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Dubai: Sarah Jessica Parker Makes A Case For The 'Rarity' Of Lab-Grown Diamonds
(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)
There are stars and then there are phenomena. Sarah Jessica Parker's celebrity is at the intersection of both. In a career that has now spanned five decades, SJP, as she is fondly called, has been at the centre of some of the most poignant stories that have come alive on the big screen. But the role that well and truly captured the fashion zeitgeist was Carrie Bradshaw, the NYC-based writer navigating love, heartbreak, friendships, emotional dilemmas all while speaking to the world through her words... and fashion.
This sartorial elegance that the character - and SJP herself - embodies is the essence of fashion - letting your style tell your story. Which is why, her association with Nathalie Morrison who's founded Astrea London, a lab-grown diamond brand, is an interesting shift in the balancing act between nostalgia and modern sensibilities.
Recommended For YouThe journey of KT LUXE this year started with the debate on whether lab-grown diamonds can match diamonds in the prestige value. That obviously depends on how we define prestige at a time when there is a greater demand to keep sustainability at the heart of luxury. “I think in America, there is an idea about lab-grown diamonds and they tend to be not very well thought of because of perceptions on quality and affordability. Nathalie's mission and efforts were focused differently and she could explain both the complexity and simplicity of the idea, which is what made it to easy for me to say yes.”
It's pretty evident that Nathalie understands the science as well as art of lab-grown diamonds. “It's a misconception that diamonds are rare,” says Nathalie. “There are enough diamonds for 8 million people on this planet. I think the notion of rarity comes from a marketing exercise that has us believe so in order to create demand. But the lab-grown diamond is the future of fine jewellery because it marries our passion with what is good for the environment. People tend to think that we can make as many lab-grown diamonds as possible, but that's not true. It will take us five years before we can replicate the demand because you need technicians, researchers, the machines that take years to produce.”
Parker has also designed a collection of jewellery for Astrea alongside two “very talented designers who have been in the business for a very long time”. “I have always liked things that have a bit of whimsy and colour. I like things that feel relevant in a wardrobe 10 years from now, things that do not have age attached to them, like there is no person attached to the idea,” says Parker. She sat down with Nathalie and gathered images of all things the duo collectively liked - none of which had anything to do with luxury brands at all. “It was not about mimicking or recreating something. It was about finding a new way to copy something that another diamond company is producing. It was a much more personal affair. And then you take those ideas and images, and you work with what you have. Lab-grown diamonds offer great flexibility in a way,” she recalls.
As for sustainability being at the heart of luxury, both Sarah and Nathalie maintain that it should be at the beginning, middle and end of the business. “We all love luxury, and we all love diamonds. But the reality is that today we cannot produce diamonds without hurting our planet. Something like this starts with no deforestation, no human rights issues. We don't need separate water. Also, it is like giving back. We actually have a programme where we donate to a charity in South Africa that facilitates education for underprivileged children. Which is why most of our business should move towards sustainability,” she says.
In that journey towards producing the finest, sustainable lab grown diamond, the duo recalls having most fun during the design meetings. “In the first conversation, you are talking about ideas and numbers, and get some perfunctory details. In the next meeting, you are looking at sketches and CADs, which are computer-generated images of a conversation. You're picking it apart, changing shapes and lengths; it's fun and exciting. By the time you have the third meeting, the pieces are already there,” says Parker. For Nathalie, however, it was seeing the normalcy of Parker's celebrity that made this collaboration so special.
What also makes the collaboration special is the city itself - Dubai. “The quality of workmanship here is amazing,” says Parker. “The fact that there was such a presence of women in business here. Besides, the Dubai client really loves jewellery. They have a certain devotion to it. We spoke to the tourism board here and realised there is always a plan for the future here - how to be innovative, how to be exciting.”
Nathalie emphasises on the Emirate's ability to simply make things happen here. “There is nowhere in the world where everybody wants to move to at the moment. When we met the tourism office, we realised there is a plan to grow Dubai as the hub of the diamond market. This level of energy and forward thinking is not to be found anywhere.”
Parker is quick to add that the notion that Dubai is a party place is a flawed one. “We need to make it our business to talk about what is happening here in terms of innovation and getting things done because that story isn't quite known.”
As somebody who has been a style icon across generations, Parker looks at fashion differently. “It is much more a conversation now than it ever was,” she says. “Even when we were doing Sex and the City, fashion was not as much in conversation as it is now because there was no social media. Now, it's available to everybody, and that does not mean everybody can own a piece of fashion, but everybody is looking at it in real time and has an opinion on the style, pricing, quality and even knockoffs.” She adds that there is a whole culture around just opinions on fashion “irrespective of whether you are writing about it for 30 years or for 20 minutes”. “Just the relationship to fashion has changed so much. Everyone is telling their own story when they walk out of the door or post a picture of themselves on social media. And that's kind of what I have wanted to do in any business that I have been a part of, which is to just show what you are excited about.” And while there are rules about the right or wrong ways to wearing jewellery or a dress, she says we are all in-charge now of what makes the consumer more important now than ever.
Fashion aside, Parker had another milestone this year when she judged the 2025 Booker Prize, as part of which she had to read amore than 150 books. “I would not trade those hours spent inside a book for anything. It changed the way I look at literature and storytelling. “When you are reading that many books by both well-known and emerging voices, you realise there is so much skill and talent, and you are agonising over a shortlist, which means that there are that many important books you will be talking about. That is quite promising for literature. Most importantly for readers, which means we have that many more cultures to explore.”
The nostalgia about Carrie Bradshaw has transcended time. But in fashion does one have to balance nostalgia with more contemporary sensibilities? “I don't worry too much about it. I am nostalgic about things if it is very well made or because something smelt like my mother. Sometimes, however, I long for the elegant past. I think it wouldn't be so bad to subscribe to the idea that we should be more civilised in conversations with those we disagree with, that we don't have to call each other names, politics does not have to be ugly and crude,” says Parker. “If those ideas are old-fashioned, I would like to impress them upon contemporary life because I think we are better when we listen, when we can disagree with people, when we have civility in discourse.”
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