African shells are transformed into gold and diamond jewelry. With inspiration from the ancient rites of the black continent ♦
Africa and diamonds are a natural pairing. But African designers with the experience and taste to work in the West are few: among them is Catherine Sarr, born and raised in France, but originally from Benin, the designer then chose to live and work in London. Before founding Almasika, which in 2021 was selected among the finalists at Couture Design, she worked for several luxury brands, including De Beers. Catherine’s passion for jewelry goes hand in hand with her fascination with the traditional designs of her country of origin. Almasika is the result of this ambivalence. The name comes from Almasi, the Swahili word for diamond, and Sika, which means gold in several West African languages.
One example was her first collection, Le Cauri Endiamanté, which takes the shape of a shell, the classic cowrie shell. This shell has been a symbol of prosperity, spirituality and fertility in the past: it has been used for ornaments and even as a currency in several African kingdoms, becoming synonymous with wealth and luck. And they are still used by fortune tellers or worn as a talisman. In this case, however, they are also an appreciable jewel in gold and diamonds. Another symbolic collection of Almasika’s style is Universum, a line with jewels inspired by cosmic geometry.
