Cannes Film Festival descended on the Riviera (May 14-25) with a glittering tsunami of stars. The twelve-day festival is the premiere European venue to check out who’s wearing what, as stars strut their stuff at a host of premieres, galas and lavish parties.

While red carpet jewelers such as Harry Winston show up in Cannes, you find a more continental spin on haute jewels than at U.S. awards shows - more European designers, such as Bulgari and de Grisogono.

Cannes is a good place to get a read on international trends in jewelry design. Judging from this spring's festival, here are a few trends you can expect to find on jetsetters this year.

Brought to you by Chopard

Chopard has been the official sponsor of Cannes since 1998. Along with accessorizing a lot of A-list celebs there, the Swiss house produces the prestigious Palme d’Or trophy. This year the 24kt-gold fronds were made out of fair mined gold as part of the company’s sustainable luxury initiative.

Attached to a block of crystal, the Palme d'Or is made from 118 grams of pure gold and worth about 20,000 euros. Two are made, as well as two mini Palme d'Or, for each festival by five of Chopard's "top jewelers," the same ones who produce the red carpet jewels worn by the stars. Mini palms go to the winners of the best actor and actress awards.

While pearls are recognized as the traditional wedding accessory, conventional baubles just don’t cut it for many young brides. Just as engagement rings are becoming more individualized, so are earrings, necklaces, and hair ornaments.

Most brides still opt for white, feminine, and a bit of sparkle - diamonds, pearls, clear crystal. Florals are still a favorite and we're seeing more variety in metals - white metals, blackened silver, yellow and rose gold - sometimes all at once.

The axiom “all that glitters isn’t gold” is ringing true for a number of investors right now. At the moment, silver has an especially beguiling gleam.

After the spiraling silver prices of the Great Recession ended with a massive slump in 2013, the price of the white metal – with the exception of a temporary rally in early 2014 – has been stable to the point of stagnation. As of this writing, the spot price of silver in New York is $19.46 per troy ounce, where it has been roughly nestled since its high of just over $22 per ounce in April.

The glitter of a beautiful diamond can easily blind us to the reality that before it ended up on our finger, ear or throat, it may have been illicitly sold by rebel groups to fund a brutal war or act of terrorism. Such “blood diamonds” (also called “conflict diamonds”) are believed to be behind the deaths of more than 4 million people in Africa as well as the displacement of millions more.

Thanks to heightened press attention and the blockbuster film Blood Diamond, consumers have grown more aware of the presence of conflict diamonds and are increasingly seeking to purchase diamonds unassociated with bloodshed and war.

On a bright spring morning Amely Heinrich sits in her East Berlin workshop and boutique, Amely & Julia Goldschmiede, hard at work on a pair of gold earrings. In 2011, Heinrich opened her shop in the trendy neighborhood of Friedrichshein with fellow goldsmith, Julia Riedler, whom she met while studying at Pforzheim School of Design. Monday through Saturday, the pair can be found creating whimsical pieces of jewelry in their brightly decorated studio, with the help of two apprentices.