In Kyoto, Chanel revealed Reach for the Stars, the final high jewellery collection designed by Patrice Leguéreau —
a tribute told in wings, comets and light and ushered in by the house’s new marketing lead, Dorothée Saintville
Words by Ruby Stephens
Wings of Chanel necklace in white gold, platinum, diamonds and Padparadscha sapphire.
All imagery courtesy of Chanel.
“For Patrice, nothing was impossible,” says Dorothée Saintville, Chanel’s international product marketing director of watches and fine jewellery. It’s a line that lingers — not just for its conviction, but for the weight it carries.
Reach for the Stars, Chanel’s latest high jewellery collection, is not only a study in light and line, it is the final collection designed by the late Patrice Leguéreau, the house’s longtime director of the Jewellery Creation Studio, who passed away late last year.
The phrase might conjure memories of S Club 7’s early-2000s anthem — “Climb every mountain higher…” — but in Chanel’s world, it takes on a more grounded poetry. A quiet assertion of vision and imagination. Because this collection isn’t just a farewell.
It’s a legacy, traced in diamonds and gold. A creative crescendo that marks the end of one chapter — and the beginning of another. And where better to honour such a vision than Kyoto.
It begins quietly. No theatrics, no fanfare — just the Kyoto sun casting a soft glow through the windows of the Meiji Kotokan Hall. Inside, 85 pieces are on display, each shaped with extraordinary precision.
They glint with diamonds, coloured sapphires, rare garnets and gold — but more than that, they hold something else: the imprint of a creative force who helped redefine what Chanel high jewellery could be.
Leguéreau, who joined the Maison in 2009, brought with him a distinct creative language. His work was architectural and symbolic, always grounded in the enduring codes of the house: comets, stars, camellias, lions. These motifs became part of a broader vocabulary.
Collections such as 1932, Tweed de CHANEL, and No. 5 were sculptural, yes, but also quietly emotional. They were objects that told stories, not just adorned the body. “There was no compromise,” Saintville says. “From the first sketch to the final piece, he pushed every limit.”
Chanel scenography venue, Kyotonational Museum Meiji Kotokan Hall
Leguéreau didn’t just modernise the Maison’s approach to jewellery — he built its high jewellery identity from the ground up. Before his arrival, Chanel’s fine jewellery had depth and lineage, but it was still finding its rhythm alongside couture. Under Leguéreau’s creative direction, the collections became bolder, more collectible and far more visible on the global stage, redefining Chanel’s place in the high jewellery conversation.
And yet, despite that evolution, his designs never lost their intimacy. They remained deeply considered, emotionally layered and often surprising in their restraint. “He had this ongoing energy, passion, and sense of dreaming,” Saintville says. “I learned so much from him.”
Reach for the Stars continues that story. But unlike past collections, it arrives charged with a different kind of energy: not mournful, but reflective. The mood is sharper. The silhouettes longer, more precise. There’s symbolism throughout — solar flares, orbits, motion — but it’s never overworked.
That duality – between tradition and reinvention – is part of who we are. We reinterpret our roots constantly, while always pushing forward” – Dorothée Saintville
At its centre is the Wings of Chanel necklace, anchored by a 19.55-carat spessartite garnet in a fiery orange-pink hue. The colour recalls sunrise and sunset – the natural extremes of light. The necklace, transformable like many Chanel signatures, can be worn long or short, or reconfigured into a bracelet.
“It’s the essence of the collection,” says Saintville. “And the first time we’ve introduced the wing as a motif in Chanel high jewellery.” It feels like a fitting final symbol: one of elevation, flight and perspective.
The idea of transformability – so deeply embedded in Gabrielle Chanel’s approach to fashion – reappears across the collection. Nothing is static. Pieces morph and adjust with their wearer. Necklaces convert. Earrings detach.
The diamond-studded Aim for the Stars necklace can be worn as a choker or transformed into a bracelet. In every iteration, the transformation feels considered – not just clever, but meaningful to the wearer.
Five Wings brooch in yellow gold, diamonds, yellow sapphires and lacquer, and Chanel Five Wings brooch in white gold, diamonds and lacquer, all POA
Elsewhere, feathers and flares appear in cuffs, earrings and brooches – each executed with control and care. The craftsmanship is thorough, the palette deliberately restrained: diamonds, garnets, sapphires,
Japanese lacquer. Nothing feels excessive. Even the most intricate pieces are anchored by a sense of control and quiet refinement.
It’s this discipline – this refined imagination – that has come to define Chanel under Leguéreau’s direction. And it’s no coincidence that Kyoto was chosen as the site for the collection’s debut.
The city’s pace, its balance of tradition and modernity, feels in harmony with the collection’s tone. But there’s also a more personal link. “Patrice had a real love for Kyoto,” says Saintville. “He visited often and always dreamed of unveiling a collection here.”
Among the most meaningful pieces are five wing-shaped brooches, created in collaboration with Japanese lacquer master Mr Okada and his son. Each one features traditional Japanese lacquer — layered, textured and subtly embedded with a tiny comet, a recurring thread in the collection.
“Patrice was fascinated by Japanese craft,” she says. “He was always looking for ways to merge that savoir-faire with high jewellery.”
Leguéreau worked with the Okada family for years. The elder Mr Okada began his career as a lacquer artist in Kyoto before becoming one of the most respected names in the field. After his passing, his son continued the tradition, working closely with the Chanel studio to complete these final pieces.
The presentation in Kyoto was intimate — designed not for spectacle but for stillness. The setting was quiet, with high ceilings, soft natural light and enough room for each piece to stand on its own. There was no crowd, no chaos — just a sense of presence.
The way a necklace caught the afternoon sun, the way lacquer deepened as the light shifted. In this context, the jewellery felt less like display and more like offering.
It served as a reminder that high jewellery, at its best, does more than shine. It creates space and slows you down. It invites you to notice what you might otherwise overlook — a stone’s warmth, the intention behind a curve, the lightness of something that could easily feel heavy.
Chanel Embrace Your Destiny ring with pear-shaped diamond and further natural diamonds in white gold.
And perhaps that’s what makes Reach for the Stars so moving. It doesn’t shout. It doesn’t overstate. Instead, it holds its place. It builds on what came before without repeating it. It offers space to feel and a space to think.
It also gestures to the future. Under Saintville’s direction, Chanel’s high jewellery will continue evolving, but the foundation remains. “That duality — between tradition and reinvention — is part of who we are,” she says. “We reinterpret our roots constantly, while always pushing forward.”
She doesn’t speak of dramatic shifts or next big things. Instead, she talks about refinement. Continuing to tell stories with clarity and conviction. Continuing to surprise — quietly.
“Creation is the starting point of everything,” she says. “Of course, Patrice’s legacy lives on. But there will be something new. Always.” That idea — that creativity doesn’t end but transforms — is what gives Reach for the Stars its power.
And while many of the pieces may eventually find homes in private collections, the message of the collection lingers: that a life’s work can be made tangible, that vision can become form, and that even in a final act, there is space for flight.
As Saintville puts it: “There’s joy in these pieces, even in their quietness”. And that quietness — held in the light of Kyoto, in the final gesture of a visionary — speaks not of endings but of everything still to come.
A reminder, as the song goes, to reach for the stars. Climb every mountain higher. Dream a little bolder, and keep going — always.
Chanel dinner venue, Shogunzuka Seiryuden
View the collection online at chanel.com.
A version of this story originally appeared in the September issue of Harper’s BAZAAR Australia / New Zealand.
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