The Cebu Bloggers Society at Jewelmer’s Luster for Life Pearl Exhibit
photo by Wilhelmina Sarawi
Jewelmer, the leading producer of rare golden Palawan South Sea pearls unveiled the Luster for Life Exhibit in Ayala Center Cebu last July 23, 2010. Located at the Rotunda, 1st Level Activity Center of the popular shopping destination, the exhibit takes visitors on a visual journey where they can learn the story of the Palawan South Sea pearl from birth to fine jewelry piece and is part of what the company calls the “Jewelmer Experience”.
“The Jewelmer Experience engages the senses. It’s everything from the color of our showrooms, the interaction of clients with our people, our imagery, and philosophy. All of these are but a small part of the whole Experience. Its quite difficult to explain,” says Jewelmer’s Retail Manager Catrina Paulino, “it really should be experienced to be fully appreciated.” Paulino goes on, “The Luster for Life exhibit, in particular, shares our brand values in a visual and engaging way.”
First launched at Marquee Mall in Pampanga, the exhibition has since made its way to Glorietta 4 in Makati City before landing in Cebu and will continue making its rounds in premier shopping destinations in the Philippines within the year. “ The Jewelmer showroom in Cebu opened back in 1994. However, this is the first time we brought an exhibit here,” says Paulino.
The Luster for Life exhibit is composed of six main panels: Palawan South Sea pearls, Luster for Life, The Miracle of the Rare Golden Pearl, European Elegance, An Environmental Gem, and A Nation’s Pride Each segment features a combination of vivid imagery and descriptive text. Also included in the exhibit are the actual tools used for pearl cultivation, a pearl diorama, and some unique pieces that are part of Jewelmer’s fine jewelry collections.
Palawan, the Last Frontier
Jewelmer’s South Sea pearls come from the pristine marine environment of Palawan, Philippines
Jewelmer’s pearl farm is located in the pristine marine environment of the province of Palawan, in what is considered by most to be the Philippine’s last frontier.
This group of 1,700 islands is home to flora and fauna found nowhere else in the world as well as one of the few places that the gold-lipped Pinctada maxima oyster, the only bivalve capable of producing the golden South Sea pearl, can grow.
Luster for Life
When women wear pearls, it is she who glows. Pearls have the unique ability to enhance the beauty of its wearer, rather than call attention to itself. This is because of its luster, or the warm glow of the gem.
The Rivage des Perles Collection by Jewelmer: an exquisite example of the harmonious blend of European elegance and Filipino craftsmanship.
The luster is described as the pearl’s outer sheen and surface brilliance and is created when light passes through thousands of layer of nacre, the substance that makes up a pearl. Jewelmer’s South Sea pearls possess thick, translucent layers of natural nacre that gives their pearls a unique luster that the company has come to be known for.
The Miracle of the Rare Golden Pearl
Jewelmer pearl farmers carefully tend Pinctada maxima oysters while they grow their precious cargo: the Palawan South Sea pearl.
Jewelmer is the only pearl producer in the world that has successfully produced pearls with a rich, natural golden color. Through decades of research and biotechnology, Jewelmer was able to perfect the breeding process that produces gold-lipped Pinctada maxima pearl oysters capable of growing large, lustrous, golden pearls. This deep, rich color can only be found in South Sea pearls produced in the Philippines.
European Elegance
The design process is the ultimate exercise in creativity. It can proceed both ways, with designers beginning with a piece in mind to adorn with selected pearls, or starting from the pearl itself and creating a design around it.
Inspired by nature, each piece is a product of east and west working together on such a delightful material, pearl lovers are bound to be always surprised.
A team of Italian, French, and Filipino artists draws inspiration from a multitude of sources and creates exquisite designs that enhance the beauty of each pearl. These designs are then executed by highly-skilled Swiss and Filipino goldsmiths and artisans.
A lustrous baroque pearl can inspire whimsy as seen in this Eagle brooch crafted with precious metal and stone.
Exclusive to the Cebu leg of the exhibit are three South Sea pearl collector pieces: a baroque pearl strand necklace and an eagle brooch. The strand necklace is composed of 49 large, natural silvery-blue baroque South Sea pearls set with 18-karat white gold, while an irregularly shaped, large baroque South Sea pearl inspires the body of an bejeweled eagle made of gold and diamonds. Both of these one-of-a-kind pieces were part of a recently concluded international pearl exhibition held in Qatar, UAE.
An Environmental Gem
Miracles of nature: giant silvery blue baroque pearls set in white gold come together in a breath-taking graduated strand necklace.
A lustrous South Sea pearl is the reflection of the health and beauty of the environment where it was cultivated. In the face of globally dwindling natural resources, Philippine pearl farmers give back to Mother Nature and become stewards of marine life. Thus, Jewelmer is committed to a unique kind of pearl farming: a non-extractive, environmentally sound process, which ensures that nature remains protected and unexploited.
A Nation’s Pride
The pearl is the Philippine’s national gem, the best representative of a land rich in natural resources as well as people with smiles as warm and welcoming as a golden pearl.
Finally, on October 15, 1996, former President Fidel V. Ramos concretized the pearl’s role in Philippine culture through Presidential Proclamation No. 905.
Jewelmer’s South Sea pearls come from the pristine marine environment of Palawan, Philippines
The proclamation acknowledges the South Sea Pearl’s role in the country’s socio-economic & cultural tradition as well as the gem’s part in the promotion of Filipino heritage and as a support of its national development efforts.
Jewelmer continues to share the spirit of the Philippines through the warm, lustrous glow of the South Sea pearl: a true living gem and the pride of a nation.
Watch out for the The Luster for Life: A pearl exhibit in TriNoma, Quezon City later this month, at Alabang Town Center, and at Greenbelt 5 at the heart of Makati later this year.
