Tam's diamond tiara resembles the delicate qualities of lace combined with the structure of a helmet. Photos provided to China Daily

Jewelry designer Dora Tam conveys her love for the beautiful in her creation.

Macao-based jewelry designer Dora Tam unveils her latest collection of floral designs inspired by her love for Chinese brush painting. Rebecca Lo drops by to find out more.

Hands can reveal a lot about a person. Dora Tam's fingers are lean and efficient. She has an elaborate cursive tattoo on her right index finger. These are the hands of a person who does meticulous work. They are the hands of someone who doesn't mind getting down and dirty. Yet the tattoo alludes to Tam's love for the beautiful.

I remember when Tam first got that tattoo - it initially stained her entire finger blue. We had been friends for many years, and we try to catch up whenever I am in Macao. As we both studied in Canada, we initially formed a bond by sharing our respective memories of cold Ontario winters.

Tam grew up in Hong Kong's countryside enveloped by a close knit family where she was the middle child. She was encouraged to pursue what she loved as a career. When she was a teenager, she moved to Canada to study metallurgy and jewelry design in Barrie, a town about an hour north of Toronto.

After graduation, Tam worked for some of Hong Kong's most respected jewelers, including Tse Sui Luen (TSL). She was given many exciting projects and entered her designs in numerous competitions, culminating in her Diamond Tiara being honored with the De Beers Diamonds International Award in 2000. The ceremony was held at the Louvre during Paris' prestigious fashion week, and it launched Tam as one of 29 young international designers to watch.

"The brief was to create a tiara," recalls Tam. "I imagined a beautiful model walking alone down a catwalk, wearing a spectacular, sparkling headpiece illuminated by ethereal lights. I felt that a hat would work better than a traditional tiara - I was thinking about woolly hats, flowers, the moon and spirals, and somehow the design for the tiara just came together."

Tam's diamond tiara resembles the delicate qualities of lace combined with the structure of a helmet, encircling the head from its crown with radiating patterns of hearts, clovers and serpentine curves encrusted with diamonds. It is dramatically feminine with an underlying layer of strength, the definition of a contemporary princess.

Around that time, Tam began questioning the hectic pace of Hong Kong. "It is sometimes too fast," she says. "I had to design what my bosses wanted but not necessarily what I felt was beautiful." A new relationship in Macao led to her move there and the courage to strike out with her own brand.

She established Dora Tam Design in 2001 and opened a retail shop on Rua da Se, a stone's throw from Leal Senado. A second shop on Rua do Regedor near Taipa's eat street Rua do Cunha followed a few years later. After Tam set up a separate studio to focus more on design, she eventually closed the original shop.

"I don't want any distractions when I'm designing," she says. "With a retail shop, a lot of customers come specifically to see me. Now I leave the retail part to others."

Tam's jewelry is akin to mini architecture, with organic motifs and a somewhat androgynous appeal. "I feel that my designs are quite boyish. I always try to design with someone in mind."

She enjoys working with stainless steel and silver, often combining them with precious and semi-precious gems. Rings are her specialty, and her designs often push the boundaries of what can embellish fingers - yet all are created with the comfort of the wearer in mind.

Some of her collections are inspired by themes and stories from her childhood. Her Enchantment Ring in 18-carat white gold with a 0.13-carat emerald cut diamond was based on the ancient Chinese legend of the Goddess Nuwa.

"She saved the world by covering a hole in the sky and I imagined this was the stone she used," Tam explains. "I added the square diamond to give it sparkle. The sky was a stormy gray until Nuwa plugged it, then it became bright and beautiful once more. Because this ring is based on ancient Chinese mythology, I worked hard to ensure it had a distinctive Asian feel. It uses the traditional symbol of the circle and is flat and round to symbolize yin and yang."

Tam will also produce custom designs for customers who seek a unique piece of jewelry to celebrate a special occasion. In addition, she works with various corporate clients including the Macao government to produce gifts and premiums such as intricate cloisonne boxes.

Tam's latest collection is her most personal yet. She has practiced Chinese brush painting for many years, honing her technique through long hours of patient devotion to perfectly rendering each flower's petals. "I love the colors of a Chinese painting, and I tried to capture that in my Chinese Brush Painting Collection," she says.

The collection of rings, pendants and earrings depict traditional Chinese flowers such as peonies, chrysanthemums or plum blossoms. Tam chose vignettes from her favorite paintings and reproduced them on silver medallions finished in resin. Each is embellished with a complementary semi-precious stone.

The silver gives the pieces substantial weight that hangs well and feels pleasant while worn, but without being too heavy. As with her other collections, Tam's play on scale makes each piece stand out against the skin. Crimson, indigo and leaf greens are outlined in silver relief to give them an illustrative quality.

"I'm still trying to get the colors to be as bright as my paintings," she explains. "It is one of the things we are working out through the production process."

Tam believes that in spite of the phenomenal changes Macao has experienced since the handover, it is a place where she finds inspiration. Her entire family has since joined her in Macao and she shares her studio with her younger brother Eric, a successful residential interior designer.

"The city is becoming more and more open and international," she says. "It's nice to see heritage buildings being preserved - much healthier for our urban environment. I have never regretted moving here."

Contact the writer at sundayed@chinadaily.com.cn.

(China Daily 04/13/2014 page7)