Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Even before Ella Gafter founded her namesake jewelry collection in 1982, she was a formidable presence in the jewelry industry.
As a Rome-based gem dealer, Gafter sold pearls and precious stones to retailers and jewelers but was often dissatisfied with how they made use of the rare materials she worked so hard to source. Instead of grousing, she decided to design jewels that would do them justice, focusing primarily on pearls — akoya, Tahitian and South Sea. She explains her fascination with the lustrous marine treasures simply: “Every woman looks better with pearls than without.”
Her daughter Talila Gafter, then an undergrad at Harvard, was her ally in getting the project off the ground. Together, they made the rounds to stores with Ella’s first efforts. “We had a little pouch with eight pieces and we sold everything,” Talila tells 1stDibs. After graduation, she “was involved one hundred percent” in building the company, whose pieces are handmade by master jewelers in Naples.
The designer insists that her unwavering focus is the source of her success. “There’s no compromising for me,” she says. She’s been known to replace the pearls in a single piece time after time until she’s certain she’s achieved her ideal result. “A pearl you have to respect,” she explains. “You have to put it where it wants to sit.”
Ella describes the collaboration with her daughter as a “partnership,” with each having her own domain. “I’m all fantasy; Talila is the concrete one,” she says. The company is now based in New York City, with Talila as its president while Ella is firmly at the helm of creative decisions. “I’ve never made a design suggestion to Ella,” says Talila. “Nobody does.”
That forbearance has been earned, says Talila. “I admire that Ella doesn’t take no for an answer, her tenacity, her extraordinary ambition. She believes as long as there is life, there is a lot of beauty to create. She’s a force of nature.”
Find Ella Gafter earrings, rings, necklaces and other jewelry on 1stDibs.
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Gold, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Ruby, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Contemporary Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Ruby, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Onyx, Yellow Sapphire, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Emerald, Black Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
South Sea Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Ruby, Diamond, Onyx, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Black Pearl, Yellow Sapphire, Pearl, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, White Gold, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Onyx, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
South Sea Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold, Silver
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Black Pearl, Ruby, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Diamond, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Copper
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Blue Sapphire, Diamond, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s Thai Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Diamond, Ruby, Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary American Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Blue Diamond, Black Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
Early 2000s British Contemporary Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Blue Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
2010s American Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Yellow Gold, Enamel
15th Century and Earlier Italian Antique Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Onyx, Ruby, 18k Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, Sterling Silver
1940s Indian Anglo-Indian Vintage Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Emerald, Ruby, Silver, Sterling Silver
1960s Vintage Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Diamond, 18k Gold
Late 20th Century European Contemporary Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Garnet, Blue Sapphire, Tsavorite, 18k Gold, White Gold
1960s Vintage Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Gold, 14k Gold
20th Century Greek Classical Greek Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Silver
Late 20th Century Unknown Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Onyx, 18k Gold, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Contemporary Ella Gafter Cufflinks
White Diamond, Ruby, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Cufflinks
18k Gold, Yellow Gold, Silver, Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Contemporary Ella Gafter Cufflinks
Black Pearl, Yellow Sapphire, 18k Gold, White Gold
