Last night, The Cut celebrated De Beers’ “A Diamond Is Forever” campaign and our December cover story on Padma Lakshmi. Overlooking Times Square at Dear Irving, guests such as Allison Williams, Tayshia Adams, Kim Shui, Brandon Blackwood, and more gathered for an intimate cocktail party. On display were pieces from independent jewelers, all made with natural diamonds. We asked guests about the family heirlooms they cherish in their own lives.
Kate Barton and Tayshia Adams
“My grandfather collected gold coins, and we’ve all taken them and melted them down into different things. I made a necklace and a ring. My siblings made a bracelet. It’s one of the coolest pieces of jewelry I have.” —Tayshia Adams
“An emerald earring and necklace set that was my grandma’s and then my mom’s and now mine. It’s drawn me to more jewelry like that.” —Kate Barton
Isabella Briggs
“I get a lot of incredible pieces from Grandma. She has the best style I’ve ever seen; she’s my personal style icon. She has Jean Paul Gaultier boots out the gazoo. I don’t know if a purse technically counts, but she has this Dior Gaucho Saddle Bag that she gave to me that I treasure and wear every single day, and I will give it to my kids. I’m like, “Keep it in the family, and don’t sell it on the RealReal. Give it to me!’” —Isabella Briggs
Freya Benson
“There is a handwoven rug that everyone on my mom’s side of the family gets married on. I don’t know the specific origin, but it’s at least three generations old. My brother got married last year and it was in our backyard with like 200 peony plants. It’s in a trunk, and whoever gets married last keeps it until the next engagement.” —Freya Benson
Georgia Hassarati and Michael O’Hara
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“My favorite family heirloom is my mom’s four-leaf-clover necklace. It’s a real clover, and it’s gold, and I keep it on me for good luck. My sisters don’t really know I have it, but it broke and I fixed it, so I’m keeping it.” —Georgia Hassarati
“I have a family treasure chest that’s been around forever. I’m Irish, and this comes from God knows where in Ireland, but when I was a kid, I thought it was a pirate chest. So when I was 5, my mom threw me a pirate-themed party, hid all my presents in the chest, and made a scavenger hunt back to it. My mom still has it, but in the will it’s in my name. I have siblings, but I called it.” —Michael O’Hara
Brandon Blackwood
“I have a bunch of my grandmother’s rings that were given to my mom, and I wear them all the time.” —Brandon Blackwood
“My grandmother used to collect china, and in kindergarten, we used to have tea parties every Tuesday in class. She’s had the same china since then, and today I asked her if I could have it. I was watching a girl on TikTok put out all this china, and I was like, Wait. I host a lot, so it’s going to be my little thing from childhood parties to adult parties. I’m the Martha Stewart of my family, so my grandma trusts me with it.” —Sean Garrette
