Diamond tennis bracelet, 1 to 12 carats: prices and qualities

Origin

Weißes Tennisarmband mit großen Brillanten in Weißgold, Studioaufnahme — The line · brilliants in white gold

Diamantarmband am Handgelenk einer Tennisspielerin mit hölzernem Schläger, Schwarzweiß — How it began · the bracelet on the wrist, between two rallies

Why it is called a tennis bracelet

At the US Open, Chris Evert's diamond line broke off her wrist. She had the match paused until every stone was found. The form has carried her name ever since. An unbroken line of brilliants, as supple as a chain, put on in the morning and never taken off at night. The oldest argument for a piece of jewellery is still the best one: you forget you are wearing it.

White brilliants · 18 kt gold · 17.5 cm standard length · any length made to measure

Configurator

Your bracelet

Carat, quality and setting can be put together here. The image shows the real difference in size on the wrist.

Zwölf weiße Tennisarmbänder von 1 bis 12 Karat übereinander am selben Handgelenk, Größenvergleich

approx. 7 ct · Rivière · Top Wesselton VS

Total carat

Quality

F–G · VS1–VS2 The standard for good houses: clear white, hard to fault under the loupe. This is the best ratio of presence to price, and where most of my clients end up.

Setting

Stones: 52
Diameter per stone: 3.32 mm
Total carat: 7.28 ct
18 kt gold: 16.9 g
Length: 17.5 cm

Price incl. VAT

€ 37,800

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One stone, at the scale of the photograph

Each circle is exactly the size a single stone has in the image beside it. The way from 1 to 12 carats is a difference in character rather than quantity, and it starts at a millimetre and a half.

1 ct
1.35 mm

2 ct
2.00 mm

3 ct
2.40 mm

4 ct
2.65 mm

5 ct
2.85 mm

6 ct
3.16 mm

7 ct
3.32 mm

8 ct
3.47 mm

9 ct
3.80 mm

10 ct
4.10 mm

11 ct
4.26 mm

12 ct
4.30 mm

The two settings

Why these two? Over my career I have seen every way of building one, going back to my father and my grandfather. These two are what remained: the most elegant, the best, the essence of a classic tennis bracelet, a rivière, as an unbroken line of diamonds has always been called. Both carry the same stones. The difference lies in the metal underneath, and in the way the line sits around the wrist. Both are secure.

Rivière

The reduced setting

To my eye this is the more elegant of the two, there is more movement in it. Four narrow claws per stone and nothing else: the metal steps back behind the stones, the line runs almost without interruption and follows the wrist. Clasp with a hinged safety flap.

less metal · more movement · more elegant

approx. 7 ct · Top Wesselton VS

€ 37,800

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Ligne

The stronger setting

Here the stones read a little larger, and the construction is a touch sturdier: each stone in its own closed box, a wider bridge between the links. Clasp with two safety catches. This is perhaps the one for eternity.

more metal · stones read larger · for eternity

approx. 7 ct · Top Wesselton VS

€ 42,000

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Qualities

The three qualities

German trade grades, with the international GIA scale behind them. All three are eye-clean to near eye-clean. The difference lies in the whiteness and the price, not in visible inclusions.

Wesselton SI H · SI1–SI2 € 34,600

A warm, calm white. Inclusions visible under the loupe, not on the wrist. The sensible choice when size matters more than the last percent of clarity.

Top Wesselton VS F–G · VS1–VS2 € 37,800

The standard for good houses: clear white, hard to fault under the loupe. This is the best ratio of presence to price, and where most of my clients end up.

River VVS D–E · VVS1–VVS2 € 44,900

An ice-cold white, practically flawless. The difference is subtle on the wrist and pronounced on resale. For pieces meant as value, not only as jewellery.

Clasp

Both bracelets are set all the way round, the back carries stones too, there is no dead side. The clasp sits within the line and is invisible from the front. Only the safety differs: Rivière has a hinged flap, Ligne two lateral safety catches. Neither opens on its own. Chris Evert would not have had to stop the match.

Invisible from the front · set all the way round · doubly secured

Kastenschloss mit Klappsicherung am Tennisarmband Rivière — Rivière · Box clasp with hinged safety flap

Kastenschloss mit zwei Sicherheitsachten am Tennisarmband Ligne — Ligne · Box clasp with two safety catches

Price table

All prices in euro including VAT, as of today. Diamond and gold prices move; for a binding offer I calculate at the day's rate.

