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The Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center is a dazzling piece of architecture. The glass-walled, six-story building, which hosted the ceremony when Hong Kong was handed over from Britain to China in 1997, shines like a set of jewels, crowning Victoria Harbor against the backdrop of Hong Kong’s dense, iconic skyline.

The convention center recently hosted the HKTDC Hong Kong International Jewelry Show 2012, one of the largest events of its kind and held annually by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.

“The Hong Kong [jewelry] market is always vibrant,” said Lawrence Ma, president of the Diamond Federation of Hong Kong, China. “But this year’s participation is record-breaking, making the fair Asia’s largest spring jewelry event.”

About 3,100 exhibitors from 48 countries participated in the 29th edition of the show, which was attended by more than 38,000 buyers, a record.

The exhibition hall was turned into a sea of loose diamonds, precious stones and both freshwater and cultured pearls.

We went behind the glitz and glamour of the show to visit some of the exhibitors in their booths and find out about the hottest new jewelry trends for this year.

Diamonds Are Forever

“Jewelry trends always follow the fashion trends,” said Joanna Hui, chief designer of Be’Vish Fine Jewelry in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong.

To match the current fashion trends of white lace and pastel-colored clothing, Hui recently designed jewelry using vibrant crystal-clear diamonds.

“Diamonds are still the main theme, because they match all the different colors of clothing,” Hui said.

Mangukia Manish of Dharam Creations, a company that sells loose diamonds in Kowloon, Hong Kong, agreed.

“The customers still prefer diamonds to other stones,” Mangukia said. “They are very beautiful, and are good investment pieces.”

However, diamond prices vary greatly, according to what’s known in the business as the 4Cs: Carat, clarity, color and cut.

“Our US customers prefer bigger diamonds on their jewelry pieces,” Mangukia said. “But our European customers prefer smaller sizes of top quality.”

Diamonds are also graded on a color scale from D (colorless) to Z (light yellow). The D-scale diamonds are considered extremely precious and they have the price to match.

Tanzanites Are for Now

Tanzanites, named for their country of origin, Tanzania, are rarer than diamonds and are becoming more popular. The sparkling blue semi-precious stone can only be found in a mine near Mount Kilimanjaro ­— its single source and limited supply make tanzanite more than 1,000 times rarer than diamonds.

One of the most dazzling displays at the show was a 410-carat, heart-shaped blue tanzanite stone.

At a first glance, it resembles the Heart of the Ocean pendant worn by actress Kate Winslet in the 1997 blockbuster “Titanic.”

“Tanzanites are getting very popular these days,” said Vincente Sy, sales manager of Gems Trading Co. in Kowloon. “It’s rarer than diamonds, but much less expensive.”

According to Sy, a top-quality 10-carat tanzanite stone is priced at around $400, while a crystal-clear diamond of the same size can be priceless.

“Tanzanite has been developing in the US and European markets for 10 years now,” he said. “I believe it will be very popular in Asia soon.”

Unique Designs for a Unique You

“People like unique and special jewelry pieces nowadays,” said Park Soo-kyung, the creative director of Gumha Chilbo in Seoul.

“Something that’s one-of-a-kind and represents their individual nature. So, I think our products are going to be very popular. Enamel jewelry is unique, and no two pieces are ever alike.”

Gumha Chilbo was established more than 15 years ago and specializes in the traditional techniques of cloisonne enameling, or decorating metal objects with vitreous enamel, precious metals and gemstone inlays. The treatment results in a distinctive pearly brilliance.

This was the first year Gumha Chilbo displayed its pieces at the Hong Kong show. The company mainly sells its products in South Korea, but is seeking to expand into other Asian countries.

At the exhibition, Gumha Chilbo presented a range of butterfly-themed brooches, hairpins and jewelry boxes.

“In Korea, butterflies are symbols of good fortune and longevity,” Park said. “So people like to have one for good luck.”

Year of the Dragon

As might have been expected during the Year of the Water Dragon, there were plenty of dragon-themed pieces on display at the Hong Kong show, including brooches, pendants, rings and earrings designed to resemble the powerful mythical creature.

One of the most beautiful pieces was an oversized jade pendant in the shape of a flying dragon by Wang Yue-Yaw Jewelry of Taiwan. The pendant was encased in an 18-carat gold setting encrusted with diamonds, and priced at a cool $73,000.

“My mother designed all the jewelry pieces for the company,” said Mike Chong, Wang Yue-Yaw’s son. “They’re much desired by our customers in mainland China and Hong Kong.”

Though tastes are constantly changing, Wang Yue-Yaw has been in the industry for more than 18 years, and has maintained a following by adhering to classic Chinese motifs of gods, dragons and phoenixes.

“Some of the younger generations prefer light, contemporary jewelry pieces,” Chong said. “But the traditional designs will never go out of style in Asia. They’re classic and timeless.”

Be a Bride Every Day

Some wedding jewelry pieces can be detached from their original arrangements and be worn as daily jewelry pieces.

Be’Vish introduced one such unique set of wedding jewelry at this year’s exhibition.

“In Hong Kong, people spend a lot of money on wedding jewelry,” said chief designer Hui. “But they’ll only wear it once and then put it in a safe-deposit box. I decided that our wedding jewelry should be able to be worn many, many times.”

Hui designed detachable pieces that can be worn as elaborate wedding jewelry, or as simple everyday jewels.

“For example, a tiara can be detached and made into a necklace, bracelet and earrings for daily wear,” the designer explained. “The customers can do it themselves very easily.”

Be’Vish wedding jewelry is priced at around $13,000 per piece.

A Silver Lining

“Gold is getting more expensive these days,” said Luisa Unson, co-owner of Sterling Gifts of Manila.

“But the price of silver is relatively stable at about $30 per ounce. That’s why many customers are turning to silver jewelry now.”

At the show, Sterling Gifts offered necklaces, rings and bangles engraved with Alibata, an ancient Philippine alphabet, as well as silver figurines, cutlery and men’s belt buckles with zodiac designs.

“They’re special gift items for the special people in your life,” Unson said of his jewelry, which is priced from $70 to $100 a piece.

Kadek Hendra Suarjaya, owner and manager of Suarjaya Silver of Celuk, Bali, said he had also enjoyed a substantial increase in the sale of his silver jewelry over the past two years.

“We’re getting more orders from our international buyers, but there is a lot of competition in the market,” Kadek said. “We joined this exhibition in order to survive, and to expand our market.”

Suarjaya Silver presented oversized silver rings, bangles and necklaces with traditional Balinese designs and elaborate engravings at this year’s Hong Kong exhibition. Suarjaya has been in the jewelry business for more than seven years, operating a workshop in Celuk with 50 silver artisans. They export their products mainly to the United States.

Suarjaya Silver was one of three participants from Indonesia, including Untung Bersama Sejahtera from Surabaya and UC Silver from Ubud.

UC Silver has participated in the show for six years, and introduced its latest line, called Sweet Dragonfly, this year.

“Dragonflies are small, yet they’re very tough and resilient,” said Arya Sutedja, the owner of UC Silver . “They can beat their flimsy-looking wings at a speed of 120 kilometers per hour.”

“We want to be a local brand that goes global,” he said. “We’re confident in our products and craftsmanship. We believe we can expand and reach the world market.”

For more information on the HKTDC Hong Kong International Jewelry Show, visit www.hktdc.com/hkjewellery