Meet Katherine Paul, the Colombian Designer Bringing the World’s Finest Emeralds to Southern California
Meet Katherine Paul, the Colombian Designer Bringing the World’s Finest Emeralds to Southern California When people hear about Colombia, they often think of coffee, cumbia music, vibrancy, and the inviting warmth of Hispanic culture. But there’s something else Colombia is also known for: emeralds. For Katherine Paul, founder and creative director of the fine jewelry brand Mera Jewelry , those emeralds are part of her home, and she wants to share that with the world. Paul grew up in Colombia, where emeralds are ingrained in the country’s culture. People have mined them for centuries, traded them across borders, worn them as royalty, and prized them for a green so distinctive that collectors can immediately recognize their Colombian origin. Today, that connection follows Paul and Mera Jewelry to Southern California. But Paul hasn’t just built an emerald company. Mera Jewelry is a meeting point between two parts of Paul’s life: her Colombian heritage and the technical understanding of...