Filipino creativity shines anew with world-class jewelry from Michelis

MANILA, Philippines - A 100 percent Filipino company that has consistently been offering beautifully-designed, high-quality jewelry to sterling silver aficionados here and around the globe has once again demonstrated the Filipinos’ inherent flair for churning out world-class products.

Michelis Gifts and Jewelry, whose mother company 7 Castles, Inc. is now one of the top exporters in the country for finished silver jewelry, has recently earned the distinction of being considered as among the young brands to watch out for by no less than the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show.

Founded by the Faustmann family in 1998, Michelis has long been in the jewelry export business, offering jewelry and gift items made of the highest quality silver and according to European standards. The family focused on sterling silver jewelry because aside from having the most brilliant sheen of all precious metals, it also has a wider market appeal owing to its affordability. Silver’s versatility has also earned for it the reputation of being “the Queen of Metals” since silver can be shaped in many ways and forms, thus making it a most exciting metal to use for many jewelers.

Sanya Faustmann, Creative Director of Michelis, shares that a number of Filipinos today still don’t appreciate the difference between silver-plated base metal, and sterling silver. “There’s a world of difference between the two in terms of intrinsic value,” she quips. “In fact, in growing our business, we made sure to educate Filipinos about this and helped them appreciate the value of sterling silver.”

Contrary to what many may believe, items declared as sterling silver are not inferior just because they are 92.5 percent silver. Pure silver is actually very soft, which is why other high quality metals are needed to make the silver item in them sturdy and durable. The term “sterling” connotes that the silver item is of the highest quality, because by law, sterling silver items must have 925 parts of pure silver in every thousand parts metal.

At Michelis, each hand-crafted item is made up of up to 95 percent pure silver – a level of purity that is higher than required by the international market. Each precious item also boasts of a wide array of designs conceptualized by Faustmann and her team of local talents and forged to perfection by the best silversmiths in the country.

A staunch supporter of the Philippine Jewelry industry, Sanya is also quick to point out that Michelis has made it a point to source metal and manpower requirements only from the Philippines.

To ensure that its customers get only the highest quality pieces, each Michelis product is designed locally and handcrafted according to European standards. As a general rule, the company keeps the designs current by researching and tracking global trends and reinterpreting these to their own look and feel.

Michelis also follows world trends – mixing non-traditional materials such as leather, neoprene and cold resin for accents.