ELLA GAFTER: THE ELEGANT QUEEN OF PEARLS

One of the world's most acclaimed pearl jewellers, Ella Gafter is renowned for her rare South Sea pearl jewellery combined with brilliant-cut diamonds, gold and platinum.

The beautiful features of Ella Gafter are as refined and chiselled as the jewellery she creates. Her each creation a masterpiece of exquisite handmade craftsmanship. Made from the most magnificent materials which she herself chooses from all over the world, each piece of jewellery bears the unique stamp of her creativity. Trained as an emerald-and-diamond dealer, she has become one of the world's most acclaimed pearl jewellers. Wealthy and influential women the world over wear her exquisite creations.

Gafter's strong enthusiasm for colour and beauty propels her to the far ends of the earth. So off she goes to Australia in quest of Pinctada Maxima, the oyster which yields South Sea pearls of great lustre; to Sri Lanka for sparkling sapphires; to Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam for flaming red rubies; to Japan for luminous Akoya Pearls and to South America and Africa for brilliant emeralds. This splendid collection of precious stones and rare pearls is left in the custody of Gafter's craftsmen in Italy, who fashion them into magnificent pieces of jewellery. Trained in their craft from childhood, many of the artisans have been exclusively dedicating their talent to Gafter's passion for over 20 years.

The American designer Gafter's background, in many ways, is symbolic of the profession she so deeply adores. Like her creations of jewellery, her life has many hues. Polish by birth, she still remembers the dark period when Poland was occupied by the Nazis during World War II. This scary experience in childhood left in her a longing for freedom, light and beauty. Her quest brought her to Rome, a home to many of the craftsmen, where she was trained as a jeweller and goldsmith. She was a thoroughly proficient woman and quickly learnt the craft. She began making her own jewellery and her quality of work caught the attention of Italy's nobility who collected her pieces and made her a part of their exclusive aristocratic class. This proved to be a stepping stone for Gafter whose contacts exposed her to an international clientele. This was just the beginning of the fame, fortune and glamour that would soon follow. And follow it did.

From Rome she shifted her base to New York's Manhattan where she founded Ellagem Inc. On the 31st floor of a building on the Fifth Avenue Gafter opened an art deco and antique private viewing showroom from where she trades. This salon, where eminent clients make their pilgrimage, actually looks like an art studio in Florence or Paris. The walls are adorned with enlarged pictures of her most precious creations: a spray of flowers made of diamonds, multihued sapphires and a hummingbird; a basket of flowers made of diamonds and pearls the size of golf balls; a bunch of emerald daisies fluttering against a white flower bed of precious stones, and a camellia of red rubies mounted with an invisible setting. There are other small and big evidences of Gafter's unique personal touch all over the salon, such as gilded Louis XIV chairs, an Italian marble table inlaid with coloured flowers, silverware and crystal for serving fresh water and bubbly champagne to all visiting clients and friends. She reserves the same warm welcome for a friend who drops in to say hello or to a customer who wants to buy a necklace worth thousands (or even millions) of dollars. Her clientele include European aristocracy, Hollywood superstars, top pop singers such as Michael Jackson, American high society, sports stars and super rich celebrities from all walks of life.

One of the reasons why she is so successful is because Gafter has passionate attraction for the ultimate in beauty and craftsmanship in brilliant-cut diamonds. She designs and produces jewels which are reminiscent of the royal courts of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. By wearing these jewels of exquisite beauty, a customer feels she is transported to a great bygone age of glittering diamonds, shimmering pearls and glistening gold of princely courts. At the mention of pearls and precious stones, Gafter's dark brown eyes come alive with a sense of wonder and adoration for her creations. She touches the pearls with such gentleness as if they are frail living creatures. The pearls are all Australian: marble-sized (18 to 22 mm in diameter) pink, white, black or gray. Each one of them just perfect. These enchanting gems, which are born from the humble oyster, come in a variety of shapes, sizes and shades. What's more, pearls are the only naturally perfect gems which require no cutting, faceting or polishing to reveal their innate beauty. She expounds, "Before I pierce the pearls I study their axis for hours. I sometimes leave them intact and let them roll in gold cages."

