Hong Kong has a lot of jewellery stores. Like Jessie J, we love the bling bling over here. However,…read moreif you want to get away from the chain store monstrosities selling solid gold sculptures of winged horses riding waves, but don't want to go as contemporary cool as platinum "art" stones the size of tennis balls, you can get your jewellery custom made. And for that, I can recommend only one place - Ellis in Wan Chai.
Ellis Jewellery, named after the owner Ellis - quite possibly the nicest man in HK, sells a great number of standard pieces, from engagement rings, chains and necklaces, charms, cufflinks, you get the idea! However, Ellis' real talent comes in custom crafting jewellery from your ideas. What I mean by this is, you can take Ellis a sketch for a piece of jewellery, and he will translate your cigarette packet doodle into a practical, long lasting pice of art. He will also do all of this for a very reasonable cost compared to the big boys. Where on Earth can one get a one off custom piece for less than the production models that come in 20,000 piece runs? Ellis, that's where!
I find buying from Ellis very refreshing, especially his very honest and trustworthy approach. A lot of businesses will try to up-sell, but not Ellis. I wanted to buy an item in platinum, but was actually told to have the piece made in silver as the more malleable metal would have given the item a longer life. The silver was about one tenth of the cost of the platinum, and though he lost out on a huge payday, Ellis' advice was completely right. He is also completely upfront with timescales. If your design takes four days to make, it will take four days to make. Not two days then "so sorry, come back in two more days". This makes him a hit with the tourists who are passing through, as well as those of us who leave shopping for an anniversary just that little bit too late!
So if you are thinking of getting down on one knee, or wanting to to get something for a loved one, I thoroughly recommend Ellis. Committing your design ideas to reality is hard enough, but with Ellis guiding you, you will not be disappointed. And nor will that special someone!