Thakoon Tasaki Jewellery.

I love pearls and that's not a secret. When I first laid eyes on Thakoon's collection for Japanese jeweller, Tasaki, it was love at first sight. I love how simple the pieces are yet they bring upon a little funk to a classic "string of pearls". My favourite piece is the necklace.

Quoted from Thakoon:

“I really wanted to just go back to the DNA of what Tasaki’s about, which is beautiful pearls, beautiful materials and beautiful diamonds,” Panichgul said during a press presentation at the Grand Hyatt. “It’s working with the materials, making them feel a bit more sculptural as well, and modern. I wanted to put some youthful spirit into pearls.” “There’s a tradition here, and they respect that, but they want to move forward as well and make it very modern,”

His pieces can be bought online through Colette.

Tiny Little Chairs.

Fancy having an Eames DCW pendant? I would! For the love of chairs, why not? Tiny Little Chairs is the brainchild a Montreal based Bruxe Design. You can get the chairs in gold, bronze or silver. I love all of them. In gold, si vous plait.

Fabergé Eggs.

Thinking of Easter, I am reminded of the Fabergé eggs. They are not just a linked to Easter but also a deep affection that these great men had for their wives. I think of it as a really romantic gesture. 

Gone were the days when love was grand, spectacular and a rapture of the heart. If love is not that; and all the wild, uncontrollable emotions are taken away, what are we left with? A silly selfish, obsession.

I think it's time to inject a little more romance into our lives. We only live once. Romance doesn't have to be an expensive gesture. Bake him his favourite dessert and feed it to him after a walk in a park, send him a surprise at his workplace (by snail mail even), stick a post it note with a special message or even put toothpaste on his toothbrush. 

Surprise and enchant your lover. 

The First Egg, Hen.

Clover Leaf Egg

Bay Tree Egg. The most expensive imperial egg created.

Blue Serpent Clock Egg (first egg with a clock).

The Danish Palaces Egg.

Thou Shall Recycle: Engagement Rings

As part of my new year's resolution, I will be doing a series of blogs on recycling, "Thou Shall Recycle". As this is what some call the season of love (many people go into relationships or decide to propose during this period), my first blog of this series is about engagement rings.

I know it seems like taboo to be presenting to your loved one a used ring (unless it has been passed down the family line). I do think that recycling rings has its benefits. You will get a unique ring with a lot more character and style. Moreover, recycling diamonds also means that you are not encouraging mining of more diamonds which will lower the number of conflict/blood diamonds being mined. Having a vintage ring is also somewhat like preserving a piece of art for future generations to admire.

However, the most important thing is to have a ring that best represents you and your style. It is really sad seeing everyone have the same solitaire diamond ring. There is just no sense of individuality. We are all unique, there is no one in the world quite like any of us, why should we settle for a ring that every other girl has?

I love the art deco inspired jewellery the most. They are usually based on mathematical geometric shapes. Art Deco was popular during the 1920s and 1930s (the same era as swing and big band jazz). Art Deco slowly lost patronage in the West after reaching mass production, when it began to be derided as gaudy and presenting a false image of luxury. 

One thing to note though, there are a lot of vintage rings out there with inferior quality diamonds. On the hind sight, you are likely to also get the centre stones in a vintage cutting which is so special because cuts like the rose, old european and peruzzi (to name a few) are not used anymore.

Rings from Hampton Estate Buyers

Estate Art Deco Platinum 1.9ct Diamond Ring. (USD$ 5975). 

Art Deco 1920s Platinum 1.5ct Diamond Ring. (USD$ 4300). 

1920s Art Deco Platinum Diamond Sapphire Filigree Ring. (USD$225) 

Platinum 2ct Diamond Ring. (USD$ 6500)

Rings from RJG Fine Jewelry and Watches.

