The Man Brooch Renaissance
An accessory no longer considered as grandmother’s pin in 2024
Absent from last week’s writing I had an examination gleefully passed, the first milestone achievement that made me little proud, even though it denotes more nights of matcha latte, book munching and brain buzzing that are yet to come. During the study breaks in fortnight I have been extensively drooling over the Internet, fear of missing show coverages on PFW, the immortally priced second edit by Phoebe Philo, the 2024 Oscars and unsurprisingly came to a conclusion of admitting having a forever soft spot for accessories.
From runways to red carpets, brooches and pins are trending for everyone this year. A spotlight category that never quite left unnoticed by vintage fashion lovers, this trend is ideal for all seasons to add in unexpected places - try it on a collar, belt or your waist, this trick has now even stretched into the unisex realm of the men's department. Far from a frivolous accessory, a menswear brooch is recognised as the sign of a well-dressed man, a sign one took the time to focus on smaller details and the understanding that they really do make an outfit speaks.
In today’s world, it is much more acceptable for men to be flaunting precious and elaborate jewellery, not only on special occasions. A brooch is the most versatile of all jewellery gestures, expressive and empowering, which instantly personalises and punctuates any look. — Bertrand Mak, founder of Sauvereign
That’s why at the 2024 Oscars, there was a silent competition among the messieurs: Who could wear the best brooch?
Cillian Murphy
A radiant yet reticent explosive HS14 Gem Brooch worn by the winner of Best Actor in Oppenheimer caught sight of the world - designed by Bertrand Mak, founder & chief creator of Hong Kong luxury design house Sauvereign, the unique shape of HS14 paid homage to the inside of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s historic invention, namely the atomic bomb.
With the words “enigmatic, composed and reverberating” in mind, Mak envisioned the design of HS14 with characteristics not only referring to the respected actor but to the complex history as well as character that Murphy brought to life in his performance. Crafted the starburst design as a reference to the real-life Oppenheimer’s world-altering invention, the HS14 Gem Brooch was cast in 18-karat solid yellow gold and composed of eight concentric trapeziums meticulously hand-cut, hand-finished and assembled by legendary grandmaster Kari Voutilainen who created an array of alluring reflections on the surface of each trapezium with his signature engraving technique of sunburst guilloché:
Robert Downey Jr.
The winner of Best Supporting Actor in Oppenheimer donned a monochrome suit with a bolo tie and of course, a hard to miss flower brooch by Tiffany & Co. which Jeremy Allen White also wore this style in red during Critics Choice Awards.
Colman Domingo
Nominated for Best Actor for his performance in Rustin, the pinky ring Domingo has been wearing all award season belonged to Bayard Rustin, the civil rights activist he portrays in Rustin. It was gifted to him by Walter Naegle, Rustin's partner, who wanted Domingo to have a piece of Rustin’s personal jewellery collection. Domingo wore this special gift on his ring finger during the Oscars, with brooch and jewellery from David Yurman:
Sterling K. Brown
Archived collection is always the best - a timeless taste from Brown to pick a 1919 Barette brooch with diamonds and sapphires from Boucheron’s private collection:
Enzo Vogrincic
A subtle nod to his movie La Sociedad de la Nieve, this mountain brooch shaped like the Andes mountain range, where the tragedy depicted in the film took place, is Vogrincic's favourite about the look.
Teo Yoo
The star of Past Lives paid a tribute to his beloved pet leopard tortoise Momo by wearing a turtle brooch from Cartier to the red carpet to honour him.
Ke Huy Quan
The man who kept his awards season brooch style game strong with his shades:
Tatanka Means
A strong statement look on colours paired with a handmade turquoise brooch by Sarah O. Jewellery:
Simu Liu
An all-white diamond and platinum brooch in compact collection of just seven pieces, Simu Liu nailed it with his look!
Barry Keoghan
Similar colour choice seen earlier in the Golden Globe Award, Keoghan proved that another vintage piece of red from Boucheron’s collection did not disappoint:
Justin Timberlake
Last excellent brooch moment (According to me):
On a side note…
Thanks to the Instagram algorithm, I recently had my fashion fatigue cured after coming across Le Marquis de la Mahieu (short for Le Marquis below) in the jewellery world of Instagram styling brooches and stickpins, mainly from the Georgian era, with strong personality and exceptionally creative touch that kept me scrolling non stop.
Especially fond of small antique mourning brooches and stick pins, Le Marquis never wait for a red carpet event to showcase his day to day jewellery styling on formal work attire and casual wear - be it a single pin, twinning brooches or a handful of pins and brooches in either matching or contrasting colours. He experimented with them all.
His style moves may seem specific to men's clothing with ties and polo shirts seen often, but the principles behind are applicable to womenswear too. Try doubling or twinning necklaces as magic partners, it works refreshing to have pins worn just as they were meant to be.
Photo Courtesy Getty Images and Le Marquis de la Mahieu
So, the renaissance of man brooch magic is real. Glad to have you scrolled up to this point! Scouring through the Internet on a personal favourite theme was work done with great satisfaction. This week’s update is longer than my previous ones and I apologise for sending this newsletter out slightly late. Hope you all enjoyed reading it and share the post to a friend who you think might like it too!
Have a great week and see you next Wednesday.
Until then,
Chris
How refreshing!!! Loved this story, thank you.
學到嘢👍🏻