April 14, 2016

Gold Souk in Dubai is a dazzling place. While strolling through the souk with no intentions of buying, I saw unbelievable displays of jewelry made with gold, diamonds, and precious stones and occasionally silver. I even saw a couple of street hawkers selling gold jewelry. Most of the designs were large and not really my thing. But there were some that caught my eye. One of them was a long, 3 strand necklace dripping with Gulf pearls set in 22kt gold. The shopkeeper even let me try it on! I loved the design though the length and price at $17,000.00 was not suitable for me. After my visit, I dug through my stash of beads that I always carry on my long trips and found some gold seed beads. I also had some crystal pearls in cream and I was all set to make my own version of the necklace. Lalee (means pearls, gold, in Arabic) Necklace is my dazzling piece stitched with cut seed beads in gold, beaded beads in cream and gold, and crystal pearls. It is about 26” long and finished with a beaded clasp. Two gleaming strands of beaded beads with beaded links set with crystal pearls makes this a glamorous and elegant necklace. Great for all seasons and will coordinate well with all your chic ensembles. The beaded version is more complex with diamond shaped links set with crystal pearls and seamlessly connected to beaded beads embellished with cream pearl seed beads. Needless to say, I love my version and it reminds me of my beautiful trip to Dubai.