When Tamara Comolli was a little child, her world was already bursting with magical colors. Her love affair with colors was evident as she spent her childhood collecting stones and sea shells in the beaches of Southern Spain, France and Gibraltar – the three countries where she and her family lived as those were the places where her father managed several casinos. She could stay all day long in the beach, unmindful of the scalding rays of the sun. The changing hues of the horizon simply brought her exultation. When night dropped its cloak, little Tamara would find a corner and peep through her telescope toy that magically made her enter a "spiral world of colors." Ahh, the colors around her brought magic to Tamara as they energized her. She knew that someday the colors that kept her company day in and day out would define who she would be in the future.
True enough, Tamara’s tryst with colors – doused by her exposure to the glamorous world of European high society – inevitably led her to putting up her own business: the Tamara Comolli Fine Jewelry Collection.
"My jewelry is all about playful, inventive, casual yet elegant pieces displaying bright colors, all in an underlying combination and symmetry," the German jewelry designer Tamara said. She was born in Munich in 1961 and studied in a university there taking up Business Administration and Advertising. For five years, she worked for a management consulting and advertising firm but left in 1991 to pursue her long-standing passion for colorful gemstones and jewelry.
"My story is one of passion... passion for gemstones and jewelry, passion for my clients; and a passion to satisfy their desires for individuality," Tamara pointed out. Indeed, it is her unwavering passion that brought her company to where it is now – an international brand in a relatively short period of time. "For some people, passion wanes over time. But not for me. I love what I do and I want to continue the story of my collection."
And here is the story of Tamara’s collection. In the beginning, everything was just a hobby for Tamara until she found herself studying gems, traveling to the mines (particularly in Nairobi) and collecting her favorite stones. In 1992, her fine jewelry collection business was born which was bannered by her 1991 creations of Curriculum Vitae, a design that features moveable colored gemstones set in 18-k gold. The collection has become a signature Tamara design. Since then, she has continued to develop new designs and color stories. Classic bracelets adorned with precious gemstones are present in Always Diamonds or Hourglass. Mikado is Tamara’s take on colorful and playful bracelet style. The Grapes collection highlights Tahitian pearls. The Roulette collection is a classic coin bracelet with a fresh dimension. The Signature collection, with its recognizable drop – the turquoise-colored water drop is the logo of Tamara’s jewelry company because it represents the sensuality of her creation – is an ever present element in both design concepts or as part of Tamara’s unique signature clasp. Her new Snowflakes collection essays Tamara’s feminine sensibility in finely detailed, elegant designs.
"My jewelry should be worn every day – while shopping, meeting friends, dining or attending events. Jewelry does not belong in a safe and does not need a special occasion. Women want to express their personality not only with their clothing but also with their choice of jewelry," Tamara said, adding that although jewelry is commonly associated with women, the production and selling of fine jewelry all over the world is "80 percent controlled by men."
Once, while Tamara was on her initial buying trip, her mettle was put to the test. As she was in search of sapphires, her favorite stone, a male jewelry dealer presented to her stones which she had rejected the previous day thinking that Tamara, being new in the business, would not notice the difference. But she did and from then on Tamara earned the respect of people in the jewelry circle.
In the beginning, Tamara admitted, she had to fight it out with "bullish macho men" in the business who wanted to put one over her. "But they did not succeed," said the German jeweler who has a company address in Miami Beach, Florida; with goldsmiths among other staff in Switzerland, Italy and Russia; and whose precious gemstones are sourced in Burma, Madagascar, Bangkok, Tahiti among other places.
"I would like to believe I’m a citizen of the world. That’s also how I want my collection to be," said Tamara.
She may be a citizen of the world but Tamara knows only one home – the one in the picturesque village of Lake Tegernsee in Bavaria, Germany which she lovingly shares with her partner, their young son Timmy and two dogs Coco and Loisi. With the people she holds dear in her heart, Tamara is inspired all the more to create understated, chic and elegant color stories. And the cycle for Tamara to wield magic out of her passion for colors repeats itself.
(Tamara Comolli Fine Jewelry Collection is available at Rustan’s Silver Vault in Makati. You may e-mail me at bumbaki@yahoo.com or my.new.beginnings@gmail.com.
Have a blessed Sunday!)