collectible.

It explores how Furmanovich has traveled to different countries and absorbed the cultures and crafts distinctive to each place she has visited, and how the artisans she has collaborated with have inspired her. She has interpreted and transformed traditional crafts such as Brazilian marquetry, miniature painting from India, and bamboo work from Japan into jewelry that is like no other, establishing her as one of the most revered artists in the industry today.

Photo: Silvia Furmanovich Butterfly Earrings in wood marquetry set in yellow gold with citrines, fire opals, and diamonds (© Rizzoli)

3. RADIANCE AND REVERIE: JEWELS FROM THE COLLECTION OF NEIL LANE

I have interviewed Neil Lane numerous times for various magazine articles and profiles, as well as for one of my own books, If These Jewels Could Talk (ACC Artbooks, 2015). So when I learned that Radiance and Reverie: Jewels from the Collection of Neil Lane (Rizzoli Electa, September 30, 2025) was to be released, I was thrilled to be able to read and see the full span of his personal collection (which I had heard so much about and included in some of my writings) featured in a beautifully illustrated book written by Emily Stoehrer, Senior Curator of Jewelry at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and Diane C. Wright, Senior Curator of Glass and Contemporary Craft at the Toledo Museum of Art, with contributions from Marion Fasel, author Mayukh Sen, and Claudine Seroussi Bretagne, jewelry historian and PhD candidate at the Courtauld Institute of Art

This glorious book features more than 150 pieces and accompanies the first exhibition of the Hollywood jeweler’s breathtaking collection, organized by the Toledo Museum of Art (October 18, 2025, through January 18, 2026). It showcases Lane’s storied jewels from the 1850s through Hollywood’s golden age and works by some of the leading jewelers of the 19th and 20th centuries — pieces owned and worn on screen by famed stars such as Mae West and Myrna Loy.

It also traces Lane’s beginnings, growing up in Brooklyn, New York; his travels to Paris and his flea market shopping; and his eventual arrival in Los Angeles, where he continued to amass his collection of pieces from Cartier, Castellani, Paul Flato, Jean Fouquet, Marcus & Co., Louis C. Tiffany, Tiffany & Co., and Van Cleef & Arpels. He went on to bejewel celebrities for videos, films, and red carpet events, including Madonna, Renée Zellweger, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Garner, and Zoë Saldaña.

Photo: Mae West’s 1930s platinum 150-carat aquamarine and diamond pendant brooch; platinum, aquamarine, and diamond ring and bracelet. Collection of Neil Lane. Photograph © Lendon Flanagan. (© Rizzoli Electa)

4. WATCH SPOTTING: THE COLLECTORS

Watch Spotting: The Collectors by Rhonda Riche is for the reader/watch afficionado who has an affinity not only for high end timepieces, but for pop culture, celebrity backstories, and why certain collectors choose the pieces they do. Riche transports the reader into the world of 30 prominent icons and shows how watches have become personal expressions of identity for musicians, actors, athletes, and artists alike.

Riche explores how Pharrell Williams, Rihanna, Jay-Z, and Drake have transformed the meaning of luxury watches into symbols of success, creativity, and individuality. The book features brands like Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Rolex throughout. She also offers insight into collectors such as Taylor Swift, David and Victoria Beckham and delves back into history to explore Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, Diana, Princess of Wales, Elton John and Marlon Brando’s passion for timepieces.

Rhonda Riche is a Toronto-based writer, editor, and cultural commentator. As Editor-at-Large for Watchonista and a contributor to publications including The Globe and Mail, Sotheby’s Insights, and CBC Radio, Riche brings a seasoned perspective to the world of watches and contemporary culture.

Spread on David Beckman (© ACC Artbooks)

5. DINH VAN: JEWELRY SCULPTOR

Celebrating the brand’s sixtieth anniversary, Dinh Van: Jewelry Sculptor by Bérénice Geoffroy-Schneiter (Flammarion, November 2025) delves into the history of the trailblazing French jewelry designer Jean Dinh Van, who began his career in 1965. It features his iconic designs that were radical and modern and played with the traditional codes of Paris’s renowned High Jewelry district, Place Vendôme. The monograph guides the reader through his aesthetic — how he brought jewelry to the street, his collaborations with artists and couturiers, and how Maison Dinh Van continues to carry on his legacy, adapting his inspiration and sensibilities today.

Through photos and text, the book illustrates Dinh Van’s works in metal — his iconic pieces derived from ordinary objects: ID tags, thumb tags, razor blades, handcuffs, and his interpretation of the chain link, which is still going strong in contemporary times. It also features his collaborations with Pierre Cardin, Paco Rabanne, and Thierry Mugler.

