Lalique crystal is synonymous with style and quality. Founded in the 19th century by Rene Lalique the company is still active today and continues to create exquisite crystal pieces.

Rene Lalique was recognised as one of the world’s greatest jewellery designers and glassmakers during the Art Nouvea and Art Deco periods and is renowned for his innovative and stunning designs of perfume bottles, vases, jewellery, glass clocks and car hood ornaments. Taking his influence from the natural environment many of his pieces reflect this in the form of plants, flowers and the human body.

A wonderful testament of the talent of Rene Lalique still exists today on Jersey in the glass church of St Matthews.

Mark Lalique (1900-1945), Rene’s son, took over the company in 1945. Believing that the beauty of an object was derived from the richness of the material used and not just from the quality of shape and design, he started using lead crystal instead of glass. Since that time Lalique has been synonymous with crystal.

In 1977 Mark’s daughter, Marie-Claude, took over the company as both an artist and chairman and had a special talent for injecting movement into her glass sculptures and proved that crystal, often considered cold, could also be a living, expressive material with nuances and contrasts achieved with a frosting technique. Today, almost all modern Lalique glassware has a frosted finish and it is this technique which gives the crystal its different textures and makes every piece of Lalique unique.

By effectively marrying tradition and innovation Marie-Claude Lalique continued the success of the company by introducing more luxury items such as jewellery and perfume and designing her own glass pieces which she continued to do until her death in 2003.

Lalique crystal has a timeless quality and if looked after properly can be expected to look just as good in 30 years time as on the day it was bought.

Still considered part of France’s cultural heritage Lalique has nevertheless managed to grow into a lifestyle brand and as well as crystal now offers perfume, jewellery and leather accessories which have helped broaden its appeal to the younger clientele.

Particularly successful is their collection of Lalique figurines which appeal to all generations.

History