The source of the pearls for most of Gafter's pearl jewellery is Nick Paspaley, Australia's largest pearl producer and a personal friend of the designer. She often recounts an interesting incident which led to his 'discovery' and subsequently to a treasure of pearls. Years ago, while making the trip of a lifetime to Australia she arrived on the outskirts of Broome where her car became stuck in the mud. But to her amazement she found that it was actually a mud-soaked pearl farm belonging to Paspaley. She was so captivated by her find that she purchased the entire crop! And thus began her lifelong affair with the gems of the sea.

Since then, trips Down Under have become regular on Gafter's itinerary to pick out the best gems as soon as they are plucked from the oysters. The discerning lady has been known to examine hundreds of pearls during her excursions to Australia, only to take with her just a precious few that she deems worthy enough to use in her daring one-of-a-kind designs. Last year, the jeweller and her daughter Talila (who is also Ellagem business partner) visited Port Bremer, Paspaley's farm on the far-flung Cobourg Peninsula and made friends with the pearl farmers. No doubt, Gafter's beautiful presence with a designer dress and pearl jewellery in the middle of a mud farm had its impact. But what charmed the farmers more were her cooking skills. She fed them with pearl meat pasta and a champagne-filled fruit salad she herself had prepared. Later on Talila let out a little secret: "The farmers adored my mother for coming all dressed up in her finest pearl jewellery."

To pay tribute to her extraordinary creativity, Gafter has received the Special Arte y Joya Award in the first edition of the Tahitian Pearl Trophy. A radiant Corsage brooch in platinum with 8.38 carats of diamonds and 10 lustrous South Sea pearls will be displayed in a pearl exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, and in the Chicago Field Museum where it opens in June 2002. The brooch is set on watch springs, a technique known as en tremblant. A dainty diamond-encrusted butterfly with frosted glass wings and a yellow sapphire body perches on the largest pearl, a 15.5 mm elegance. Gafter's unique and peerless sculptures in precious gems and metals are outstanding for their 3-dimensional effect. They have an exciting freshness which combines materials and colours. For their revival of the spectacular en tremblant form which was totally overlooked for decades by jewellery designers because it is extremely difficult to accomplish. But with Gafter nothing seems impossible.

Assisting Gafter to accomplish her difficult goals is her lovely daughter-partner Talila who recently obtained her Ph.D. and speaks six different languages without any accent. She is a Harvard-educated business professional who contributes modern-day management skills to the company's flourishing business. As a partner, Talila has greatly increased Ellagem's international presence and maintained a permanent office in New York which serves a loyal clientele in the U.S. Both the mother and daughter have created a thriving enterprise which has become world famous for unique and magnificent jewellery. Gafter generously attributes her success to her friends and is indebted to Americans for their warm reception of herself and her beautiful craft.

Ella Gafter favours large pearl drop earrings, pendants and brooches which she combines with sapphires from Sri Lanka, red rubies from Myanmar and Vietnam, and emeralds from South America and Africa to stunning effect. In her EG Collection, the magical and enchanting designs are inspired by medieval animal motifs with the sophisticated use of coloured stones and pearl embellishments. In exclusive pearl jewellery, shining Australian white and Tahitian black pearls are impeccably hand-fitted with precious stones and diamonds for that seductive look. Gafter's obsession with pearls is undeniable. These luminous gems – enduring symbols of beauty, purity and style – have forever captivated her soul. And in turn, she has held captive her numerous fans worldwide with her matchless creations. She is like a ruler who surveys her empire and subjects with royal dignity. If she were a real queen, she would undoubtedly deck her gold sceptre with pure, white South Sea pearls. Hail the Queen of Pearls!