The excellence of the handmade

"Jewelry is a woman's best friend", famous the phrase of diva Marilyn Monroe. It was 1953. But there is also a less famous saying “before you leave the house look in the mirror and take something off", words of the historic fashion designer Coco Chanel. In both cases what are we talking about? Accessories of course! Yes because every woman knows that a seductive dress and fawning ankles are not enough to be pleasing, it takes something more to make the figure magical. A smile, first of all: “the best accessory a woman can wear", said the actress Audrey Hepburn. But it also takes light! Not being able to capture it we wear it through jewelry to feel special, radiant even when the mood is gloomy and commitments crush us. “Jewelry lives an intimate relationship with the wearer, made of complicity and authenticity. This is why I continue to imagine and make jewelry as tailor-made dresses of the soul", Giuliana di Franco, owner of the eponymous brand, confides to us; she is Sicilian and in love with Sicily, an authentic land from which she has always drawn inspiration. These are not words in the wind from today's businesswomen or the divas of yesteryear (which were then tangible times of refinement, style and elegance that will always set the standard even when the vulgar looms ed.) but true maxims confirmed by the market. Jewelry is one of the mainstays of the fashion industry with a wide range from very expensive pieces, to the world of fast fashion, overflowing with cheap “disposable” items. According to estimates by Grand View Research, the value of the global jewelry market is $340.69 billion (year 2023).
The exclusivity and sophistication of craftsmanship and well-made went on stage at the spacious exhibition spaces of Rho Fiera Milano from September 14 to 17, 2024. MICAM Milano, Milano Fashion&Jewels, MIPEL and The One Milano closed the show by registering 40,950 professional visitors of whom 45 percent came from 140 countries outside Italy. In particular Spain, Germany and France. The results from North America were good, marking a double-digit increase (Canada and the U.S.) followed by the Far East with China and Japan in the lead. “Trade fairs are confirmed as leading players in the innovation scene, responding to market needs with elegance and precision even in challenging times. They have strengthened their role as meeting and development hubs by embodying the essence of excellence", specify Fiera Milano.
In particular, Milano Fashion&Jewels, which the Deluxu.it Magazine visited while listening to its protagonists, lays down the law when it comes to new trends in accessories. Small is beautiful. Often small-scale entrepreneurial realities or family businesses exhibited masterpieces of craftsmanship.
“I design and project the jewelry by hand, I prefer pastel colors because they help the outfit have more lightness", Fulvia Cantagallo, designer and co-owner of Antura, a Sicilian brand founded in 2011 with 8 all-female employees, told us. A professional with a degree in art history who puts her crativity into refined and often impressive necklaces and bracelets. “We target the top of the luxury companies. We use seasonal colors and reason according to the fashion of the moment and trendy clothes", the entrepreneur explains.  
“It's important to save artisan talent and our roots. Artificial intelligence must be manned and combined with human knowledge", echoes Benedetta Rasponi, owner of the Brillante brand manager who has been active for years in protecting artisan excellence as Emilia Romagna vice-president of CNA, the National Confederation of Artisans with 600,000 members in Italy. “We need to team up, protect the supply chain and open up to the new. Some of our associates are Chinese".
Creativity and passion have always been the ingredients that differentiate a “normal” accessory from one that tantalizes, captivates. “I make fashion on the border of art. I make bijoux and corsets by researching precious silks from historic villas or castles", Rossella Calabrò, chemical engineer and also stylist and designer of the Turin-based Camden brand, tells us.
Not to mention the Deliguoro Milano workmanships that have accompanied fashion shows for years, the company explains. Sought-after and eye-catching fashion jewelry since 1963 from a small factory in Lodi, Lombardy.
Milano Fashion&Jewels was also an opportunity to showcase some sustainable cosmetics manufacturers. Jewelry is more beautiful when exhibited on healthy skin. The strand to bet on in the future falls under the name of innovative agriculture. “We make natural cosmeceuticals, phytotherapies and supplements, microfiltered snail slime, and we have a gastronomy snail farm", Alberto Lattaruli, an entrepreneur from Piedmont, founder and CEO of Oroverde Cosmeceuticals, reveals. “We cultivate soils with organic and regenerative soil metology while protecting biodiversity. We maintain honey plants so that bees and other pollinating insects have refuge from conventional agriculture".
Among the wide variety of stands a final look at clothing. An example of Italian excellence can be found in the Club Voltaire brand of the Tuscan Melani family, which owned an atelier in Pistoia since the early 1900s. It was the period of the dolce vita and the legendary sixties. Today, the brand's collections are distinguished by rigorous lines, clean cuts and refined fabrics, offering a modern and chic woman. It is worth mentioning that the brand also has a section dedicated to over sizes for the pleasing curvy, very buxom ladies but always dressed in style! Deluxu.it Magazine - Copyright