Get a Grip: The Story of the Minaudière

We get behind the scenes of how the Minaudière was born, only to discover a fascinating tale of sparkling innovation.

The creation of the Minaudière was a watershed in fashion history. Right there, alongside the couture cocktail dress and the red-soled sky-high stilletoes. It will always stay in the spotlight. And we have Florence Jay Gould, very popular in the 1920s and ‘30s international social circuit, to thank for this precious case. The wife of Frank Jay Gould, son of the American railroad magnate Jay Gould, Florence, along with her husband, turned the French Riviera into an exclusive high society hotspot during the roaring Twenties. The couple often hosted literary salons that included the likes of Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, André Gide, Jean Cocteau and Salvador Dalí. And the ladies soon began to carry their beauty accessories with them in a vanity case for such dos. It was at one such party that Charles Arpels spotted Florence tossing her powder case, lipstick, cigarettes and lighter into a Lucky Strike cigarette tin. This inspired Arpels to create a box that could accommodate all the essentials a woman required on a night about town. The piece owes its name to Estelle, the wife of Alfred Van Cleef, whose mannerisms— or ‘minauderies’—enchanted her entourage. It provided compartments for an elegant lady’s vanity: makeup, comb, mirror, dance card, cigarette holder, even a retractable watch—all enclosed within the luxurious case. Over the years, the Minaudière has become one of the Maison’s emblematic pieces and its invention has prompted many other master jewellers and couturiers to follow suit. With its combination of grace and ingenuity, the precious case pays homage to the very essence of femininity.

L’Officiel India DigitalRead L’Officiel India in the digital libraryEvery issue and every cover story, on TCG Media.Read now

From the December 2013 issue of L’Officiel India.