JEDDAH: Saudi jeweler Hanan Al-Balawi turned her father’s hobby of collecting stones into a business to give travelers the chance to carry part of AlUla with them wherever they go.
“My father has been collecting natural stones for a long time, he used to polish some of them and keep them for himself,” said the a 24-year-old owner of Peerless from AlUla.
“I lost the pearl of my favorite ring once and I was so upset, and my father said that he will find an alternative for it, a few hours later he brought the ring with a polished stone on it instead.”
Peerless offers modern jewelry made from colorful precious stones collected from the AlUla desert over decades. (Photos by Khalid Al-Anazy/Supplied)
Peerless offers modern jewelry designed and made of pure silver and gold-plated silver, as well as precious stones that Al-Balawi collects from the AlUla desert during trips with her father and sister.
“Every stone I put in our jewelry is connected with a beautiful memory from our stone-collecting trips since I was six years old,” she said.
HIGHLIGHTS
• AlUla’s desert is characterized by many interesting types of stone due to its rocky nature, including the finest types of agate, amazonite, jasper, quartz, amethyst, and howlite, among others.
• The Saudi jewelry brand can transform visitors’ favorite stones into unique pieces of jewelry so that they can wear and keep a memento inspired by AlUla.
“We compete on finding the best stones, and the desert here surprises us with plenty of interesting gemstones every time.”
AlUla’s desert is characterized by many interesting types of stone due to its rocky nature, including the finest types of agate, amazonite, jasper, quartz, amethyst, and howlite, among others.
A man wearing a ring created by Peerless. (Instagram/alulatourism)
Al-Balawi works in the family workshop, where they all cut and shape stones and craft unique pieces of jewelry. “Sometimes one stone can make two completely different pieces, and that is where all the natural fascination can be found.”
Peerless also provides the possibility of transforming visitors’ favorite stones into unique jewelry so that they can wear a piece inspired by their love for AlUla and its history. “We try very hard to produce visitors’ pieces quickly to ensure that they take a piece of precious AlUla with them around the world.”
The brand also offers stone slices on metal or acrylic stands and rosaries.
Peerless offers modern jewelry made from colorful precious stones collected from the AlUla desert over decades. (Photos by Khalid Al-Anazy/Supplied)
Al-Balawi and her sister learned the craft of polishing stones from their father. “We displayed our stone collection consisting of a group of polished natural stones from different parts of the AlUla desert for the first time in the second Tantora Festival in AlUla in 2019.”
In 2021, Al-Balawi joined the jewelry program at Addeera School, an arts and design center, where she is learning silversmithing and jewelry design, to further enhance her skills and knowledge.
Every stone I put in our jewelry is connected with a beautiful memory from our stone-collecting trips since I was six years old.
Hanan Al-Balawi, Saudi jeweler
Located in Al-Jadidah, Addeera School offers weekly workshops on topics ranging from painting with natural earthen pigments to building collaborative 3D geometric structures.
Al-Balawi was among the very first batches to join the Addeera School before it was officially launched last year. “Next year, I will complete three years, and I will receive an accredited certificate in jewelry making.”
Al-Balawi said that the efforts made by Addeera School for her to acquire such skills are “tremendous,” as the jewelry-crafting courses offered cannot be found elsewhere in the Kingdom. “We learned everything from scratch, including all the techniques related to the jewelry industry, from welding to melting, wax molds, copying, casting, and mixing of metal titers.”
