The Pearl of the Orient-- or just home:)

Since the time of the Rajahs -- the 1400s or before, Manila has been called the Pearl of the Orient. What better place to buy pearls, than the exquisitely nicknamed city I now call home?

After several people over the years have urged me to both blog of my travels, and offer for sale some of the treasures that I find, I acquiesced. I just had to start with pearls!

Directly across from my beloved apartment complex, is the Manila Pearl Market, bursting at the seams with pearls of every size, shape, color and quality. Next time I will take more photos of the actual market and the people who select and string the pearls! I am still very new at this, and learning as I go:)

I am very particular about which pearls I purchase; I go from stall to stall, examining hundreds of strands, before I find the lustrous, blemish-free, beautiful pearls that I want... and then the fun begins! I love to bargain!

When we arrive at a mutually satisfactory price, chosen the clasp and the earrings, the vendor begins to string the pearls on a brand new cord, and deftly ties a tiny knot between each each to keep them from rubbing together and scratching each other.

I have 5 sets of pearls (necklace and stud pearl earrings) for sale for $35 each. From a jewelry store in the states, they would easily fetch two or three hundred dollars.
Email me at karamartha@gmail.com if you are interested!





Interestingly, the Pearl Market does offer a few other trinkets-- some which I could not pass over! I am asking $7.50 a pair for these earrings. They are all handmade by the local Filipinos from semi-precious stones and genuine crystal. I just loved them!

                         Maybe my very favorites! These are red coral with silver embellishment.

 These are crystal-- so pretty! I have amethyst purple, clear, Mediterranean blue, and grass green.

 Here are the coral and silver earrings again, and the green are Filipino jade (the Philippines are famous for their jade!) and I believe the blue are cobalt.

                                          The peachy pair is coral, and the other is tigers eye.

                                          These are shell earrings with a lovely pearly sheen...

Okay... sometimes it is hard to understand the accented English; these are either limestone or marble:)

 This is the booth where I found most of the cute earrings... there are hundreds of nearly identical kiosks jammed closely together in the perfectly imperfect, chaotic antihill that is the Pearl Market!

This is my little cousin 'helping' a vendor attach a clasp in the tiny cubicle hidden behind the storefront.

All of the jewelry photos were taken by Vanessa Phillips, an amazing professional photographer, who happens to be my cousin! To see some more of her work, go to http://web.me.com/glorybephotography/glorybephotography/Glory_Be_Photography.html