Tiffany & Co. will turn NFTs into $50,000 custom pendants
No, you haven’t been punked.
Tiffany & Co. will now turn CryptoPunk non-fungible tokens (NFTs) into custom pendants – to the value of $50,000.
The jewelry company announced it its latest NFT effort – dubbed NFTiff – on Sunday when it also revealed that customers could transform their CryptoPunk NFTs into their very own “bespoke pendant handcrafted by Tiffany & Co artisans.”
Launching in three days, NFTiff is a “collection of 250 digital passports,” according to the company’s new website specifically designed for the project. Since the maximum number of pendants is 250, customers are limited to purchasing three.
The tokens are exclusive to holders of CryptoPunk NFTs, of which there are 10,000 available on the Ethereum blockchain. Each 24×24 “pixel art image” is generated algorithmically, according to the founders at Larva Labs.
A pendant with precious stones from Tiffany & Co. will cost 30 ETH, or nearly $50,000, which includes the creation of the piece as well as shipping and handling.
Each pendant will consist of gemstones and enamels that will mimic the 87 properties and 159 colors displayed in CryptoPunk NFTs. Depending on who buys the pendant and which NFT they own, Tiffany & Co. designers will use around 30 gemstones and/or diamonds to create the custom pendant, and produce a rendering for the customer by October.
But clients may have to wait until 2023 to receive the physical pendant, the site says, but the digital copy will be available as soon as it’s ready.
As for the announcement on Twitter, some users seemed excited at the prospect of the major luxury jewelry brand cashing in on the NFT fad, while others weren’t too keen on the trendy symbols.
“This is a bold move for @TiffanyAndCo and while it’s out of your price range, it’s a big win for NFTs. This is one of the best luxury/jewelry brands in the world…it’s a big deal and sparks new interest on both sides of the fence. tweeted a crypto enthusiast.
“This is the coolest thing ever,” another uses the waterfall.
“Dear God, now these people want to signal this as a sign of how ‘real’ and ‘important’ NFTs are, as if this is not just a money grab. chided one critic.
“PSA guys… If you give your girl something nice in a blue box for the first time and this is what’s inside, it’s probably not going to go over as well as you’d hope,” wondered someone else.
Although Tiffany & Co. may be the last big brand in the NFT sphere, they are not alone. Coca Cola, Adidas and Mac Cosmetics are among the big brands that profit from cryptomania – but they really only appeal to those who can afford it.
Justin Bieber bought a Bored Ape NFT earlier this year for $1.29 million, while other A-listers created their own tokens for some extra dough. Madonna’s full-frontal NFTs — which sold for more than $100,000 each — and iconic EDM musician Diplo are the latest celebrity NFT collectors to vie for.
Along with crypto popularity—which boomed as people grew tired of their stimulus check cash—the rise of NFTs entered the mainstream, but the niche, somewhat lucrative passion project for many turned sour this year as the volatile crypto market faltered.
In June, Bored Ape’s “price floor,” or lowest asking price for any of the collection’s NFTs, fell below $100,000 — and remains so — a stark contrast to April, which was at $400,000.
The crash comes as the cryptocurrency plummeted this summer, prompting experts to question the uncertain future of cryptocurrencies and NFTs.