1.62ct E SI1 Centre Stone Diamond Platinum Ring. (USD$ 14, 500)

2.02ct Radiant cut H SI1 Diamond ring. (USD$ 25, 950)

2.98ct Emerald with 1.5ct Emerald cut Diamonds on a Platinum Ring. (USD$ 16,500)

1.61ct K VS1 Round Diamond Ring. (USD$ 11,000)

1.30ct H SI1 Cushion Cut centre stone with 2ct worth of side stones. (USD$ 12, 500)

4.34ct Trillion cut K I1 Diamond ring. (USD$ 16, 900)

6.25ct Blue Sapphire Oval Cut with 1.45ct diamonds around it on Platinum Ring. (USD$ 17, 500) By the way, this is similar to Princess Diana's Engagement ring (hers was a 18ct Sapphire and 14 round diamonds from Garrard).

5.07 Ascher Cut J VVS2 Diamond and .71 ct of side stones. (USD$ 81, 500) My favourite diamond cut. It has 8 sides and is similar to an emerald cut.

Georgiana Canvendish and Cameo Jewellery.

Georgiana Canvendish, Duchess of Devonshire, even the very sound of her name fires the imagination. Yes, Sean and I have just watched "The Duchess". 

She was a fine example of a colourful character, I must add. I have drawn so many similarities between her and Queen Marie Antoinette of France (strange enough the two of them lived in the same period as well.) Both ladies were of nobility, they loved gambling, partying and fashion. Looking at both their lives, it is obvious that the French Queen's life is more tragic. By the way, they both died in an ugly fashion (no pun intended). The Queen had been executed and the Duchess had lost an eyeball to an infection, her complexion was coarse and her neck immense (she had an illness) by the time she had passed on. 

Anyway I did enjoy looking at the cameo jewellery that was featured in the movie. Georgiana had quite a few of them. Antique cameo jewellery were often made from shells or stones. Good ones are those with painstaking effort to include details into them instead of a mere silhouette. 

A painting of the Duchess by Thomas Gainsborough, 1787 (she was 30 then).

Keira Knightley as the Duchess in the same hat as the painting.

A Cameo Brooch.

An Antique Cameo Pendant.

Another Cameo Brooch (not antique though).

Janna Connor.

Every now and then, there comes along an amazing jeweller. Janna Connor designs easy to wear, semi-precious jewellery which are simple, whimsical and with a hint of "gypsy" charm. Her designs are inspired by her love for traveling. She holds degree in Chinese history from UCLA and has lived in Hong Kong. Impressive.

Gold Irina Necklace. I especially like this one; very delicate and pretty. This would make any girl wear her initial (or the initial of her lover) around her neck with pride. USD$ 96

Gold Thierry Necklace. A double strand necklace with a fresh water pearl, gold bead and a smokey quartz. I love smokey quartz. The colour is so mesmerizing. USD$ 159

Gold Long Etoile Necklace. As the chain is thin, from a distance, this would look as though the stars are suspended around your neck. USD$ 141

Gold Lien Stackable Rings. These come in sets of 3. This has such a raw look. Wear one, two or all three together. This is sure to draw curious questions of envy. USD$ 171 

Gold Large Tawny Earrings. I love the incorporation of nature into jewellery as well as the milky white and matt gold pairing. Long earrings are great to elongate the neck and to add drama to any outfit. USD$ 78

Gold Ohanna Earrings. These earrings will go well with a simple tank top or a little black dress. Maybe even part of a day to night outfit. USD$ 93

Gold Sarotte Earrings. This are basic earrings; a must have in every jewellery box. What makes this unique, is the colour of the stones; a very lovely mellow shade of green. USD$ 162

Gold Medium Charm Bangle. These bangles are ready and raring to go to the beach with you. They are full of St Tropez fun and would complete the bikini under a kaftan look. Just don't forget to bring a hat with you. USD$ 81 each.

Paspaley Pearls.

My mother loved pearls and to me, I've always related it to the choice of the older woman. I always thought that there was nothing great about them; they don't sparkle, they are not rare and they just look like beads. Then a few years back, I'd found my love for them. 

My favourite pearling company is Paspaley. They have the most lovely designs as well as the most beautiful pearls. Check out their collection online.

Paspaley is the largest pearling company in Australia. It started operations in the 1930s and is based in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. It has about 20 farms, situated between Dampier, Western Australia and the Cobourg Peninsula east of Darwin. It's flagship store is along Martin's Place, Sydney.