“THE PEACOCK TUNIC”

………………………PEACOCK…………….is the last of the three original colors that is also making a return. Actually, Peacock has been reordered before and sold out again, so back it is…..Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the sample so this is the original collage I used back then…….This necklace is no longer avail, but I’m thinking the new BLUE BERBER NECKLACE SET will work nicely……White or Navy bottoms will be the perfect options…………………..enjoy……………………….much Love………………………………………Louis

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“THE BERBER PEOPLE”

……………….Jac and I have long been admires of the Berber people…………..They have been known to go as far back as 500 years before Christ. Today they are living across North Africa, and many live in Morocco. Most still live a nomadic life in the Atlas Mountains. If you don’t know of them, I’m sure many of you have heard of Berber carpets…..one in the same. They are unlike many Arabs of North Africa. They have their own language and their own alphabet, which over the past years is finally being recognized by the Moroccan government. Many signs now have both languages on them……..It is their crafts and mostly their jewelry that has captivated my imagination for many many years. Iris Apfel has a huge collection of Berber jewelry. It amazes me how that tiny woman can even carry all of those extremely heavy necklaces, and huge bracelets, but she piles it on. Where there is a will there is a way, and nothing is going to deter her!….I have scoured NYC for authentic old Berber jewelry, but it was on our trip to Morocco where I hit pay dirt………Richard Gere heard we were going to Marrakesh, yes that Richard Gere, and said we must hire a guide named Gili to take us around, and so we did. The hotel, La Mamounia new of Gili, but since he wasn’t a registered government guide they were hesitant to make the meeting. The first day we had to take a government guide and he took us to every rug seller in the city, even after we told him we weren’t interested in purchasing a rug. We quickly got the picture that these so called guides…guided us to specific shops to purchase thing we did’t want. I’m sure the government got a kick back. I insisted to the concierge that I wanted Gili, and the next day Gili showed up. He was a sight to behold! He was about 5’1″ and weighed maybe 120 lbs, dressed in an all white shirt to the floor over pants and a white fez. Jac looked at me and said “are you sure??” I said “Richard said he was the best?” so off we went. I think Jac thought we were going to be kidnapped……Gili was wonderful. We had him every other day and he took us to incredible places inside and outside of Marrakesh…..places we would never have seen with a government guide….places the average tourist would never ever see. I told Gili I was very interest in buying authentic real Berber jewelry, and did he know of any places in the Souk where I should go? He smiled…. He shook his head NO. He said 98% of the jewelry and antiques were new and even though they looked old they were not….so….on one of our day excursions we took a two hour drive to Taroudant in search of my Berber jewelry…Taroudant is know as “the little Marrakesh”…..it is a beautiful city, but off the beaten path…..We arrived at a shop that was owned by a very distinguished man. It was old and some what dusty, but he had amazing antiques and BERBER JEWELRY….cases of it…..we hit pay dirt. I felt like Alibaba entering the cave of the 40 thieves! My eyes were so big looking at these treasures. I really had to hold myself back, and with Jac’s help made a selection of 8 pieces. Some of the pieces in the photos above are mine….Jac also picked up some items for the house. We had it shipped back home. This gentleman had obviously done this before, and his things were incredible. We new that this would be a once in a life time experience. On our way back we stopped at La Gazelle D’Ore for a late lunch. It is a wonderful small hotel with  marvelous outdoor dining by the pool. It had been Barbara Hutton’s house, or one of those billionaire heiresses from the past…….I took lots of pictures, and I have searched, but I can’t find them. I only have the few we framed….none of the shop or Gili…………just my wonderful memories

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“THE HONEY BERBER NECKLACE & EARRING SET”

………………………This is my interpretation of one of my Berber Necklaces…………………I LOVE anything ethnic….I love artisan hand made things that are made with love and the talent and the imagination of the maker…………..The BERBER people are very special….They are a very proud people and don’t like to be compared to anyone else….They do not consider themselves as Arabs as such…..they are Berbers!…….The jewelry and items we bought for our home I will always cherish, because of the wonderful memories that they bring back to me…………………..My interpretation of this Berber necklace is very true to the original. The Berbers used BIG beads all hand carved and polished. Silver was mostly the metal they used. Over the years the silver aged and oxidized. The metal beads were many times fluted or had what looked like….tiny metal bead work. The spacer beads have this bead work and the larger metal beads and caps are all fluted or “ribbed”…..Some of the color beads are translucent and some have a cloudy opaque look, just as the real ones do…..I tried to simulate the real amber in resin. We are calling it Honey. I wanted to call it Amber, but we were not allowed to because it isn’t real amber, but an AMBER COLOR it is!…..The metal is SILVER OX to look like the aged metal beads of the original…..The earring has a smaller bead with two smaller fluted beads on either side. It has a lever back…….This necklace has some weight to it due to the solid resin beads, but will be very wearable for most…….I originally had many more beads in the necklace, as the original, but had to remove some to bring the weight down. Now I think it is perfectly balanced………Do not be afraid to wear these necklaces on prints as they are bold enough to carry their own importance…….This is an accent necklace….meaning it doesn’t have to coordinate with anything……..Wear it as the Berbers proudly would, and do…..with everything they own………..J392832, is the style number for the set……..I am very well aware this is not for everyone, and frankly I wouldn’t want it to be. It is for those who love artisan work….for those who love jewelry from different cultures…..for those who proudly know they are wearing something special……………………………enjoy……………………………much Love……………………………….Louis

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“THE OLIVE BERBER NECKLACE & EARRING SET”

……………………….OLIVE is a color I keep going back to time after time. I think it’s the perfect neutral AND accent color. I’m a sucker for anything that has SAFARI or MILITARY colors, and all olive shades are perfect……….The SAND of the DESERT, and the PALMS of an OASIS are so natural and pleasing together, as in the crinkle georgette safari shirt and lace pant…..Add a little spice like the SANGRIA CREPE GAUZE TUNIC with the straw and olive crepe gauze pieces, and the Olive Necklace pulls it all together. The CRINKLE GEORGETTE SHIRT with the DILL Lace pant takes the pant from being dressy to something much more casual….add the necklace and you are ready for a dinner in some Moroccan hideaway…….Again, this is a wonderful necklace for prints. They balance well together…Sometimes you want the accessories to meld, and sometimes you want them to stand out…..It’s all an eye game……………………enjoy……………………..much Love…………………………Louis

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“THE OLIVE BERBER NECKLACE UP CLOSE”

……………………………………The beauty of the chiseled beads combined with the smooth barrel beads, and the Brass Ox metal beads, both fluted and bead detailed, held together by the perfect chain are all the subtle details that go into making this glorious BERBER NECKLACE…………………….enjoy……………………………much Love………………………………Louis

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