Smith recalls a bit of wisdom the industry leader, who died last week, shared at a diamond conference years ago.
Marco Bicego’s Masai Keeps Growing
The Italian jewelry designer added mixed metals and more diamonds to the line inspired by a trip to East Africa.

Basel, Switzerland--Marco Bicego’s “Masai” collection, which just launched last year, is getting bigger.
At Baselworld this year, the Italian designer introduced a number of two-tone pieces to the collection and debuted pieces featuring diamond line bracelets as well, which, when worn, resemble a diamond tennis bracelet mixed in among a stack of gold bangles.
The two-tone pieces are crafted in 18-karat yellow and white gold and use the same gold coil technique employed in other Bicego collections, namely Marrakech, Goa and Cairo. (In case it wasn’t obvious, traveling serves as a major source of inspiration for the designer.)
Bicego started his eponymous jewelry collection in Italy in 2000 after training at Guiseppe Bicego’s side in the Veneto region of Italy, and coiling is one of the manufacturing techniques he learned from his father.
In it, a thick strand of gold is tightly wound with 18-karat gold “thread,” which is then shaped and finished differently for each collection.
When the Masai collection launched last year, Bicego noted that many pieces of traditional Maasai jewelry also involve wrapping and coiling.
Julia LeBlanc, Marco Bicego’s vice president of communications and brand ambassador, said the two-tone Masai pieces, which the brand will be showing at Couture this year, will be available in the fall for independent jewelers, while the pieces incorporating the diamond line bracelets will be available in the summer with a more select distribution.
Also new from the brand in Basel is the addition of both black and white hand-cut mother-of-pearl to Lunaria, the nature-inspired line launched in 2014 that incorporates colored gemstones like lapis and aquamarine.
LeBlanc said the mother-of-pearl pieces will be available at select doors this spring.
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