The Mindful Journey of Hardy & Diamond
Five days in Sri Lanka with Jessica Diamond and Joanna Hardy, to experience firsthand the true value of gemstones and embrace a more conscious way of buying
It all began with a trip to Sri Lanka, when Jessica Diamond, Jewelry and Watch Director at The ST Style, The Times LUXX, and CNT, told Joanna Hardy, an independent fine jewelry consultant, how difficult it was to buy gemstones in a country where gems – especially sapphires – are among the main resources. From that conversation, the Hardy & Diamond project was born: a true journey to that distant land to discover what really lies behind a gem. Five days of touring artisanal mines, sapphire markets, and cutters’ workshops, accompanied by Jess and Joanna: you observe, you listen, you touch. You learn to choose with awareness, to understand a stone’s provenance and its story. Then, back in the UK, comes the final step: the stone is transformed into a jewel that, perhaps, is no longer the most precious thing about the journey.
