WHAT'S interesting at this year's Singapore JewelFest's Autumn/ Winter showcase are the many jewellery pieces that use diamond and gold as key design elements or as a creative complement to other precious stones.

Exhibiting exclusively in the Autumn/ Winter showcase from Oct 29 to Nov 2 are renowned jewellers such as Hellmuth, Elegance Club, YEWN, Madame Butterfly and Bedazzled with Tesoro.

German jeweller Hellmuth is featuring its signature Croco Jewellery, which is an elegant necklace designed with patterns of crocodile skin interpreted in gold with diamonds and precious stones.

On the head: Eternity necklace, D'Meyson, $21,488; On the ear: Corallia earring, The Jewel Box, $5,000; On the flowers (from left): Cielo Mare necklace, Voi, $19,199; Lilac Lush necklace, Lee Hwa, $102,328; Rosa Noir brooch, Brilliant Rose, $520,278; Confetti necklace, Marco Bicego, $10,650; Flamenco necklace, Hearts on Fire, $44,800. Flowers used on this page: Hydrangea, Zantedeschia, Ostrich Feathers, Iceland Moss

Local brand Bedazzled with Tesoro is showcasing Black Beauty, a 30m wide black jade bangle embellished with diamonds and three types of jadeites.

One designer who loves working with diamonds and gold is home-grown jewellery designer Joon Courtenay. She will be unveiling The Serpent from her Dangerous Collection at SJF2008. Symbolising the seduction of nature is the sensuous Serpent necklace, which is made from brown and black diamonds with 66 carats on rusty-pink gold.

Ms Courtenay, who is the chief executive officer and designer of JOON, says: "Gold is a very challenging material to work with. This is because it is hard metal that can be hammered and stretched, yet it easily snaps when being woven finely by hand."

Nevertheless, Ms Courtenay loves a good challenge. She says: "When diamonds are set in gold, it calls for a rare breed of workmanship to express the material and design. All three factors have to be of top-notch quality before a piece can be called real couture jewellery. This is hard to come by, but when a jeweller does succeed, the overall effect is a work of art."

As for goldsmith wholesaler-turned-tiara- specialist Elegance Club from Malaysia, the combination of white gold and diamonds is the "ultimate expression of distinction and elegance of the inner princess". This is encapsulated in its limited edition Fleur-delis, a full diamond tiara with floral- inspired design elements. For the Autumn/ Winter showcase, Elegance Club will be featuring Rays of Light, which it describes as "a stylish diamond set for the bride with a high fashion sense".

Seasons' beauty

shu uemura, the official makeup brand of the Singapore JewelFest 2008, brings you the Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter colour rave set at an exclusive price of $106 (usual price $161).

The set consists of High Performance Cleaning Oil (50ml), UV Underbase Mousse (30g), two Pressed Eye Shadows and one Lip Colour (choice of Rouge Unlimited, Rouge Unlimited Crystal Shine, Rouge Unlimited Cr?me Matte, Gloss Unlimited or Vinyl Unlimited).

• Exclusively for UOB cardmembers: Purchase any two Phyto Black or White Recovery EX+ products and receive a three-piece starter kit from the same range.
• Terms and conditions apply. While stocks last.

This article was first published in The Straits Times on Oct 24, 2008.