Now, don't get me wrong, diamonds are very special, but they are not my favourite stone. Not that I dislike them, it is just that there are far too many big rocks in unimaginative settings that have rather tainted my view of this most valuable of stones. But the other day I had a diamond revelation. And it came to me by way of James de Givenchy, Creative Director at Sotheby's Diamonds. While I was ecstatic over the "Spray" necklace that sits on the neck as lightly as sun on the surf and was ready to marry the first aged billionaire who came my way for the Durian Fruit earrings, I was inclined to be less enthusiastic as a black velvet tray of more traditional solitaire diamond rings arrived. I picked up a sizable pear-shaped ring and was about to put it back down again when James de Givenchy said to me: "Try it on upside down, it will fit just nicely on your pinkie finger." And so I did. The fine diamond-set coil, no wider than the tendril of a grape vine, easily slipped onto my finger and the flat, pear-cut diamond happily nestled into the little dip in between my knuckles. I held my hand out to have a look and there it was. My diamond epiphany. I looked in the mirror on the desk and I felt like an Indian princess, a Grecian goddess and the most elegant woman in the world all at once. Never has a diamond had this mind-warping effect on me. Rather than sitting proud on the finger, this design allows the diamond to curl up and rest graciously against the back of your hand. The diamond was set so deftly that it looked as limpid as a drop of water magically suspended over my hand. It was so beautiful, unexpected and original that I actually gasped. A quick shake of the head to bring me back to my senses and reluctantly I took the ring off. As it passed my finger joint it needed an extra tug to come free. I handed back the ring and loooked again in the mirror. It was the same old me. Never mind, the moment was sublime. And this is why I think James de Givenchy is such a genius of a designer. He can take hard, cold gold and perfectly faceted diamonds and turn them into a necklace that looks as delicate and fresh as a budding branch just brought in from the garden. Or a pair of earrings that catch the light like a million fireflies. The smallest diamonds look as ephemeral as a dusting of snow on a bright winter's morning. In his hands, rubber is an elegant foil to highly valuable diamonds and melted-down guns provide an interesting silver hue to off-set that oh-so perfect diamond. And that is what design brilliance is about: making us see things in a different light. Now where is that aged billionaire?
