A Girl’s Best Friend

A couple of weeks ago I received a flyer in the mail for the International Jewelry Show here in Hong Kong.  Very familiar with bead shows (due to my aunt's amazing talent in jewelry making), I figured that I might stop by to see how Hong Kong does these shows.  Little did I know that the bead shows I had attended in the US didn't hold a candle to this event.  When I walked up to the entrance for the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center I was greeted by flashing lights (you may have seen my Instragram Photo) and girls walking around holding beautiful pieces of jewelry.  WOW!  This was like nothing I had ever seen before.  I headed up to registration where I snaked through a line of people to receive my ID badge, which was scanned by a bar code reader before I walked into each large convention room to view the jewelry.  What an event! Please see some pictures that I wanted to share below.  Out of respect for the designers, jewelry makers, vendors and other buyers, I didn't take photos of any of the actual jewelry and specific designs, but I hope some of my pictures give you an idea of what it was like.  Or maybe you will just have to fly out here to attend the next one and see for yourself.  It was absolutely amazing! Crazy Facts... This year was the 30th year for the Hong Kong International Jewelry Show and it lasted 5 days!  Last year's statistics revealed that there was over 3,000 exhibitors from over 48 different countries and regions!  For more information on the HK International Jewelry Show you can visit THIS WEBSITE.

Walking into the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center...

There were 5 floors of exhibits!  Can you see all the escalators?  When I walked in, I was handed a guide map which was 143 pages thick!

Walking into each hall, you would look left and right and see booth after booth, after booth!

Girls were standing at the tops and bottoms of each escalator directing buyers with signs.  Can you see the large map behind her on the wall?

Just to give you an idea...this is one page from my guide book.  It showed all the booths/exhibits in one corner of one floor in only ONE hall!

Everywhere I walked, I saw signs from different countries, listened to people speaking a variety of different languages and watched as men and women alike wheeled their suitcases full of jewelry up and down the aisles trying to navigate their way to the next booth.

Some of the jewelry cases you walked by were lined with flowers and sparkling lights.

There were even back rooms you could visit to try on some of the exquisite jewelry yourself, or in this case have someone buy it for you!

The last and top floor reminded me more of what I was used to from the bead shows I have attended in the US.  You could purchase loose stones and full strands of beads...whatever you wanted to make any kind of jewelry your heart desired.

What an amazing and EXHAUSTING day!  Next year, I hope to attend, but these are some of my take-aways...

- Do not attend on the last day...I felt rushed as 5:30 was approaching.  The exhibitors were ready to get out of there after 5 days and started packing up their booths around 3pm. - Try to get to the show earlier in the day when it's a bit quieter and not as rushed and packed with people. - Bring CASH!  Most booths do not take cash or check.  Oh and set a budget, it's easy to get carried away...especially with WHOLESALE prices! - Sit down and make a plan of what kind of jewelry you are interested in seeing, what exhibitors you want to visit and what particular pieces you are interested in purchasing. - Bring a friend...it's always nice having someone to discuss the jewelry pieces with and get a second opinion if you decide to purchase something. - DO NOT wear high heels!  Big mistake Grace, big!  haha!

Thanks for reading and Happy Tuesday!  I will see you tomorrow for another style post.