Organised by National Gems & Jewelry Technology Administrative Center, Gems & Jewelry Trade Association of China, Hong Kong Jewellery & Jade Manufacturers Association (HKJJA), Republic of China Gemological Association, and Taiwan Creative Jewellery Designer Association, the 2017 International Design Competition on Trendy Fei Cui Jewellery presented a total of 12 winning piecesin four categories on 30 November 2017 in Hong Kong. Hong Kong jewellery designer Anita So won the second runner-up in Open Group (finished jewellery): retail price under US$10,000, with her ‘Blossom’ brooch.
The inspiration of the brooch came from the hibiscus blossomed in the winding path of garden and bathed in the gentle sun in spring. By using thin, carved fei cui, diamonds, white and yellow sapphires, tsavorite, South Sea pearls and Tahiti pearls, combined with a small dial watch powered by Swiss movement, this winning piece is to express the precious moment of blossom.
Anita So told Hong Kong Jewellery that besides feeling happy after winning the prize, she would like to take this opportunity to promote the design concept of combining fei cui and watches. According to her, most jewellery timepieces in the market utilise diamonds and coloured gemstones with the lesser use of fei cui, as it is hard to select the right fei cui and it requires high level of craftsmanship and technique in processing the material. The world’s jade trading centre, Hong Kong has been remaining the leading edge of fei cui processing and manufacturing and offers designers strong craftsmanship support, which in all helps her materialise the cross-boundary combination of fei cui and watches.
“It was complex to manufacture jewellery watches which are assembled by numerous precise components. Gemstone-setting and welding could result in component deformation, which causes the failure of reassembly or influences the watch’s precision. Every piece of my work is the result of craftsmen’s cooperation across different fields including jewellery-making and watchmaking,” she stated.
Used to work in the Securities and Futures Commission for over six years, Anita So entered into the jewellery industry in 2008 and founded Anita So Fine Jewellery by virtue of her passion. Her early work was mostly unique pearl jewellery featuring keshi pearls. Then she added other different elements including fei cui, timepieces and lorgnettes to create novel designs. She said that apart from ‘Blossom’ brooch, she also launched more fashionable secret watch jewellery collections set with fei cui and fancy-coloured diamonds in 2017. With unique mechanics, the timepiece is hid into the jewellery, which is suitable for daily wear in a high-end way.
Facing the year of 2018, Anita So plans to unveil more fei cui timepieces to answer the current consumer’s need for multi-functional jewellery. What’s more, the company is testing to apply titanium into fei cui jewellery. “Titanium has a high melting point, and it is hard to mould. The most challenging thing is to figure out how to match titanium’s colours with different colours of fei cui. I hope we can successfully launch the new titanium fei cui jewellery by next March,” she reveals. (Photo courtesy: Anita So Fine Jewellery)
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