Few patterns are as recognisable as Louis Vuitton’s checkerboard damier print. The repeated square motif was created in 1888 (fittingly, it evokes a sense of infinity) to combat counterfeits, and has become one of the house’s visual calling cards. Two years ago, the maison painted outside of its canvas and expanded this signature into fine jewellery with the Le Damier de Louis Vuitton collection. Eight new styles join the line this season, including diamond-studded earrings, bracelets, and a sliding pendant necklace.
Le Damier de Louis Vuitton is defined by genderless design, with a versatility that can be styled in many ways. Its core style, a flexible bracelet, was inspired by the tennis bracelet—the simple style of a diamond line worn on the wrist made popular by American tennis player Chris Evert. In the hands of Louis Vuitton, this easygoing style of jewellery was melded with the house’s graphic checkerboard pattern to create alternating diamond-set and polished gold squares.
The latest earrings in the Damier collection are large hoop styles, crafted in a choice of yellow, white, or rose gold, each pair set with 96 diamonds. It sizes up the collection’s existing small hoop offering, taking the earrings from a subtle signature to a sculptural statement piece. While the smaller hoops are more suitable for everyday wear, the new larger counterparts are perfect for a more dramatic evening look.
New ear cuffs shift the Damier higher up the ear for the first time, curving to hug its contour as opposed to wearing flat on the lobe. There are two versions: a single two-row gold and diamond loop, and a layered two-band version which adds a smooth upper band in polished gold.
On the wrist, Le Damier de Louis Vuitton introduces two contrasting moods. A delicate yellow gold chain bracelet offers a quieter interpretation of the Damier with a single charm detail; while a voluminous new two-row cuff showcases the motif at a bold expression with over 100 diamonds in the design.
The most modern addition comes in the form of a sliding necklace. Set on a gold chain with a sliding Damier pendant, the necklace can be adjusted to sit higher up on the neck for a more structured look or worn lower for something more draped and relaxed.
The fluidity behind each piece is entirely intentional. Le Damier de Louis Vuitton’s core bracelet style is hand-assembled, requiring between 50 and 70 individual links to allow its design to move in tandem with the wearer rather than staying rigid. Even on designs where the Damier motif or pendant is solid, Louis Vuitton has incorporated modern ways of wearing them so they can be styled in different ways. Once a canvas pattern stretched across a trunk’s surface, the Damier now bends and curves with a newfound softness.
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton chain bracelet in yellow gold with diamonds, $7,800
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton double earcuff in yellow gold with diamonds, $7,650
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton earcuff in rose gold with diamonds, $5,100
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton large hoops in rose gold with diamonds, $24,000
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton large hoops in white gold with diamonds, $25,100
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton large hoops in yellow gold with diamonds, $24,000
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Le Damier de Louis Vuitton long pendant in yellow gold with diamonds, $22,500
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