The nail design, originally presented by Cartier New York in 1971, was relaunched in 2012 as the Juste un Clou line, reinforcing its status as a major icon of jewelry.
In 1971, two years after the launch of the notorious Love bracelet, designer Aldo Cipullo came up with the Nail bracelet for Cartier New York, in the form of a gold nail wrapped around the wrist. The idea was extended to include pendant earrings and brooches, and so embodied the creative frenzy then gripping the Big Apple that it was an instant hit.
In a 1976 New York Times article on Cipullo, Eugenia Sheppard reported an anecdote on the possible origin of the line. “One night when Aldo Cipullo was just a beginner at jewelry design, he wanted nothing so much as to hang a picture in his Manhattan apartment. He thought nails were standard equipment, but he soon found there were none in his kitchen. When he rang several other doorbells in his building, the answer was the same: ‘Absolutely no nails.’”
Whether the anecdote is true or not, Cipullo perceived above all the aesthetic and symbolic power of this simple object. “As hard as hardware is, it has warmth. Jewelry should have warmth.” He added, “It’s a reflection of life. We are surrounded everywhere by things that are bolted down or nailed, and I don’t think anything will ever replace that fact in life.”
This line incarnates a major theme of Cartier’s stylistic repertoire, which has never hesitated to explore the industrial world in search of unanticipated beauty. Other examples include the visible screws on the case of the Santos watch in 1904, a “nail” tie pin designed by the Maison as early as 1907, and a 1913 platinum and diamond brooch in the form of a square-headed nail.
Relaunched in 2012 under the new name of Juste un Clou (Just a Nail), the line includes bracelets and rings done in all three colors of gold as well as versions pavé-set with diamonds. More than a year of work and technical research were required, notably to devise a clasp for the bracelet, hidden in the head of the nail.
In 2017, Juste un Clou wrapped itself around the neck in an original torque necklace. The following year, Cartier presented a new, more slender version of the bracelet that is so flexible it needs no clasp to fit around the wrist.
