Lorena

DANCING-DIAMONDS JEWELLERY AND WATCH ARTISAN

Free to move

They whirl, they waltz, they twirl, they appear to float as if weightless and almost make one forget the passing of time. There is nothing more mesmerising than the exquisite motion of the diamonds at the heart of Happy Diamonds watches and jewellery. Free to move at will, they seem to be vibrantly alive. And it is Lorena, a dancing-diamond choreographer since 2013, who is the Artisan who prepares the stage on which Happy Diamonds begin their endless dance.

[A sustained note in the background]


(A light shines on an assorment of sparkling diamonds. Lorena uses jewellery tweezers to gently select one.)


Bringing Happy Diamonds to life is something you only learn here. Only the Maison Chopard makes jewellery like this.


(A close-up of a Happy Diamonds timepiece with the diamonds gliding over the dial.)


(On-screen text: ART, from the Latin ARS, ARTIS. Talent, skill, dexterity.)


[Soft piano music plays]


(On-screen text: The word ART becomes ARTISAN.)


(On-screen text: From expertise to emotion. Chopard)


(A black and white graphite sketch of the palm of a hand, surrounded by the words EXPERTISE, CREATIVITY, EMOTION.)


To me, an artisan creates real value because we really work with our hands.


(A portrait of Lorena.)


(On-screen text: Lorena, Choreography Artisan)


My job is to breathe life into jewellery and timepieces by adding mobile Happy Diamonds.


(Dressed in a white lab coat, Lorena sits at her workstation. She plunges the diamonds into a liquid to clean them.)


(On-screen text: Cleaning the diamonds)


When I first started working at Chopard, when I applied for a job in mechanical watchmaking, I knew I was going to learn new things, which is something I enjoy. When you enjoy what you're doing, you can learn very fast.


(On-screen text: Checking the diamond)


(Lorena studies a single diamond through a microscope.)


Happy Diamonds are diamonds that are specifically designed to spin and twirl inside jewellery and watches.


(On-screen text: Manually setting a prong-set diamond)


(Lorena delicately picks up a diamond and a clawed basket and sets the diamond carefully.)


It gives me the freedom to show all my strengths as a person and as an artisan. It's amazing to see a piece of jewellery with mobile diamonds that can move freely inside.


(On-screen text: Integrating the mobiles into the case middle)


(Lorena places the set diamond onto the crystal; it spins slightly as she sets it down. She polishes the outer crystal and puts it in place on the case.)


And to know it was made by an artisan, and not by a machine. That's what gives Chopard jewellery its value. My special talent is assembling tiny parts.


(On-screen text: Automatically gemsetting the mobiles)


(Lorena arranges the diamonds and a machine presses them into their settings.)


I've always enjoyed meticulous work. Not that I'm a very patient person, but when it comes to jewels, I'm very patient because I'm aiming for excellence.


(On-screen text: Cleaning and assembling the bezel)


It's a challenge and I have the goal of making our clients happy. Gratitude is very important. That's how my parents brought us up.


(On-screen text: Screwing down the bezel)


(Lorena polishes the bezel and lowers it onto the case. She uses tiny tools to fix it in place.)


Chopard reached out to me when I needed them, when I was looking for work. They gave me the chance to show my skills. So today, I am very grateful.


(On-screen text: Integrating the mobile into the bangle)


(Lorena places a single diamond between two crystals at the end of a bangle.)


I'm proud to work for Chopard because the Scheufele family is the image of a real family.


(On-screen text: Manually assembling the jewellery)


(Lorena assembles and carefully polishes a bangle and a pendant necklace which both feature diamonds dancing between two crystals.)


For me, it is a great Maison, and even though they have so much today, they still work very hard, because I think they know there is a family behind every employee.


(On-screen text: Fitting one of the pendant's sapphire crystals)


What I do today is something I have always wanted to do because it's my passion.


(On-screen text: Chopard - The artisan of emotions - Since 1860)

"A graceful double ballet generated by the wearerā€™s movements with which the diamonds keep step ā€“ or decide to follow their own path."

Lorena, Dancing-Diamond Choreographer Artisan

Lorena, Dancing-Diamond Choreographer Artisan

Lorena choreographs diamonds, artfully staging them, delicately protecting them between the two sapphire crystals and providing them with a space in which to move freely and safely. Everything happens at her workbench. But above all, so that they can whirl freely on the watch face, the dancing diamonds are set in a domed cylinder culet. Invented by the Chopard workshops in the 1970s, this ingenious system allows the gems to improvise the most extravagant movements without scratching the glass. Lorena first carefully cleans the sapphire crystal of the dial and then positions the dancing diamonds on it.

Free variations and dance

After that, she closes the cavity with the second sapphire crystal, fits a seal that will be compressed by the crystal and serve to contain it, before manually driving it in using a bracket. Her skill consists of applying exactly the right amount of uniform pressure to the entire glass so as to ensure that the watch or jewellery is perfectly water-resistant. Her deft touch in achieving the perfect tolerances also guarantees that the diamonds enjoy exactly the right amount of space in which to move playfully but always parallel to the dial ā€“ meaning without being blocked between the two panes of clear sapphire, nor running the risk of flipping over and revealing their undersides. They perform free variations and dance as if they will do so forever.

From expertise to emotions

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