Enticing yellow

Recently I fell in love with yellow gold; before that I have always only loved white gold. Given the gold price is fairly low at the moment it is actually a good time to get gold jewelry made. I have become such a 'yellow fan' I really wanted a yellow sapphire set in yellow gold. Pictured is the result. Photos really don't do justice.

I designed it along with a local jeweler. We decided to make the ring in mat finish. Stone looks magnificent against the mat background. I also wanted this to be a dress ring that I can wear everyday. Instead of spending money on cheaper fashion jewelry which I never feel like wearing twice, I thought its better to spend a bit more and get something made that I wouldn't get sick of wearing. It has worked so far, I wear it every day and I get so many compliments on it. And it feels special have a handmade jewelry.

Yellow sapphires are relatively inexpensive, yet so beautiful.

Elephant safari Sri Lanka

I am in Sri Lanka at the moment sourcing natural sapphires and visiting my family and friends. Along with some of my best friends, we visited Udawalawe National Park located in south Sri Lanka spreading across approximately 300 km².  This is home to many animals including elephants, monkeys, birds, leopards, deers and water buffalos. It is estimated that approximately 400 elephants live in this area. The Department of Wildlife Protection protects elephants and other animals from poachers and hunters in this area. 

I have visited this park a couple of times earlier, but the experience is magical each time. It was great to see elephant families relaxed and enjoying the wilderness. Amongst them were a few mischievous baby elephants. 

We also visited Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home; home for orphan elephants.  They do an extraordinary job in taking care of orphan elephants. None of the babies are kept by force; they simply live in the wild and visit the transit home every 3 hours for a few litres of milk. I cannot appreciate enough the work the staff and volunteers do tirelessly 24/7. There are 40 baby elephants under their care at the moment. If you are able to contribute, please do so by visiting in person or by online donations. 

If you were wondering whether to visit Sri Lanka, here is another reason! More updates to come.

This wild elephant swims across the lake to reach the bank so she can spoil herself with mango treats given by the bystanders. Not entirely sure whether its a good habit, but hey!