Inside Cartier’s Trio of Celeb-Filled Parties to Celebrate the Trinity Collection
How do you celebrate the 100th birthday of a fashion icon? In the case of Cartier’s Trinity ring, it’s with an impressive list of A-list stars and influencers toasting the brand at a series of fêtes in three cities—New York, London, and Paris—and by introducing a new branch of the Trinity family. The latest collection, which already has the style set abuzz, features the iconic three rings, reinterpreted in a fresh-yet-surprising square shape that will no doubt have the staying power of its elder sibling.
Cartier planned the celebration as a global adventure, with each city offering the reveal of a Trinity collection brand ambassador while building momentum for the next, all with subtle nods to the number three woven throughout.
For the uninitiated, the Trinity ring is inarguably one of the most recognizable jewelry designs of all time. The seemingly simple three-band design, each one in a different shade of gold, originally debuted in 1924 and surged in popularity after the company displayed it at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris in 1925. It was considered avant-garde at the time, and a feat of engineering (how can it possibly lay flat and roll on the finger?). One of its early adopters was the American interior designer and society influencer-before-there-were-influencers, Elsie de Wolfe. Before long, the ring found its way onto the fingers of luminaries including French surrealist poet and playwright Jean Cocteau (who famously stacked two on his left pinkie), royals Grace Kelly and Princess Diana, and, more recently, Nicole Kidman and Kylie Jenner. Today, the iconic piece remains a go-to gift for its classic and genderless design, relatively attainable entry price, and gorgeous red box.
We decamped to the three destinations for the festivities. Keep reading for our recap, below.
New York
The celebration kicked off with a dinner at New York’s Hotel Chelsea, a legendary magnet for artists and musicians for over a century. On this particular evening, a crowd heavy with artistic talent took in the sounds of French-born jazz violinist Scott Tixier during a cocktail hour, where perfectly styled vodka martinis were passed alongside flutes of champagne. The highlight of the evening was the reveal of the first of five Trinity brand ambassadors: Black-ish star Yara Shahidi, radiant in a Cartier-red Fendi couture gown (she was styled by Jason Bolden, who the brand also tapped for its new ad campaign. He was spotted in all three cities, toting his trademark low-key-luxe crocodile Birkin). Shahidi told ELLE.com that she is one of three children, and no stranger to fine jewelry. “When I turned 19, I had a ring made with me and my brothers’ initials and birthstones,” she recalled. Trinity continues this tradition for her. “There are three rings, so I can’t not think about my brothers and my family. I feel like in many ways it does feel like another nod to my family, and what it means to be one of three.”
London
London was the site of Cartier’s first boutique outside of Paris, debuting in 1902, and the second stop on the luxurious journey. The brand chose Notting Hill’s Ladbroke Hall as the setting for its London celebration. The hall itself is housed in a 1903 Beaux Arts building that was once a car factory, but has been reimagined as a creative hub by the owners of ultra-buzzy Carpenter’s Workshop Gallery, who represent and sell furniture designed by the likes of Rick Owens, Karl Lagerfeld, and Virgil Abloh.
There was a palpable buzz in the room as Trinity’s second brand ambassador was revealed: Paul Mescal. Some had been treated to a private screening of his film, All of Us Strangers, at The Cinema at Selfridges. While New York skewed heavy on multi-hyphenate creatives, the London crowd teemed with stars of the screen, including Mescal’s Normal People co-stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and India Mullen, actress Naomi Ackie, Saltburn’s Archie Madekwe, Irish actor Daryl McCormack (who later debuted a limited-edition Cartier Tank at the BAFTAs), and fashion industry heavyweights such as designer Simone Rocha, who’s been a fan of the brand since age 21, when she was given a Cartier watch as a birthday present.
There were 75 guests were seated at two long tables in a soaring space that had once been the factory’s turbine room. Perrier-Jouët freely flowed during the three-course Italian dinner prepared by award-winning chef Emanuele Pollini. Somewhere between course two and three, Sampha, the English songwriter and producer, took the stage and regaled the rapt audience with a series of songs including “(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano.” Later, Bradley Miller, who performs under the moniker cktrl, serenaded guests from a balcony, with a solo performance of soulful saxophone instrumentals.
Paris
The City of Lights was the culmination of the whirlwind adventure. Many from the London celebration were spotted on the Eurostar and “what to engrave on a ring” was a topic of conversation for most of the journey.
Cartier created a pop-up in the city’s hip Marais district. The experience was specifically designed by the maison’s in-house team to showcase the legacy of the collection— including the sold-out 2022 Sacai collaboration—and properly introduce the new styles. The highlight was the opportunity to try on all the pieces in both the existing and new Trinity collections: rings and bracelets, in various widths, some encrusted with diamonds. It brought a surprise of its own—everyone was taken by the sound made by the different widths of the rings and bracelets, akin to a wind chime blowing in the breeze. Unexpected, but delightful, according to this writer.
Creating the new Trinity collection “was the hardest challenge I have ever had,” admitted Marie-Laure Cérède, creative director of jewelry and watches for Cartier. After two years and over 50 prototypes, the winning shape, she says, “was a surprise for us. We unlocked the right shape and the right proportions. It has all the fundamental values of Trinity—the three bands, independent but inseparable—that roll onto the finger. It was also important that the Trinity siblings played nice together and didn’t compete. The results cohabitate effortlessly when stacked together. It was resounding success, and clearly a celebration was in order.”
The final and most formal dinner for the globe-trotting crew was held at Pavillon Ledoyen, helmed by Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alléno, and located in an 1842 neoclassical building in the Champs-Élysées gardens. It did not disappoint.
Even more fashion notables—editors, stylists, and influencers alike—had been flown in from around the world. Champagne continued to flow. Guests sporting pieces from the new Trinity collection—including Shahidi and Mescal—were comparing notes, and Cartier revealed two of the remaining three Trinity ambassadors: former K-pop star turned solo musician Jackson Wang and Blackpink’s Jisoo.
After dinner, guests were chauffeured to the Petit Palais for an after-party boasting over 1,000 revelers. Even in a city known for over-the-top fashion events, it stood out. The museum, which was built for the 1900 World Expo, was bathed in Cartier’s signature red for the occasion. Dozens of bold-faced names from around the globe jetted in for the evening, including Jake Gyllenhaal, Vanessa Kirby, Rami Malek, and Sofia Coppola.
The final Cartier Trinity ambassador was revealed in dramatic fashion when the English rapper Labrinth took the stage in a pinch-me moment. He kicked off the night’s musical performances and was later joined by Sia and Diplo (the three have a band called LSD). The crowd quite literally went wild, and Diplo kept the party going, DJ-ing into the wee hours.
Yara Shahidi
Emma Chamberlain
Labrinth
Vanessa Kirby
Emma Corrin
Sofia Coppola
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