Anne Boleyn, the queen of England from 1533 until her execution in 1536, was famously depicted wearing a gold “B” on a strand of pearls around her neck, and the mystery of its disappearance has led to centuries of speculation. (Was it, as some have suggested, given to her daughter, the future Queen Elizabeth I?) In recent decades, the piece has inspired brands, including Balenciaga and the London-based line Dilara Findikoglu, to create versions of their own, continuing a long tradition of adorning ourselves with our initials and those of our loved ones — a trend that seems especially prevalent now.
“I’ve always been fascinated by how objects can tell a story,” says the Danish jeweller Sophie Bille Brahe, 44, who last year released a collection of diamond-adorned rings resembling fluid cursive capitals, as well as pendants and stud earrings in the form of chunky, rounded initials. Most days, she wears an “S” and two “B”s on her left hand and a “J” on her right hand to symbolise both her own name and those of her family members. The Paris-based jewellery designer Charlotte Chesnais, 39, likewise wears a gold chain strung with the letters “V,” “A,” “L,” “C” and “T” — for her three children, herself and her partner — every day. The delicate, slightly abstracted letters are from her recently launched Alphajoaillerie collection of gold-vermeil and diamond pendants, designed in collaboration with the branding agency M/M Paris.
Beth Hutchens, 51, the founder of the New York-based jewellery brand Foundrae, known for its customisable pieces inspired partly by the Greek alphabet, has long been fascinated by the symbolism of letters. She wears one of her line’s oversize clover-shaped 18-karat-gold medallions, its leaves set with a diamond “B,” a “G” and an “A” — for her own name and those of her children — as well as a gold pinkie ring with a diamond-set “C” that represents her girlfriend, the fashion designer Carolina Sarria, and an “E” (Hutchens’s full name is Elizabeth). “People want to create a piece that memorialises the experiences that build their life,” the designer says. Below, a few initial-shaped pendants to help you do just that.
