Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
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 Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, South Sea Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold, Y...
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Pearl, Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Crystal, South Sea Pearl, Black Pearl, Pearl, White Diamond, Diamond, Wh...
21st Century and Contemporary Modern Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, White Diamond, Black Diamond, 18k Gold, White Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Freshwater Pearl
2010s American Regency Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Garnet, Pearl, Peridot, Sterling Silver
1990s Japanese Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Diamond, Cultured Pearl, Yellow Gold
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Contemporary Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
1950s French Vintage Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Gilt Metal
1950s American Vintage Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Cultured Pearl
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Black Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Pearl, 14k Gold, White Gold
Mid-20th Century Unknown Contemporary Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Pearl, Cultured Pearl, Gold, 14k Gold, Yellow Gold
1980s French Vintage Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
21st Century and Contemporary Unknown Modern Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Freshwater Pearl
1980s French Modern Vintage Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
Pearl, Gold-filled, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Artist Ella Gafter Rope Necklaces
White Diamond, Cultured Pearl, 18k Gold, White Gold
