Selecting the perfect gift for your loved one at Christmas time can be a little daunting but it doesn't have to be. My advice is to keep the following three things in mind: her personal style, her lifestyle, and her current jewellery collection.
Choose something that reflects her personal style, which could be modern, classic, colourful, amongst others. Choose something that you know she will get a decent amount of wear from. Either for special occasions, or for every day.
Introducing my new earrings 'Garden 'Party'. Inspired by sunny Sunday afternoon celebrations with friends and the spring racing season.
The holiday season is the perfect time to spoil yourself and indulge a little. Which is why we have partnered with the team of creative stylists next door at Element Hair to offer a luxury addition to your hair appointment in the lead up to Christmas.
What better way to celebrate being named as a finalist in this years Diamond Guild Australia Jewellery Awards than a fantastic night with my family, staff, peers and friends in the industry.
Last week I had the pleasure of attending a celebration to mark the 10th Anniversary of the McGrath Foundation and the wonderful work that they do.
Held at Kirribilli House and hosted by Priminister Malcolm Turnbull and his wife Lucy, the function also gave me the opportunity to catch up with my friend Tracy Bevan. Tracy and I designed a pendant and earrings together last year using pink diamonds, named The Pink Friendship Collection, to raise awarenes and funds for breast cancer research.
Quite a few months ago I started the thought process for my next competition piece. These designs can be quite intricate and involved as there needs to be a strong focus on expressing your style as a designer/jeweller, while impressing the judges with craftsmanship, skill, design and innovation. After winning the fancy colour award in the last DGA Awards the pressure is on! This year I designed and hand crafted a luxury statement piece named Chantilly and have entered her into the Red Carpet division.
Spring is the perfect time to bring your brighter gemstone pieces out of storage and show off some colour. From the deep blue purple hues of Tanzanite to soft peachy Morganite, think 'boldness' in terms of both colour or size, depending on your personal style. Coloured gems are my favourite stones to wrk with. I love being able to really bring out the colour or tone in a gem by using different metals and complimentary or contrasting stones.
Time flies when you're having fun! This month we celebrate our first birthday and what a year it's been.
The decision to open my own boutique in Woollahra was a long time in the making and opening the doors last year was an incredible feeling. I wanted to make sure the look, feel and functionality of the space was perfect and worked closely with the designers and builders to create something special for the area. The community has welcomed us with open arms and we've developed lasting relationships with many of the local residents and businesses alike. Having the boutique has given me the opportunity to do more of what I love and am passionate about and I'm very grateful for that.
When I'm given the opportunity to hand craft a bespoke piece of jewellery for one of our clients I can be known to get a little excited.
I love working with colour, it's always exciting and inspiring when coloured gems and diamonds arrive at my workbench. This new collection was about celebrating and exploring coloured diamonds and the multitude of hues that they come in.
My team and I decided to fill a gap in the market for luxe, yet affordable fine diamond jewellery for the modern woman to ‘mix and match’ and suit her personality. The goal was to create minimalistic pieces, which catch the eye and can be worn every day. We have called it The Minimal Collection, and I intend to add to it throughout the year.
Todays South Sea Pearls are as close to natural as can be. Long ago they were considered to be a miracle of nature, found sporadically. Now due to popular demand a culturing process has been developed to ensure that this beautiful, organic gem continues to thrive. The culturing process still involves live oysters in the ocean, very similar to the way nature intended. Most pearls can spend approximately 2 years being created deep down in the ocean. They are then harvested by divers, cleaned, sorted and make into stunning pieces of jewellery.
Gemstones are one of my true passions. I love the process of sourcing them, working at the bench with them and the lift of colour that they give to an already incredible piece of jewellery. I have intentionally designed this new collection with a range of gems to showcase the variety of colours available in different types of stones. Ranging from rare Tanzanite, to Heliodor and fine yellow Sapphires. I hope you enjoy it.