The author, Bérénice Geoffroy-Schneiter, is a journalist and art historian and has published many books, including Gold: The Impossible Collection (2022), Van Cleef & Arpels (2014), Asian Jewelry (2012), and Talk About Tribal Art (2013).

Photo: Serrure bangle, white gold, 1970s, © Archives Dinh Van, from Dinh Van, (© Flammarion)

6. BULGARI POLYCHROMA

The composition of color and the vivid hues of gemstones have long been a source of inspiration for the multi-generational company Bulgari. This new volume, Bulgari: Polychroma, by author and journalist Kassia St. Clair (Rizzoli, October 2025), features the newest high jewelry collection by the renowned Italian house, famous for its ability to evolve and change with the times and to provide superlative craftsmanship, exceptional innovation, and design.

One hundred and fifty one-of-a-kind pieces from the collection are shown throughout the book, exploring the link between color and creation, which lies at the heart of the brand’s DNA. The beauty of the jewels, along with the text and layout of this volume, captures the pieces in all their glorious vibrancy.

Photo: Two high jewelry Polychroma necklaces and a bracelet featuring multi-colored gemstones and diamonds (© Rizzoli)

7. VIVIENNE WESTWOOD & JEWELLERY

Vivienne Westwood & Jewellery by fashion journalist Alexander Fury (Thames & Hudson, December 2025) delves into the iconic English designer’s aesthetic and how it translates from fashion to jewelry. Always rebellious in nature, Westwood’s world features recurring motifs, techniques, and inspirations that comprise her signature style. This informative and inspirational book weaves together how her design codes spilled over into her jewelry and how the two go hand in hand, whether she herself is wearing her pieces, they are shown on the catwalks with her seasonal collections, or in still life photography.

Within the pages, we get a glimpse of 200 pieces, including her most well-known: the safety pin brooch, hand-strung ‘broken’ pearl necklace, the orb crystal, the punk-inspired Hardcore Paperclip Earrings, and Chaos Necklace, to name just a few of the imaginative styles shown by theme throughout the tome. Every classification of jewelry is covered from tiaras and nose rings to necklaces, earrings, brooches, bracelets, and rings and serves to reveal the house’s rich heritage.

Alexander Fury is a fashion journalist, author, and critic. He is the fashion features director of AnOther Magazine and the men’s critic of the Financial Times newspaper. Previously, he was made the first chief fashion correspondent at T: The New York Times Style Magazine. He is also the author of Vivienne Westwood Catwalk.

Photo: Fulco Necklace (Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood “7” AW 19/20). (© Philippe Lacombe)

8. MARCUS & CO.: THREE GENERATIONS OF NEW YORK JEWELERS

I have long marveled at the pieces from the American jewelry house Marcus & Co., particularly their designs during the Art Nouveau period. A new book, Marcus & Co.: Three Generations of New York Jewelers (Arnoldsche Art Publishers, November 2025), by co-authors Sheila Barron Smithie and Beth Carver — between them curators, historians, authors, and appraisers — explores the family-owned firm (1892–1942), their impact on the U.S. and European elite markets, and the Gilded Age families such as the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers, as well as many others. Their headquarters was on Fifth Avenue in New York City, near Tiffany & Co. and Cartier.

Their work, which spanned both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods, was sought after on both sides of the Atlantic. They are most renowned for their plique-à-jour enamel jewels of the early 1900s, which featured extravagant shapes, naturalistic motifs, and a combination of colors that were — and still are — collectors’ dream jewels. In later years, they focused on Indian influences as well as antique pieces inspired by archaeological discoveries of the time.

The company remained popular throughout the 1950s; therefore, the book also traces the impact of global events such as the Gold Rush, the Great Depression, and World War II. This tome is lavishly illustrated with jewels (many provided by Macklowe Gallery), period images, and design drawings, and acts as an important reference work for historians, collectors, and jewelry enthusiasts.

Photo: Plique-à-jour enamel iris brooch, ca. 1905–1906 courtesy of Macklowe Gallery. Photo credit: Bret Wills. (© Arnoldsche Art Publishers)

9. THE SUPER SMALLS SUPER BOOK OF GEMS: BIRTHSTONE MAGIC, SCIENCE, FACTS, AND FUN

The Super Smalls Super Book of Gems: Birthstone Magic, Science, Facts, and Fun (Union Square & Co., October 2025) is written by the founders and sisters Maria Dueñas Jacobs and Bianca Gottesman of the beloved kid’s jewelry brand, Super Smalls. Like the brand, the book is filled with a fun-filled world of gems, glitter, fun and magic. “This book was born out of our mission to inspire creativity, imagination, and wonder,” says Dueñas Jacobs. “It’s meant to be flipped through again and again—by kids, parents, and anyone who loves beautiful gems and jewelry.”

