“Sarah, I think I am getting old.
She confessed to her friend Sarah because she loved the ring with a large diamond egg and the watch with a flashing gold chain, which she was not interested in when she was young.
“No! You are getting expensive,” the friend patted on the back. Sometimes when I stand in front of a fancy jewelry showcase, I remember what Sarah said. As he said, I may be becoming a valuable jewelry recognizer.
Expensive jewelry and watches may be regarded as mere ‘luxury items’. However, the moment you look back on hundreds of years of heritage, it becomes an item containing your taste and identity.
Jewelry and watches have always been special objects. In the past, they were both royal writings and symbols showing the lineage of nobles. A ring, a crown, and a watch have the history, authority, and genealogy of the family. It is a code of power that is conveyed without explanation and language that is seen without explanation.
Of course, times have changed, and the use of jewelry has changed. Previously, jewelry was bought for events such as weddings, graduations, and anniversaries, but now they choose it for more personal moments. As the saying goes, “I give a ring to myself,” these days are the times. Furthermore, the MZ generation turns big once-in-a-lifetime events into a lifestyle. Buying a wedding ring is not only a symbolic meaning of marriage, but also a time of experience called a “wedding band tour.”
The journey of experiencing, enjoying, and choosing luxury while choosing a wedding ring together is the beginning of a marriage. They develop more beautiful dreams than any other couple in the royal family by listening to the long story, gemstones, and craftsmanship contained in the ring and clock together.
This trend is also confirmed by structural changes in the global luxury market. In recent years, growth of the entire fashion category has stagnated. On the other hand, the high-end watch and jewelry sectors continue to grow. According to global consulting firm Bain & Company, the global watch and jewelry market has increased by more than 30% compared to 2019. Among them, Korea is one of the major countries that has increased by more than double digits.
This is because jewelry is not simply for ownership, but is recognized as a product that combines investment value and emotional value. High-priced jewelry is also a means of investing, but at the same time, it has become a ‘quiet declaration that defines who I am’. Cartier’s Trinity Ring, for example, is not just a ring of three colors of gold. The ring’s yellow gold, which Louis Cartier made to his friend Jean Cocteau 100 years ago in 1924, means fidelity, white gold means friendship, and pink gold means love. Just as Pablo Picasso said to his lover Dora Marr decades ago, “You are my love, my friend, my faith,” the ring is timelessly beloved as an object of emotion.
Jewelry and watches go beyond “objects of consumption” because of the story and symbolism contained in them. Chameh, which French Emperor Napoleon loved, is not just a brand of jewelry. It is a legacy of refining memory of the dynasty. Napoleon always wore Chameh’s jewelry when he crowned Empress Josephine with the first crown and when he returned home after the war. It was an object that contained power, emotion, and the weight of time.
The same goes for Busheron. In 1893, Frederic Busheron opened the first high-jewelry boutique by choosing the most sunny location in Bangdome Square. This is due to the philosophy that jewelry is not just for being seen but is a living thing that moves and lives under light.
Luxury jewelry and watches are not directed at the pinnacle of possession, but at the density of meaning. It is an object of weight, narrative, and philosophy. Cartier’s Trinity Ring is a phrase of love, Boucheron is an architect who deals with light, and Patek Philippe Clock is an act of borrowing time itself. These objects are not just decorations, but are rare languages that can pass down emotions to the next generation. Therefore, luxury high jewelry and watches choose not to be seen, but rather to remain long without speaking.
I don’t think about “how others will see it” when choosing jewelry these days. Instead, I think about “what do you want to say to me now?” I choose a big, heavy design when I want to be a little bit firmer, and a soft curved gold ring when I need comfort. Taking time for me, choosing light for me. It’s a very personal, emotional declaration.
The same goes for watches. If a smart watch is a time management machine, a mechanical watch is a tool for feeling time. The weight on the wrist, the vibration of the machine, and the texture of time remain on the leather. It is a way to keep the flowing time by your side. Deep down, we want to wear ‘invisible meaning’ even though we are increasingly wary of what stands out. That’s why luxury jewelry and watches are now being loved again. It’s because it’s the most accurate and valuable tool to express yourself without explaining yourself.
Jewelry is a fragment of emotion. Some days it’s comforting, some days it’s a friend who says, ‘It’s okay.’ We wrap it around our necks, put it in our hands, and wrap it around our wrists. And rather than show it to anyone, I check with myself every day. “I’m this hard right now.” “I respect myself today, too.”
Someone might say, “Isn’t it vanity?” But I know. This is not a outer ornament, but an inner record. Luxury jewelry and watches are now languages that can only be worn by those who can self-define what beauty is beyond just being beautiful. More and more, we put our emotions on, pick our lights, and embrace our time. And we quietly imprint our living time on our bodies.
JULIE KIM
US ASIA JOURNAL
