Rome, Late Afternoon, Sun, Close-up of her
Fortuna earrings with rubies and white diamonds. White gold set with 8 cushion-cut rubies with a total of 6.62 carats, white baguette-cut, square-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery Fortuna necklace with rubies and white diamonds. White gold set with 18 cushion-cut rubies with a total of 20.75 carats, white baguette-cut, square-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Cardigan FENDI
Delfina Delettrez Fendi on Karl Lagerfeld, Rome, Fendi and Family
From Chanel intern to family rebel, Delfina Delettrez is now the house of Fendi’s most prominent face with her mother Silvia, the freshly appointed honorary president. As founder of the High Jewellery collection, she is groomed for a bright future on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the family fur company. She reminisced for us on the late Karl Lagerfeld, why she loves Rome and revealed her sweet secret for our photo shoot. Her fourth and fifth addition to the Fendi family tree.
Ovato ring with aquamarine, paraiba tourmaline and white diamonds. White gold set with a 22.50 carats cushion-cut aquamarine, paraiba tourmalines and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Ovato bracelet with aquamarine, paraiba tourmaline and white diamonds. White gold set with a 23.36 carats cushion-cut aquamarine, paraiba tourmalines and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Dress and shoes FENDI
Ovato bracelet with aquamarine, paraiba tourmaline and white diamonds. White gold set with a 23.36 carats cushion-cut aquamarine, paraiba tourmalines and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery
On Karl Lagerfeld
Karl was very generous. He expressed his attention via gifts and through his sketches. If he liked you, he would draw something special. I knew his sweet and vulnerable side especially towards the end. During my pregnancies he always brought gifts, a lot for the twins. We often had conversations about women, jewelry, gold. Gold is the metal of women he would say, and he used it on a sketch he did of me. He was gifting an antique brooch like he gifted an iPad. I don’t think I ever met a more rapid brain in my life before. From archeology to technology. The way to communicate with the five sisters was through sketches as my aunts and grandmother could not speak English. When he threw these away, my aunts would get them out of the trash and iron them so they would understand more what he was trying to create for Fendi. He understood that Fendi had the power to do Haute Couture and once on my feet I was able to open the High Jewellery division which has been open for four years now. In the end it was 54 years that Karl worked for our family.
Fortuna earrings with rubies and white diamonds. White gold set with 8 cushion-cut rubies with a total of 6.62 carats, white baguette-cut, square-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Fortuna necklace with rubies and white diamonds. White gold set with 18 cushion-cut rubies with a total of 20.75 carats, white baguette-cut, square-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Cardigan FENDI
Cento ring with blue sapphire and rock crystal white diamonds. White gold set with a 5.30 carats cushion-cut blue sapphire, 1.07 carats cushion-cut diamond, blue sapphires, white baguette-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Dress FENDI
On Rome
Roma is grandeur and intimacy. It is a reminder that beautiful things take time and time is relative. It is nice to be in fashion and stay away from it at the same time. Here in Rome, Milan and fashion is far away. I lived in Paris when I was 18 and I worked at Chanel. It was important to breathe fashion in a house outside our own. Karl like the idea of a Fendi working at Chanel. But I happily came back. It is in the attitude of the Fendi woman, the Roman woman: Sprezzatura. Rome is an open-air museum, but we all act like we don’t care. Respecting something with value. Beauty educates you to beauty.
Cento earrings with blue sapphires and rock crystal white diamonds. White gold set with two 4.02 and 3.38 carats cushion-cut blue sapphires, rock crystals, white baguette-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Dress and boots FENDI
Ovato ring with aquamarine, paraiba tourmaline and white diamonds. White gold set with a 22.50 carats cushion-cut aquamarine, paraiba tourmalines and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Dress FENDI
On Fendi High Jewellery
I want to give meaning to what I do. I wanted to work with such a slow process as jewellery is very slow. Entering something that was untouched by Fendi before and introducing a more intimate language for the house. High jewellery making is more of a whispering and can be very poetic. Every time we work on a collection it feels like a small engineering miracle coming to life. I find myself to be a guardian and I want to be anchored in the heritage offering new possibilities. It is the fourth chapter and marks the 100th anniversary, so I called it Eaux d’Artifice. Water is an important element for Fendi. Rome is full of fountains. It is about the engineering that is hidden inside the fountains before they spew their magic that I like. Just like the jewellery. The movie which inspired me is called Eaux d’Artifice. Villa d’Este with its gardens and its many water games and water tricks. I wanted a color palette that is a prism of Roman sunsets captured or reflected by water which you see in the Roman skies. We have this incredible piece which sits by itself as a yellow diamond with 20.25 carats and 100 pear-shaped yellow diamonds.
On mum Silvia
Silvia is the perfect example of creativity and rationality. It’s an applied creativity that she likes. She can focus on a woman and her needs. It is not an abstract idea of a woman but it’s real. My grandmother Anna possessed the same skill. The utilitarian woman that she loves. You can both love your children and your work. She has a great generosity as she shared her career with Karl. She has a great sense of sharing.
Cento ring with blue sapphire and rock crystal white diamonds. White gold set with a 5.30 carats cushion-cut blue sapphire, 1.07 carats cushion-cut diamond, blue sapphires, white baguette-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Cento earrings with blue sapphires and rock crystal white diamonds. White gold set with two 4.02 and 3.38 carats cushion-cut blue sapphires, rock crystals, white baguette-cut and round diamonds FENDI High Jewellery. Dress FENDI