The book features a birthstone-by-birthstone guide to symbolism, color, and trivia, as well as engaging science lessons exploring the worlds of gemology, geology, and diamond anatomy, accompanied by photography and illustrations.

What makes it even more desirable are the contributions from renowned designers and iconic brands, including Van Cleef & Arpels, Irene Neuwirth, Marlo Laz, to name just a few. For ‘small’ readers, the book is engaging and offers up the information in a playful imaginative format.

Additionally Union Square Gifts will offer the following:

-Super Sticker Creations: Collage and Create Your Own Sticker Art

-Super Gem Bingo: Get Your Gems in a Row to Win Big!

-Super DIY Card Kit: Many Thanks!

-Super DIY Card Kit: Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Super Smalls will also be releasing the Gemstone Rock Box and the Super Gems Charm Bracelet.

Inside spread (Union Square & Co.)

10. THE JEWELRY BOOK

The Jewelry Book (Phaidon, October 2025), edited by Melanie Grant in collaboration with an international panel of experts and a host of top-notch jewelry journalists, is a compilation spanning over two centuries of the icons who have influenced and shaped the jewelry world. Designers, celebrities, collectors, and style-setters all mingle together in this tome that weaves the cultural, artistic, and social connections that have inspired Grant to conceive this innovative approach to a coffee-table book — one that will be referred to again and again.

Arranged in A-to-Z order, this creatively illustrated volume features over 300 renowned brands alongside stars and independent designers next to heritage houses. Throughout the book, you will find houses and designers such as Boucheron, Buccellati, Cartier, René Lalique, Elsa Peretti, James de Givenchy, Messika, Wallace Chan, Hemmerle, Tiffany & Co., and Van Cleef & Arpels, as well as celebrities in music, film, and style including Rihanna, Elizabeth Taylor, Marilyn Monroe, Iris Apfel, and Diana Vreeland.

Editor Melanie Grant is a luxury writer, curator, and author based in London. She published her first book, Coveted, in 2020 and served as Executive Director for the Responsible Jewellery Council from 2023 to 2025, stepping into an Executive Consultant role in early 2025.

Inside the book: photo – Messika next to Mikimoto. (© Phaidon)

11. THE MODERN GUIDE TO VINTAGE JEWELLERY

And now, if I could be so bold as to mention my own book, The Modern Guide to Vintage Jewellery (ACC Artbooks, October 2025). It picks up from, and serves as a companion to the previous The Modern Guide to Antique Jewellery (ACC Artbooks, 2022). With this volume, I begin with the 1930s and trace the evolution of jewelry design through the 1980s. Through vivid photography and an anecdotal, down-to-earth style of writing, I cover the modern innovations of the 1930s, the wartime ingenuity of the ’40s, the charm-laden optimism of the ’50s, the rebellious and revolutionary times of the ’60s, the glitter and glamour of the ’70s, and the confident sophistication of the early ’80s.

Throughout, I highlight the renowned houses and jewelers that helped define each decade. These include, but are not limited to, Cartier, Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels, Bulgari, Verdura, David Webb, and Aldo Cipullo — alongside the pioneering women who reshaped the industry in the 1930s and again in the 1970s–80s, including Suzanne Belperron, Juliette Moutard, Jeanne Toussaint, Elsa Peretti, Angela Cummings, and Marina B. Additionally, I delve deeply into the cultural shifts of each era, which influenced the style signatures, materials, and fine craftsmanship that define vintage jewelry.

As a film geek from an early age, I have long been captivated by the glamour of Hollywood’s heyday and the way jewelry played a role in shaping various style-setting actresses’ on-screen identities. There is also a chapter on this topic, illustrated by archival photos of the stars and the fabulous jewelry they owned and wore in the movies. Guidance on how to wear, what to look for, and how to preserve vintage jewelry is provided, creating an accessible tool that I hope will resonate with today’s starter and consummate collectors.

Photo: Van Cleef & Arpels “Flower” clip, 1936. Platinum, yellow gold, Mystery Set rubies, diamonds. Van Cleef & Arpels Collection. © Van Cleef & Arpels SA. (© ACC Artbooks)