In Pakistan, buying jewellery usually equates to visiting scores of stores before finding that perfect set of earrings or necklace. When it comes to precious and semi-precious stones, Pakistani women usually want an exclusive, one-off design they can wear to social gatherings and weddings. With designer jewellery now available in the market, women need not fret – there is a wide variety to pick and choose from. Newsline interviews five women who are in the business of designing exclusive jewellery.

 

         I have been designing jewellery for 20 years – but only for myself! I think I have always liked jewellery that’s been a little different; something unusual, something with an edge, and the bigger the better! I remember I was walking down Beauchamp Place in London about 10 years ago when I saw a necklace that was so stunning and so different. It was the necklace of my dreams. Sadly, it was also wildly expensive. That was when I decided that I was going to make my own jewellery. My first piece was put together from an antique Nepalese pendant of my mother’s and some semi-precious stones she had. It was unique, high-impact and didn’t break the bank. This combination became my design ethos.

         And then began my quest for unusual raw materials. It was on a holiday in Hong Kong that I discovered the beauty of jade, and carved jade pieces became the focal point of my jewellery, along with unusual semi-precious stones, including some I had never even heard of. It was fascinating to handle and work with stones that I had seldom seen in Pakistan and combine that exotic eastern flavour with our traditional gold craftsmanship. Each piece of mine tells its own story and is a totally original creation, where the inspiration comes from the stones themselves. So every necklace, earring or ring is an individual piece.

         It has been quite challenging to change the mindset of the karigar to think out of the box. Very often I have come up with technical solutions while crafting a design, even though I have no formal training. I work with only one jeweller and we have both learnt along the way. Fortunately, he was ready to break the mould and explore a whole new concept in jewellery design. But, even now, we have our moments of extreme mutual frustration!

         Since each piece is unique in its own way, my production is fairly limited and I normally show through exhibitions. My customers range from young girls to older women with a taste and sensibility for dramatic, statement jewellery. Although I occupy a very small niche in the jewellery market, my creations are now immediately recognised and that provides a wonderful feeling of creative satisfaction. I feel proud that I was able to open new horizons in jewellery and show that it’s not just diamonds, rubies and emeralds that can make you catch your breath. There’s an amazing world of semi-precious stones that are visually far more stunning. Imagine a large jade pendant carved into the Chinese imperial dragon or a legendary phoenix. Or delicate coral fashioned into a Chinese chrysanthemum, or earrings made of finely carved jade carps, or rings made out of sculpted rose quartz flowers and butterflies, or carved cornelian pieces depicting Kwan Li, the goddess of good fortune. How can it be possible that excitement and passion will not take over every time I hold one of these pieces? It is their energy and beauty that fires my creative process.

         So far, my biggest challenge has been not to move away from my original design concept: maximum impact at a reasonable price. I spend hours working out the most effective way to use gold as an enriching embellishment to enhance the intrinsic beauty of the stones.