Setting Rivière
Carat	Stones	Diameter per stone	Wesselton SI	Top Wesselton VS	River VVS
approx. 1 ct · exactly 0.98 ct	98	1.35 mm	€ 4,800	€ 5,100	€ 5,700
approx. 2 ct · exactly 2.19 ct	73	2.00 mm	€ 10,600	€ 11,400	€ 13,200
approx. 3 ct · exactly 3.30 ct	66	2.40 mm	€ 15,700	€ 17,100	€ 20,400
approx. 4 ct · exactly 4.06 ct	58	2.65 mm	€ 19,300	€ 21,100	€ 25,200
approx. 5 ct · exactly 5.13 ct	57	2.85 mm	€ 23,700	€ 26,600	€ 31,000
approx. 6 ct · exactly 6.24 ct	52	3.16 mm	€ 28,800	€ 32,400	€ 37,800
approx. 7 ct · exactly 7.28 ct	52	3.32 mm	€ 34,600	€ 37,800	€ 44,900
approx. 8 ct · exactly 7.84 ct	49	3.47 mm	€ 37,100	€ 40,700	€ 48,700
approx. 9 ct · exactly 9.20 ct	46	3.80 mm	€ 39,600	€ 47,800	€ 63,100
approx. 10 ct · exactly 10.00 ct	40	4.10 mm	€ 42,700	€ 51,900	€ 70,100
approx. 11 ct · exactly 11.31 ct	39	4.26 mm	€ 48,200	€ 58,800	€ 79,500
approx. 12 ct · exactly 12.09 ct	39	4.30 mm	€ 56,000	€ 62,800	€ 82,200

Setting Ligne
Carat	Stones	Diameter per stone	Wesselton SI	Top Wesselton VS	River VVS
approx. 1 ct · exactly 0.98 ct	98	1.35 mm	€ 6,500	€ 6,800	€ 7,400
approx. 2 ct · exactly 2.19 ct	73	2.00 mm	€ 13,300	€ 14,100	€ 15,900
approx. 3 ct · exactly 3.30 ct	66	2.40 mm	€ 18,900	€ 20,300	€ 23,500
approx. 4 ct · exactly 4.06 ct	58	2.65 mm	€ 22,900	€ 24,700	€ 28,800
approx. 5 ct · exactly 5.13 ct	57	2.85 mm	€ 27,000	€ 29,900	€ 34,300
approx. 6 ct · exactly 6.24 ct	52	3.16 mm	€ 32,800	€ 36,400	€ 41,700
approx. 7 ct · exactly 7.28 ct	52	3.32 mm	€ 38,800	€ 42,000	€ 49,100
approx. 8 ct · exactly 7.84 ct	49	3.47 mm	€ 41,100	€ 44,700	€ 52,600
approx. 9 ct · exactly 9.20 ct	46	3.80 mm	€ 43,600	€ 51,800	€ 67,100
approx. 10 ct · exactly 10.00 ct	40	4.10 mm	€ 46,600	€ 55,800	€ 73,900
approx. 11 ct · exactly 11.31 ct	39	4.26 mm	€ 52,200	€ 62,800	€ 83,600
approx. 12 ct · exactly 12.09 ct	39	4.30 mm	€ 59,800	€ 66,600	€ 86,000

What sets an MXHM tennis bracelet apart

Every stone examined singly · matched by hand · set in line and true · supple and stable at once · colour and clarity in writing

You can buy a tennis bracelet in a great many places. Some claim particular cuts, others compete on price. Building a good one takes three things: an eye, real craft, and a sense of what things ought to cost.

Where the argument is price, what arrives is a series piece in a standard length, chosen by no one, fitted by no one, with colour and clarity answered by a form.

Yet such a bracelet has to do two things at once: move and hold. Supple alone and it works loose, the links start to sit askew. Rigid alone and it lies on the arm like a bangle and never follows the wrist. Only the balance of the two makes the piece, and it does not arrive by itself. It is the result of fitting every single link.

