During a recent visit to the Far East, Orna and Isaac Levy, founders of Yvel, discovered a rare trove of pearls hidden away in an Indonesian pearl farm. This once in a lifetime discovery led to the design of a stunning new collection, out of which came the winner of the 2017 Couture Awards – Best in Pearls.

Isaac Levy recalls: While looking for pearls to adorn our next collection, I came across a very old pearl farmer sitting in the shade bent over his basket. As I approached, I saw that he was peering down sadly at his small collection of pearls. The man looked up and said, “No one wants to buy my pearls; they have shapes that no one can use”. I looked into his basket and saw the most unusual collection of natural Keshi pearls that I had ever laid eyes on. Handling them, I began to imagine the exquisite pieces of jewelry that I could design around them.

The old man listened as I tried to explain to him what I could do with this amazing discovery. When I finished talking he handed me his basket and said, “Take them. I have faith in your taste and intuition. Pay me whenever you make something with them”. From each one of these unique pearls, we fashioned a one-of-a-kind bracelet, enhanced with diamonds and set in 18k gold. Seeing the beauty and uniqueness of these pieces, I sent the elderly pearl farmer the amount that I thought he deserved in payment for his basket of pearls. A few days later I received a phone call, but I couldn’t hear anyone on the line. “Who is this?” I asked. Steeped in emotion I heard the broken voice of an old man, and through his tears, I managed to understand his name. It was the pearl farmer.