The princess and the pearl

After meetings in Venice all afternoon, I hopped a water bus bound for Lido. Room service at the Hotel Des Baines sounded like a brilliant idea. A nice filet and maybe a walk on the beach. On my way into the boat, I passed a stunning Italian beauty who was stepping off. She tripped and fell into my arms, turned three shades of red and quiet shuffled off with a polite "Grazie."

Then I caught a sparkle out of the corner of my eye. It was her earring. Orphaned on the floor in front of me. I picked it up and took a seat. Rich yellow gold over sterling silver with a swollen pink pearl and dollops of aquamarine and pink tourmaline. Nice shimmer and gorgeous pastel colors. A real triple threat. This was the kind of earring that a woman will miss.

Back in Venice the next day, with the help of my Italian colleagues, we created our own version of the mystery earring. Each Aquamarine & Pink Tourmaline Earring features a large, lustrous cultured freshwater pearl (in a soft shade of pinkish peach), topped with a faceted bead each of aquamarine and pink tourmaline. I added gold vermeil Bali-style spacers for an extra bit of elegance and finished them off with graceful, gold-over-silver hooks. And while I haven't yet figured out the secret to creating earrings that never get lost, I can do my best to make them unforgettable.