When celebrities grace the red carpet, they could borrow priceless diamonds from Chopard, Cartier or Tiffany & Co. — or they could opt for costume jewelry in the name of convenience.
A-listers like Lupita Nyong’o, Hailey Baldwin and Kate Hudson are all fans of APM Monaco, which makes affordable gems that get their sparkle from cubic zirconia or crystals instead of precious stones.
“Because the pieces are not fine jewelry, girls feel comfortable traveling in them,” Lion VIP Relations’ Juliana Pires Johnson, who handles APM Monaco’s celebrity relations, told Page Six Style. “They look very real and the quality is great, so celebs know they’re going to look good but there isn’t that responsibility.”
Often, the added expense of hiring a security guard to watch over millions of dollars’ worth of rubies, diamonds or emeralds is simply not worth the trouble, especially while celebs are traveling. Meanwhile, APM Monaco’s red carpet-ready creations — which include starry wraparound rings, sparkling ear cuffs and delicate chokers — typically retail for between $100 and $500.
“I think it’s reflective of how all of us women want to look beautiful — you want to wear something that looks really amazing and real, but if it comes without that responsibility and that pressure it just makes everyone happy and relieved,” Johnson explained.
The brand’s glittering wares are so convincing, in fact, that Hollywood stylists like Rob Zangardi and Mariel Haenn, Jason Rembert and Thomas Carter Phillips — who count clients such as Millie Bobby Brown, Rita Ora and Jennifer Lopez among them — often pick out APM Monaco pieces without noticing they’re costume.
“They’re drawn to how great the pieces look,” Johnson said. “Often stylists don’t even realize that they’re not fine!”