The saturated blue of the turquoise in this pendant carries no traces of green - it's the pure, even colour that's prized most highly. The cabochon cut doesn't scatter that colour into facets, but arranges it into a smooth, gently domed surface where light spreads without glinting. The simple, minimalist setting in rhodium-plated 925 silver stays in the background, letting all the attention rest on the stone and its calm, deep tone.

Before this turquoise was set, its colour and structure were checked for evenness, free of the streaks and hollow patches found in lesser stones. It comes from the Sleeping Beauty mine in Arizona, source of some of the most prized turquoise in the world. Silver and precious metals are rising in price, and good-quality turquoise is getting harder to find, so buying at this price makes sense today. The setting is made of pure, refined European silver, sterling silver 925, further coated with rhodium - this layer guards against tarnishing and dulling, so the pendant needs polishing less often. The maker's mark struck on the silver, registered with the French assay office, attests to the metal's origin.

The pendant sits at the neckline, right where the throat is bare and nothing distracts from the stone. It pairs well with a soft, chunky-knit sweater, especially in cool, monochrome palettes - grey or broken white give the turquoise room to stand out. It can also be worn with a cotton shirt under a simple coat, when you're after a modern yet understated accent. At 1.4 g, it can be worn all day without being felt on the skin.