The Damali Collection: Lily Gabriella Traces the Relationship Between Body and Soul

The woman’s name Damali that was given by the Lily Elia, the creative director of Lily Gabriella brand, to one of her collections, translates from the Arabic as “beautiful vision”. And indeed, the ornate pieces made from four shades of gold and multicoloured gemstones do spark and caress the eye. Initially, the succinct composition comprised of 5 intricate pendants on a long chain, which in itself was very impressive. However, Lily continued to build on the theme she had initiated, adding four pairs of earrings which were no less complex in design.

The concept of the Damali collection has been strongly influenced by Eastern culture, décor and architecture, as Lily has visited Oman several times. There are many buildings which, inside and out, are decorated with the arabesque patterned ornamentations of stylised leaves, flowers and geometrical shapes. The recurring elements, the ornate and overlapping lines are all reflected in the Damali jewellery. Lily was particularly impressed by the decoration and atmosphere of spiritual centres, which gave rise to the contour and character of her collection.

Damali is not just jewelled accessories, “this collection is based on the connection of mind and soul. The soul is the essence of mankind, where our emotions stem from, whereas the mind is human consciousness which decides and interprets how to fulfil these emotions and desires. – Lily Gabriella

Lily found it equally important to give the jewels spiritual overtones, as well as to come up with a modern, engaging and unusual design. It took three months to develop the “look” of the Damali earrings, which eventually emerged as a colourful and contrasting pairs. The creator decorated them with multi-coloured sapphires, colourless and cognac diamonds, amethysts, topaz and tsavorites. The gemstones became the finishing design element, falling down the chain from the back of the ear. They are attached to earrings back which, if you so desire, can be swapped with some standard “butterfly” backs. All four pairs of earrings were made in the best workshops in Milan in accordance with the designer’s sketches.

Lily thought over her capsule collection with close attention to the most minute details, and even gave an explanation as to why she released 4 pairs of earrings and 5 pendants. If you add up the individual pieces of the earrings, they come up to 8 items, which represents infinity, and the number 5 is the Hamsa, “God’s hand”, a protective symbol in the Middle East. The collection has only earrings and pendants in it, because they “frame and balance the mind and connect it to our core, the centre axis to our body and close to the heart, our principal organ which has always been linked to our emotions. The circular shape and shapes within the pieces represent timelessness and wholeness, infinity and eternity.”