Anyone is bound to be captivated by the abundantly colourful creations of Korean designer Kim Young Hee. In an interview, Kim said coloured gemstones paired with gold and silver are used without limits in her designs to reflect people's various stories.

“My mission is to make jewellery that helps the wearer find her individuality and true beauty,” she noted.

Tourmalines and opals, among others, are prevalent in Kim's collections under the Curly Cat brand, which she established in 2001. These two gemstones also played a key role in her lifelong love affair with stories and eventual career as a jewellery designer.

Kim recalled fairy tale-like imaginings from her childhood: One sunny afternoon, a lonely little girl is dazzled by the gemstones on a brooch that she had secretly hidden from her mother. She then finds herself trapped by whirling lights that transport her into a secret world inside the gems.

The gems on her mother's brooch were tourmalines and opals.

“I would travel to that alternate world every day. After many years, the stories unfolding from within the gems along with the characters from my imagination have evolved and become more diverse,” noted Kim.

Many characters make up Kim's “jewellery world.” There's a fairy who makes a pair of shoes for his beloved princess using his own pair of wings; a deaf father who memorises rhythms from songs by heart so he could dance with his daughter; the Snow Queen who regained all expressions on her face through love; and a poem about going through a “maze of the ear” to the lover's heart.

There's one focal theme that ties all the stories together: Love and sacrifice.

“I want to incorporate these fairy tales into my jewellery to express the love of extreme sacrifice,” revealed Kim. “I write fairy tales and poems from memories and design my jewellery collections accordingly. To me, stories and jewellery are two in one.”

Artistic inspirations

Kim also draws inspiration from classic literary pieces such as The Happy Prince by Oscar Wilde. Her Water Lilies collection meanwhile pays tribute to the eight water lily murals by Monet, which are displayed at Musée de l'Orangerie in Paris.

An opal necklace from this collection mirrors the calm waters of the pond while the opal rings and earrings with diamond accents are reminiscent of the vivid petals with dew. The pendant is detachable and can be worn as a brooch.

The pieces come in 18-karat gold with 24-karat yellow gold plating. Silver jewellery pieces are also available.

Curly Cat has an online showroom and a store in Korea, its major market. Meeting buyers from Hong Kong, Japan and China at a trade show in Hong Kong last year, Kim commented, “I want to make jewellery pieces that can brighten people's souls. Those who have precious memories in their hearts, and those who have survived a painful experience and found courage again because of their loved ones, will understand my jewellery.”