Here a person buys the stones, and that person is me. I see the parcel before it is set, examine every stone on its own, and lay them so that the bracelet holds the same white from one end to the other. That is how you recognise a good line, and it is precisely what a form cannot do.

Then comes the step you notice immediately when it is missing: the setting. The stones must sit in line and true, each at the same height, each on the same axis. Let one tilt or drift and the bracelet flickers unevenly instead of running as one light. The difference is enormous and it rests with the setter. I have worked with the best of them for years.

The bracelet is made for your wrist rather than to a standard length, and if it does not sit right, that is settled within a few days. There is no group behind MXHM, only me. What you pay goes into the stone and into the workshop, not into shop-window rents, marketing departments or brand premiums. And what is in it is written down. At the great houses, nothing is.

For him

Weißes Diamant-Tennisarmband am Handgelenk eines Mannes — On a man's wrist · the stronger setting

Fancy shapes · baguettes and emerald cut

A man's wrist changes the arithmetic: more circumference, so more stones for the same presence. As a rule it starts where hers ends: from around 7 carats upwards, the stronger setting, 19 to 21 centimetres. For something less classic there are fancy shapes: baguettes, emerald cut, radiant. The same principle, a different light.

19–21 cm · from 7 ct · brilliant or fancy shapes

Questions

Frequently asked questions

The questions I am asked most often about white tennis bracelets.

What does a white tennis bracelet cost?

At MXHM between 4.800 € for one carat in Wesselton SI and 86.000 € for twelve carats in River VVS, VAT included. A seven-carat bracelet in Top Wesselton VS is 37.800 € in the Rivière setting and 42.000 € in the Ligne setting.

How many diamonds does a seven-carat tennis bracelet have?

52 brilliants of 3.32 millimetres each, 7.28 carats in total, on a standard length of 17.5 centimetres.

What do River, Top Wesselton and Wesselton mean?

They are the German trade grades for diamond colour. River corresponds to D–E on the international GIA scale, Top Wesselton to F–G, Wesselton to H. VVS, VS and SI describe clarity, from practically flawless to inclusions visible under a loupe but not on the wrist.

How do you recognise a well-made tennis bracelet?

By three things. First the way it moves: it must be supple and stable at once. A bracelet that only moves works loose; one that is only stable lies on the arm like a bangle. Second the light: the stones must sit in line and true, each at the same height and on the same axis. Let one tilt and the bracelet flickers unevenly instead of running as one light. Third the colour: a good line holds the same white from end to end, because the stones were examined singly and matched by hand.

Why does MXHM offer only two settings?

Because after many years exactly two remained. Maximilian Hemmerle has seen every way of building a tennis bracelet over his career, going back to his father and his grandfather. These two are the most elegant and the best, the essence of a classic tennis bracelet. The name rivière has always described an unbroken line of diamonds.

What is the difference between the Rivière and Ligne settings?

Rivière is the reduced construction: four narrow claws per stone, little visible metal, more movement in the line, with a hinged safety flap on the clasp. Ligne carries more metal: each stone sits in its own closed box, which makes the stones read a little larger and the bracelet sturdier, with two safety catches on the clasp. The stones are the same in both, and both are secure.

How large are the individual stones?

From 1.35 millimetres at one carat total weight to 4.30 millimetres at twelve carats. Stone diameter grows roughly with the square root of the total weight, so twice the carat does not mean twice the size.

What length is a tennis bracelet?

17.5 centimetres is the standard length the prices refer to. Any other length is made to measure; 19 to 21 centimetres is usual on a man's wrist. A bracelet can also be shortened later.

Can the length be adjusted afterwards?

Yes, and easily so. Shortening the bracelet to the right length is done within a few days. If you prefer, come to the atelier for a personal fitting, by appointment.

Why is it called a tennis bracelet?

At the US Open the tennis player Chris Evert's diamond bracelet broke off her wrist. She had the match paused until the stones were found. The form has carried the name ever since. The exact year is disputed: 1987 is widely repeated, several investigations point to 1978.

Are the prices binding?

They are calculated at today's rates, but gold and diamond prices move. For a binding offer I recalculate at the day's rate; I buy the stones personally for every piece.

Something else in mind?

A different length, fancy shapes, baguettes, a gradient into white, a bracelet for him. Tell me what you have in mind. I buy the stones personally and at the day's rate.

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