Non-fungible tokens—NFTs—have been making headlines as the new must-have item, with some going for staggering sums.
If you’re unfamiliar, an NFT is simply a one-of-a-kind asset that can only belong to its owner (or owners) in the digital space. An NFT must be minted from a digital asset—cryptocurrency—in order to be valid. Most NFTs, at a very high level, are part of the Ethereum blockchain, Ethereum being a cryptocurrency.
Got that so far? If you’re really interested, this exhaustive article from The Verge actually explains it all very well.
But onto the good stuff—the jewelry stuff.
L’Dezen, a luxury jewelry brand by Payal Shah, launched a digi-physical NFT—reportedly the first fine jewelry company to do so.
What is a digi-physical NFT, you ask? An asset that exists in both the digital and physical worlds. Unlike many NFTs, which are sold and traded online, this kind actually offers a tangible element of value.
For L’Dezen, that’s its Limitless earrings: a pair of 18k white gold drop earrings with Pantone Very Peri enamel and diamonds.
The earrings—or actually, the NFT—are currently being auctioned by Digital Twin, an NFT marketplace (the auction began Thursday at 8 p.m. ET), in a 24-hour genesis auction titled Limitless, in celebration of Women’s History Month.
The winning bidder will have immediate access to their NFT—a 3-D– rendered animation of the earrings—in addition to a custom profile pic NFT rendering with the earrings, provided by Digital Twin’s graphic designers. The physical version of the Limitless earrings is redeemable on the auction site.
“Fine jewelry in itself is a highly collectible form of art, and the authentication and trade-ability of NFTs resolves the traditional pain points for collectors,” according to a statement from Digital Twin. “The utility for brands to earn in perpetuity through royalties on secondary sales completely revolutionizes the way artists are compensated for their work. Since the NFT is also asset-backed, a collector can simply redeem their NFT on our site and we will ship them the physical Limitless earrings to wear in real life.”
“It is much easier to enter this space when you can associate your NFT with a tangible good, and we are doing just that by offering our collectors the ability to redeem their NFT for physical ownership,” said Digital Twin cofounders Adriana and Natalie Soto-Wright in the same statement. “We are also really excited that the earrings are exclusively designed for our genesis drop and will never be created again—adding a form or rarity and heightening the collectibility aspect of the NFT.”
The auction, which ends Friday at 8 p.m. ET, celebrates women entering the NFT space with 10% of auction proceeds being donated to the Global Fund for Widows. Access the auction here.
Top: Limitless earrings in 18k white gold with enamel and 2.27 cts. t.w. diamonds; L’Dezen by Payal Shah
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