My Monaco: Jewellery designer Lily Gabriella’s insider guide ahead of the Monaco Yacht Show 2025

Born and raised in Monaco, jewellery designer Lily Gabriella shares her favourite local spots – from dining in Larvotto to late nights at Jimmy’z – offering a true insider’s guide to the principality. With the Monaco Yacht Show 2025 just around the corner, here’s where to drink, dine and unwind like a local...

True Monaco locals can be hard to come by, with the famously jet-set population frequently flitting in and out of the principality to New York, London, Miami and beyond, so who better to turn to for tips on where to dine, drink and spend your time in Monte-Carlo than Lily Gabriella Elia? The fine jeweller du jour, with a flair for colourful, contemporary designs, grew up in the city-state and knows it like the back of her (elegantly bejewelled) hand.

Born in Rio de Janeiro to a Lebanese father and Uruguayan mother, Elia moved to Monaco with her family aged just four, and spent her formative years on Avenue Princesse Grace. While she pursued degrees in Boston and New York, followed by a stint learning her craft at Christie’s Jewellery in Geneva, Monaco is, she says, where she feels at home. 

“My grandparents lived in Monaco,” she explains. “My grandfather was a banker and my grandmother was a big jewellery collector – I guess that’s where a lot of my love for it came from, because she used to collect incredible pieces, which spanned many different periods in time.”

The grandmother in question was the philanthropist Lily Safra – as close to Monegasque royalty as you get without being directly related to the Grimaldis. She was famous both for her love of gemstones and her generosity (she auctioned a collection in 2012 that raised a record-breaking CHF35,115,325 (£24.5m) for charity with pieces by Chaumet, Cartier and JAR included in the lot). 

Her granddaughter appears to have inherited not just her name but a true love for jewellery, too. Ten years after founding her eponymous brand, Elia has established herself at the forefront of contemporary jewellery design with colourful pieces that pay homage to her multicultural upbringing in Monte-Carlo.

From art deco-influenced amethyst pendants to her signature Spira rings inspired by sculpture and fine art, her limited-edition and bespoke pieces reflect myriad cultural references that have formed her aesthetic along the way. 

There’s also a distinct oceanic influence in her designs, the after-effect perhaps of growing up with a direct view of the Riviera, and she emphasises the impact both her grandparents and parents – and the exposure they gave her to high jewellery from such a young age – had on her work. “It really widened my knowledge of jewellery, and of the different jewellers and brands from contemporary to historical,” she says.

While business is flourishing and she spends much of her time working from her elegant showroom in London’s Burlington Arcade, she often finds herself travelling back to her family in Monaco’s Larvotto district.

“Monaco has a village-like environment where it’s all very organic, and everybody knows each other,” she says, “so you get quite excited when you go back to see what’s new. Now, there’s a lot more to do, and it’s not just a seasonal place anymore. There are a lot of people who are moving there full time.” Here, she shares her hometown hotspots, from old favourites to recent arrivals.

First published in the October 2025 issue of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.