26 Facts About Elsa Peretti

Elsa Peretti, OMRI OMM, was an Italian jewelry designer and philanthropist as well as a fashion model.

Elsa Peretti was born in Florence, Italy as the youngest daughter of Ferdinando Elsa Peretti and Maria Luisa Pighini.

Ferdinando Elsa Peretti founded Anonima Petroli Italiana, a large Italian oil company, in 1933.

Elsa Peretti was estranged from her conservative family for much of her life, though reconciled with her father shortly before he died.

Elsa Peretti initially made her living teaching French and working as a ski instructor in the German-speaking Swiss mountain village of Gstaad.

In 1964, Elsa Peretti became a fashion model, working in Barcelona, Spain.

In 1969, Elsa Peretti began creating new jewelry styles for a handful of fashion designers in Manhattan.

Elsa Peretti's first design, working with a silversmith in Spain, was a two-inch bud vase made of sterling-silver as a pendant on a leather thong necklace, that was inspired by a find at a flea market.

Elsa Peretti continued to use silver, helping shift the material's standing from "common" to a popular choice for Liza Minnelli and others.

Elsa Peretti quickly rose in the jewelry field, receiving the 1971 Coty Award for jewelry design, and had her first appearance in Vogue magazine.

Elsa Peretti designed over thirty collections for Tiffany, with works described as "revolutionary", "timeless, distinct and modern".

Elsa Peretti's process included travel to Japan, China, and Europe and drew on the work of craftsmen there in the creation of successful collections such as Bean, Open Heart, Mesh, Bone, and Zodiac.

Elsa Peretti drew the shape from the bones of monks she'd seen inside a 17th-century Capuchin church near Rome during her childhood.

In 2012, Tiffany and Elsa Peretti extended their contract for another 20 years, paid up front for $47 million.

Elsa Peretti designed silverware for Tiffany, but only after she had established a solid following with her jewelry.

Elsa Peretti's creations were expansive, but the jewelry line remained the center of her work.

In 1968, Elsa Peretti bought a house in the largely decrepit village of Sant Marti Vell in Catalonia, Spain.

Originally Elsa Peretti described a hope for building an artist colony, but the town became "her own private village", wrote The New York Times.

Elsa Peretti worked to restore parts of the surrounding village, purchasing additional buildings and having them renovated.

Elsa Peretti supported the management of the sixteenth-century historical documents of the town, the conservation of the photographic archive of Oriol Maspons and the conservation of the Roman city of Empuries.

Elsa Peretti promoted the visual arts and the historical, artistic, and architectural heritage of Catalonia.

Elsa Peretti encouraged people such as guitarist Michael Laucke and painter-sculptor Robert Llimos to make use of San Marti Vell.

In 2013, Elsa Peretti was the first non-Catalan person awarded the National Culture Award by the National Council for Culture and the Arts.

In 2000, Elsa Peretti created a charity in honor of her father, called the Nando Elsa Peretti Foundation.

Elsa Peretti died at her home in Spain on 18 March 2021 at the age of 80.

In November 2018 incorporated family office, Elsa Peretti Holding AG, is domiciled in Zurich, Switzerland.