Elsa Peretti Quotes

Powerful Elsa Peretti for Daily Growth

About Elsa Peretti

Elsa Peretti (born Elizabeth Elsa Peretti on November 1, 1940) is an influential Italian-American designer known for her innovative approach to jewelry design, sculpture, and product design. Born in Florence, Italy, she was raised in a creative environment that nurtured her artistic talents from an early age. Her mother, Brigid Fendick Peretti, was an American heiress, and her father, Giorgio Peretti, was an Italian industrialist and art dealer. Elsa moved to the United States in 1962, settling in New York City. She studied at Parsons School of Design and later worked as a freelance designer for companies like Tiffany & Co., KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and Baccarat. Her designs for Tiffany & Co. during the 1970s and 1980s revolutionized the company's jewelry line, introducing organic forms that resonated with the public. Elsa Peretti's designs are characterized by their minimalist aesthetic, fluid lines, and organic shapes. She draws inspiration from her travels, nature, and human emotions, creating pieces that are both functional and expressive. Some of her most iconic works include the Bone cuff, the Turtle collection, the Open Heart pendant, and the "Wave" perfume bottle for Baccarat. Throughout her career, Elsa Peretti has received numerous accolades, including the Coty Award in 1970, the CFDA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007, and induction into the Art Director's Club Hall of Fame in 2015. Today, her designs are considered modern classics and continue to inspire a new generation of designers. Elsa Peretti's impact on design and her unique approach to creating functional art objects make her an enduring figure in the world of design.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"I design for myself."

Elsa Peretti's quote "I design for myself" implies that she creates designs based on her personal preferences, emotions, and aesthetic sensibilities. By designing for herself first, she ensures authenticity in her creations while catering to her own unique creative vision. This approach not only allows her to stay true to herself but also enables her to connect deeply with the people who resonate with her distinctive style.


"To me, jewelry is very sensual and personal."

This quote emphasizes that jewelry to Elsa Peretti is not just a decorative accessory but a deeply intimate and sensual item. She views it as something that can evoke feelings and connect with the wearer on a physical, emotional level. The choice of jewelry, like any personal adornment, reflects one's unique personality and identity.


"Jewelry has always been an extension of a woman's body, a second skin."

Elsa Peretti's quote suggests that jewelry is not just an accessory, but an integral part of a woman's self-expression and identity. It is seen as an extension of her body, much like clothing or makeup, serving to emphasize and enhance her unique qualities. Jewelry can function as a second skin, reflecting the wearer's personality, mood, and style, and providing a means for her to express herself creatively.


"My work is my dream."

Elsa Peretti's quote, "My work is my dream," suggests that her creative output is not merely a job or profession, but an extension of her inner aspirations, desires, and imagination. It implies a deep connection between her personal vision and the tangible expressions of that vision in her designs. Essentially, she transforms her dreams into reality through her work, thereby blurring the lines between dreaming and doing.


"I don't think in terms of trends or fashion; I just make what I like."

This quote emphasizes that Elsa Peretti, a renowned Italian-American designer, prioritized her personal tastes and aesthetics over external influences such as prevailing trends or the dictates of fashion when creating her designs. By making what she likes, she aimed to produce pieces that were authentic, unique, and enduring, rather than catering to temporary fashion whims. This approach is characteristic of an artist who strives for originality and artistic integrity.


I always write in pencil, so I can erase.

- Elsa Peretti

Pencil, Always, Write, Erase

I keep my hair gray, so I like silver and platinum. For women who dye their hair, they can wear whatever they want.

- Elsa Peretti

Want, Like, Wear, Platinum

Good design for the home should be universal. A house should be like old shoes, comfortable, like a good friend... The Japanese aesthetic is important to me. Very organic. They have a sense of the weight of the thing: very balanced.

- Elsa Peretti

Aesthetic, Like, Very, Good Friend

I would like to get married, but it must be a man who is part of my work, or me part of his.

- Elsa Peretti

Work, Like, Part, Get Married

I am jewelry and objects together. This is the Elsa Peretti name to me. It is a very good balance for me to try and create with the person in mind or with the space in mind - to imagine a bowl of fruit or something for water. It is a little bit yin and yang.

- Elsa Peretti

Fruit, Very, Objects, Yang

I hated modeling. I was so scared. But as soon as I started doing jewelry, I did better as a model.

- Elsa Peretti

Jewelry, Doing, Better, Scared

A lot of designers still have nostalgia for the past. As for the furniture in the future, I hope they use less of real wood. Conservation in wood is necessary.

- Elsa Peretti

Nostalgia, Still, Designers, Wood

People surround themselves in their houses with things they don't really need, that they have to dust all the time.

- Elsa Peretti

Need, Houses, Themselves, Surround

I like to push myself to achieve a certain quality, eliminate the excess detail. I always want a high degree of purity.

- Elsa Peretti

Always, Purity, Like, Push

I am a bull. I am Taurus. My will is awful. If I like something, there is nothing else. I was a pain in the neck. I still am a pain in the neck.

- Elsa Peretti

Pain, Will, Still, Bull

What I want is not to become a status symbol, but to give beauty at a price.

- Elsa Peretti

Beauty, Give, Symbol, Status

I can hold a cup of sake on a full moon in Japan, and the reflection of the moon in that little cup can make me feel so enthusiastic about beauty. That one good, magical moment can give me enough to create other things like the teardrop earring or necklace.

- Elsa Peretti

Beauty, Other, Japan, Earring

You think about the beauty and what you want to transmit. If I think about designing, I can't design.

- Elsa Peretti

Beauty, Think, I Think, Designing

I hate that impeccable, perfectly perfect look, all matched and prearranged.

- Elsa Peretti

Hate, Perfect, Perfectly, Matched

A big diamond necklace is nouveau riche, really. People who have wealth a long time don't wear such things.

- Elsa Peretti

Wealth, Big, Nouveau, Necklace

For me, to put together my museum and all my remembrances was a big effort mentally, physically and monetarily.

- Elsa Peretti

Me, Big, Physically, Museum

I was a baby when I began, but I knew exactly what I wanted to wear myself. I became a jewelry designer because I knew how to do something with a pencil and sketch my ideas.

- Elsa Peretti

Jewelry, Began, Became, Pencil

The production must be faithful to the line. If the production fails, my work fails.

- Elsa Peretti

Work, Line, Production, Faithful

I like Yorkshire Tea - very strong and English.

- Elsa Peretti

Strong, Tea, Very, Yorkshire

I can't copy nature.

- Elsa Peretti

Nature, Copy

I don't have the feeling that I need to add a lot to my collection, because I have an incredibly wide range of things. This is a part of the secret of my things, that they are still valid. When I feel a need, I do something more.

- Elsa Peretti

Part, Range, Wide Range, Valid

Most of the time, I'm in the country, and the jewelry I wear I can wear in the country.

- Elsa Peretti

Country, Wear, Most, Jewelry

I like to do things that are classic.

- Elsa Peretti

Like, Things, Classic

Bird cages are nothing of incredible value, but I like them.

- Elsa Peretti

Nothing, Incredible, Like, Bird

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