In an era of social upheaval, venerable Tiffany & Co. designer Elsa Peretti reimagined diamonds as jewelry that working women bought for themselves rather than receiving it from a suitor.
By the time the Italian-born Peretti arrived in New York City, she’d already studied design in Rome, worked for a Milanese architect and taught Italian, French and skiing in Switzerland. She settled on interior design as her potential career path but then chose an altogether different route: modeling. Peretti modeled in Barcelona, Spain, and on the advice of Wilhelmina Cooper — a former model who’d by then founded Wilhelmina Modeling Agency — moved to Manhattan in 1968. When she relocated, Peretti was inspired to pick up jewelry design.
After modeling for designer Halston, the undisputed fashion king of Studio 54, Peretti became his close friend and collaborator, eventually creating jewelry and teardrop-shaped perfume bottles for him. By way of her association with Halston, Peretti took to the disco scene, flourishing in a social circle that included artist Andy Warhol and fashion designer Giorgio di Sant’Angelo.
It wasn’t long before models on di Sant’Angelo’s runway were donning two-inch sterling-silver vases, complete with a rose stem, suspended on leather thongs around their necks. The accessory was Peretti’s inaugural piece of jewelry — she designed it in 1969 after finding a flower vase at a flea market. It was hardly the only time that Peretti found motifs in nature and in organic forms. In the years that followed, her Bean pendant necklace, Starfish earrings and other sensuous accessories would draw on human emotion as well as the natural world around her. Each evocative and wholly versatile design is universally adored decades later, and each was made for a storied American jewelry house with which Peretti would be associated for nearly 50 years.
It was Halston who introduced Peretti to Tiffany & Co. She had her own boutique at Bloomingdale’s by 1972, and her partnership with the firm, which signed the venturesome and unorthodox designer to an exclusive contract in 1974, would cement her place in the lofty annals of jewelry legend. Peretti’s simple but sophisticated designs — the Teardrop collection, her minimalist Diamonds by the Yard necklace and Open Heart ring, to name a few — elevated sterling silver, previously considered unsuitable for fine jewelry, and created an enthusiastic young audience for Tiffany’s offerings. In 1977, Peretti’s designs earned the jewelry house more than $6 million. (In some years, her work has accounted for 10 percent of the company’s sales.)
In 2012, Peretti signed a 20-year, $47.3 million contract with Tiffany & Co., but she passed away in 2021, at age 80. Today, her designs are in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City and the British Museum.
Find an exquisite collection of Elsa Peretti jewelry today on 1stDibs.
ELSA PERETTI 1980 Tiffany & Co. Pumpkin Trinket Lidded Box In .925 Sterling
By Elsa Peretti, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
Located in Miami, FL
Pumpkin box designed by Elsa Peretti (1940-2021) for Tiffany & Co. Beautiful vintage rounded trinket box with a lid, designed in the shape of a pumpkin by Elsa Peretti at the Ti...
Silver, Sterling Silver
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver 'Thumbprint' Dish or Vide Poche
By Tiffany & Co., Elsa Peretti, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine signed silver shallow bowl or dish. By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. In sterling silver. In the 'Thumbprint' series. Fully marked to the base. Simply wonderful Tiffany d...
Sterling Silver
Modern Sterling Silver Thumbprint Tray by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany
By Tiffany & Co., Elsa Peretti, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
Located in New York, NY
Modern sterling silver tray. Designed by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. in New York. Round with impressed “thumbprints”. Fully marked including designer’s and retailer’s stamps, and ...
Sterling Silver
Set of 3 Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Belt Buckles
By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., Elsa Peretti, Tiffany & Co.
Located in New York, NY
Rare assortment of 3 Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. sterling silver belt buckles with 5 matching leather belts, from the 1970s, consisting of: a heart-shaped buckle, measuring 2 1/2...
Silver, Sterling Silver
Art Deco Sterling Silver Scalloped Decorative Dish Signed by Tiffany & Co.
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in New York, NY
This elegant Art Deco sterling silver dish was realized by the esteemed American maker Tiffany & Co., circa 1920. It features a round body with raised and scalloped sides, separated ...
Sterling Silver
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany Sterling Silver Baby Utensils
By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
Located in New York, NY
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany Sterling Silver Baby Utensils. Twentieth century sterling Padova pattern baby fork and feeding spoon stamped Tiffany & Co Peretti 1984. Italy, 1984 Dimensio...
Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver Tiffany & Co Tray
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An elegant sterling silver round tray, crafted in a refined classical style and raised on a low, circular pedestal foot. The elevation provides both stability and a subtle sense of p...
