The Tradition of Local Jewellery at the John Hardy Workshop

A tour around the elegant showroom of John Hardy, the world-famous Balinese jewellery-maker beloved by the stars of Hollywood, is an engaging and stimulating experience not to be missed by those passionate about jewellery. Only at the John Hardy Workshop & Kapal Bamboo Boutique of Desa Mambal, is it possible to learn how to design and create jewellery using ancient techniques passed down over the years by local experts and craftsmen who, every day, create the precious gold and silver works of art displayed in the luminous showcases of the boutique. Immersed in a natural oasis, Kapal Bamboo Boutique is an original and imposing bamboo and thatched alang alang structure in the form of a boat hull, rising up out of 400 acres of lush terrain surrounded by terraced rice paddies. In the course organised in the workshop next to the boutique, you can learn the processes for creating your own personal necklace, getting a chance at carrying out the first three phases of the process - the traditional rendering of the design itself with pencil and paper, the successive illustration in water-colours of the piece of jewellery and the reproduction sculpted in wax with the help of master engravers. The next five phases, meanwhile, are explained theoretically by the instructors. It is possible to observe these able artisans during the process of creating the pieces of this refined collection of jewellery, from the initial sketches to the mounting of gems and stones. One of the most fascinating techniques, which has remained unchanged throughout the centuries, is the weaving of chains, where links are still meticulously and patiently woven by hand.