This week I had the pleasure of attending a gala dinner here in Sydney, held by Men's Style, which was an incredible event. I'm very honoured to have been named as one of Australia's 'Men of Influence', along side some very talented and entrepreneurial gents. Thank you for the mention Men's Style, and to MJ Bale for taking good care of me (as always) when I came to select my suit for the evening.
Next month my wife and I will be welcoming our first child into the family and my approaching fatherhood has inspired me to create a bespoke baby bracelet collection. I believe that major milestones in life should be celebrated and for that reason, as well as creating something special for my own baby, I wanted to make this personalized memento available for my clients to enjoy. Each baby bracelet has the baby’s initial hand carved into the gold and reveals a hidden diamond underneath for a little luxury. Something they can keep forever.
There’s something beautiful about Chocolate Diamonds. Apart from the fact that they are Australian, they exhibit a warm glow and come alive when paired with whites. During the creative process for this new collection I wanted to highlight the smooth tones of the chocolate and champagne diamonds with rose gold, and give a contrast with white gold and white diamonds. The collection includes a selection of more extravagant pieces, complimented by more affordable, every day designs. I hope you enjoy it.
Richard Burton once said – ‘Liz only knows one word of Italian and that’s Bulgari’. Audrey Hepburn was quoted as saying that she was mad about Tiffany’s. Diamonds have long been a favourite of leading ladies around the world, especially with the likes of Elizabeth Taylor and Audrey Hepburn leading the way. The value of their collections alone would no doubt compete with today’s high jewellery houses. I love their passion for fine jewellery and strive to see the same reaction and excitement from my clients when I present them with their pieces.
Aquamarine is one of the most coveted gemstones amongst jewellery lovers, both today and for many years gone by. I love designing and working with it because of it's liquid blue colour and the contrast it presents when paired with fine white diamonds. The best gem quality stones are clear of imperfections and often exhibit a slight green hue amongst the icey blue tones, making it quite a unique colour gem.
This years Oscars certainly stepped it up in the high jewellery stakes. My stand outs from the 2015 Oscars red carpet were Scarlett Johansson in a striking emerald necklet and miss matched emerald and diamond earrings. I like the quirkyness of it all! Gwyneth pushed the boudaries with her incredible (and sizable) gemstone drops and Australian Actress Margot Robbie let her Van Cleef and Arpels zipper necklace do all the talking on the red carpet.
With February being known as the 'month of love' I thought now would be great timing to share some of my tips that will help you select the perfect engagement ring. Three important things to keep in mind are your personal style, practicality, and of course the price.
Grace was created as a competition piece a few years ago, and I'm proud to say that she won her category for pearl design.
This month we held a celebration to mark the opening of my Woollahra boutique with a VIP evening at M. Contemporary Gallery across the road from the boutique. A collection of my jewellery was showcased, along with featured artists work, which made for a fantastic backdrop. We celebrated with friends, old and new, and introduced everyone to my passion for jewellery. Thank you to those who attended and helped to make it such a memorable occasion.
I had the pleasure of dining with a select group of Sydney’s elite media personalities and introduce them to my passion for jewellery. We enjoyed a delicious lunch at Chiswick Restaurant and my guests were able to try on some of my handcrafted pieces and competition winning designs. Thanks to those who attended and made it a fantastic event.
This month I had the privilege of co-designing a pink diamond collection with Tracy Bevan, Ambassador and Director of the McGrath Foundation. The Friendship Collection is comprised of this stunning pendant set with a rare Argyle Pink diamond from our friends at Pink Kimberley Australia, and a matching pair of pink and white diamond earrings. I will be donating 50% of the proceeds of this piece to the McGrath Foundation in support of breast cancer awareness. Please email enquiries@matthewely.com.au with expressions of interest.
Woollahra is stepping into spring with brightly coloured gemstones this month. Colour in jewellery is a big passion of mine; I believe a piece can truly come to life when a pop of colour is added as it provides instant inspiration.
One of the best parts of my profession is being able to travel the world in search of the perfect gemstone for my creations. Be it for my client’s special, bespoke pieces or competition creations like Rose Bijou.