Sterling Silver
Tiffany & Co., Sterling Silver Ball/Sphere/Jewelry Box, Modern, Marked
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Very pretty sterling silver Tiffany & Co. jewelry ball, box, number 35378 Weighted, 7.
Sterling Silver
Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Bread Tray
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Bread Tray. Circa 1915, marked. Oval with a reticulated lattice and bead border, inscribed Hilda Robinson Smith, April 16th, 1914. Height 2.5 in., ...
Silver
Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Serving Platter circa 1900s Estate Find
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Montreal, QC
Tiffany & Co. sterling silver serving platter. Center engraved with a floral leaf wreath design. Measuring approximate: 12" diameter x 12” high and weighing approximate 25oz of sterl...
Sterling Silver
$960Sale Price|20% Off
H 2 in W 7.75 in D 4.88 in
Tiffany & Co., Sterling Silver pierced Condiment Dish
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Huntington, NY
Tiffany & Co., sterling silver pierced condiment dish in pattern number 13835 from 1898. They measure 7 3/4'' in length by 4 7/8'' in width by 2'' in height and bear hallmarks as shown. Total weight is 7.6 troy ounces. The legendary Tiffany brand was founded in 1837 by Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young in Connecticut as a "stationery and fancy goods emporium," with the help of Charles Tiffany's father who financed the store for only $1,000 with profits from a cotton mill. Tiffany & Co. soon became a highly regarded brand for jewelry, gemstones, and silver. In 1845, Tiffany was a pioneer when it launched the Blue Book, which at the time was the first mail-order catalog...
Sterling Silver
Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver Dish
Located in Tarrytown, NY
1960s Tiffany & Co. sterling silver dish. Weighs 9.4 ounces.
Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver Tiffany & CO Bowl
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Being offered is a sterling silver bowl by the world renowned Tiffany & Company. It has a scalloped rim that folds over with an interconnecting leaf design at each indentation. It...
Sterling Silver
Edwardian Tiffany & Co. Sterling Silver 13-Piece Vanity Set
By Tiffany & Co.
Located in Cincinnati, OH
Edwardian Tiffany & Co sterling silver 13-piece vanity set. This Edwardian sterling silver gentleman's dresser set was made by Tiffany & Company in the early part of the 20th century. The pieces have been finished in an intricate pattern made up of a series of foliate scrolls bordered by stylized bellflowers. The items bear cartouches which have been beautifully monogrammed in script. The dresser set is comprised of 13 pieces and includes a glove stretcher, button hook, shoe horn, hinged and perforated soap case...
Sterling Silver
$295
H 0.5 in W 1 in D 6.13 in
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany Sterling Silver Padova Pattern Baby or Infant Spoon
By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., Tiffany & Co.
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine signed silver feeding spoon. By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. In sterling silver. In the Padova pattern. Together with its original pouch and box. Simply wonderful Tiff...
Sterling Silver
$895 / set
H 3.13 in Dm 3.38 in
Set of 6 Vintage Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. 'Thumbprint' Drinking Glasses
By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine set of signed drinking glasses. By Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. In the 'Thumbprint' pattern. Marked to the base for Elsa Peretti / Tiffany & Co. Simply a wonderful set o...
Glass, Blown Glass
Elsa Peretti for Tiffany Candlesticks Bones
By Tiffany & Co., Elsa Peretti
Located in Palm Springs, CA
Lovely pair of bones glass Candlesticks by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany and Co. These are the largest size made. Both are signed on...
Glass
Black Thumbprint Art Glass Centerpiece Bowl by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany and Co.
By Elsa Peretti, Tiffany & Co.
Located in San Diego, CA
Spectacular black art glass thumbprint centerpiece bowl by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany and Co., circa 1990s. The bowl is in excellent cond...
Art Glass
Sold
H 1 in W 6.75 in D 2 in
Modernist Sterling Silver Padova Nutcracker by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
By Elsa Peretti, Tiffany & Co.
Located in New York, NY
Elsa Peretti, the fabled model turned Tiffany designer, produced this design for the Fifth Avenue silversmiths circa 1984. It features elegantly looped ends, sinuous curves, and seam...
Sterling Silver
Elsa Peretti Vintage Thumbprint Set for Tiffany & Co.
By Elsa Peretti, Tiffany & Co.
Located in Water Mill, NY
Four-piece Thumbprint by Elsa Peretti pottery serving set-large bowl, soup tureen and cover, platter and small bowl and cover signed Tiffany & Co.
Enamel
Sterling Silver Wave Box by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.
By Tiffany & Co., Elsa Peretti
Located in Palm Desert, CA
A charming sterling silver "Wave" box by Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co. Stamped on the underside with her signature, the Tiffany logo and "925 Italy".
Sterling Silver