Chanel Hosted a Celestial Bash in Los Angeles to Celebrate Their High Jewelry Collection

In 1932, Gabrielle Chanel created the first high jewelry collection in history for the eponymous French fashion house, Bijoux de Diamants: inspired by the allure of the stars and designed to be worn freely in a brand-new way. Intriguingly, the year before the collection was presented Chanel had traveled to Los Angeles at the invitation of studio mogul Sam Goldwyn, who believed the famed Parisian couturier could make his stars more glamorous.

“It’s very interesting,” said Patrice Leguéreau, director of Chanel’s Fine Jewelry Creative Studio, as a lineup of bejeweled Chanel muses, including Phoebe Bridgers, Rain Spencer, Audra Day, and Jenna Coleman arrived for a dinner and viewing of the 1932 Collection in West Hollywood on Thursday night. “Maybe a part of her inspiration for 1932 Bijoux de Diamants was Los Angeles. It’s quite different because of the spirit of the place and the weather and freedom here but there is also something very close to the spirit of 1932 that gives a liberty, movement and lightness to the jewelry.”

On arrival, guests were treated to gin martinis and Champagne before being transported back in time and space to the collection’s creation, and reinvention, with an exhibit that showcased both the history and the now with 77 spectacular creations reflecting the radiance of the stars and the immensity of the heavens.

For Maggie Rogers, who was sporting the Comète earrings in 18K white gold and diamonds, the collection’s design around three symbols of the cosmos – the comet, the moon, and the sun – resonated on a creative level. “The cosmos plays a big role in my musical work,” she told Vogue. “I also just finished Divinity School, where I was studying the cosmos and the stars as a way that we, as a community, orient our life and I can’t think of any better comparison. Jewelry is the thing that makes it feel like you connect with the cosmos in a way.”

An elegant dinner followed, held under a canopy of floral clouds, twinkling stars, and a crescent moon. Before taking her seat, Chanel N°5 muse Marion Cotillard explained, “For me, jewelry is something that is both beautiful and can make you feel beautiful. When I’m a little stressed and put some jewelry on, I tell myself when you look at it, remember to breathe and to come back to yourself. It’s a little message that when I see a necklace or a bracelet or a ring that I wear, and that I had put an intention in, to come back to myself.”

The evening concluded with Phoebe Bridgers taking the stage to present a final sprinkling of stardust—a performance by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, who had just released a new album after nine years. Karen O, opened the set with the exhortation, “Who loves diamonds here?” before launching into a performance that prompted cheers and moved a crowd, including Greta Lee, Kaitlyn Dever, and Olivia Lopez, out of their seats to rock out against the celestial backdrop.

“Jewelry just gives any outfit a kind of elevation and you also feel confident,” said Whitney Peak, bedecked in the Cométe Couture necklace and ring in 18K white gold and diamonds, of the overwhelming mood. “But I mean, I have my crazy piece of jewelry on my neck, so I would say that.”